2023 Best Value Music Master's Degree Schools
Identifying Quality Schools at More Affordable Prices
Finding the Best Music Master's Degree School for You
Music is the #43 most popular major in the country with 25,910 degrees and certificates awarded in 2020-2021.
When it comes to higher education, there are a lot of options for students. As online education oppotunities continue to grow, you're not restricted to just schools in your local area anymore. Even some of the 'big name' schools are offering online courses. Also, there are a number of trade schools with offerings that you might find attractive.
Along with in-depth profiles of schools and the programs they offer, Course Advisor has created the Best Value Music Master's Degree Schools to help you in your search for the best school for you. Our analysis looked at 260 schools in the United States to see which master's degree 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.
This ranking is not just a list of inexpensive schools. We also consider each school's quality, since we believe a low-quality school may not be a 'bargain' at any price. 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.
For nationwide and regional rankings, we use out-of-state tuition and fees in our calculations. Average in-state tuition and fees are used for our statewide rankings.
Top 25 Best Schools for Affordable Quality for a Master's in Music
Our analysis found Columbia College Chicago to be the best value school for music students who want to pursue a master’s degree in the United States. Located in the large city of Chicago, Columbia is a private not-for-profit school with a moderately-sized student population.
Columbia graduate students pay an average of $2,350 in tuition and fees each year.
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Out of the 260 schools in the United States that were part of this year’s ranking, West Texas A&M University landed the # 2 spot on the list. Located in the town of Canyon, West Texas A&M University is a public college with a medium-sized student population.
The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state graduate students at West Texas A&M University are $8,574 a year.
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You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend Messiah University. The school came in at #3 on this year’s Best Value Music Master’s Degree Schools list. Located in the large suburb of Mechanicsburg, Messiah is a private not-for-profit school with a small student population.
Out-of-state tuition fees for graduate students at Messiah are $13,050 per year.
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The excellent master’s degree programs at Truman State University helped the school earn the #4 place on this year’s ranking of the best value music schools in the United States. Located in the remote town of Kirksville, Truman State is a public college with a small student population.
Truman State graduate students pay an average of $9,924 in tuition and fees each year.
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You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend North Dakota State University - Main Campus. It ranked #5 on our 2023 Best Value Music Master’s Degree Schools list. North Dakota State University is a large public school located in the city of Fargo.
The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state graduate students at North Dakota State University are $12,028 a year.
North Dakota State University excels when it comes to quality. It’s ranked in the top 20% of all schools on our Best Music Master’s Degree Schools list.
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Youngstown State University came in at #6 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Music Master’s Degree Schools ranking. Located in the city of Youngstown, Youngstown State University is a public college with a fairly large student population.
Youngstown State University graduate students pay an average of $6,931 in tuition and fees each year.
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With a ranking of #7, Lindenwood University did quite well on this year’s best value schools for music students working on their master’s degree. Located in the city of Saint Charles, Lindenwood University is a private not-for-profit school with a moderately-sized student population.
Out-of-state tuition fees for graduate students at Lindenwood University are $9,784 per year.
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Brigham Young University - Provo came in at #8 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Music Master’s Degree Schools ranking. Located in the city of Provo, BYU is a private not-for-profit college with a very large student population.
The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state graduate students at BYU are $7,700 a year.
On top of its placing in our value ranking, BYU also did well on our Best Music Master’s Degree Schools list. It’s in the top 20% of all schools reviewed in this analysis.
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Texas A&M University - Kingsville ranked #9 on this year’s Best Value Music Master’s Degree Schools list. Texas A&M Kingsville is a medium-sized public school located in the distant town of Kingsville.
The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state graduate students at Texas A&M Kingsville are $14,344 a year.
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With a ranking of #10, University of Nebraska at Kearney did quite well on this year’s best value schools for music students working on their master’s degree. UNK is a moderately-sized public school located in the town of Kearney.
The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state graduate students at UNK are $14,982 a year.
UNK excels when it comes to quality. It’s ranked in the top 20% of all schools on our Best Music Master’s Degree Schools list.
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University of South Dakota ranked #11 on this year’s Best Value Music Master’s Degree Schools list. USD is a moderately-sized public school located in the town of Vermillion.
The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state graduate students at USD are $12,768 a year.
On top of its placing in our value ranking, USD also did well on our Best Music Master’s Degree Schools list. It’s in the top 20% of all schools reviewed in this analysis.
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The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for music students to get a master’s degree. It came in at #12 on the list. Located in the medium-sized city of Edinburg, UT Rio Grande Valley is a public college with a fairly large student population.
UT Rio Grande Valley graduate students pay an average of $15,677 in tuition and fees each year.
