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2024 Best Music Schools in New York

46 Colleges in New York
2,523 Music Degrees Awarded
$25,290 Avg Early-Career Salary
Music is above average in terms of popularity with it being the #43 most popular degree program in the country. As a result, there are many college that offer the degree, making your choice of school a hard one.

For its 2024 ranking, College Factual looked at 46 schools in New York to determine which ones were the best for music students pursuing a degree. When you put them all together, these colleges and universities awarded 2,523 degrees in music during the 2021-2022 academic year.

What's on this page: * Degree-Level Rankings

Choosing a Great Music School

Best Music Schools in New York The music program you select can have a big impact on your future. That's why we developed our collection of Best Schools for Music rankings. We derive our Best Overall Music School rankings by rolling up our degree-level rankings after weighting them by the number of degrees awarded at each school.

In order to find the schools that are the best fit for you, you may want to filter to one of the degree levels below.

Pick Your Music Degree Level

Associate Degrees in Music
Bachelor's Degrees in Music
Master's Degrees in Music
Doctor's Degrees in Music

The music school you choose to invest your time and money in matters. To help you make the decision that is right for you, we've developed a number of major-specific rankings, including this list of the Best Music Schools in New York. If you'd like to restrict your choices to just one part of the country, you can filter this list by location.

In addition to our rankings, you can take two colleges and compare them based on the criteria that matters most to you in our unique tool, College Combat. Test it out when you get a chance! You may also want to bookmark the link and share it with others who are trying to make the college decision.

If you want to learn more about how we derive our rankings, see College Factual's Methodology.

Best Schools for Music in New York

If you aren't interested in a particular degree level and want to know which schools are the overall best at delivering an education for the music degrees they offer, see the list below.

10 Top New York Schools in Music

1
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
277 Music Degrees Awarded
28.9% Growth in Graduates

New York University is a great option for students pursuing a degree in music. NYU is a fairly large private not-for-profit university located in the large city of New York. A Best Colleges rank of #27 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means NYU is a great university overall.

There were approximately 277 music students who graduated with this degree at NYU in the most recent year we have data available. Those music students who get their degree from New York University earn $2,577 more than the standard music student.

More information about a degree in music from New York University

2
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
274 Music Degrees Awarded
24.1% Growth in Graduates

The Juilliard School is a great decision for students interested in a degree in music. Juilliard is a fairly small private not-for-profit school located in the city of New York.

There were about 274 music students who graduated with this degree at Juilliard in the most recent year we have data available. After graduation, music degree recipients generally make about $18,174 at the beginning of their careers.

More information about a degree in music from The Juilliard School

3
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
17th Most Popular In NY
38 Music Degrees Awarded

Columbia University in the City of New York is a great choice for students pursuing a degree in music. Columbia is a very large private not-for-profit university located in the city of New York. A Best Colleges rank of #14 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means Columbia is a great university overall.

There were approximately 38 music students who graduated with this degree at Columbia in the most recent data year.

More information about a degree in music from Columbia University in the City of New York

4
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
233 Music Degrees Awarded
$25,339 Median Starting Salary

It's hard to beat University of Rochester if you want to pursue a degree in music. University of Rochester is a fairly large private not-for-profit university located in the medium-sized city of Rochester. A Best Colleges rank of #104 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means University of Rochester is a great university overall.

There were roughly 233 music students who graduated with this degree at University of Rochester in the most recent data year. Soon after graduation, music degree recipients generally earn about $25,339 at the beginning of their careers.

More information about a degree in music from University of Rochester

5
New School University crest
The New School
New York, NY
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
211 Music Degrees Awarded
$17,513 Median Starting Salary

Located in the large city of New York, New School University is a private not-for-profit school with a large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #208 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means New School University is a great school overall.

There were roughly 211 music students who graduated with this degree at New School University in the most recent year we have data available. Students who receive their degree from the music program make around $17,513 in their early career salary.

More information about a degree in music from The New School

6
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
318 Music Degrees Awarded
20.8% Growth in Graduates

Located in the large city of New York, Manhattan School of Music is a private not-for-profit school with a small student population.

There were roughly 318 music students who graduated with this degree at Manhattan School of Music in the most recent year we have data available. Graduates who receive their degree from the music program make an average of $20,003 in their early career salary.

More information about a degree in music from Manhattan School of Music

7
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
52 Music Degrees Awarded
30.8% Growth in Graduates

The Graduate Center is a medium-sized public school located in the city of New York. A Best Colleges rank of #182 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means The Graduate Center is a great school overall.

There were about 52 music students who graduated with this degree at The Graduate Center in the most recent data year. Degree recipients from the music program at The Graduate Center, CUNY earn $32,895 more than the average graduate in this field when they enter the workforce.

More information about a degree in music from The Graduate Center, CUNY

8
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
$29,737 Median Starting Salary

Located in the city of Syracuse, Syracuse is a private not-for-profit university with a fairly large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #132 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means Syracuse is a great university overall.

There were about 30 music students who graduated with this degree at Syracuse in the most recent data year. Degree recipients from the music major at Syracuse University get $4,447 more than the typical college graduate in this field when they enter the workforce.

More information about a degree in music from Syracuse University

9
Skidmore crest
Skidmore College
Saratoga Springs, NY
Bachelor's Degree Highest Degree Type
38th Most Popular In NY
15.4% Growth in Graduates

Located in the small suburb of Saratoga Springs, Skidmore is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population. A Best Colleges rank of #281 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means Skidmore is a great college overall.

There were about 13 music students who graduated with this degree at Skidmore in the most recent year we have data available.

More information about a degree in music from Skidmore College

10
Ithaca crest
Ithaca College
Ithaca, NY
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
66 Music Degrees Awarded
$28,606 Median Starting Salary

Ithaca is a medium-sized private not-for-profit college located in the suburb of Ithaca. This college ranks 39th out of 142 colleges for overall quality in the state of New York.

There were approximately 66 music students who graduated with this degree at Ithaca in the most recent data year. Degree recipients from the music major at Ithaca College make $3,316 more than the typical college grad with the same degree shortly after graduation.

More information about a degree in music from Ithaca College

Best Music Colleges in the Middle Atlantic Region

Explore all the Best Music Schools in the Middle Atlantic Area or other specific states within that region.

StateCollegesDegrees Awarded
Pennsylvania334900
Maryland279372
New Jersey273586
District of Columbia188117
Delaware17543

View All Rankings >

One of 10 majors within the Visual & Performing Arts area of study, Music has other similar majors worth exploring.

Music Concentrations

MajorAnnual Graduates
Music Performance745
General Music553
Music Theory & Composition190
Stringed Instruments188
Voice Performance177
Jazz Studies172
Keyboard Instruments163
Other Music80
Music History70
Music Technology44

View All Music Concentrations >

Related MajorAnnual Graduates
Design & Applied Arts4,369
Fine & Studio Arts3,544
Drama & Theater Arts3,142
Film, Video & Photographic Arts2,173
Arts & Media Management595
General Visual & Performing Arts549
Dance498
Other Visual Art473

View All Music Related Majors >

Notes and References

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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