2023 Best Value Music Schools in Washington
Identifying Quality Schools at More Affordable Prices
Finding the Best Music School for You
In 2020-2021, 320 degrees and certificates were awarded to music students who went to a Washington college or university. This makes it the #59 most popular major in the state.
There are lots of options to pick from today when trying to decide which program is right for you. You're no longer limited to schools in your local area, either, since online programs are becoming more prevalent. Or you may find the programs at a trade school to be a better alternative for you.
Along with in-depth profiles of schools and the programs they offer, Course Advisor has created the Best Value Music Schools in Washington to help you in your search for the best school for you. Our analysis looked at 13 schools in Washington to see which programs offered the best value experiences for music students with the aim of identifying those quality schools that are more affordable than some of their counterparts.
When determining this ranking, we place a high emphasis on the school's quality as well as its sticker price. Even though a college may be affordable, it may not offer value. More specifically, we discount our quality score by the published tuition and fees charged by a school. This gives the cost per unit of quality for each college. The value is determined by how much quality your dollar buys.
Our calculations use out-of-state tuition and fees in our nationwide and regional rankings. Average in-state tuition and fees are used for our statewide rankings.
Top 10 Best Music Schools
Our 2023 rankings named Spokane Falls Community College the best value school in Washington for music students. Located in the city of Spokane, Spokane Falls Community College is a public school with a small student population.
The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at Spokane Falls Community College are $3,826 a year.
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You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend Bellevue College. The school came in at #2 on this year’s Best Value Music Schools in Washington list. Located in the medium-sized city of Bellevue, BC is a public school with a large student population.
In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at BC are $4,057 per year.
BC excels when it comes to quality. It’s ranked in the top 15% of all schools on our Best Music Schools in Washington list.
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The excellent programs at Central Washington University helped the school earn the #3 place on this year’s ranking of the best music schools in Washington. CWU is a fairly large public school located in the distant town of Ellensburg.
The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at CWU are $8,685 a year. On average, music graduates from CWU take out $27,000 in student loans while working on their degree.
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Out of the 13 schools in Washington that were part of this year’s ranking, Western Washington University landed the # 4 spot on the list. Located in the city of Bellingham, WWU is a public college with a large student population.
In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at WWU are $8,703 per year. Music majors at WWU take out an average of $23,279 in student loans while working on their egree.
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Out of the 13 schools in Washington that were part of this year’s ranking, Washington State University landed the # 5 spot on the list. Located in the distant town of Pullman, Wazzu is a public college with a fairly large student population.
The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at Wazzu are $12,417 a year. After completing their degree, music graduates from Wazzu carry an average student debtload of $23,250.
Wazzu excels when it comes to quality. It’s ranked in the top 20% of all schools on our Best Music Schools in Washington list.
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With a ranking of #6, Eastern Washington University did quite well on this year’s best value schools for music students. EWU is a fairly large public school located in the fringe town of Cheney.
The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at EWU are $7,922 a year.
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University of Washington - Seattle Campus landed the #7 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value music programs. UW Seattle is a very large public school located in the city of Seattle.
In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at UW Seattle are $12,076 per year.
UW Seattle also took the #2 spot in our Best Music Schools in Washington rankings.
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Seattle Pacific University came in at #8 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Music Schools in Washington ranking. Located in the city of Seattle, SPU is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population.
In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at SPU are $35,646 per year.
SPU excels when it comes to quality. It’s ranked in the top 15% of all schools on our Best Music Schools in Washington list.
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Cornish College of the Arts landed the #9 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value music programs. Cornish College of the Arts is a small private not-for-profit school located in the city of Seattle.
In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Cornish College of the Arts are $35,486 per year.
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Pacific Lutheran University landed the #10 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value music programs. PLU is a small private not-for-profit school located in the large suburb of Tacoma.
The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at PLU are $47,576 a year. Music majors at PLU take out an average of $27,000 in student loans while working on their egree.
Request InformationBest Value Music Colleges in the Far Western US Region
Explore all the Best Value Music Schools in the Far Western US Area or other specific states within that region.
| State | Degrees Awarded |
|---|---|
| California | 3,457 |
| Oregon | 299 |
| Nevada | 94 |
| Hawaii | 31 |
| Alaska | 12 |
More Music Rankings in Washington
Other Related Music Programs
Learn about start dates, transferring credits, availability of financial aid, and more by contacting the universities below.
Earn the music business degree that fits into the business world – and partners Southern New Hampshire University with world-renowned Berklee College of Music.
Music Related Majors for Music
One of 10 majors within the area of study, music has other similar majors worth exploring.
Most Popular Related Majors
| Related Major | Annual Graduates |
|---|---|
| Fine & Studio Arts | 37,413 |
| Design & Applied Arts | 36,301 |
| Drama & Theater Arts | 17,341 |
| Film, Video & Photographic Arts | 16,778 |
| General Visual & Performing Arts | 6,355 |
Notes and References
*These averages are for the top 13 schools only.
- 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.