2023 Most Popular Music Schools in California
Finding the Best Music School for You
With 3,457 degrees and certificates handed out in 2020-2021, music is the #35 most popular major in California.
With all the programs available today, it can be tough to choose which one is the best for you. You can choose a traditional brick and mortar school, or with the growth of online education, you can attend a school half-way across the country without even leaving your house. Also there are many trade schools that offer short-term programs that open up more career options.
To help you arm yourself with the information you need to make your decision, Course Advisor has developed this Most Popular Music Schools in California ranking. Our analysis looked at 165 schools in California to see which programs were the most popular for students. To create this ranking we looked at how many students graduated from the Music program at each school on the list.
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2023 Most Popular Music Schools in California
The colleges and universities below are the most popular for music majors pursuing a .
Top 15% Most Popular Music Schools
Our analysis found Los Angeles Film School to be the most popular school for music students who want to pursue a degree in California. LA Film School is a medium-sized private for-profit school located in the city of Hollywood.
While working on their degree, music majors at LA Film School accumulate an average of around $22,625 in student debt. When it comes time to repay the loan, graduates who are on a 10-year repayment plan pay an average monthly payment of $202.
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend University of Southern California. The school came in at #2 on this year’s Most Popular Music Schools in California list. USC is a fairly large private not-for-profit school located in the city of Los Angeles.
While working on their degree, music majors at USC accumulate an average of around $21,488 in student debt. When it comes time to repay the loan, graduates who are on a 10-year repayment plan pay an average monthly payment of $639.
The excellent programs at California State University - Northridge helped the school earn the #3 place on this year’s ranking of the best music schools in California. CSUN is a very large public school located in the city of Northridge.
On average, music graduates from CSUN take out $16,181 in student loans while working on their degree.
Full Music at California State University - Northridge Report
Out of the 165 schools in California that were part of this year’s ranking, Musicians Institute landed the # 4 spot on the list. Located in the large city of Hollywood, Musicians Institute is a private for-profit school with a small student population.
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend San Francisco Conservatory of Music. It ranked #5 on our 2023 Most Popular Music Schools in California list. SFCM is a small private not-for-profit school located in the large city of San Francisco.
After completing their degree, music graduates from SFCM carry an average student debt load of $25,000. For students who choose a 10-year repayment plan, the average monthly student loan payment is $576.
California State University - Long Beach ranked #6 on this year’s Most Popular Music Schools in California list. Located in the large city of Long Beach, CSULB is a public school with a fairly large student population.
While working on their degree, music majors at CSULB accumulate an average of around $18,637 in student debt.
Read full report on Music at California State University - Long Beach
University of California - Los Angeles came in at #7 in this year’s edition of the Most Popular Music Schools in California ranking. Located in the large city of Los Angeles, UCLA is a public school with a fairly large student population.
While working on their degree, music majors at UCLA accumulate an average of around $22,144 in student debt.
California State University - Fullerton ranked #8 on this year’s Most Popular Music Schools in California list. Located in the large suburb of Fullerton, Cal State Fullerton is a public school with a very large student population.
Music majors at Cal State Fullerton take out an average of $23,163 in student loans while working on their egree.
Read full report on Music at California State University - Fullerton
With a ranking of #9, San Diego State University did quite well on this year’s most popular schools for music students. SDSU is a fairly large public school located in the large city of San Diego.
The average amount in student loans that music majors at SDSU take out is $15,383.
Los Angeles College of Music came in at #10 in this year’s edition of the Most Popular Music Schools in California ranking. Located in the city of Pasadena, LACM is a private for-profit school with a fairly small student population.
California Institute of the Arts did quite well in this year’s ranking of the most popular schools for music students. It came in at #11 on the list. CalArts is a small private not-for-profit school located in the large suburb of Valencia.
The average amount in student loans that music majors at CalArts take out is $25,742.
Read full report on Music at California Institute of the Arts
California State University - Los Angeles landed the #12 spot in the 2023 rankings for the most popular music programs. Cal State LA is a fairly large public school located in the city of Los Angeles.
The average amount in student loans that music majors at Cal State LA take out is $15,500.
