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William Paterson University is accredited by National Association of Schools of Music
Our outstanding Department of Music prepares you for careers in classical performance, jazz performance and composition, sound engineering arts, music education, music and entertainment industries, and popular music. Our music students work directly with world-renowned faculty who are also in-demand performers. They benefit from exceptional student performance opportunities with ensembles, both on campus and throughout the New York metropolitan area. They also gain hands-on experience in our state-of-the-art music production and recording studios.
WP Music welcomes students who may have suffered from recent collegiate program closures and we are committed to helping them finish their degrees in music. We are one of the most stylistically diverse programs in the nation, with many options for aspiring performers, composers, educators, sound engineers, and music businesspersons. We are happy to facilitate transferring to WP. Please click Apply/Audition and reach out to our Chairperson Dr. Christopher Herbert and Director of Music Admissions Skyler Hagner.
Alumni in arts, humanities, and social sciences are employed or in graduate school within 6 months after graduation
Average starting salaries in Music (NACE)
Noteworthy Music Jobs and Mid-Career Salaries with 8+ Years of Experience (PayScale)
Billboard Magazine, the top trade magazine for the music industry, has listed William Paterson University in New Jersey as having one of the top music business programs in the country.
View academic program requirements and course descriptions in the University Course Catalog:
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The music education program is designed to provide future music educators with a solid basis for professional success as a teacher through courses in performance, theory, music history, music education, education, and liberal studies.
This program, for students who possess both exceptional performance abilities and aspirations, demands an intense commitment to both music practice and academics.
The jazz studies program is unique among college programs, offering an emphasis on small-group playing and a genuine commitment to the jazz tradition. One of the nation's five longest-running jazz degree programs, its faculty are all top New York professionals. Students currently come to the jazz program from 23 US states and six foreign countries.
The music major at William Paterson University offers a platform for surveying the professional musical landscape. Students learn about all areas of the music world: performance, business, education and technology while interacting with students and professionals in those respective areas.
This program is for students whose primary instrument is the laptop or computer or other digital and electronic machines. The BA DMC is centered around creativity and composition within the realm of digital music, including EDM, Hip-Hop, and other genres where beats and digital music are the focus. Students will also explore elements of audio production. A minor in music business is an option for students who want more business knowledge and career opportunities.
The bachelor of arts with popular music emphasis examines contemporary popular music from a global perspective and through the study of social media and songwriting.
The William Paterson University Sound Engineering Arts program offers students the essential combination of the technical, theoretical, practical and musical areas of the audio arts. More Info »
This minor is for students interested in recording, producing, arranging, mixing and mastering music; using the laptop as a complete production tool. The two main courses - Digital Music Creation I and II - will step the student through the process of creating a complete and compelling musical production beginning with the very basics of digital audio workstations and ending with a completed album in collaboration with other musical creators.
Led by an experienced faculty, the minor in Music & Entertainment Industries program is structured to provide the background you need to secure a career in the music and entertainment business.
The musical studies minor at William Paterson University offers a platform for surveying the professional musical landscape including performance, business, education and technology.
The Sound Engineering Arts (SEA) minor allows students to explore the recording and live sound arts. This minor fosters a more nuanced understanding of music production, including microphone usage, working with DAWs, basic editing, mastering, and production techniques.. More Info »
The jazz studies concentration offers a comprehensive experience in enhanced small jazz ensemble, solo performance, and arranging/composition and the potential for high-level, primary source research and writing only available in the New York area. More Info »
The music education concentration allows students to enhance teaching skills, bring performance skills to a higher level, and gain greater personal insight into the field of music education. More Info »
This 12-credit certificate program for practicing music educators whose specialty is not jazz consists of 3 courses and a semester of applied lessons. It can be completed in one year and can be stacked with other courses to complete a Master of Music. More Info »
This 16-credit certificate program for classical musicians who have completed college and wish to hone their performance skills consists of 2 semesters of applied lessons, ensembles, and electives, and culminates in a certificate recital. It can be completed in one year and can be stacked with other courses to complete a Master of Music. More Info »
This 16-credit certificate program for jazz musicians who have completed college and wish to hone their performance skills consists of 2 semesters of applied lessons, ensembles, and electives, and culminates in a certificate recital. It can be completed in one year and can be stacked with other courses to complete a Master of Music. More Info »
In our music programs, students learn in-demand skills that employers have identified as critical for job candidates, including:
Graduates with the BM degree pursue careers as classical performers and composers; jazz performers, composers, and arrangers; singer/songwriters, sound engineers, music teachers, and music licensing and music marketing professionals, among others. Opportunities for those with the BA in music studies include performer, producer, music booking agent, music editor, music critic, and other positions in the legal areas of the music and entertainment industry. The BA with a popular music emphasis can lead to a career as a professional performer, singer/songwriter, music producer, promotions director, or music composer for social media or video games.
