An audio production course teaches students numerous recording techniques, such as microphone placement, digital audio processing, fundamentals of compression and effective equalization. According to Webster University, additional topics in their audio production course include automation, critical listening, signal processing and managing recording sessions. Students also explore ways to capture optimum sound on stage, in recording booths and outside.
A course in sound design teaches students how sound can have an emotional effect on an audience. At Emerson University, students learn about the different effects that pace, tone and feel can have in music. Through the study of sound design, students also focus on how to make sound tracks for films and commercials.
Students taking a sound editing course learn the different methods of arranging music and sounds using a computer. In Georgetown University's sound editing course, students learn how to create and implement Foley into a soundtrack that replicates and punches up everyday sounds. Additional topics include fade-ins, fade-outs, loop recording and digital mixing.
At Colorado University, the acoustics course explores power, intensity, frequency, pressure, loudness and vibration in sound. Students gain an understanding of the fundamental acoustic properties and how they are calculated in different environments. A central part of the course is the definition of decibels and how to add and subtract decibel levels.
Students are often required to take an internship in order to work and learn in a professional environment. This is an opportunity for students to learn under the tutelage of a recording engineer and become familiar with using recording equipment in the field. An internship teaches students about practical on-site recording techniques used in movie production, concerts and field reporting. At Spokane Falls Community College, internships can take place with recording studios, radio stations and post-production facilities.