Find Grad Schools

Study Area & Zipcode

Best Music Schools in California

Find Schools Near

2023 Best Music Schools in California

26 Colleges
$23,084 Avg Salary
$22,049 Avg Student Debt

Finding the Best Music School for You

With 629 degrees and certificates handed out in 2020-2021, music is the #40 most popular major in California.

There are lots of options to pick from today when trying to decide which program is right for you. Along with traditional schools that require in-person attendence, you can attend one of many reputable online schools. Some programs even offer a hybrid experience. Alternatively, you may choose a trade school that prepares you to enter the workforce with knowledge in a specific field.

Along with in-depth profiles of schools and the programs they offer, Grad Degree Search has created the Best Music Schools in California to help you in your search for the best school for you. This report analyzed 26 schools in California to see which ones offered the best programs for students.

View our full ranking methodology.

2023 Best Music Schools in California

The colleges and universities below are the best for music majors pursuing a .

Top 10 Best Music Schools

Our 2023 rankings named University of California - Berkeley the best school in California for music students. Located in the city of Berkeley, UC Berkeley is a public school with a very large student population.

Full Music at University of California - Berkeley Report

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend San Jose State University. The school came in at #2 on this year’s Best Music Schools in California list. Located in the city of San Jose, San Jose State is a public school with a fairly large student population.

Read full report on Music at San Jose State University

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend University of California - Irvine. The school came in at #3 on this year’s Best Music Schools in California list. Located in the large city of Irvine, UC Irvine is a public college with a very large student population.

Read full report on Music at University of California - Irvine

Out of the 26 schools in California that were part of this year’s ranking, University of California - Los Angeles landed the # 4 spot on the list. Located in the city of Los Angeles, UCLA is a public college with a fairly large student population.

Read More…

Out of the 26 schools in California that were part of this year’s ranking, University of California - Davis landed the # 5 spot on the list. Located in the small suburb of Davis, UC Davis is a public school with a fairly large student population.

Full Music at University of California - Davis Report

With a ranking of #6, Azusa Pacific University did quite well on this year’s best schools for music students. Located in the suburb of Azusa, Azusa Pacific is a private not-for-profit college with a moderately-sized student population.

Full Music at Azusa Pacific University Report

With a ranking of #7, University of California - Santa Barbara did quite well on this year’s best schools for music students. Located in the medium-sized suburb of Santa Barbara, UCSB is a public college with a fairly large student population.

Read full report on Music at University of California - Santa Barbara

University of California - San Diego did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best schools for music students. It came in at #8 on the list. UCSD is a very large public school located in the large city of La Jolla.

Read full report on Music at University of California - San Diego

University of Southern California came in at #9 in this year’s edition of the Best Music Schools in California ranking. USC is a very large private not-for-profit school located in the city of Los Angeles.

Read full report on Music at University of Southern California

#10

University of Redlands

Redlands, CA

University of Redlands ranked #10 on this year’s Best Music Schools in California list. Located in the small city of Redlands, University of Redlands is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population.

Read More…

Best Music Colleges in the Far Western US Region

Explore all the Best Music Colleges in the Far Western US Area or other specific states within that region.

State Degrees Awarded
Washington 63
Oregon 74
Nevada 33
Hawaii 8
Alaska 0

More Music Rankings in California

One of 9 majors within the area of study, music has other similar majors worth exploring.

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.

Featured Schools

Find Graduate Schools Near You

Our free school finder matches students with accredited graduate schools across the U.S.