Find Grad Schools

Study Area & Zipcode

Best Value Music Schools in the Far Western US Region

Find Schools Near

2023 Best Value Music Schools in the Far Western US Region

Identifying Quality Schools at More Affordable Prices

37 Colleges
$29,117 Avg Tuition & Fees*
$25,019 Avg Salary

Finding the Best Music School for You

Out of all the majors we analyze each year, music was ranked #37 in the country. In fact 7,675 degrees and certificates were handed out in 2020-2021.

When it comes to higher education, there are a lot of options for students. 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 Value Music Schools in the Far Western US Region to help you in your search for the best school for you. Our analysis looked at 37 schools in the Far Western US Region to see which programs offered the best value experiences for music students with the aim of identifying those quality schools that are more affordable than some of their counterparts.

This ranking is not just a list of inexpensive schools. We also consider each school's quality, since we believe a low-quality school may not be a 'bargain' at any price. More specifically, we discount our quality score by the published tuition and fees charged by a school. This gives the cost per unit of quality for each college. The value is determined by how much quality your dollar buys.

For nationwide and regional rankings, we use out-of-state tuition and fees in our calculations. Average in-state tuition and fees are used for our statewide rankings.

2023 Best Value Music Schools in the Far Western US Region

The following schools top our list of the Best Value Music Colleges.

Top 10 Best Music Schools

$41,510 Average Tuition & Fees

Our analysis found Azusa Pacific University to be the best value school for music students who want to pursue a degree in the Far Western US Region . Located in the large suburb of Azusa, Azusa Pacific is a private not-for-profit college with a moderately-sized student population.

Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Azusa Pacific are $41,510 per year.

Read full report on Music at Azusa Pacific University

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 Value Music Schools in the Far Western US Region list. Located in the large city of San Jose, San Jose State is a public school with a very large student population.

The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at San Jose State are $19,732 a year.

As a testament to the quality of education it offers, San Jose State also is in the top 20% of our Best Music Schools in the Far Western US Region ranking.

Full Music at San Jose State University Report

$18,875 Average Tuition & Fees

The excellent programs at California State University - East Bay helped the school earn the #3 place on this year’s ranking of the best music schools in the Far Western US Region . Cal State East Bay is a large public school located in the suburb of Hayward.

Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Cal State East Bay are $18,875 per year.

Full Music at California State University - East Bay Report

A rank of #4 on this year’s list means University of California - Berkeley is a great value for music students. Located in the midsize city of Berkeley, UC Berkeley is a public college with a fairly large student population.

The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at UC Berkeley are $43,980 a year.

UC Berkeley also made our Best Music Schools in the Far Western US Region list, coming in at #3.

Full Music at University of California - Berkeley Report

$18,923 Average Tuition & Fees

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend California State University - Northridge. It ranked #5 on our 2023 Best Value Music Schools in the Far Western US Region list. CSUN is a fairly large public school located in the large city of Northridge.

The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at CSUN are $18,923 a year.

Read More…

#6

San Francisco State University

San Francisco, CA
$19,184 Average Tuition & Fees

San Francisco State University landed the #6 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value music programs. SFSU is a fairly large public school located in the city of San Francisco.

The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at SFSU are $19,184 a year.

Full Music at San Francisco State University Report

$24,828 Average Tuition & Fees

With a ranking of #7, University of Nevada - Las Vegas did quite well on this year’s best value schools for music students. Located in the midsize city of Las Vegas, UNLV is a public college with a fairly large student population.

The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at UNLV are $24,828 a year.

Read More…

University of California - Los Angeles ranked #8 on this year’s Best Value Music Schools in the Far Western US Region list. Located in the large city of Los Angeles, UCLA is a public school with a fairly large student population.

The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at UCLA are $43,012 a year.

As a testament to the quality of education it offers, UCLA also is in the top 10% of our Best Music Schools in the Far Western US Region ranking.

Read More…

$43,529 Average Tuition & Fees

University of California - Irvine did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best value schools for music students. It came in at #9 on the list. Located in the city of Irvine, UC Irvine is a public college with a fairly large student population.

Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at UC Irvine are $43,529 per year.

Read full report on Music at University of California - Irvine

#10

University of Redlands

Redlands, CA

University of Redlands did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best value schools for music students. It came in at #10 on the list. Located in the city of Redlands, University of Redlands is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population.

The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at University of Redlands are $52,500 a year.

In addition to its great value ranking, University of Redlands is in the top 15% of all schools on our Best Music Schools in the Far Western US Region list.

Read full report on Music at University of Redlands

Best Music Colleges by State

Explore the best music colleges for a specific state in the Far Western US region.

State Degrees Awarded
California 629
Washington 63
Oregon 74
Nevada 33
Hawaii 8
Alaska 0

More Music Rankings in the Far Western US Region

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

Majors Similar 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.

  • 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.