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2022 Best Value Music Performance Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Getting Aid

263 Ranked Colleges
4,318 Degrees Awarded
$10,500 Avg Net Price*
Best Value Music Performance Schools for a Bachelor's For Those Getting Aid

It’s not easy to decide which college to attend when there so many options available for students. Our mission at College Factual is to arm you with as much information as we can to help you make that decision. Our “Best Value Music Performance Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Getting Aid” ranking is one tool we have developed to help in this regard.

In 2019-2020, 7,957 people earned their degree in music performance, making the major the 103rd most popular in the United States.

At the bachelor’s degree level specifically, there were 4,318 music performance graduates with average earnings and debt of $38,303 and $24,501 respectively.

This year’s “Best Value Music Performance Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Getting Aid” ranking looked at 263 colleges that offer degrees in a bachelor’s in music performance. The schools that top this list are recognized because they have great music performance programs and cost less that schools of similar quality.

When determining these rankings, we looked at things such as overall quality of the music performance program at the school and the cost to attend the school once aid has been awarded. For more information, check out our ranking methodology.

One Size Does Not Fit All

The music performance 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 “Best Value Music Performance Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Getting Aid”.

One of our other unique offerings is College Combat. This tool lets you build your own customized comparisons utilizing the factors that are most important to you. We encourage you to try it out and pit your favorite colleges and universities head to head! If you don’t have time right now, you can bookmark it for later.

Best Value Music Performance Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Getting Aid

The following schools top our list of the Best Best Value Music Performance Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Getting Aid.

Top 25 Best Value Bachelor’s Degree Colleges for Music Performance (With Aid)

#16 in overall quality

Out of the 263 schools in the Best Value Music Performance Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Getting Aid that were part of this year’s ranking, The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley landed the #1 spot on the list. Edinburg, Texas is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out bachelors’s music performance degrees to 7 students in 2019-2020.

In addition to being on our bachelor’s degree music performance students with aid list, UT Rio Grande Valley has also earned the #16 rank in our “Best Music Performance Bachelor’s Degree Schools” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for UT Rio Grande Valley is $4,514 for Bachelor’s Degree Music Performance students with aid.

The student loan default rate at the school is 4.8%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Read more about Music Performance at UT Rio Grande Valley

#2

University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

Chapel Hill, North Carolina
#3 in overall quality

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. The school came in at #2 for the Best Value Music Performance Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Getting Aid. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill is a public institution located in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. The school has a large population, and it awarded 11 bachelors’s degrees in 2019-2020.

UNC Chapel Hill also took the #3 spot in our “Best Music Performance Bachelor’s Degree Schools” ranking. It costs about $12,352 for bachelor’s degree music performance students with aid per year to attend UNC Chapel Hill.

The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 1.9%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. With a freshman retention rate of 95%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students.

Read more about Music Performance at UNC Chapel Hill

#3

Hunter College

New York, New York

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Hunter College. The school came in at #3 for the Best Value Music Performance Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Getting Aid. Hunter is a large public school situated in New York, New York. It awarded 32 bachelors’s music performance degrees in 2019-2020.

It costs about $2,490 for Bachelor’s Degree Music Performance students with aid per year to attend Hunter College.

The low student loan default rate of 4.0% 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%.

Full Hunter Music Performance Report

Out of the 263 schools in the Best Value Music Performance Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Getting Aid that were part of this year’s ranking, California State University - Los Angeles landed the #4 spot on the list. Cal State LA is a large public school situated in Los Angeles, California. It awarded 20 bachelors’s music performance degrees in 2019-2020.

It costs about $2,768 for Bachelor’s Degree Music Performance students with aid per year to attend California State University - Los Angeles.

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 Music Performance at Cal State LA

Top 15% in overall quality

Out of the 263 schools in the Best Value Music Performance Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Getting Aid that were part of this year’s ranking, University of Washington - Seattle Campus landed the #5 spot on the list. University of Washington - Seattle Campus is a large public school situated in Seattle, Washington. It awarded 5 bachelors’s music performance degrees in 2019-2020.

