by our College Data Analytics Team
With all of the options students have for higher education today, it can be tough to choose which direction to take. At College Factual, we’re committed to helping you make that decision by providing information such as that found in our “Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Music Major in Illinois” ranking.
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 Illinois, there were 1,138 music graduates with average earnings and debt of $26,572 and $23,882 respectively. At the master’s degree level specifically, there were 323 music graduates with average earnings and debt of $59,317 and $0 respectively.
For this year’s “Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Music Major in Illinois” ranking, we looked at 15 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.
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 “Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Music Major in Illinois”.
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. 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.
The colleges and universities below are the best for illinois master’s degree music students.
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Roosevelt University. It ranked #1 on our 2023 Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Music Major in Illinois list. Chicago, Illinois is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out masters’s music degrees to 56 students in 2020-2021.
Out of the 15 schools in the Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Music Major in Illinois that were part of this year’s ranking, Eastern Illinois University landed the #2 spot on the list. This medium-sized school is located in Charleston, Illinois, and it awarded 17 masters’s music degrees in 2020-2021.
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Columbia College Chicago. The school came in at #3 for the Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Music Major in Illinois. Columbia College Chicago is a medium-sized school located in Chicago, Illinois that handed out 10 masters’s music degrees in 2020-2021.
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Northwestern University. The school came in at #4 for the Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Music Major in Illinois. Northwestern University is a large school located in Evanston, Illinois that handed out 58 masters’s music degrees in 2020-2021.
Since the school has a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 6 to 1, those pursuing a degree will have more opportunities to interact with their professors. The low undergrad student loan default rate of 0.6% 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 97%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend DePaul University. The school came in at #5 for the Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Music Major in Illinois. Chicago, Illinois is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out masters’s music degrees to 36 students in 2020-2021.
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%.
With a ranking of #6, North Park University did quite well on the 2023 Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Music Major in Illinois list. Located in Chicago, Illinois, this small private not-for-profit school awarded 4 degrees to qualified masters’s music students in 2020-2021.
Since the school has a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 10 to 1, those pursuing a degree will have more opportunities to interact with their professors. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 4.4%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Illinois State University came in at #7 in this year’s edition of the Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Music Major in Illinois ranking. Located in Normal, Illinois, this large public school awarded 32 degrees to qualified masters’s music students in 2020-2021.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 3.6%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Northern Illinois University ranked #8 on this year’s Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Music Major in Illinois list. Dekalb, Illinois is the setting for this fairly large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out masters’s music degrees to 23 students in 2020-2021.
Western Illinois University did quite well in the 2023 Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Music Major in Illinois ranking, coming in at #9. Macomb, Illinois is the setting for this medium-sized institution of higher learning. The public school handed out masters’s music degrees to 9 students in 2020-2021.
Northeastern Illinois University landed the #10 spot on the 2023 Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Music Major in Illinois ranking. This medium-sized school is located in Chicago, Illinois, and it awarded 7 masters’s music degrees in 2020-2021.
Read full report on Music at Northeastern Illinois University
Southern Illinois University Carbondale ranked #11 on this year’s Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Music Major in Illinois list. SIUC is a fairly large school located in Carbondale, Illinois that handed out 12 masters’s music degrees in 2020-2021.
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign landed the #12 spot on the 2023 Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Music Major in Illinois ranking. UIUC is located in Champaign, Illinois and, has a large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 46 masters’s music degrees to qualified students.
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.
Read full report on Music at University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Southern Illinois University Edwardsville ranked #13 on this year’s Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Music Major in Illinois list. Southern Illinois University Edwardsville is a fairly large public school situated in Edwardsville, Illinois. It awarded 7 masters’s music degrees in 2020-2021.
University of Chicago ranked #14 on this year’s Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Music Major in Illinois list. Located in Chicago, Illinois, this fairly large private not-for-profit school handed out 6 diplomas to qualified masters’s music students in 2020-2021.
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. 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%. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 100%.
Concordia University, Chicago landed the #15 spot on the 2023 Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Music Major in Illinois ranking. Concordia University, Chicago is a medium-sized school located in River Forest, Illinois that handed out 7 masters’s music degrees in 2020-2021.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 3.1%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Read more about our data sources and methodologies
