A week in the life of a Music Technology student
A week in the life of a Music Technology student
Hi there, I’m Chester, a second year student here at Buckinghamshire New University studying Music Technology. Join me as we dive in and explore what a week as a music student looks like, and what we get up to. Before we get started, let’s have a brief look at some of the different music courses here at BNU. There is a huge range of sectors in which you can study music. There are courses including Music Technology, Audio and Music Production, Music Business and Sound Design. Now onto the good stuff! Let’s dig into what students studying these subjects might get up to in an average week.
During the weekdays all music students have 12 hours of contact time, in the form of lectures, spread over the week. You will have four modules and have one lecture per module. So, each week there are four three-hour lectures where you explore topics at an in-depth level. On top of this, music students are expected to do an additional 20-30 hours of independent study.
So, during the daytime in the week, it is study, study, study. Although this sounds like a lot of work, it's not as intense as it may sound. Independent study can include studio time, band practices and other practical, fun things. In the evenings there are lots of opportunities for music students get involved with. At the Students’ Union there are a range of events, from live gigs to DJ sets and HMV live and local.
The studios are available to hire out all year round, not just Monday to Friday - equipment can be hired out over the weekends. This is great for students as you can get quality, uninterrupted studio/band practise time.
During the weekends, it is a similar sort of pattern, excluding the lectures! Over the weekends, pubs and bars host bands and artists for gigs and jam sessions. There are also a range of places to visit within close proximity to High Wycombe, for example, Marlow, Oxford and London. These places are great for a spontaneous weekend trip!
Hopefully this gives you a rough idea of what students get up to throughout the week at Buckinghamshire New University! If you have any questions, don’t hesitate to get in contact with the ambassador scheme via the website.