The Musical Audio Engineering (B.S.M.A.E.) degree program is designed to prepare students for the broadest spectrum of recording studio operations, the equipment used in recording studios, live recording environments, and in-depth understanding of equipment design, maintenance, and operations. Graduates of this program will not only be able to operate audio equipment, but they will be able to design audio equipment as skilled musicians.

The musical audio engineering degree, housed in the College of Engineering in collaboration with the School of Music, offers a balance between the two disciplines to prepare students for careers involving technical aspects of music. The goal of this degree is to graduate students who can fully understand how to design, maintain and operate performance and recording equipment and are musically trained to know how technical aspects can be applied in a creative context. This degree path is an opportunity for students who want to be an engineer but also have a passion for the arts.

Students who pursue this degree will learn about recording studio operations, live recording environments, equipment use and the signal processing necessary to become trained audio engineers. Students must take a mixture of foundational engineering courses, like physics, electronics and calculus, as well as traditional music courses, like performance, history and theory, to earn their degrees.

Graduates of this program will be able to find jobs at including but not limited to community centers, religious organizations, civic centers, television and radio stations, and music venues. In addition, graduates could also work as consultants and advisers on hardware and software manufacturing.

The program is capped at 60 students per year who must audition for the School of Music to be accepted. The degree requires a total of 126 credit hours.