In addition to being on this list, UW Seattle is in the top on our “Best Music Performance Bachelor’s Degree Schools” list. It’s in the top 15% of all schools reviewed in that analysis. It costs about $13,297 for Bachelor’s Degree Music Performance students with aid per year to attend UW Seattle.

The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 2.2%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. With a freshman retention rate of 93%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students.

Full UW Seattle Music Performance Report

With a ranking of #6, The University of Texas at El Paso did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Music Performance Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Getting Aid list. The University of Texas at El Paso is a public institution located in El Paso, Texas. The school has a large population, and it awarded 6 bachelors’s degrees in 2019-2020.

The yearly cost to attend The University of Texas at El Paso is $8,920 for Bachelor’s Degree Music Performance students with aid.

Read more about Music Performance at UTEP

#7

The City College of New York

New York, New York

The City College of New York came in at #7 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Music Performance Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Getting Aid ranking. CCNY is a public institution located in New York, New York. The school has a fairly large population, and it awarded 7 bachelors’s degrees in 2019-2020.

The yearly cost to attend CCNY is $2,385 for Bachelor’s Degree Music Performance students with aid.

Read full report on Music Performance at The City College of New York

#2 in overall quality

With a ranking of #8, The University of Texas at Austin did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Music Performance Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Getting Aid list. Located in Austin, Texas, this large public school handed out 25 degrees to qualified bachelors’s music performance students in 2019-2020.

UT Austin also made our “Best Music Performance Bachelor’s Degree Schools” list, coming in at #2. The estimated yearly cost for UT Austin is $18,023 for Bachelor’s Degree Music Performance students with aid.

Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 97%. The low student loan default rate of 2.7% 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%.

Read more about Music Performance at UT Austin

#9

Truman State University

Kirksville, Missouri
#22 in overall quality

Truman State University landed the #9 spot on the 2022 Best Value Music Performance Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Getting Aid ranking. Truman State is a public institution located in Kirksville, Missouri. The school has a small population, and it awarded 5 bachelors’s degrees in 2019-2020.

Truman State did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #22 on our “Best Music Performance Bachelor’s Degree Schools” list. The estimated yearly cost for Truman State University is $12,462 for bachelor’s degree music performance students with aid.

The low student loan default rate of 3.5% 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%. With a freshman retention rate of 88%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students.

Full Truman State Music Performance Report

With a ranking of #10, California State University - Northridge did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Music Performance Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Getting Aid list. California State University - Northridge is a large public school situated in Northridge, California. It awarded 62 bachelors’s music performance degrees in 2019-2020.

The estimated yearly cost for CSUN is $8,414 for Bachelor’s Degree Music Performance students with aid.

The student loan default rate at the school is 2.0%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Read full report on Music Performance at California State University - Northridge

#11

Florida State University

Tallahassee, Florida
#23 in overall quality

Florida State University came in at #11 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Music Performance Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Getting Aid ranking. Florida State is located in Tallahassee, Florida and, has a large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 29 bachelors’s music performance degrees to qualified students.

Florida State not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #23 on our “Best Music Performance Bachelor’s Degree Schools” list. It costs about $9,789 for bachelor’s degree music performance students with aid per year to attend Florida State.

With a freshman retention rate of 95%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students. The low student loan default rate of 3.5% 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%.

Read more about Music Performance at Florida State

Brigham Young University - Idaho did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Music Performance Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Getting Aid ranking, coming in at #12. Brigham Young University - Idaho is a large school located in Rexburg, Idaho that handed out 37 bachelors’s music performance degrees in 2019-2020.

The yearly cost to attend BYU - I is $7,167 for bachelor’s degree music performance students with aid.

The student loan default rate at the school is 3.2%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Read more about Music Performance at BYU - I

With a ranking of #13, California State University - Fullerton did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Music Performance Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Getting Aid list. Located in Fullerton, California, this large public school awarded 33 degrees to qualified bachelors’s music performance students in 2019-2020.

