Music

Music as a university subject is far broader than performance alone. It encompasses composition, music history and criticism, music technology, and the study of music's relationship to culture, society, and identity. A music degree asks you to engage with the art form analytically and creatively, to understand why music sounds the way it does and what it means in the contexts in which it is made and heard.

The three-year full-time Music programme at the University of Sussex is designed for the contemporary musician in the fullest sense. The course is geared towards performing, composing, writing, and debating, with a strong emphasis on developing the versatility to thrive in different professional and industry contexts. You will study music from multiple angles, developing your ear, your critical vocabulary, and your practical skills in parallel.

The available foundation year means that students who want additional preparation before the main programme can build their knowledge and confidence at their own pace. A sandwich year provides the chance to gain professional experience mid-degree, while the year abroad and work placement options allow you to extend your studies into international and applied settings. These structural features together make for a flexible pathway through the degree.

The Sussex environment, close to Brighton's active music scene and within easy reach of London, gives the programme a live and contemporary dimension. You will engage with questions about the music industry, about digital distribution and the economics of being a working musician, as well as with the longer traditions of Western classical music, world music, and popular music studies. Composition, performance, and analytical writing all feature, and you are encouraged to bring your own musical interests into the work you produce.

Graduates of music programmes work as performers, composers, music teachers, producers, arts administrators, and in roles across the broader creative industries. Many go on to postgraduate study in performance, composition, musicology, or music technology. The critical and creative thinking developed through a music degree is also valued well beyond the music sector, and graduates find paths in media, education, publishing, and cultural policy.