It doesn't matter what level of education there is if one doesn't know how to apply it, esp. in commerce. My brother is brilliant, has a Masters in Theory Composition and studied, privately, with American composer, Roy Harris, who offered him a home and career. He is self-disciplined enough to write several symphonies, an opera, piano concertos/i, etc. all fully orchestrated, but he has never been good at working any type of job, none of which have ever paid him much at all. He has always been obsessed by his music and cannot fathom making money at anything else, yet lacks the know-how of promotion, or learned it very late and has no money with which to promote.(They didn't teach it when he went to school, the way some of them do nowadays.) He missed the boat for any kind of job in music as he only wanted to compose his own music, NOT look for a job as a composer. By the time he wanted to teach composition, he was too old, not connected and/or needed a doctorate or to make a big hit and be invited by the sycophants to teach, etc. (Eww...do I sound bitter?)

My sister, on the other hand, is a fantastic musician-teacher and has always made a decent living, though in my opinion she has never been paid what she is worth to those kids. She's also much more practical than my brother.

My parents and my siblings and I always had music and music lessons. The other two siblings graduated from college and had good jobs as teachers for a long time, then sort went off the rails and are very poor now. I got a GED and when I was well, was in sales and made much more for a few years than any of them. Now I have a part-time job at home which does require self-discipline, has the potential to make me a lot of money (I hope!) and I love it. We'll see where that goes. I am sure music lessons have helped with my being able to work independently.

I don't know what my family experience says about the supposed study except that none of us has become rich from music.:-)