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North America

Music Schools in United States

670 researched institutions with a campus here, offering 3378 music programs. This is the research done to date, not a complete list of every program.

Browse by state

All 50 states and Washington, DC (a federal district, not a state). 52 currently have at least one researched institution with a campus; the others are research gaps, not empty states.

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Major cities

Cities with at least two researched institutions.

Programs by award and subject in United States

3424 programs

How results are ordered: alphabetically by institution, or by most recently checked when you choose that sort. There is no price ranking, because tuition in different currencies, fee categories and bases (per year, per credit, whole program) is not comparable. A program appears under a subject only through a verified link (dedicated degree, major, concentration or documented pathway). A value we could not verify is shown as “not published”, never as “no”. Items marked Sponsored are paid placements; they never change verification or order. Online programs are not counted as physically located in a state or city, and an institution’s location does not tell you whether it enrols students from your country.

About music education in United States

How music education is organised

Music study in the United States is offered by conservatories, university schools and departments of music, and liberal-arts colleges. Undergraduate programs are usually a Bachelor of Music (professional, performance- or composition-centred) or a Bachelor of Arts/Science in music (broader, with more general education); graduate study is a Master of Music, Master of Arts or MFA, and doctorates are either a performance/practice DMA or a research PhD. Some conservatories also award non-degree diplomas and certificates, such as the Artist Diploma, that are separate from degrees. Entry to a music major commonly runs through an audition, and some conservatories add a recorded prescreening round before any live audition. Naming and requirements differ by institution, so the individual program page is the authority.

Source: necmusic.smartcatalogiq.com/en/2026-2027/nec-academic-catalog-2026-

Qualification structures

Names and levels are local to United States. Similar names in other countries are not interchangeable.

Degrees and conservatory diplomas
At one conservatory the catalog lists a Master of Music, a Graduate Diploma, an Artist Diploma and a Doctor of Musical Arts as separate programs; the diplomas are not degrees. Source
Bachelor of Music versus Bachelor of Arts
A public university department describes its Bachelor of Arts in music as less intensive than its Bachelor of Music and suited to double majors, showing the usual split between professional and liberal-arts undergraduate routes. Source
Several undergraduate award types in one department
One state university department lists a Bachelor of Science in Music Education alongside several Bachelor of Arts tracks (jazz studies, music technology, performance, theory and composition), so the award label can signal teacher-preparation or a broader liberal-arts structure rather than a single standard route. Source
Music therapy as a distinct professional route
The American Music Therapy Association states that a professional music therapist holds a bachelor's degree or higher in music therapy from an approved program, with 1,200 hours of clinical training including a supervised internship; the national exam of the Certification Board for Music Therapists leads to the MT-BC credential, and some states tie title protection or licensure to it. Source

Bodies that matter, and what each one does

Accreditation, validation, education authority and qualification registers are different roles. Do not read a listing by one body as evidence from another.

National Association of Schools of Music (NASM)
Specialized accreditor of music units and programs; membership and accreditation are separate from institutional accreditation. (NASM's site blocked automated access during research, so this description is not confirmed from its own pages.)
Regional institutional accreditors (for example NECHE in New England)
Institutional accreditation of the college or university as a whole. (The U.S. Department of Education and CHEA pages were not reachable during research, so this role is not confirmed from those pages.)
Certification Board for Music Therapists (CBMT)
Grants board certification to music therapists, tests their competence and supports recertification; holders use the MT-BC credential.
American Music Therapy Association (AMTA)
Sets out the education and clinical-training route to becoming a music therapist, including approved degree programs.

Credits and qualification framework

Programs are measured in semester or term credit hours, and the number needed varies by institution and degree; no equivalence with other countries' qualifications is claimed here.

No degree on this site guarantees admission, funding, employment, a visa or teacher registration, and nothing here is visa or credit-transfer advice.

Languages and admissions

Teaching languages. en

Admissions and auditions. Admission to a music major or conservatory program typically involves an audition. One conservatory states that every program requires a prescreening video recording or portfolio by the application deadline, with applicants who advance invited to a live audition or, in some cases, a final recording; a state university department states that entrance to the major is by competitive audition. Composition, production and research programs may use portfolios or interviews instead. Repertoire and deadlines differ by department, so check each program's own admissions page. International applicants can start from EducationUSA, which outlines five steps: research options, finance studies, complete the application, apply for a student visa and prepare for departure. Teacher-preparation programs lead to state-specific requirements, which this profile does not verify. Source

Official study information

Country information last reviewed 25 October 2026. 7 sources consulted.