2022 Best Value Bachelor’s Degree Colleges for Musical Theater in the Great Lakes Region
With all of the options students have for higher education today, it can be tough to choose which direction to take. At College Factual, we’re committed to helping you make that decision by providing information such as that found in our “Best Value Musical Theatre Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Great Lakes Region” ranking.
In 2019-2020, 935 people earned their degree in musical theater, making the major the 489th most popular in the United States.
Across the Great Lakes region, there were 201 musical theater graduates with average earnings and debt of $0 and $0 respectively. At the bachelor’s degree level specifically, there were 201 musical theater graduates with average earnings and debt of $39,075 and $25,381 respectively.
This year’s “Best Value Musical Theatre Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Great Lakes Region” ranking looked at 16 colleges that offer degrees in a bachelor’s in musical theater. This ranking identifies schools with high-quality musical theater programs that also have a lower cost than schools of similar quality.
When determining these rankings, we looked at things such as overall quality of the musical theater program at the school and the cost to attend the school once aid has been awarded. For more information, check out our ranking methodology.
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Best Value Musical Theatre Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Great Lakes Region
The following schools top our list of the Best Best Value Musical Theatre Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Great Lakes Region.
Top 16 Best Value Bachelor’s Degree Colleges for Musical Theater in the Great Lakes Region
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Western Michigan University. The school came in at #1 for the Best Value Musical Theatre Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Great Lakes Region. This fairly large school is located in Kalamazoo, Michigan, and it awarded 16 bachelors’s musical theatre degrees in 2019-2020.
WMU also took the #10 spot in our “Best Musical Theater Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region” ranking. The yearly cost to attend WMU is $19,433 for great lakes region bachelor’s degree musical theatre students.
Read full report on Musical Theater at Western Michigan University
Out of the 16 schools in the Best Value Musical Theatre Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Great Lakes Region that were part of this year’s ranking, Kent State University at Kent landed the #2 spot on the list. Located in Kent, Ohio, this large public school awarded 10 degrees to qualified bachelors’s musical theatre students in 2019-2020.
Kent State also took the #9 spot in our “Best Musical Theater Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region” ranking. It costs about $18,885 for Great Lakes Region Bachelor’s Degree Musical Theatre students per year to attend Kent State University at Kent.
Read more about Musical Theater at Kent State University at Kent
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Oakland University. The school came in at #3 for the Best Value Musical Theatre Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Great Lakes Region. This fairly large school is located in Rochester Hills, Michigan, and it awarded 16 bachelors’s musical theatre degrees in 2019-2020.
In addition to being on our great lakes region bachelor’s degree musical theatre students list, Oakland has also earned the #11 rank in our “Best Musical Theater Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region” ranking. It costs about $11,802 for great lakes region bachelor’s degree musical theatre students per year to attend Oakland University.
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Central Michigan University. The school came in at #4 for the Best Value Musical Theatre Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Great Lakes Region. This fairly large school is located in Mount Pleasant, Michigan, and it awarded 5 bachelors’s musical theatre degrees in 2019-2020.
In addition to being on our great lakes region bachelor’s degree musical theatre students list, Central Michigan has also earned the #14 rank in our “Best Musical Theater Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region” ranking. The yearly cost to attend Central Michigan is $15,981 for great lakes region bachelor’s degree musical theatre students.
Out of the 16 schools in the Best Value Musical Theatre Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Great Lakes Region that were part of this year’s ranking, Viterbo University landed the #5 spot on the list. Viterbo is a private not-for-profit institution located in La Crosse, Wisconsin. The school has a small population, and it awarded 11 bachelors’s degrees in 2019-2020.
As a testament to the quality of education offered at Viterbo, the school also landed the #6 spot in our “Best Musical Theater Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region” ranking. It costs about $19,992 for great lakes region bachelor’s degree musical theatre students per year to attend Viterbo University.
The student loan default rate at the school is 3.1%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Otterbein University landed the #6 spot on the 2022 Best Value Musical Theatre Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Great Lakes Region ranking. Otterbein University is a small school located in Westerville, Ohio that handed out 9 bachelors’s musical theatre degrees in 2019-2020.
As a testament to the quality of education offered at Otterbein, the school also landed the #3 spot in our “Best Musical Theater Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region” ranking. The yearly cost to attend Otterbein University is $23,386 for Great Lakes Region Bachelor’s Degree Musical Theatre students.
The student loan default rate at the school is 4.0%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Taylor University came in at #7 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Musical Theatre Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Great Lakes Region ranking. Taylor University is a small school located in Upland, Indiana that handed out 4 bachelors’s musical theatre degrees in 2019-2020.
In addition to being on our great lakes region bachelor’s degree musical theatre students list, Taylor U has also earned the #2 rank in our “Best Musical Theater Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region” ranking. The yearly cost to attend Taylor University is $25,888 for Great Lakes Region Bachelor’s Degree Musical Theatre students.
The student loan default rate at the school is 1.9%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 89%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.
