Graduate Focus SAE Institute: Becki Whitton

27 July 2017 | 1:42 pm | Artist Submission

Answered by: Becki Whitton

Name of institution you studied at: SAE Institute

Years attended: 2015 - 2016

What course did you study and why? I decided to study a Bachelor of Audio after I released an album that I had mixed myself - I'd been composing music just using numerous layers of my own vocals and I was frustrated that I couldn't make the mixes sound as clean and flawless as I wanted.

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Why did you choose to study at this particular institution? Haha, well, actually, I picked SAE because they had this scholarship opportunity - I was really cocky and thought I would definitely get it! I didn't get it - some other people in my year were better at audio starting out, but I attached myself to them and learnt heaps.

What's the one piece of advice you got during your time there that you still follow today? One of the biggest takeaways for me was to always try to work on projects that you're genuinely inspired by and make sure that each artist you're working with knows the respect you have for the music they're making.

How did your course prepare you for the real world applications of what you studied? The aspect of my career that I love the most is writing songs for myself and for other artists, and the technical skills taught to me through my degree are so useful in translating roughly recorded sketches into lush, fleshed-out songs.

Give us the quick resume version of what you have done since finishing studying. I work at Deluxe Mastering, doing a bunch of mixing and mastering and helping out my boss (Andrei Eremin). I've been engineering for indie labels like Spirit Level and TEEF, who always release amazing local artists, and I released an LP of my own this year, Twin Earth, on Provenance.

Any advice for anyone looking to study at this institution? This advice is for women and gender non-conforming people specifically who want to study audio: the music industry needs your skill and insight. Learning about the technical details of recording, production, mixing, and mastering at university is a good way to gain confidence and start your career.