The Institute Of Contemporary Music Performance
Bachelor of Arts in Audio Engineering and Music Production
London, United Kingdom
BA
DURATION
3 years
LANGUAGES
English
PACE
Full time
APPLICATION DEADLINE
EARLIEST START DATE
14 Sep 2026
TUITION FEES
GBP 16,250 / per year *
STUDY FORMAT
On-Campus
* international student fee
Key Summary
Develop an advanced technical understanding of all aspects of sound engineering and audio production, as you become proficient in using state-of-the-art hardware and software in an industry-standard professional recording studio environment.
If you’re keen to launch a professional career as a recording, mixing, or mastering engineer in both studio and live environments, this three-year audio engineering degree course teaches you everything you need to know to an advanced level.
Spending plenty of time in ICMP’s cutting-edge recording studios over the three years of your course, you’ll become an advanced production professional, getting to grips with elements including advanced recording methods, audio editing, and post-production, multi-track mixing and mastering.
Despite being highly practical, this course isn’t afraid to explore the more theoretical concepts of audio engineering, such as musical language, acoustics and psychoacoustics. These principles are used as a base to explain the more functional areas of the industry, including studio design, audio signal analysis and processing, microphone technology and application, live sound reinforcement and capture, and modular synthesis.
Spending plenty of time in ICMP’s cutting-edge recording studios over the three years of your course, you’ll become an advanced production professional, getting to grips with elements including advanced recording methods, audio editing, and post-production, multi-track mixing and mastering.
Lessons will also take place in ICMP’s fully-kitted-out Mac labs, teaching spaces, and rehearsal rooms – all equipped with high-quality production equipment and digital audio workstations (DAWs). Gear includes top-of-the-range instruments, microphones, PAs, loop stations, controllers, effects pedals, vocal processors, and more. As an ICMP student, you can book these facilities free of charge for personal use, seven days a week, outside of class hours.
Your learning will be guided by our faculty of highly experienced tutors, who are all exemplary educators and experts in their fields. They’ll provide expertise and support as you get to know the modern music industry, and will cover audio engineering entrepreneurship, marketing, PR and branding.
Key facts
- Get industry-ready and prepare for a career as a professional recording, mixing or mastering engineer.
- Gain real-world experience in audio engineering, production, post-production and recording.
- Develop the advanced technical skills to confidently work in any studio environment – from a professional recording studio to a ‘home studio’ set up.
- Study in a professional music production environment using world-class industry-standard equipment and facilities.
- Acquire business, marketing, entrepreneurial and networking skills, learning how to promote your own portfolio career.
- Opportunities to assist and collaborate in recording sessions using ICMP’s impressive in-house studios.
- Develop your professional network across ICMP’s talented student and alumni communities.
- Connect with global music scene professionals at events and masterclasses as you build your network.
- Showcase your professional and creative talents at live gigs and performances across London.
Creative Development Scholarship 2026/27
ICMP offers a scholarship up to the value of £4,000 to each eligible EU, EEA or Swiss student enrolling on one of our undergraduate CertHE and degree programmes or postgraduate programmes, starting in September 2026.
To qualify for this scholarship you should be an EU, EEA or Swiss applicant, who has been resident in either the UK, an EU or EEA country or Switzerland for a minimum of three years.
All applicants fulfilling this criterion will automatically receive our Creative Development Scholarship. There is no need to complete any additional paperwork.
ICMP reserves the right to review and amend scholarship criteria at any time. We also reserve the right to withdraw this offer of a scholarship to new applicants at any time.
Course Details
Year 1
During your first year on the course, you’ll be introduced to the theoretical, practical and technical fundamentals of music production and audio engineering. You’ll investigate concepts including signal processing and critical listening, while getting hands-on in the recording studio and using digital audio workstations (DAWs), exploring techniques such as sequencing, audio editing and microphone technology. Your first year will see you develop an entrepreneurial knowledge of the music industry and investigate a range of audio engineering career options.
- Digital Audio Workstations
- Audio Engineering Techniques
- Live Sound Engineering
- Music Business For Audio Engineers
- Theory Of Sound
- Audio Programming
Year 2
Across your second year, you’ll expand on many of the skills, techniques, conceptual theories and business ideas introduced in your first year of study. Delving more deeply into the world of sound design, you’ll discover creative synthesis and have many fun opportunities to collaborate with fellow students across a range of live and studio-based scenarios. You’ll increasingly follow your interests and passions in your projects and assessments, focusing on the direction you’d like your future music-industry career to take.
- Sound Design And Creative Synthesis
- Marketing Strategies
- Advanced Live Sound Engineering
- Mix Engineering
- Studio Engineering
- Audio Editing And Post-Production
Year 3
In your final year, you’ll take your audio engineering and music production skills to a professional industry-standard level. Studying advanced mixing, mastering and recording techniques, you’ll graduate confident in using the latest cutting-edge equipment in a commercial studio environment. By undertaking self-directed projects in your areas of interest, you’ll start to map out your career and produce a real-world entrepreneurial business plan you can use to progress your path to future employment.
- Advanced Studio Engineering
- Mastering Engineering
- Professional Practice
- Creative Audio Engineering Project
Teaching and Learning
On the BA (Hons) Audio Engineering and Production programme you will be taught through a variety of lectures, seminars, workshops and demonstrations.
When not attending lectures, seminars or other timetabled sessions you'll be expected to continue learning independently through self-study. Typically, this will involve reading articles and books, working on individual and group projects, undertaking research in the library, and preparing coursework assignments.Your independent learning is supported by a range of excellent facilities, including our Learning Resource Centre, our many performance and practice rooms, and well-equipped tech suites.
In your first year, you'll be in timetabled teaching activities such as lectures, seminars, practical classes and workshops for typically 10-12 hours a week, you’ll also have personalised one-to-one tutorials scheduled throughout the year.
You'll undertake more independent study and have less scheduled teaching in years 2 and 3, but can typically expect 8-10 hours of timetabled classes per week in your second year and 6-8 hours of timetabled classes per week in your third year.