Read full report on Music at California State University - Los Angeles
California State University - Sacramento landed the #13 spot in the 2023 rankings for the most popular music programs. Sac State is a fairly large public school located in the large city of Sacramento.
Music majors at Sac State take out an average of $16,500 in student loans while working on their egree.
Read full report on Music at California State University - Sacramento
University of California - Berkeley came in at #14 in this year’s edition of the Most Popular Music Schools in California ranking. Located in the medium-sized city of Berkeley, UC Berkeley is a public college with a very large student population.
San Jose State University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the most popular schools for music students. It came in at #15 on the list. Located in the city of San Jose, San Jose State is a public school with a very large student population.
California State University - Fresno ranked #15 on this year’s Most Popular Music Schools in California list. Fresno State is a very large public school located in the large city of Fresno.
Read full report on Music at California State University - Fresno
Azusa Pacific University ranked #17 on this year’s Most Popular Music Schools in California list. Located in the suburb of Azusa, Azusa Pacific is a private not-for-profit college with a moderately-sized student population.
On average, music graduates from Azusa Pacific take out $22,750 in student loans while working on their degree. When it comes time to repay the loan, graduates who are on a 10-year repayment plan pay an average monthly payment of $214.
California State University - Chico landed the #18 spot in the 2023 rankings for the most popular music programs. Located in the medium-sized city of Chico, Chico State is a public school with a large student population.
While working on their degree, music majors at Chico State accumulate an average of around $21,250 in student debt.
Read full report on Music at California State University - Chico
University of California - Irvine came in at #19 in this year’s edition of the Most Popular Music Schools in California ranking. Located in the city of Irvine, UC Irvine is a public school with a very large student population.
California State Polytechnic University - Pomona came in at #20 in this year’s edition of the Most Popular Music Schools in California ranking. Cal Poly Pomona is a very large public school located in the suburb of Pomona.
On average, music graduates from Cal Poly Pomona take out $20,246 in student loans while working on their degree.
University of California - Santa Barbara did quite well in this year’s ranking of the most popular schools for music students. It came in at #21 on the list. Located in the midsize suburb of Santa Barbara, UCSB is a public college with a fairly large student population.
Full Music at University of California - Santa Barbara Report
Chapman University ranked #22 on this year’s Most Popular Music Schools in California list. Chapman is a moderately-sized private not-for-profit school located in the medium-sized city of Orange.
The average amount in student loans that music majors at Chapman take out is $21,500.
Academy of Art University came in at #23 in this year’s edition of the Most Popular Music Schools in California ranking. Academy of Art University is a moderately-sized private for-profit school located in the large city of San Francisco.
After completing their degree, music graduates from Academy of Art University carry an average student debt load of $31,000.
Riverside City College did quite well in this year’s ranking of the most popular schools for music students. It came in at #24 on the list. Located in the city of Riverside, Riverside City College is a public college with a large student population.
Additional Noteworthy Schools
Here are some additional popular schools for Music students in the state of California that almost earned our Most Popular Music Schools in California award.
| Rank | College | Location |
|---|---|---|
| 25 | San Francisco State University | San Francisco, CA |
| 26 | California Baptist University | Riverside, CA |
| 27 | Citrus College | Glendora, CA |
| 27 | University of California - San Diego | La Jolla, CA |
| 27 | University of Redlands | Redlands, CA |
| 30 | University of California - Riverside | Riverside, CA |
| 31 | University of California - Santa Cruz | Santa Cruz, CA |
| 32 | Biola University | La Mirada, CA |
| 33 | Fullerton College | Fullerton, CA |
| 33 | California State University - East Bay | Hayward, CA |
Best Music Colleges in the Far Western US Region
Explore all the Most Popular Music Colleges in the Far Western US Area or other specific states within that region.
| State | Degrees Awarded |
|---|---|
| Washington | 320 |
| Oregon | 299 |
| Nevada | 94 |
| Hawaii | 31 |
| Alaska | 12 |
Majors Related to Music
One of 10 majors within the area of study, music has other similar majors worth exploring.
Most Popular Majors Related 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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