And we're ready to help you grow. At William Paterson, we provide students with the skills, knowledge, and experience they need to forge forward as a powerhouse—both in the classroom and in their careers. Apply today to discover your potential.
When young musicians from Paterson came together to create an anthem celebrating their city, three William Paterson University students helped transform their work into a professionally recorded song.
William Paterson Sound Engineering Arts students Timothy Leonard ’26, Shayla Montero ’27, and Niko Nyman ’26 served as recording engineers for “Life in the Silk City,” an original composition created by students in Paterson featuring performers from the Paterson Music Project (PMP) and the Rosa L. Parks School of Fine and Performing Arts. The song and accompanying video premiered September 3 during a community celebration at Paterson School 16.
Over several days during spring break, the WP students ran recording sessions at the University that brought a rhythm section, strings, brass, woodwinds, and a children’s choir into William Paterson’s studios in the Shea Center for Performing Arts. The complexity of the musical arrangement meant that its many layers could not be recorded simultaneously.
“With careful coordination of available resources, significant pre-production planning, and some long hours, our students were able to pull it all off gracefully. This was a very strong analog to a professional recording experience in a large studio, where time management and maximizing the calendar for a project are paramount,” says Professor Phil Clifford, director of WP’s Sound Engineering Arts program. “Professional studios often have to switch gears, working on multiple projects with completely different instrumentations; this project just happened to have it all in one.”
“Life in the Silk City” grew out of a songwriting class offered through PMP, a program of Wharton Arts, a nonprofit performing arts education organization. PMP provides tuition-free afterschool music education to students in grades 1 through 12 in Paterson. The program uses music education as a vehicle for social change, providing young people with opportunities to develop musical abilities alongside skills including self-confidence, discipline, collaboration, and creative thinking.
“The students were really thoughtful about how to represent the diversity and unique personality of Paterson through their lyrics and musical choices. When you listen to the song, you’ll hear lyrics in three languages and different genres that represent the students’ interests and the diverse backgrounds that make up their community,” explains PMP Project Director Sam Tobias. “It’s not easy to represent a place as unique as Paterson all in one song, but you can hear Paterson’s past, present, and future in ‘Life in the Silk City.’”
Overall, the song’s message is one of community connection and pride—a city made stronger by its diverse residents.
“Seeing and hearing the completed ‘Life in the Silk City’ gave me a strong sense of gratitude for being able to be part of the project. It was amazing to see the hard work from my colleagues and me come together and bring such a meaningful project to life,” says Montero. “Most of all, it meant a lot to see young musicians have an opportunity like this … while also reminding me of how far I've come and how experiences like this are helping me get closer to my own professional goals in music and audio.”
Tobias says the experience at William Paterson had an impact beyond the finished recording.
“The opportunity to record in William Paterson’s facilities was a life-changing and eye-opening experience for our students,” he says. “As an educator, it’s rare that you see an immediate impact, but in the studio, I could see the gears turning in our students’ minds. Only a few days later, one of our students let us know that they intend to pursue a career in audio engineering. It’s hard to overstate how meaningful it is for students to have experiences that change the way they see the world and see themselves.”
In addition to Clifford, William Paterson faculty and administrators who contributed their time and talent to the collaboration included Professor of Music Carol Frierson-Campbell; Adjunct Professor of Sound Engineering Arts Dante Portella; and Payton MacDonald, interim associate dean of WP’s College of Arts, Humanities, and Social Sciences.
“PMP’s focus on music education as a vehicle for social change aligns so well with William Paterson’s focus on social mobility, social justice, and community engagement that it was a no-brainer to make sure we could support this project,” Clifford says. “I think everyone in the William Paterson arts community can be proud of what we accomplished together.”
Leaders from both organizations say they are eager to explore additional opportunities for University students and young musicians in Paterson to learn from one another and create together.
