by our College Data Analytics TeamCollege Factual looked at 200 colleges and universities when compiling its 2024 Best Music Performance Bachelor's Degree Schools ranking. Combined, these schools handed out 4,124 bachelor's degrees in music performance to qualified students.
Jump to one of the following sections: * Our Methodology
Your choice of music performance for getting your bachelor's degree school matters. Important measures of a quality music performance program can vary widely even among the top schools. Below we explain some of the most important factors to consider before making your choice:
A school that excels in educating for a particular major and degree level must be a great school overall as well. To make it into this list a school must rank well in our overall Best Colleges ranking. This ranking considered factors such as graduation rates, overall graduate earnings and other educational resources to identify great colleges and universities.
In addition to the above, you should consider some of the following factors:
Our complete ranking methodology documents in more detail how we consider these factors to identify the best colleges for music performance students working on their bachelor's degree.
When choosing the right school for you, it's important to arm yourself with all the facts you can. To that end, we've created a number of major-specific rankings, including this Best Music Performance Bachelor's Degree Schools list to help you make the college decision.
To further help you make the college decision, we've developed a unique tool called College Combat that allows you to compare schools based on the factors that matter the most to you. Go ahead and give it a try, or bookmark the link so you can check it out later.
Learn about start dates, transferring credits, availability of financial aid, and more by contacting the universities below.
Earn the music business degree that fits into the business world – and partners Southern New Hampshire University with world-renowned Berklee College of Music.
Below you'll see a list of the best colleges and universities for pursuing a bachelor's degree in music performance. Only those schools that rank in the top 15% of all the schools we analyze get awarded with a place on this list.
Northwestern University is one of the best schools in the United States for getting a bachelor's degree in music performance. Northwestern is a fairly large private not-for-profit university located in the city of Evanston.More information about a bachelor’s in music performance from Northwestern University
University of Southern California is one of the best schools in the country for getting a bachelor's degree in music performance. USC is a very large private not-for-profit university located in the city of Los Angeles.More information about a bachelor’s in music performance from University of Southern California
Every student pursuing a degree in a bachelor's degree in music performance needs to check out The University of Texas at Austin. Located in the city of Austin, UT Austin is a public university with a very large student population.More information about a bachelor’s in music performance from The University of Texas at Austin
University of Michigan - Ann Arbor is a good decision for students pursuing a bachelor's degree in music performance. U-M is a very large public university located in the midsize city of Ann Arbor.More information about a bachelor’s in music performance from University of Michigan - Ann Arbor
Located in the city of New York, NYU is a private not-for-profit university with a very large student population.More information about a bachelor’s in music performance from New York University
Located in the city of Pittsburgh, Carnegie Mellon is a private not-for-profit university with a large student population.More information about a bachelor’s in music performance from Carnegie Mellon University
Located in the city of East Lansing, Michigan State is a public university with a very large student population.More information about a bachelor’s in music performance from Michigan State University
Located in the large city of Los Angeles, UCLA is a public university with a fairly large student population.More information about a bachelor’s in music performance from University of California - Los Angeles
Located in the large city of Madison, UW - Madison is a public university with a very large student population.More information about a bachelor’s in music performance from University of Wisconsin - Madison
Located in the suburb of Dallas, SMU is a private not-for-profit university with a fairly large student population.More information about a bachelor’s in music performance from Southern Methodist University
Located in the city of Fort Worth, TCU is a private not-for-profit university with a fairly large student population.More information about a bachelor’s in music performance from Texas Christian University
Located in the city of Coral Gables, U Miami is a private not-for-profit university with a fairly large student population.More information about a bachelor’s in music performance from University of Miami
Located in the fringe town of Oberlin, Oberlin is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population.More information about a bachelor’s in music performance from Oberlin College
Located in the city of Champaign, UIUC is a public university with a fairly large student population.More information about a bachelor’s in music performance from University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Johns Hopkins is a fairly large private not-for-profit university located in the city of Baltimore.More information about a bachelor’s in music performance from Johns Hopkins University
Boston U is a very large private not-for-profit university located in the city of Boston.More information about a bachelor’s in music performance from Boston University
Located in the medium-sized city of Tallahassee, Florida State is a public university with a fairly large student population.More information about a bachelor’s in music performance from Florida State University
Located in the midsize city of Rochester, University of Rochester is a private not-for-profit university with a fairly large student population.More information about a bachelor’s in music performance from University of Rochester
IU Bloomington is a very large public university located in the small city of Bloomington.More information about a bachelor’s in music performance from Indiana University - Bloomington
Located in the city of Houston, UH is a public university with a very large student population.More information about a bachelor’s in music performance from University of Houston
Belmont is a moderately-sized private not-for-profit university located in the city of Nashville.More information about a bachelor’s in music performance from Belmont University
New School University is a large private not-for-profit school located in the large city of New York.More information about a bachelor’s in music performance from The New School
Chapman is a fairly large private not-for-profit university located in the city of Orange.More information about a bachelor’s in music performance from Chapman University
Located in the large city of Seattle, UW Seattle is a public university with a fairly large student population.More information about a bachelor’s in music performance from University of Washington - Seattle Campus
UMCP is a fairly large public university located in the suburb of College Park.More information about a bachelor’s in music performance from University of Maryland - College Park
Here are some additional great schools for Music Performance students that almost earned our Best Music Performance Bachelor's Degree Schools award.
| Rank | College | Location |
|---|---|---|
| 31 | University of Cincinnati - Main Campus | Cincinnati, OH |
| 32 | University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill | Chapel Hill, NC |
| 33 | Ohio State University - Main Campus | Columbus, OH |
| 34 | St Olaf College | Northfield, MN |
| 35 | James Madison University | Harrisonburg, VA |
| 36 | West Chester University of Pennsylvania | West Chester, PA |
| 37 | Temple University | Philadelphia, PA |
| 38 | Cleveland Institute of Music | Cleveland, OH |
| 39 | Drake University | Des Moines, IA |
| 40 | University of Delaware | Newark, DE |
View the Best Music Performance Bachelor's Degree Schools for a specific region near you.
Music Performance is one of 17 different types of Music programs to choose from.
| Related Major | Annual Graduates |
|---|---|
| General Music | 7,729 |
| Other Music | 778 |
| Music Theory & Composition | 655 |
| Music Technology | 637 |
| Jazz Studies | 379 |
| Voice Performance | 331 |
| Stringed Instruments | 180 |
| Keyboard Instruments | 164 |
| Music Pedagogy | 122 |
| Music History | 115 |
