2024 Best Colleges for Music Theory and Composition

SUMMARY

A degree in Music Theory and Composition is a valuable choice and naturally a mandatory first step for scholars wishing to pursue a career as a songwriter, a composer, or a music arranger. Interestingly, music theory and composition is an uncommon degree being the 262nd most popular area of study. Last year, there were 577 music theory and composition graduates. In-state tuition for music theory and composition at private schools is, on average, 4.2 times more spendy than their public counterparts.

There are 172 institutions which offer music theory and composition. This number of schools is fairly average in terms of the number of institutions which offer each degree. If you are hoping to surround yourself with other music theory and composition undergraduates, consider universities in Massachusetts which have more undergrads admitted to music theory and composition than any other state. less precisely, the top region to study music theory and composition is in the New England region with Western Connecticut State University, Berklee College of Music, and The New England Conservatory of Music best representing the region. Interestingly, our pick of the best conference to major in music theory and composition is the Little East Conference with Western Connecticut State University representing the conference. That said, our choice for the best college for music theory and composition is Vanderbilt University. You may also want to check out our list of the best colleges.

The best school might not actually be the best school for you. There are many more angels to weigh when selecting ​university. External stuff like campus amenities, transportation services, and food would alter one's thoughts on where to go to university. Here at Authority, we've weighed the pros and cons for you. If, for example, you want to know which music theory and composition school has the top campus, the answer is New York University. If you are very interested in which university has the top campus, we have a whole page dedicated to that. We have carefully pored through government databases, student reviews, professor reviews, and more in order to evaluate every major in an unbiased and informative way. Here you can find our comprehensive list for the schools with the best student life&nbspand, from that list, our choice for the college with the best student life for music theory and composition is University of Michigan-Ann Arbor. Curious why? Continue scrolling to find out more about Authority's top choices. Many of our picks will probably shock you.

If price is a major deciding factor in your decision on where to go to university, you might be cautious about University of Southern California. University of Southern California&nbspappears to be the most expensive school for music theory and composition, at least for out of state students. We do have an entire list of the most expensive&nbspschools that might put the cost at University of Southern California&nbspinto perspective. Additionally, you may care to know that music theory and composition is the 192nd most expensive program in America, with an average expense of $30,600. On a broader scale, the most expensive state for music theory and composition nationally is Oregon with expenses at the primary institution, Lewis & Clark College, of $52,346. To zoom out even further, the most costly region of the U.S. for music theory and composition is the Far West region which is best demonstrated with California Institute of the Arts with a cost of $50,850, University of Southern California with a cost of $57,256, and Lewis & Clark College with a cost of $52,346.

Our cheapest region for music theory and composition is the Southwest region which is represented by University of North Texas with a cost of $18,423. In better news, the most affordable university for music theory and composition is Conservatory of Music of Puerto Rico. Authority's comprehensive list of the most affordable colleges can be explored here.

In-state learners can expect to pay in the neighborhood of $10,600 for a degree in music theory and composition. The cost grows dramatically to a median of $26,700 for the out-of-state public-school undergrad. Our selection for the school representing the best value for music theory and composition: Vanderbilt University. Through this link you will find our comprehensive list of the schools we believe to be the best value&nbspin general. Bear in mind, this discussion is based on the assumption that you are an out-of-state student. A discussion of value changes when in-state tuition costs are considered, as such, we are using out-of-state tuition as the baseline.

Earnings for music theory and composition majors vary a lot, but two-years after completing the major graduates will typically make around $53,200. While there is much variation in earnings potential; highest paid earners can bring in up to $104,700. Even straight out of university, the minimum earning positions within the music theory and composition field earn $27,100, which is an alright wage. The highest earning grads from music theory and composition come from University of Southern California&nbspand if you are looking for colleges with all of the highest earning graduates, we have that too.

The overall diversity of music theory and composition is solid, coming in the 59th percentile of all programs. The university with the highest composite diversity for music theory and composition is Academy of Art University&nbspand here you can find our general list for the universities which have the most diversity. The financial diversity of Music Theory and Composition only is within the 54th percentile of all majors. Racial diversity is even further below average in the 53rd percentile. White undergraduates make up the largest proportion at 59% of those majoring in music theory and composition. Additionally, 71% of students seeking a music theory and composition major are men.

The median score for music theory and composition's professors is 4.1 stars, which is 3% better than the average score across all majors; which is a good ranking. If you want the most popular music theory and composition professor in the nation, consider looking up Meredith Morris from Clemson University. This might be shocking, but the top rated instructors for music theory and composition according to students are found at Savannah College of Art and Design. As we consider data beyond just rankings it becomes clear that the university with comprehensively the best professors for music theory and composition is New York University. One will find an explanation of our ever evolving ranking methodology of the best overall professors here, along with some of the finest examples of professors in the U.S.

Finally, the hardest school to get into for music theory and composition is Vanderbilt University. While we think of this list more as a novelty, we have a detailed list for the hardest colleges to get into. That being said, here at Authority we do hope you understand that considering university through a lens only informed by superlatives can cause problems. We at Authority hope you look at some of our other pages on individual colleges and read some of our background 'blog posts' on beneficial things to think about as your college search continues.