Do I Need a College Degree to Be a Voiceover Actor?

The short answer to this question, of course, is ‘no’.  Most voiceover talents are working on a freelance basis.  That means that they weren’t hired by a company, but rather reach out to clients on their own to secure work for themselves.  That means that there are not specific job requirements that come with breaking into the industry.  However, that is not to say that an education is entirely unnecessary.  Though you may not need to showcase that degree on your resume, there are many types of classes that can really prove very beneficial in this line of work.  Consider these various tasks that you will most likely have to complete and how the classes listed could help you along:

·         Auditioning If you want to be a voiceover actor or actress, then you will have to be comfortable showing off your voice in front of others.  That means that you are most definitely going to be asked to do public speaking.  It is pretty clear that public speaking classes could come in very handy.

·         Acting It’s in the title after all, so do be prepared to do some acting as part of your role as a voiceover talent.  Even if you don’t appear on stage or screen, you will have to use some of the same skills as stage actors and actresses to make your voice fit the character being portrayed. Thus, all sorts of acting classes can prove beneficial.

·         Marketing In order to get work, you are going to have to be able to sell your talents.  So, you may seriously want to consider signing up for a marketing class or two.

·         Accounting As the business is run by you, you’ll have to manage the invoicing, paying of debts, keeping of records, and others such matters.  Above all else, I highly recommend taking accounting or general business classes.