Whats a good way to start studying to be an audio engineer?

Check out the program in Audio Engineering Technology at University of Hartford.

I'm currently studying it at a well respected institute called SAE (they are all over the world). For me it was a great place to start as I'm a person who loves learning by studying as well as practical work. If you got the money, the best way to start is to grab yourself some gear (monitor speakers, headphones, microphones, cables, pop filter, midi keyboard, DAW software) but you run the risk of spending money on stuff you don't know too much about and may waste money in the long run. My best advice is to get some experience in volunteer radio stations or live gigs or even trying to get some work in a recording studio. There are TAFE like courses around the place and degree courses but you'll have to look into those yourself as its different in other countries. Trust me, which ever way you go you will enjoy it!

Start by getting yourself a simple home recording system and experimenting as much as you can. Read publications like Mix, EQ, Sound On Sound etc as they give great advice. A great audio forum to learn from the pro's is GearSlutz.com. You can of course go to school for it as well, but some reading and experimenting will be a great start, and internships are very valuable as well.