It costs about $7,991 for bachelor’s degree music performance students with aid per year to attend Cal State Fullerton.

The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 89%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The low student loan default rate of 2.7% 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%.

Read more about Music Performance at Cal State Fullerton

#14

Brooklyn College

Brooklyn, New York

Brooklyn College landed the #14 spot on the 2022 Best Value Music Performance Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Getting Aid ranking. Brooklyn, New York is the setting for this fairly large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out bachelors’s music performance degrees to 3 students in 2019-2020.

The yearly cost to attend Brooklyn College is $2,683 for Bachelor’s Degree Music Performance students with aid.

The low student loan default rate of 5.0% 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%.

Full Brooklyn College Music Performance Report

#15

University of Houston

Houston, Texas
#13 in overall quality

University of Houston ranked #15 on this year’s Best Value Music Performance Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Getting Aid list. University of Houston is located in Houston, Texas and, has a large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 27 bachelors’s music performance degrees to qualified students.

UH also made our “Best Music Performance Bachelor’s Degree Schools” list, coming in at #13. The yearly cost to attend UH is $12,838 for Bachelor’s Degree Music Performance students with aid.

Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 86%.

Read full report on Music Performance at UH

#16

Queens College

Queens, New York

Queens College did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Music Performance Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Getting Aid ranking, coming in at #16. QC is located in Queens, New York and, has a fairly large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 30 bachelors’s music performance degrees to qualified students.

The yearly cost to attend QC is $3,067 for bachelor’s degree music performance students with aid.

The student loan default rate at the school is 4.4%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Read full report on Music Performance at QC

#20 in overall quality

University of Wisconsin - Madison came in at #17 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Music Performance Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Getting Aid ranking. UW - Madison is a public institution located in Madison, Wisconsin. The school has a large population, and it awarded 13 bachelors’s degrees in 2019-2020.

In addition to being on our bachelor’s degree music performance students with aid list, UW - Madison has also earned the #20 rank in our “Best Music Performance Bachelor’s Degree Schools” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for University of Wisconsin - Madison is $17,708 for Bachelor’s Degree Music Performance students with aid.

The student loan default rate at the school is 0.8%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. With a freshman retention rate of 95%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students.

Full University of Wisconsin - Madison Music Performance Report

Top 10% in overall quality

University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign ranked #18 on this year’s Best Value Music Performance Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Getting Aid list. Champaign, Illinois is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out bachelors’s music performance degrees to 21 students in 2019-2020.

On top of its placing in this ranking, UIUC also did well on our “Best Music Performance Bachelor’s Degree Schools” list. It’s in the top 10% of all schools reviewed in that analysis. The estimated yearly cost for UIUC is $15,880 for bachelor’s degree music performance students with aid.

The student loan default rate at the school is 2.4%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. With a freshman retention rate of 94%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students.

Read full report on Music Performance at UIUC

#19

University of Michigan - Ann Arbor

Ann Arbor, Michigan
#5 in overall quality

With a ranking of #19, University of Michigan - Ann Arbor did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Music Performance Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Getting Aid list. Located in Ann Arbor, Michigan, this large public school awarded 53 diplomas to qualified bachelors’s music performance students in 2019-2020.

U-M also took the #5 spot in our “Best Music Performance Bachelor’s Degree Schools” ranking. It costs about $15,336 for Bachelor’s Degree Music Performance students with aid per year to attend U-M.

With a freshman retention rate of 96%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students. The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 1.2%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Read more about Music Performance at University of Michigan - Ann Arbor

#20

University of North Carolina School of the Arts

Winston-Salem, North Carolina
Top 25% in overall quality

University of North Carolina School of the Arts landed the #20 spot on the 2022 Best Value Music Performance Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Getting Aid ranking. University of North Carolina School of the Arts is a public institution located in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. The school has a small population, and it awarded 25 bachelors’s degrees in 2019-2020.

It costs about $13,885 for bachelor’s degree music performance students with aid per year to attend UNCSA.

The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 4.1%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. The student-to-faculty ratio of 6 to 1 is a sign that students will have more opportunities to engage with their professors one-on-one. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 91%.

