2024 Best Music Master's Degree Schools in Oregon

If you plan on getting your master's degree in music, you won't be alone since the degree program is ranked #36 in the country in terms of popularity. As a result, there are many college that offer the degree, making your choice of school a hard one.

In 2024, College Factual analyzed 2 schools in order to identify the top ones for its Best Music Master's Degree Schools in Oregon ranking. When you put them all together, these colleges and universities awarded 63 master's degrees in music during the 2020-2021 academic year.

Jump to one of the following sections: * Our Methodology

• Best Master’s Degree Schools List

Early-Career Earnings

One measure we use to determine the quality of a school is to look at the average salary of master's graduates during the early years of their career. That is, everyone wants their master's degree to be worth something, and salaries are one measure of determining that.

Other Factors We Consider

In addition to the above, you should consider some of the following factors:

• Major Focus - How many resources a school devotes to music students as compared to other majors.
• Major Demand - The number of music students who choose to seek a master's degree at the school.
• Educational Resources - The amount of money and other resources allocated to students while they are pursuing their degree. These resources include such things as number of students per instructor and education expenditures per student.
• Student Debt - How much debt music students go into to obtain their master's degree and how well they are able to pay back that debt.
• Accreditation - Whether a school is regionally accredited and/or accredited by a recognized music related body.

Our full ranking methodology documents in more detail how we consider these factors to identify the best schools for music students working on their master's degree.

One Size Does Not Fit All

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 Master's Degree Schools in Oregon.

Best Schools for Master’s Students to Study Music in Oregon

The following list ranks the best colleges and universities for pursuing a master's degree in music.

Top Oregon Schools for a Master's in Music

1

University of Oregon
Eugene, OR

29 Annual Graduates

$18,516 Median Starting Salary

It's hard to beat University of Oregon if you want to pursue a master's degree in music. UO is a fairly large public university located in the midsize city of Eugene.

Master's students who receive their degree from the music program make an average of $18,516 in their early career salary.

More information about a master’s in music from University of Oregon

2

Portland State University
Portland, OR

17 Annual Graduates

$34,362 Median Starting Salary

Portland State University is a great choice for students pursuing a master's degree in music. Portland State University is a fairly large public university located in the large city of Portland.

Master's recipients from the music degree program at Portland State University make $7,923 more than the average college grad in this field shortly after graduation.

More information about a master’s in music from Portland State University

3

Southern Oregon University
Ashland, OR

12 Annual Graduates

Southern Oregon University is one of the finest schools in the country for getting a master's degree in music. Southern Oregon University is a medium-sized public university located in the suburb of Ashland.More information about a master’s in music from Southern Oregon University

Best Music Colleges in the Far Western US Region

Explore all the Best Music Colleges in the Far Western US Area or other specific states within that region.

State	Colleges	Degrees Awarded
California	253	498
Washington	183	47
Nevada	105	27
Hawaii	85	7
Alaska	52	0

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Rankings in Majors Related to Music

Music is one of 10 different types of Visual & Performing Arts programs to choose from.

Music Focus Areas

Major	Annual Graduates
Music Performance	28
General Music	16
Conducting	6
Musicology & Ethnomusicology	4
Keyboard Instruments	3
Jazz Studies	3
Music Theory & Composition	2
Music Technology	1

Most Popular Related Majors

Related Major	Annual Graduates
Fine & Studio Arts	46
Design & Applied Arts	18
Drama & Theater Arts	17
Crafts, Folk Art & Artisanry	12
Arts & Media Management	1

Notes and References

• The bars on the spread charts above show the distribution of the schools on this list +/- one standard deviation from the mean.
• 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 the rest 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). More about our data sources and methodologies.