Sound Engineering Technicians
What Sound Engineering Technicians Do
Assemble and operate equipment to record, synchronize, mix, edit, or reproduce sound, including music, voices, or sound effects, for theater, video, film, television, podcasts, sporting events, and other productions.
See full salary breakdown & percentiles →
Career Outlook
National employment outlook, 2024–2034.
- Related work experience
- None
- On-the-job training
- Short-term on-the-job training
- Self-employed
- 12%
Source: BLS Employment Projections — 2024-2034.
How Much Preparation Does This Take?
Job Zone 3 of 5Job Zone Three: Medium Preparation Needed
- Experience
- Previous work-related skill, knowledge, or experience is required for these occupations.
- Education
- Most occupations in this zone require training in vocational schools, related on-the-job experience, or an associate's degree.
- Job training
- Employees in these occupations usually need one or two years of training involving both on-the-job experience and informal training with experienced workers. A recognized apprenticeship program may be associated with these occupations.
Source: O*NET Job Zones.
Key Knowledge Areas
Subject-matter areas this occupation draws on most, per O*NET.
- Computers and Electronicsimportance 4.6/5
- Customer and Personal Serviceimportance 3.9/5
- Fine Artsimportance 3.8/5
- English Languageimportance 3.7/5
- Engineering and Technologyimportance 3.7/5
- Communications and Mediaimportance 3.5/5
- Production and Processingimportance 3.3/5
- Administration and Managementimportance 2.8/5
Work Environment
What the day-to-day work setting is like, per O*NET.
- E-Mail4.9/5
- Indoors, Environmentally Controlled4.7/5
- Importance of Being Exact or Accurate4.6/5
- Level of Competition4.5/5
- Face-to-Face Discussions with Individuals and Within Teams4.4/5
- Spend Time Using Your Hands to Handle, Control, or Feel Objects, Tools, or Controls4.4/5
Careers With Similar Skills
Occupations whose Transferable Skills profile most closely matches this one — a mathematical comparison, not observed data about people actually moving between these careers.
- Cardiovascular Technologists and Technicians94% skill match
- Photographic Process Workers and Processing Machine Operators94% skill match
- Firefighters94% skill match
- Forest and Conservation Workers93% skill match
- Landscaping and Groundskeeping Workers93% skill match
- Laborers and Freight, Stock, and Material Movers, Hand92% skill match
- Sailors and Marine Oilers91% skill match
- Packaging and Filling Machine Operators and Tenders91% skill match
Transferable Skills
Cross-functional skills this occupation draws on most, per O*NET — the kind that carry over to other careers.
- Complex Problem Solvingimportance 3.4/5
- Operations Monitoringimportance 3.3/5
- Operation and Controlimportance 3.3/5
- Judgment and Decision Makingimportance 3.3/5
- Coordinationimportance 3.1/5
- Service Orientationimportance 3.1/5
- Systems Analysisimportance 3.1/5
- Time Managementimportance 3.1/5
Software & Technologies
Tools and software used in this occupation, per O*NET.
Hot Technologies
Other Software Used
- Adobe Audition
- Adobe Premiere Pro
- Apple Final Cut Pro
- Audio editing software
- Avid Pro Tools
- Avid Technology Pro Tools
- Avid Technology audio visual editing software
- Cisco IOS
Work Style
Personal work characteristics that matter most for this occupation, per O*NET.
- Attention to Detail
- Dependability
- Innovation
- Adaptability
- Achievement Orientation
- Stress Tolerance
- Perseverance
Career Interests
This occupation’s RIASEC interest profile, per O*NET — how strongly it fits each of the six Holland interest types.
- RealisticHigh
- ArtisticMedium
- ConventionalMedium
- InvestigativeLow
- EnterprisingLow
- SocialLow
This page includes information from the O*NET 30.3 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA). Used under the CC BY 4.0 license. O*NET® is a trademark of USDOL/ETA.
Where This Career Is Most Concentrated
Metro areas where sound engineering technicians make up the largest share of local employment, relative to the national average (BLS location quotient).
- 1Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA5.34× national avg
- 2Nashville-Davidson--Murfreesboro--Franklin, TN3.50× national avg
- 3New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ2.45× national avg
- 4San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA2.32× national avg
- 5Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI2.29× national avg
Possible Career Moves
A computed starting point, not observed job-change data — see the full list for why each one might fit.
- Magnetic Resonance Imaging TechnologistsCareer Change
- Cardiovascular Technologists and TechniciansCareer Change
- Nuclear TechniciansCareer Change
- FirefightersCareer Change
See the full career path from Sound Engineering Technicians →
Related Education Programs
Schools that offer related fields of study, based on the NCES CIP-SOC crosswalk — not a guarantee that graduates enter this specific career.
Music Technology
- Berklee College of Music (Boston, MA)grads earn ~$38,617
- Los Angeles Film School (Hollywood, CA)grads earn ~$33,046
- Full Sail University (Winter Park, FL)grads earn ~$39,466
- University of North Texas (Denton, TX)grads earn ~$55,705
- Manhattan School of Music (New York, NY)grads earn ~$40,812
Electrical, Electronic, and Communications Engineering Technology/Technician
- Northern Virginia Community College (Annandale, VA)
- Columbus State Community College (Columbus, OH)
- Dallas College (Dallas, TX)grads earn ~$69,987
- DeVry University-Illinois (Lisle, IL)grads earn ~$68,934
- DeVry University-Illinois (Lisle, IL)grads earn ~$83,322
Radio and Television Broadcasting Technology/Technician
- Full Sail University (Winter Park, FL)grads earn ~$44,012
- SAE Institute of Technology-Nashville (Nashville, TN)grads earn ~$31,742
- Conservatory of Recording Arts and Sciences (Tempe, AZ)grads earn ~$37,556
- Florida Institute of Recording Sound and Technology (Orlando, FL)grads earn ~$33,711
- SAE Institute of Technology-Nashville (Nashville, TN)grads earn ~$33,379