Welcome to the APME Memphis 2025 conference. Here, you’ll be able to register for the conference and update your Sched profile. The conference schedule will be available in late spring 2025. At that time, you can view the schedule and select the presentations you’d like to attend. If you have any questions, please visit our conference website or contact us at conference@popularmusiceducation.org We look forward to coming together as a community June 4–7, 2025.
This presentation will synthesize the findings of a representative national survey of music industry degree alumni regarding their career trajectories post-graduation, job satisfaction, perceived development of skills while pursuing their degrees, and extent to which they considered those skills relevant to their current work. Data for this presentation originated from the Strategic National Arts Alumni Project’s (SNAAP) 2022 survey of arts alumni. According to SNAAP, the goal of the survey program is to gather and analyze data to better understand “the professional success, educational satisfaction, and personal fulfillment of arts alumni” (https://snaaparts.org). The 2022 survey was distributed to 118 postsecondary institutions within the United States, with over 61,000 alumni responding. Data from respondents who indicated they earned an undergraduate or graduate degree in “music business,” “recording arts,” “arts administration,” “performing arts management,” or similar concentrations were included in analyses. Findings indicated that, although alumni reported moderate to strong job satisfaction, significant gaps existed between respondents’ perceptions of the skill areas most important to their current work in the music industry and the skills emphasized in their degree programs. If not addressed, this mismatch may jeopardize the relevance and attractiveness of postsecondary preparation for popular music-oriented careers. Demographic data comparisons will also be featured in the presentation to demonstrate the continuing need for greater equity, diversity, and inclusion in higher education and the music industry. Additionally, insights regarding the effect of the COVID-19 pandemic on graduates’ career activities will be discussed. To conclude, practical implications for faculty, students, and industry leaders will be offered.
