Audio Pro International presents its debut column from Alchemea College by ‘Diploma in Live Sound Engineering’ course co-ordinator Darryn De La Soul. In this article she gives her thoughts on the pros and cons of studying the art of engineering within a formal higher education environment. “Every now and again I come across a bit of prejudice against educating people formally in audio. I imagine this stems from the “I swept the floor for five years before they let me touch a desk†point of view. And in years gone by this was indeed the way to get into the business and would still be legitimate if these opportunities were ever offered. “It seems to me however as someone both running a college course and helping young engineers into the workplace that just like record companies now require bands to turn up with a finished product before they’ll even get a listen employers in the audio industry want engineers to turn up with a complete set of skills. [After all how are people to get into the] industry if there are (a) no floors to sweep or (b) the cost of living is now so high no one can eat on a floor-sweeping wage? “I can also see how a theory-only university style education in sound creates genuine difficulties in the real world workplace where a piece of paper means little when it comes to pushing faders around; and also how the expectations of degree graduates clash horribly with the reality of entry-level employment opportunities. …” Read full article here.
