College Factual  by our College Data Analytics Team
       Unbiased Factual Guarantee

2025 Best Music Master's Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region

27 Colleges in the Great Lakes Region
1,004 Master's Degrees
$29,606 Avg Early-Career Salary
Music is above average in terms of popularity with it being the #36 most popular master's degree program in the country. So, you have a fair amount of options to choose from when looking for a school.

College Factual looked at 27 colleges and universities when compiling its 2025 Best Music Master's Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region ranking. Combined, these schools handed out 1,004 master's degrees in music to qualified students.

Jump to one of the following sections: * Our Methodology

Choosing a Great Music School for Your Master's Degree

Best Music Master's Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region The music master's degree program you select can have a big impact on your future. Important measures of a quality music program can vary widely even among the top schools. Below we explain some of the most important factors to consider before making your choice:

Overall Quality Is a Must

A school that excels in educating for a particular major and degree level must be a great school overall as well. To make it into this list a school must rank well in our overall Best Colleges for a Master's Degree ranking. This ranking considered factors such as graduation rates, overall graduate earnings and other educational resources to identify great colleges and universities.

Average Early-Career Salaries

Average early-career salary of those graduating with their master's degree is one indicator we use in our analysis to find the schools that offer the highest-quality education. After all, your master's degree won't mean much if it doesn't help you find a job that will help you earn a living.

Other Factors We Consider

In addition to the above, you should consider some of the following factors:

Our full ranking methodology documents in more detail how we consider these factors to identify the best colleges for music students working on their master's degree.

One Size Does Not Fit All

Rankings by Location Check Out Other Locales
More Music Rankings Other Ranking Categories

When choosing the right school for you, it's important to arm yourself with all the facts you can. To that end, we've created a number of major-specific rankings, including this Best Music Master's Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region list to help you make the college decision.

Best Schools for Master’s Students to Study Music in the Great Lakes Region

Learn about the top ranked colleges and universities for music students seeking a a master's degree.

10 Top Great Lakes Region Schools for a Master's in Music

1

Northwestern University is one of the finest schools in the United States for getting a master's degree in music. Northwestern is a fairly large private not-for-profit university located in the small city of Evanston.

After graduation, music master's recipients typically make about $21,290 at the beginning of their careers.

More information about a master’s in music from Northwestern University

2

It is hard to beat University of Michigan - Ann Arbor if you want to pursue a master's degree in music. U-M is a very large public university located in the medium-sized city of Ann Arbor.

Master's students who receive their degree from the music program make an average of $16,971 in their early career salary.

More information about a master’s in music from University of Michigan - Ann Arbor

3
Michigan State crest
Michigan State University
East Lansing, MI

Any student pursuing a degree in a master's degree in music has to check out Michigan State University. Located in the city of East Lansing, Michigan State is a public university with a fairly large student population.

Master's recipients from the music degree program at Michigan State University get $12,878 more than the typical college grad in this field shortly after graduation.

More information about a master’s in music from Michigan State University

4

Every student who is interested in a master's degree in music has to check out Indiana University - Bloomington. IU Bloomington is a very large public university located in the small city of Bloomington.

Soon after graduating, music master's recipients typically earn around $22,513 in the first five years of their career.

More information about a master’s in music from Indiana University - Bloomington

5

UC is a very large public university located in the city of Cincinnati.

Soon after graduating, music master's recipients generally make around $25,713 in the first five years of their career.

More information about a master’s in music from University of Cincinnati - Main Campus

6

Located in the small city of Champaign, UIUC is a public university with a fairly large student population.

Students who graduate with their master's from the music program state that they receive average early career income of $23,379.

More information about a master’s in music from University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

7
9 Annual Graduates

Ohio State is a very large public university located in the large city of Columbus.More information about a master’s in music from Ohio State University - Main Campus

8

BGSU is a fairly large public university located in the town of Bowling Green.

Music master's degree recipients from Bowling Green State University - Main Campus get an earnings boost of about $4,880 over the average earnings of music majors.

More information about a master’s in music from Bowling Green State University - Main Campus

9
DePaul crest
DePaul University
Chicago, IL

Located in the city of Chicago, DePaul is a private not-for-profit university with a fairly large student population.

After graduation, music master's recipients generally make about $26,615 in their early careers.

More information about a master’s in music from DePaul University

10

Located in the city of Madison, UW - Madison is a public university with a fairly large student population.

Master's students who receive their degree from the music program earn around $31,552 for their early career.

More information about a master’s in music from University of Wisconsin - Madison

Best Music Colleges by State

Explore the best music colleges for a specific state in the Great Lakes Region .

State Colleges Degrees Awarded
Illinois 221 323
Michigan 211 206
Ohio 207 360
Indiana 191 188
Wisconsin 173 34

View All Rankings >

Music is one of 10 different types of Visual & Performing Arts programs to choose from.

Music Focus Areas

Major Annual Graduates
Music Performance 544
General Music 192
Music Pedagogy 71
Music Theory & Composition 43
Conducting 31
Voice Performance 27
Stringed Instruments 26
Keyboard Instruments 22
Musicology & Ethnomusicology 13
Other Music 13

Related Major Annual Graduates
Fine & Studio Arts 479
Arts & Media Management 236
Drama & Theater Arts 199
Design & Applied Arts 197
Film, Video & Photographic Arts 93
General Visual & Performing Arts 27
Dance 22

Notes and References

Popular Reports

College Rankings
Best by Location
Degree Guides by Major
Graduate Programs

Compare Your School Options