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With a ranking of #13, Sam Houston State University did quite well on this year’s best value schools for music students working on their master’s degree. Located in the town of Huntsville, SHSU is a public college with a fairly large student population.
The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state graduate students at SHSU are $16,009 a year.
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Western Illinois University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for music students to get a master’s degree. It came in at #14 on the list. Located in the remote town of Macomb, WIU is a public college with a moderately-sized student population.
Out-of-state tuition fees for graduate students at WIU are $12,182 per year.
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University of Central Arkansas ranked #15 on this year’s Best Value Music Master’s Degree Schools list. Located in the small city of Conway, UCA is a public college with a fairly large student population.
UCA graduate students pay an average of $11,835 in tuition and fees each year.
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Liberty University came in at #16 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Music Master’s Degree Schools ranking. Liberty University is a very large private not-for-profit school located in the city of Lynchburg.
Liberty University graduate students pay an average of $8,360 in tuition and fees each year.
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Southern Illinois University Edwardsville did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for music students to get a master’s degree. It came in at #17 on the list. SIUE is a large public school located in the suburb of Edwardsville.
Out-of-state tuition fees for graduate students at SIUE are $9,316 per year.
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Texas A&M University - Commerce ranked #18 on this year’s Best Value Music Master’s Degree Schools list. Texas A&M Commerce is a large public school located in the distant town of Commerce.
The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state graduate students at Texas A&M Commerce are $14,682 a year.
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The University of Texas at El Paso landed the #19 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value master’s degree music programs. Located in the city of El Paso, UTEP is a public school with a very large student population.
UTEP graduate students pay an average of $16,621 in tuition and fees each year.
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West Chester University of Pennsylvania did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for music students to get a master’s degree. It came in at #20 on the list. WCUPA is a fairly large public school located in the large suburb of West Chester.
Out-of-state tuition fees for graduate students at WCUPA are $16,758 per year.
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Texas Woman’s University ranked #20 on this year’s Best Value Music Master’s Degree Schools list. TWU is a fairly large public school located in the city of Denton.
The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state graduate students at TWU are $15,048 a year.
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Converse College did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for music students to get a master’s degree. It came in at #22 on the list. Converse is a small private not-for-profit school located in the small city of Spartanburg.
Converse graduate students pay an average of $7,698 in tuition and fees each year.
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The Graduate Center, CUNY came in at #23 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Music Master’s Degree Schools ranking. Located in the large city of New York, The Graduate Center is a public school with a moderately-sized student population.
The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state graduate students at The Graduate Center are $23,640 a year.
On top of its placing in our value ranking, The Graduate Center also did well on our Best Music Master’s Degree Schools list. It’s in the top 5% of all schools reviewed in this analysis.
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With a ranking of #23, Morehead State University did quite well on this year’s best value schools for music students working on their master’s degree. Morehead State University is a medium-sized public school located in the town of Morehead.
Morehead State University graduate students pay an average of $10,557 in tuition and fees each year.
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With a ranking of #25, Illinois State University did quite well on this year’s best value schools for music students working on their master’s degree. Illinois State is a very large public school located in the midsize suburb of Normal.
The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state graduate students at Illinois State are $11,773 a year.
As a testament to the quality of education it offers, Illinois State also is in the top 20% of our Best Music Master’s Degree Schools ranking.
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Additional Noteworthy Schools
Here are some additional great value schools for Music students seeking value that almost earned our Best Value Music Master's Degree Schools award.
| Rank | College | Location |
|---|---|---|
| 40 | Eastern Illinois University | Charleston, IL |
| 41 | University of Nebraska at Omaha | Omaha, NE |
| 42 | Eastern Kentucky University | Richmond, KY |
| 43 | University of Akron Main Campus | Akron, OH |
| 44 | Oklahoma City University | Oklahoma City, OK |
| 45 | Rowan University | Glassboro, NJ |
| 45 | University of Northern Iowa | Cedar Falls, IA |
| 47 | Indiana State University | Terre Haute, IN |
| 48 | Lee University | Cleveland, TN |
| 49 | Indiana University of Pennsylvania - Main Campus | Indiana, PA |
| 50 | Oklahoma State University - Main Campus | Stillwater, OK |
| 51 | Bowling Green State University - Main Campus | Bowling Green, OH |
| 52 | University of Arkansas | Fayetteville, AR |
| 52 | Central Michigan University | Mount Pleasant, MI |
Music by Region
View the Best Value Music Master's Degree Schools for a specific region near you.
| Region |
|---|
| Southeast |
| New England |
| Rocky Mountains |
| Plains States |
| Middle Atlantic |
| Far Western US |
| Southwest |
| Great Lakes |
More Music Rankings
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.
Majors Similar to Music
| 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 25 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.
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