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2024 Best Music Schools in New York

46 Colleges in New York
2,351 Music Degrees Awarded
$25,290 Avg Early-Career Salary
Music is above average in terms of popularity with it being the #43 most popular degree program in the country. As a result, there are many college that offer the degree, making your choice of school a hard one.

For its 2024 ranking, College Factual looked at 46 schools in New York to determine which ones were the best for music students pursuing a degree. Combined, these schools handed out 2,351 degrees in music to qualified students.

What's on this page: * Degree-Level Rankings

Choosing a Great Music School

Best Music Schools in New York The music program you select can have a big impact on your future. That's why we developed our collection of Best Schools for Music rankings. We derive our Best Overall Music School rankings by rolling up our degree-level rankings after weighting them by the number of degrees awarded at each school.

In order to find the schools that are the best fit for you, you may want to filter to one of the degree levels below.

Pick Your Music Degree Level

Associate Degrees in Music
Bachelor's Degrees in Music
Master's Degrees in Music
Doctor's Degrees in Music

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 Schools in New York. If you'd like to restrict your choices to just one part of the country, you can filter this list by location.

In addition to our rankings, you can take two colleges and compare them based on the criteria that matters most to you in our unique tool, College Combat. Test it out when you get a chance! You may also want to bookmark the link and share it with others who are trying to make the college decision.

If you want to learn more about how we derive our rankings, see College Factual's Methodology.

Best Schools for Music in New York

If you aren't interested in a particular degree level and want to know which schools are the overall best at delivering an education for the music degrees they offer, see the list below.

10 Top New York Schools in Music

1
NYU crest
New York University
New York, NY
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
197 Music Degrees Awarded
$27,868 Median Starting Salary

New York University is a good choice for students pursuing a degree in music. NYU is a very large private not-for-profit university located in the large city of New York. A Best Colleges rank of #27 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means NYU is a great university overall.

There were approximately 197 music students who graduated with this degree at NYU in the most recent data year. Those music students who get their degree from New York University receive $2,577 more than the standard music graduate.

More information about a degree in music from New York University

2
Juilliard crest
The Juilliard School
New York, NY
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
208 Music Degrees Awarded
$18,174 Median Starting Salary

The Juilliard School is a good choice for students interested in a degree in music. Juilliard is a fairly small private not-for-profit school located in the city of New York.

There were approximately 208 music students who graduated with this degree at Juilliard in the most recent data year. Soon after graduating, music degree recipients usually earn around $18,174 in the first five years of their career.

More information about a degree in music from The Juilliard School

3
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
17th Most Popular In NY
47 Music Degrees Awarded

Columbia University in the City of New York is a wonderful choice for students pursuing a degree in music. Columbia is a very large private not-for-profit university located in the large city of New York. A Best Colleges rank of #14 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means Columbia is a great university overall.

There were about 47 music students who graduated with this degree at Columbia in the most recent year we have data available.

More information about a degree in music from Columbia University in the City of New York

4
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
239 Music Degrees Awarded
$25,339 Median Starting Salary

It is difficult to beat University of Rochester if you wish to pursue a degree in music. University of Rochester is a fairly large private not-for-profit university located in the city of Rochester. A Best Colleges rank of #104 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means University of Rochester is a great university overall.

There were roughly 239.00000000000003 music students who graduated with this degree at University of Rochester in the most recent data year. Soon after graduation, music degree recipients usually earn around $25,339 in their early careers.

More information about a degree in music from University of Rochester

5
New School University crest
The New School
New York, NY
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
236 Music Degrees Awarded
$17,513 Median Starting Salary

Located in the large city of New York, New School University is a private not-for-profit school with a large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #208 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means New School University is a great school overall.

There were about 236 music students who graduated with this degree at New School University in the most recent year we have data available. Graduates who receive their degree from the music program make around $17,513 in their early career salary.

More information about a degree in music from The New School

6
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
252 Music Degrees Awarded
$20,003 Median Starting Salary

Located in the city of New York, Manhattan School of Music is a private not-for-profit school with a small student population.

There were roughly 252 music students who graduated with this degree at Manhattan School of Music in the most recent year we have data available. Students who receive their degree from the music program earn about $20,003 in the first couple years of working.

More information about a degree in music from Manhattan School of Music

7
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
36 Music Degrees Awarded
2.8% Growth in Graduates

The Graduate Center is a moderately-sized public school located in the large city of New York. A Best Colleges rank of #182 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means The Graduate Center is a great school overall.

There were about 36 music students who graduated with this degree at The Graduate Center in the most recent data year. Degree recipients from the music major at The Graduate Center, CUNY get $32,895 above the average graduate with the same degree when they enter the workforce.

More information about a degree in music from The Graduate Center, CUNY

8
Syracuse crest
Syracuse University
Syracuse, NY
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
32 Music Degrees Awarded
31.3% Growth in Graduates

Located in the city of Syracuse, Syracuse is a private not-for-profit university with a fairly large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #132 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means Syracuse is a great university overall.

There were roughly 32 music students who graduated with this degree at Syracuse in the most recent data year. Degree recipients from the music program at Syracuse University earn $4,447 above the average graduate in this field shortly after graduation.

More information about a degree in music from Syracuse University

9
Skidmore crest
Skidmore College
Saratoga Springs, NY
Bachelor's Degree Highest Degree Type
38th Most Popular In NY

Located in the small suburb of Saratoga Springs, Skidmore is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population. A Best Colleges rank of #281 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means Skidmore is a great college overall.

There were approximately 11 music students who graduated with this degree at Skidmore in the most recent data year.

More information about a degree in music from Skidmore College

10
Ithaca crest
Ithaca College
Ithaca, NY
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
75 Music Degrees Awarded
$28,606 Median Starting Salary

Ithaca is a moderately-sized private not-for-profit college located in the suburb of Ithaca. This college ranks 39th out of 142 colleges for overall quality in the state of New York.

There were roughly 75 music students who graduated with this degree at Ithaca in the most recent data year. Degree recipients from the music program at Ithaca College earn $3,316 more than the typical college grad with the same degree when they enter the workforce.

More information about a degree in music from Ithaca College

Best Music Colleges in the Middle Atlantic Region

Explore all the Best Music Colleges in the Middle Atlantic Area or other specific states within that region.

State Colleges Degrees Awarded
Pennsylvania 334 900
Maryland 279 372
New Jersey 273 586
District of Columbia 188 117
Delaware 175 43

View All Rankings >

One of 10 majors within the Visual & Performing Arts area of study, Music has other similar majors worth exploring.

Music Concentrations

Major Annual Graduates
Music Performance 765
General Music 492
Keyboard Instruments 190
Music Theory & Composition 179
Jazz Studies 172
Voice Performance 144
Stringed Instruments 126
Other Music 69
Music Technology 57
Music History 52

View All Music Concentrations >

Related Major Annual Graduates
Design & Applied Arts 4,452
Fine & Studio Arts 3,405
Drama & Theater Arts 2,842
Film, Video & Photographic Arts 2,006
Arts & Media Management 688
General Visual & Performing Arts 610
Dance 372
Other Visual Art 344

View All Music Related Majors >

Notes and References

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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