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Best Colleges for Music 2025

20 schools ranked by graduate earnings — real data from the U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard.

Music graduates are well-positioned for careers across multiple industries. The rankings below are based on actual graduate earnings data from the U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard.

Earnings shown are median graduate earnings 4 years after graduation (or 1 year if 4-year data is unavailable), sourced from the College Scorecard.See full major data

Top 20 Music Programs by Graduate Earnings

#1
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Chapel Hill, NC
Earnings: $57,343Tuition: $39,330Accept: 19%
#2
The University of Texas at El Paso
El Paso, TX
Earnings: $56,062Tuition: $25,512Accept: 100%
#3
University of Houston
Houston, TX
Earnings: $55,639Tuition: $22,191Accept: 70%
#4
The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley
Edinburg, TX
Earnings: $55,090Tuition: $19,939Accept: 85%
#5
Texas A&M University-Kingsville
Kingsville, TX
Earnings: $53,695Tuition: $26,106Accept: 92%
#6
Biola University
La Mirada, CA
Earnings: $50,875Tuition: $46,704Accept: 60%
#7
The University of Texas at San Antonio
San Antonio, TX
Earnings: $50,800Tuition: $21,965Accept: 88%
#8
Rowan University
Glassboro, NJ
Earnings: $50,331Tuition: $25,564Accept: 78%
#9
California State Polytechnic University-Pomona
Pomona, CA
Earnings: $50,200Tuition: $19,319Accept: 74%
#10
East Texas A&M University
Commerce, TX
Earnings: $49,536Tuition: $22,626Accept: 93%
#11
West Texas A & M University
Canyon, TX
Earnings: $49,232Tuition: $10,996Accept: 97%
#12
The University of Texas at Austin
Austin, TX
Earnings: $48,986Tuition: $42,778Accept: 29%
#13
Stephen F Austin State University
Nacogdoches, TX
Earnings: $48,515Tuition: $20,680Accept: 88%
#14
University of Puget Sound
Tacoma, WA
Earnings: $47,904Tuition: $59,900Accept: 76%
#15
Eastern Illinois University
Charleston, IL
Earnings: $47,898Tuition: $15,879Accept: 68%
#16
Lamar University
Beaumont, TX
Earnings: $47,769Tuition: $18,482Accept: 86%
#17
The University of Texas at Arlington
Arlington, TX
Earnings: $47,358Tuition: $29,660Accept: 81%
#18
George Mason University
Fairfax, VA
Earnings: $46,916Tuition: $39,397Accept: 89%
#19
James Madison University
Harrisonburg, VA
Earnings: $46,899Tuition: $30,790Accept: 76%
#20
Texas A & M University-Corpus Christi
Corpus Christi, TX
Earnings: $46,692Tuition: $21,033Accept: 89%

Explore All Music Programs

See earnings data for all 240 schools offering Music, including debt figures and graduate counts.

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