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2022 Best Value Bachelor’s Degree Colleges for Music Theory & Composition in New York

11 Ranked Colleges
63 Degrees Awarded
$30,400 Avg Net Price*
Best Value Music Composition Schools for a Bachelor's in New York

It’s not easy to decide which college to attend when there so many options available for students. College Factual has developed its “Best Value Music Composition Schools for a Bachelor’s in New York” ranking as one item you can use to help make this decision.

Music Theory & Composition is the 415th most popular major in the country with 1,117 degrees awarded in 2019-2020.

Across New York, there were 179 music theory and composition graduates with average earnings and debt of $0 and $0 respectively. At the bachelor’s degree level specifically, there were 63 music theory and composition graduates with average earnings and debt of $37,973 and $22,589 respectively.

This year’s “Best Value Music Composition Schools for a Bachelor’s in New York” ranking looked at 11 colleges that offer degrees in a bachelor’s in music theory and composition. Not only do the schools that top this list have excellent music theory and composition programs, but they also cost less that schools of similar quality.

To come up with these rankings, we looked at factors such as the cost to attend the school after aid is awarded and overall quality of the music theory and composition program at the school. Check out our ranking methodology for more information.

More Ways to Rank Music Theory & Composition Schools

Since picking the right college can be one of the most important decisions of your life, we’ve developed the “Best Value Music Composition Schools for a Bachelor’s in New York” ranking, along with many other major-related rankings, to help you make that decision.

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. If you’re torn between two schools, you can use it to help you see how they stack up against one another. Bookmark it so you can compare any new schools that might interest you.

Best Value Music Composition Schools for a Bachelor’s in New York

The following schools top our list of the Best Best Value Music Composition Schools for a Bachelor’s in New York.

Top 11 Best Value Bachelor’s Degree Colleges for Music Theory & Composition in New York

#1

SUNY Fredonia

Fredonia, New York
#5 in overall quality

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend SUNY Fredonia. It ranked #1 on our 2022 Best Value Music Composition Schools for a Bachelor’s in New York list. SUNY Fredonia is a public institution located in Fredonia, New York. The school has a small population, and it awarded 4 bachelors’s degrees in 2019-2020.

SUNY Fredonia not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #5 on our “Best Music Theory & Composition Bachelor’s Degree Schools in New York” list. The estimated yearly cost for SUNY Fredonia is $14,824 for New York Bachelor’s Degree Music Composition students.

The student loan default rate at the school is 4.5%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Read more about Music Theory & Composition at SUNY Fredonia

#2

Purchase College

Purchase, New York
#10 in overall quality

Out of the 11 schools in the Best Value Music Composition Schools for a Bachelor’s in New York that were part of this year’s ranking, Purchase College landed the #2 spot on the list. Purchase College is located in Purchase, New York and, has a small student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 15 bachelors’s music composition degrees to qualified students.

Purchase College also took the #10 spot in our “Best Music Theory & Composition Bachelor’s Degree Schools in New York” ranking. It costs about $18,326 for New York Bachelor’s Degree Music Composition students per year to attend Purchase College.

Full Purchase College Music Theory & Composition Report

#3

Brooklyn College

Brooklyn, New York
#11 in overall quality

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Brooklyn College. The school came in at #3 for the Best Value Music Composition Schools for a Bachelor’s in New York. Brooklyn College is a public institution located in Brooklyn, New York. The school has a fairly large population, and it awarded 4 bachelors’s degrees in 2019-2020.

Brooklyn College also made our “Best Music Theory & Composition Bachelor’s Degree Schools in New York” list, coming in at #11. It costs about $2,683 for New York Bachelor’s Degree Music Composition students per year to attend Brooklyn College.

The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 5.0%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Full Brooklyn College Music Theory & Composition Report

#4

Nazareth College

Rochester, New York
#7 in overall quality

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Nazareth College. The school came in at #4 for the Best Value Music Composition Schools for a Bachelor’s in New York. Nazareth is a private not-for-profit institution located in Rochester, New York. The school has a small population, and it awarded 1 bachelors’s degrees in 2019-2020.

Nazareth also made our “Best Music Theory & Composition Bachelor’s Degree Schools in New York” list, coming in at #7. The estimated yearly cost for Nazareth College is $29,994 for New York Bachelor’s Degree Music Composition students.

The student-to-faculty ratio of 9 to 1 is a sign that students will have more opportunities to engage with their professors one-on-one. The student loan default rate at the school is 3.3%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. With a freshman retention rate of 85%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students.

Read full report on Music Theory & Composition at Nazareth College

#5

Ithaca College

Ithaca, New York
#3 in overall quality

Out of the 11 schools in the Best Value Music Composition Schools for a Bachelor’s in New York that were part of this year’s ranking, Ithaca College landed the #5 spot on the list. Ithaca is located in Ithaca, New York and, has a medium-sized student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 6 bachelors’s music composition degrees to qualified students.