With a ranking of #8, Columbia College Chicago did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Musical Theatre Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Great Lakes Region list. Columbia is a medium-sized school located in Chicago, Illinois that handed out 29 bachelors’s musical theatre degrees in 2019-2020.
Columbia did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #8 on our “Best Musical Theater Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region” list. It costs about $31,099 for Great Lakes Region Bachelor’s Degree Musical Theatre students per year to attend Columbia.
Carthage College did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Musical Theatre Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Great Lakes Region ranking, coming in at #9. Kenosha, Wisconsin is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out bachelors’s musical theatre degrees to 1 students in 2019-2020.
Carthage also took the #12 spot in our “Best Musical Theater Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for Carthage is $28,191 for great lakes region bachelor’s degree musical theatre students.
The student loan default rate at the school is 4.7%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Indiana University - Bloomington did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Musical Theatre Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Great Lakes Region ranking, coming in at #10. Indiana University - Bloomington is a large school located in Bloomington, Indiana that handed out 14 bachelors’s musical theatre degrees in 2019-2020.
IU Bloomington did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #4 on our “Best Musical Theater Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region” list. It costs about $13,253 for great lakes region bachelor’s degree musical theatre students per year to attend Indiana University - Bloomington.
The low student loan default rate of 4.3% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 91%.
Roosevelt University landed the #11 spot on the 2022 Best Value Musical Theatre Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Great Lakes Region ranking. This small school is located in Chicago, Illinois, and it awarded 35 bachelors’s musical theatre degrees in 2019-2020.
Roosevelt also made our “Best Musical Theater Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region” list, coming in at #15. The yearly cost to attend Roosevelt is $22,749 for great lakes region bachelor’s degree musical theatre students.
Elmhurst University landed the #12 spot on the 2022 Best Value Musical Theatre Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Great Lakes Region ranking. Elmhurst University is a small private not-for-profit school situated in Elmhurst, Illinois. It awarded 2 bachelors’s musical theatre degrees in 2019-2020.
As a testament to the quality of education offered at Elmhurst, the school also landed the #13 spot in our “Best Musical Theater Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region” ranking. It costs about $21,485 for Great Lakes Region Bachelor’s Degree Musical Theatre students per year to attend Elmhurst.
The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 3.0%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
With a ranking of #13, Anderson University Indiana did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Musical Theatre Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Great Lakes Region list. Anderson, Indiana is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out bachelors’s musical theatre degrees to 7 students in 2019-2020.
Anderson University Indiana not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #16 on our “Best Musical Theater Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region” list. The yearly cost to attend Anderson University Indiana is $22,351 for great lakes region bachelor’s degree musical theatre students.
Since the school has a student-to-faculty ratio of 8 to 1, those pursuing a degree will have more opportunities to interact with their professors.
Read full report on Musical Theater at Anderson University Indiana
With a ranking of #14, North Central College did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Musical Theatre Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Great Lakes Region list. North Central College is a small private not-for-profit school situated in Naperville, Illinois. It awarded 7 bachelors’s musical theatre degrees in 2019-2020.
North Central not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #7 on our “Best Musical Theater Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region” list. The yearly cost to attend North Central is $24,786 for great lakes region bachelor’s degree musical theatre students.
The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 3.9%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Illinois Wesleyan University landed the #15 spot on the 2022 Best Value Musical Theatre Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Great Lakes Region ranking. Illinois Wesleyan is a small school located in Bloomington, Illinois that handed out 12 bachelors’s musical theatre degrees in 2019-2020.
Illinois Wesleyan also took the #5 spot in our “Best Musical Theater Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region” ranking. It costs about $26,039 for great lakes region bachelor’s degree musical theatre students per year to attend Illinois Wesleyan.
The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 87%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The student loan default rate at the school is 1.4%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Read more about Musical Theater at Illinois Wesleyan University
University of Michigan - Ann Arbor landed the #16 spot on the 2022 Best Value Musical Theatre Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Great Lakes Region ranking. University of Michigan - Ann Arbor is a public institution located in Ann Arbor, Michigan. The school has a large population, and it awarded 21 bachelors’s degrees in 2019-2020.
U-M not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #1 on our “Best Musical Theater Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region” list. The yearly cost to attend U-M is $15,336 for Great Lakes Region Bachelor’s Degree Musical Theatre students.
The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 96%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The student loan default rate at the school is 1.2%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Read more about Musical Theater at University of Michigan - Ann Arbor
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Notes and References
References
- 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 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).
- Information about the national average student loan default rate is from the U.S. Department of Education and refers to data about the 2016 borrower cohort tracking period for which the cohort default rate (CDR) was 10.1%.
Read more about our data sources and methodologies
Footnotes
- *Average salary, average net price, and average tuition and fees are for the top schools only.
- Some schools otherwise deserving of recognition may have been removed from this ranking in the event that new data identified post-publication warranted it, or at the request of the school.
Credits
- Credit for the banner image above goes to Donald Judge.
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