Read full report on Music Performance at University of North Carolina School of the Arts

#21

Texas State University

San Marcos, Texas
Top 15% in overall quality

Texas State University landed the #21 spot on the 2022 Best Value Music Performance Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Getting Aid ranking. Located in San Marcos, Texas, this large public school handed out 17 diplomas to qualified bachelors’s music performance students in 2019-2020.

On top of its placing in this ranking, Texas State also did well on our “Best Music Performance Bachelor’s Degree Schools” list. It’s in the top 15% of all schools in this category. The yearly cost to attend Texas State is $15,230 for bachelor’s degree music performance students with aid.

Full Texas State University Music Performance Report

#22

University of North Texas

Denton, Texas
Top 15% in overall quality

University of North Texas landed the #22 spot on the 2022 Best Value Music Performance Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Getting Aid ranking. University of North Texas is a large school located in Denton, Texas that handed out 46 bachelors’s music performance degrees in 2019-2020.

As a testament to the quality of education it offers, UNT is also in the top of our “Best Music Performance Bachelor’s Degree Schools” ranking. It’s in the top 15% of all schools in this category. The estimated yearly cost for UNT is $15,086 for Bachelor’s Degree Music Performance students with aid.

Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 85%.

Read full report on Music Performance at University of North Texas

Top 20% in overall quality

Brigham Young University - Provo did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Music Performance Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Getting Aid ranking, coming in at #23. Brigham Young University - Provo is a large private not-for-profit school situated in Provo, Utah. It awarded 6 bachelors’s music performance degrees in 2019-2020.

In addition to being on this list, BYU is in the top on our “Best Music Performance Bachelor’s Degree Schools” list. It’s in the top 20% of all schools in this category. It costs about $13,322 for bachelor’s degree music performance students with aid per year to attend Brigham Young University - Provo.

The low student loan default rate of 1.7% 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%. With a freshman retention rate of 92%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students.

Read full report on Music Performance at BYU

#24

University of North Carolina at Greensboro

Greensboro, North Carolina

University of North Carolina at Greensboro came in at #24 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Music Performance Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Getting Aid ranking. UNC Greensboro is a fairly large public school situated in Greensboro, North Carolina. It awarded 25 bachelors’s music performance degrees in 2019-2020.

The estimated yearly cost for UNC Greensboro is $12,748 for Bachelor’s Degree Music Performance students with aid.

Read more about Music Performance at UNC Greensboro

#25

Indiana University - Bloomington

Bloomington, Indiana
Top 20% in overall quality

With a ranking of #25, Indiana University - Bloomington did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Music Performance Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Getting Aid list. Indiana University - Bloomington is a public institution located in Bloomington, Indiana. The school has a large population, and it awarded 116 bachelors’s degrees in 2019-2020.

As a testament to the quality of education it offers, IU Bloomington is also in the top of our “Best Music Performance Bachelor’s Degree Schools” ranking. It’s in the top 20% of all schools reviewed in that analysis. It costs about $13,253 for bachelor’s degree music performance students with aid per year to attend IU Bloomington.

The student loan default rate at the school is 4.3%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. With a freshman retention rate of 91%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students.

Full IU Bloomington Music Performance Report

Rest of the Best 40 in Best Value Music Performance Schools for a Bachelor’s For Those Getting Aid

Not only did these schools make the top 40 list, but they also landed in the top 15% of this year’s ranking:

#27

University of Central Florida

Orlando, Florida
#28

University of California - Los Angeles

Los Angeles, California
#30

McNeese State University

Lake Charles, Louisiana
#31

The University of West Florida

Pensacola, Florida
#32

Appalachian State University

Boone, North Carolina
#33

Florida Gulf Coast University

Fort Myers, Florida
#36

Rhode Island College

Providence, Rhode Island
#37

James Madison University

Harrisonburg, Virginia
#38

Augusta University

Augusta, Georgia
#40

University of Wisconsin - Stevens Point

Stevens Point, Wisconsin

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.

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