2023 Best Music Schools
Finding the Best Music School for You
Music is the #37 most popular major in the country with 7,675 degrees and certificates awarded in 2020-2021.
It's not easy to decide which program to enroll in when you have so many options available. You're no longer limited to schools in your local area, either, since online programs are becoming more prevalent. Or you may find the programs at a trade school to be a better alternative for you.
To help you arm yourself with the information you need to make your decision, Grad Degree Search has developed this Best Music Schools ranking. Our analysis looked at 261 schools in the United States to see which programs offered the best educational experiences for students.
View our full ranking methodology.
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2023 Best Music Schools in the United States
Check out the music programs at these schools if you want to get the best education that money can buy.
Top 25 Top Schools in Music
Our 2023 rankings named Duke University the best school in the United States for music students. Duke is a large private not-for-profit school located in the large city of Durham.
Out of the 261 schools in the United States that were part of this year’s ranking, The Graduate Center, CUNY landed the # 2 spot on the list. The Graduate Center is a moderately-sized public school located in the city of New York.
A rank of #3 on this year’s list means Dartmouth College is a great place for music students. Dartmouth is a medium-sized private not-for-profit school located in the town of Hanover.
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend Messiah University. The school came in at #4 on this year’s Best Music Schools list. Messiah is a small private not-for-profit school located in the suburb of Mechanicsburg.
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend Brandeis University. The school came in at #5 on this year’s Best Music Schools list. Brandeis is a moderately-sized private not-for-profit school located in the small city of Waltham.
Kansas State University came in at #6 in this year’s edition of the Best Music Schools ranking. K -State is a fairly large public school located in the city of Manhattan.
Michigan State University ranked #7 on this year’s Best Music Schools list. Located in the small city of East Lansing, Michigan State is a public school with a very large student population.
With a ranking of #8, North Dakota State University - Main Campus did quite well on this year’s best schools for music students. Located in the city of Fargo, North Dakota State University is a public college with a fairly large student population.
Read full report on Music at North Dakota State University - Main Campus
With a ranking of #9, University of California - Berkeley did quite well on this year’s best schools for music students. UC Berkeley is a very large public school located in the midsize city of Berkeley.
University of Nebraska at Kearney ranked #10 on this year’s Best Music Schools list. Located in the town of Kearney, UNK is a public college with a medium-sized student population.
Sam Houston State University ranked #11 on this year’s Best Music Schools list. SHSU is a very large public school located in the town of Huntsville.
The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley ranked #12 on this year’s Best Music Schools list. UT Rio Grande Valley is a very large public school located in the city of Edinburg.
Full Music at The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley Report
Texas A&M University - Kingsville ranked #13 on this year’s Best Music Schools list. Located in the town of Kingsville, Texas A&M Kingsville is a public college with a medium-sized student population.
Read full report on Music at Texas A&M University - Kingsville
With a ranking of #14, University of Virginia - Main Campus did quite well on this year’s best schools for music students. Located in the suburb of Charlottesville, University of Virginia is a public school with a very large student population.
Colorado State University - Fort Collins landed the #15 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best music programs. Colorado State is a fairly large public school located in the midsize city of Fort Collins.
Full Music at Colorado State University - Fort Collins Report
With a ranking of #16, The University of Texas at El Paso did quite well on this year’s best schools for music students. UTEP is a very large public school located in the city of El Paso.
With a ranking of #17, Northwestern University did quite well on this year’s best schools for music students. Northwestern is a fairly large private not-for-profit school located in the city of Evanston.
James Madison University landed the #18 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best music programs. JMU is a very large public school located in the small city of Harrisonburg.
Rice University came in at #19 in this year’s edition of the Best Music Schools ranking. Rice is a medium-sized private not-for-profit school located in the city of Houston.
Eastern Illinois University ranked #20 on this year’s Best Music Schools list. EIU is a moderately-sized public school located in the town of Charleston.
The University of Texas at Austin did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best schools for music students. It came in at #21 on the list. UT Austin is a fairly large public school located in the large city of Austin.
With a ranking of #22, West Chester University of Pennsylvania did quite well on this year’s best schools for music students. Located in the suburb of West Chester, WCUPA is a public school with a large student population.
Read full report on Music at West Chester University of Pennsylvania
Oklahoma State University - Main Campus did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best schools for music students. It came in at #23 on the list. OSU is a fairly large public school located in the distant town of Stillwater.
Read full report on Music at Oklahoma State University - Main Campus
With a ranking of #24, University of Nebraska - Lincoln did quite well on this year’s best schools for music students. Located in the city of Lincoln, UNL is a public college with a very large student population.
Texas Christian University landed the #25 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best music programs. Located in the large city of Fort Worth, TCU is a private not-for-profit school with a fairly large student population.
Rest of the Top Best Music Schools
Honorable Mentions
These are some additional schools worth mentioning that are also great but just didn't quite make the cut to earn our top Best Music Schools award.
| Rank | College | Location |
|---|---|---|
| 40 | University of Arkansas | Fayetteville, AR |
| 41 | Syracuse University | Syracuse, NY |
| 42 | New York University | New York, NY |
| 43 | University of California - Irvine | Irvine, CA |
| 44 | University of Delaware | Newark, DE |
| 45 | Texas Tech University | Lubbock, TX |
| 46 | University of California - Los Angeles | Los Angeles, CA |
| 47 | Miami University - Oxford | Oxford, OH |
| 48 | Carnegie Mellon University | Pittsburgh, PA |
| 49 | The University of Tennessee - Knoxville | Knoxville, TN |
| 50 | University of Iowa | Iowa City, IA |
| 51 | Ohio State University - Main Campus | Columbus, OH |
| 52 | University of Wyoming | Laramie, WY |
Music by Region
View the Best Music Schools for a specific region near you.
| Region |
|---|
| Southeast |
| New England |
| Rocky Mountains |
| Plains States |
| Middle Atlantic |
| Far Western US |
| Southwest |
| Great Lakes |
More Music Rankings
Music Related Rankings by Major
Music is one of 9 different types of programs to choose from.
Most Popular Majors Related to Music
| Related Major | Annual Graduates |
|---|---|
| Fine & Studio Arts | 3,224 |
| Design & Applied Arts | 1,979 |
| Film, Video & Photographic Arts | 1,704 |
| Drama & Theater Arts | 1,699 |
| Arts & Media Management | 1,184 |
Notes and References
*These averages are for the top 25 schools only.
- Read more about our ranking methodology.
- The Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) from the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), a branch of the U.S. Department of Education (DOE) serves as the core of the rest of our data about colleges.
- Some other college data, including much of the graduate earnings data, comes from the U.S. Department of Education’s (College Scorecard).
More about our data sources and methodologies.
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