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2023 Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Music Major in the Great Lakes Region

14 Ranked Colleges
304 Degrees Awarded
$40,753 Avg Salary
Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Music Major 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. College Factual was founded, in part, to help students make the decision as to what would be the best school for them. Our “Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Music Major in the Great Lakes Region” ranking is part of that endeavor.

In 2020-2021, 25,910 people earned their degree in music, making the major the 43rd most popular in the United States. In 2019-2020, music graduates who were awarded their degree in 2017-2019, earned an average of $27,160 and had an average of $24,560 in loans still to pay off.

Across the Great Lakes region, there were 4,060 music graduates with average earnings and debt of $27,923 and $25,259 respectively. At the doctor’s degree level specifically, there were 304 music graduates with average earnings and debt of $74,305 and $0 respectively.

For this year’s “Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Music Major in the Great Lakes Region” ranking, we looked at 14 colleges that offer a degree in music. The colleges and universities that top this list are recognized because their music program is one of the largest majors offered at the school.

Check out our ranking methodology for more information.

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Since picking the right college can be one of the most important decisions of your life, we’ve developed the “Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Music Major in the Great Lakes Region” ranking, along with many other major-related rankings, to help you make that decision.

You can create your own custom comparison that focuses on the factors most important to you using our tool, College Combat. When you have some time, check it out - you may want to bookmark the link so you don’t forget it.

Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Music Major in the Great Lakes Region

The following schools top our list of the Best “Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Music Major in the Great Lakes Region”.

Top 14 Most Focused Doctor’s Degree Colleges for Music in the Great Lakes Region

1

Out of the 14 schools in the Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Music Major in the Great Lakes Region that were part of this year’s ranking, Cleveland Institute of Music landed the #1 spot on the list. Cleveland Institute of Music is a small school located in Cleveland, Ohio that handed out 1 doctorate’s music degrees in 2020-2021.

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 impressive undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 6 to 1 means that students may have more opportunities to work more closely with their professors than they would at other schools. The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 3.7%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Full Cleveland Institute of Music Music Report

2
Michigan State crest
Michigan State University
East Lansing, Michigan

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Michigan State University. It ranked #2 on our 2023 Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Music Major in the Great Lakes Region list. Michigan State University is a large public school situated in East Lansing, Michigan. It awarded 67 doctorate’s music degrees in 2020-2021.

Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 91%. The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 2.6%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Read more about Music at Michigan State University

3

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of Cincinnati - Main Campus. It ranked #3 on our 2023 Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Music Major in the Great Lakes Region list. University of Cincinnati - Main Campus is located in Cincinnati, Ohio and, has a large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 52 doctorate’s music degrees to qualified students.

The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 4.7%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 88%.

Read more about Music at University of Cincinnati - Main Campus

4
IU Bloomington crest
Indiana University - Bloomington
Bloomington, Indiana

Out of the 14 schools in the Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Music Major in the Great Lakes Region that were part of this year’s ranking, Indiana University - Bloomington landed the #4 spot on the list. Indiana University - Bloomington is a public institution located in Bloomington, Indiana. The school has a large population, and it awarded 41 doctorate’s degrees in 2020-2021.

The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 3.4%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 91%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.

Read full report on Music at Indiana University - Bloomington

5

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. The school came in at #5 for the Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Music Major in the Great Lakes Region. Located in Champaign, Illinois, this large public school awarded 36 degrees to qualified doctorate’s music students in 2020-2021.

The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 2.3%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. With a freshman retention rate of 94%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students.

Full UIUC Music Report

6
Northwestern crest
Northwestern University
Evanston, Illinois

Northwestern University did quite well in the 2023 Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Music Major in the Great Lakes Region ranking, coming in at #6. Northwestern University is a large school located in Evanston, Illinois that handed out 17 doctorate’s music degrees in 2020-2021.

With a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 6 to 1, it’s easy to see that the school is committed to helping their undergraduates succeed. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 0.6%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 97%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.

Read more about Music at Northwestern

7

Case Western Reserve University came in at #7 in this year’s edition of the Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Music Major in the Great Lakes Region ranking. Located in Cleveland, Ohio, this fairly large private not-for-profit school awarded 7 diplomas to qualified doctorate’s music students in 2020-2021.

The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 93%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 1.5%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Read more about Music at Case Western

8

University of Wisconsin - Madison landed the #8 spot on the 2023 Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Music Major in the Great Lakes Region ranking. Located in Madison, Wisconsin, this large public school awarded 24 diplomas to qualified doctorate’s music students in 2020-2021.

The low undergrad student loan default rate of 0.9% 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 95%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students.

Full University of Wisconsin - Madison Music Report

9
UChicago crest
University of Chicago
Chicago, Illinois

With a ranking of #9, University of Chicago did quite well on the 2023 Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Music Major in the Great Lakes Region list. UChicago is a private not-for-profit institution located in Chicago, Illinois. The school has a fairly large population, and it awarded 9 doctorate’s degrees in 2020-2021.

Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 100%. The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 1.0%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. The undergraduate 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.

Read more about Music at University of Chicago

10
Ball State crest
Ball State University
Muncie, Indiana

Ball State University came in at #10 in this year’s edition of the Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Music Major in the Great Lakes Region ranking. Ball State University is a large school located in Muncie, Indiana that handed out 8 doctorate’s music degrees in 2020-2021.

The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 4.2%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Full Ball State Music Report

11

University of Michigan - Ann Arbor came in at #11 in this year’s edition of the Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Music Major in the Great Lakes Region ranking. University of Michigan - Ann Arbor is located in Ann Arbor, Michigan and, has a large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 18 doctorate’s music degrees to qualified 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 school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 1.3%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Full University of Michigan - Ann Arbor Music Report

12

Ohio State University - Main Campus landed the #12 spot on the 2023 Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Music Major in the Great Lakes Region ranking. This large school is located in Columbus, Ohio, and it awarded 19 doctorate’s music degrees in 2020-2021.

The low undergrad student loan default rate of 3.6% 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%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 94%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.

Read full report on Music at Ohio State University - Main Campus

13

Bowling Green State University - Main Campus ranked #13 on this year’s Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Music Major in the Great Lakes Region list. BGSU is a fairly large school located in Bowling Green, Ohio that handed out 5 doctorate’s music degrees in 2020-2021.

Read more about Music at Bowling Green State University - Main Campus

14

Kent State University at Kent landed the #14 spot on the 2023 Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on Music Major in the Great Lakes Region ranking. Kent State is a large school located in Kent, Ohio that handed out 31 doctorate’s music degrees in 2020-2021.

Full Kent State Music Report

Notes and References

References

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Footnotes

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