Ithaca also made our “Best Music Theory & Composition Bachelor’s Degree Schools in New York” list, coming in at #3. The yearly cost to attend Ithaca is $33,465 for new york bachelor’s degree music composition students.

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 student-to-faculty ratio of 9 to 1, it’s easy to see that the school is committed to helping their undergraduates succeed.

Read full report on Music Theory & Composition at Ithaca

#6

Manhattan School of Music

New York, New York
#8 in overall quality

Manhattan School of Music came in at #6 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Music Composition Schools for a Bachelor’s in New York ranking. Manhattan School of Music is a small private not-for-profit school situated in New York, New York. It awarded 4 bachelors’s music composition degrees in 2019-2020.

Manhattan School of Music not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #8 on our “Best Music Theory & Composition Bachelor’s Degree Schools in New York” list. The yearly cost to attend Manhattan School of Music is $54,902 for New York Bachelor’s Degree Music Composition students.

Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 97%. With a student-to-faculty ratio of 5 to 1, it’s easy to see that the school is committed to helping their undergraduates succeed. The student loan default rate at the school is 3.7%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Read more about Music Theory & Composition at Manhattan School of Music

#7

The Juilliard School

New York, New York
#4 in overall quality

With a ranking of #7, The Juilliard School did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Music Composition Schools for a Bachelor’s in New York list. Juilliard is a small private not-for-profit school situated in New York, New York. It awarded 2 bachelors’s music composition degrees in 2019-2020.

Juilliard also made our “Best Music Theory & Composition Bachelor’s Degree Schools in New York” list, coming in at #4. It costs about $33,535 for New York Bachelor’s Degree Music Composition students per year to attend The Juilliard School.

The student loan default rate at the school is 1.7%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 94%. The student-to-faculty ratio of 5 to 1 is a sign that students will have more opportunities to engage with their professors one-on-one.

Full The Juilliard School Music Theory & Composition Report

#8

The New School

New York, New York
#9 in overall quality

With a ranking of #8, The New School did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Music Composition Schools for a Bachelor’s in New York list. New York, New York is the setting for this medium-sized institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out bachelors’s music composition degrees to 4 students in 2019-2020.

New School University not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #9 on our “Best Music Theory & Composition Bachelor’s Degree Schools in New York” list. The yearly cost to attend The New School is $43,334 for New York Bachelor’s Degree Music Composition students.

The student-to-faculty ratio of 9 to 1 is a sign that students will have more opportunities to engage with their professors one-on-one.

Read more about Music Theory & Composition at The New School

#9

Syracuse University

Syracuse, New York
#6 in overall quality

With a ranking of #9, Syracuse University did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Music Composition Schools for a Bachelor’s in New York list. Syracuse University is located in Syracuse, New York and, has a large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 2 bachelors’s music composition degrees to qualified students.

Syracuse not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #6 on our “Best Music Theory & Composition Bachelor’s Degree Schools in New York” list. The estimated yearly cost for Syracuse University is $34,482 for New York Bachelor’s Degree Music Composition students.

The low student loan default rate of 3.3% 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%. With a freshman retention rate of 89%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students.

Full Syracuse Music Theory & Composition Report

#10

New York University

New York, New York
#2 in overall quality

New York University landed the #10 spot on the 2022 Best Value Music Composition Schools for a Bachelor’s in New York ranking. Located in New York, New York, this large private not-for-profit school handed out 10 diplomas to qualified bachelors’s music composition students in 2019-2020.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at NYU, the school also landed the #2 spot in our “Best Music Theory & Composition Bachelor’s Degree Schools in New York” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for NYU is $39,772 for New York Bachelor’s Degree Music Composition students.

The student loan default rate at the school is 2.3%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. The impressive student-to-faculty ratio of 8 to 1 means that students may have more opportunities to work more closely with their professors than they would at other schools. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 90%.

Read full report on Music Theory & Composition at New York University

#11

University of Rochester

Rochester, New York
#1 in overall quality

University of Rochester landed the #11 spot on the 2022 Best Value Music Composition Schools for a Bachelor’s in New York ranking. University of Rochester is a fairly large school located in Rochester, New York that handed out 10 bachelors’s music composition degrees in 2019-2020.

University of Rochester also took the #1 spot in our “Best Music Theory & Composition Bachelor’s Degree Schools in New York” ranking. The yearly cost to attend University of Rochester is $29,522 for New York Bachelor’s Degree Music Composition students.

The student loan default rate at the school is 1.6%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. The impressive student-to-faculty ratio of 10 to 1 means that students may have more opportunities to work more closely with their professors than they would at other schools. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 92%.

Read more about Music Theory & Composition at University of Rochester

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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.

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