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2025 Best Music Schools in Ohio

14 Colleges in Ohio
1,125 Music Degrees Awarded
$29,590 Avg Early-Career Salary
If you plan on majoring in music, you won't be alone since the degree program is ranked #43 in the country in terms of popularity. This means you won't have too much trouble finding schools that offer the degree.

In 2025, College Factual analyzed 14 schools in order to identify the top ones for its Best Music Schools in Ohio ranking. Combined, these schools handed out 1,125 degrees in music to qualified students.

Jump to one of the following sections: * Degree-Level Rankings

Choosing a Great Music School

Best Music Schools in Ohio Your choice of music school matters, so we have put together these rankings to help you make your decision. In order to come up with a best overall ranking for music schools, we combine our degree-level rankings, weighting them by the number of degrees awarded at each level.

You may want to choose one of the degree levels below to find the schools of most interest to you.

Music Rankings by Degree Level

Associate Degrees in Music
Bachelor's Degrees in Music
Master's Degrees in Music
Doctor's Degrees in Music

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 Schools in Ohio list to help you make the college decision. You can also filter this list by location to find schools closer to you.

In addition to College Factual's rankings, you may want to take a look at College Combat, our unique tool that lets you pit your favorite schools head-to-head and compare how they rate on factors that most interest you. When you have some time, check it out - you may want to bookmark the link so you don't forget it.

More information on how we come up with our rankings can be found here: College Factual's Data Methodology.

Best Schools for Music in Ohio

The schools below may not offer all types of music degrees so you may want to filter by degree level first. However, they are great for the degree levels they do offer.

10 Top Ohio Schools in Music

1
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
219 Music Degrees Awarded
$24,077 Median Starting Salary

It is difficult to beat University of Cincinnati - Main Campus if you wish to pursue a degree in music. UC is a fairly large public university located in the city of Cincinnati. A Best Colleges rank of #137 out of 2,152 colleges nationwide means UC is a great university overall.

There were roughly 219 music students who graduated with this degree at UC in the most recent data year. Graduates who receive their degree from the music program earn an average of $24,077 in the first couple years of their career.

More information about a degree in music from University of Cincinnati - Main Campus

2
Oberlin crest
Oberlin College
Oberlin, OH
Bachelor's Degree Highest Degree Type
140 Music Degrees Awarded
23.6% Growth in Graduates

It is hard to beat Oberlin College if you want to pursue a degree in music. Located in the town of Oberlin, Oberlin is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population. This college ranks 17th out of 91 schools for overall quality in the state of Ohio.

There were roughly 140 music students who graduated with this degree at Oberlin in the most recent year we have data available. Soon after graduation, music degree recipients generally earn about $17,141 in their early careers.

More information about a degree in music from Oberlin College

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Masters Degree Type
MBA in Music Business Program Name

Earn the music business degree that fits into the business world – and partners Southern New Hampshire University with world-renowned Berklee College of Music.

More information about a degree in MBA in Music Business from Southern New Hampshire University
3
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
70 Music Degrees Awarded
4.3% Growth in Graduates

Ohio State University - Main Campus is a wonderful choice for students pursuing a degree in music. Ohio State is a very large public university located in the city of Columbus. A Best Colleges rank of #70 out of 2,152 schools nationwide means Ohio State is a great university overall.

There were about 70 music students who graduated with this degree at Ohio State in the most recent year we have data available. After graduating, music degree recipients generally make around $27,190 at the beginning of their careers.

More information about a degree in music from Ohio State University - Main Campus

4
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
91 Music Degrees Awarded
18.7% Growth in Graduates

It's hard to beat Ohio University - Athens Campus if you wish to pursue a degree in music. OHIO Athens is a very large public university located in the distant town of Athens. A Best Colleges rank of #184 out of 2,152 schools nationwide means OHIO Athens is a great university overall.

There were roughly 91 music students who graduated with this degree at OHIO Athens in the most recent year we have data available. Music degree recipients from Ohio University - Athens Campus earn a boost of about $5,336 over the typical earnings of music majors.

More information about a degree in music from Ohio University - Athens Campus

5
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
98 Music Degrees Awarded
$30,623 Median Starting Salary

BGSU is a large public university located in the town of Bowling Green. This university ranks 18th out of 91 schools for overall quality in the state of Ohio.

There were about 98 music students who graduated with this degree at BGSU in the most recent data year. Students who graduate with their degree from the music program report average early career income of $30,623.

More information about a degree in music from Bowling Green State University - Main Campus

6
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
46 Music Degrees Awarded
32.6% Growth in Graduates

Kent State is a fairly large public university located in the large suburb of Kent. A Best Colleges rank of #250 out of 2,152 schools nationwide means Kent State is a great university overall.

There were roughly 46 music students who graduated with this degree at Kent State in the most recent year we have data available. After graduation, music degree recipients typically earn around $24,340 in their early careers.

More information about a degree in music from Kent State University at Kent

7
Capital crest
Capital University
Columbus, OH
Bachelor's Degree Highest Degree Type
$33,143 Median Starting Salary
$43,450 Median Student Debt

Located in the large suburb of Columbus, Capital is a private not-for-profit university with a small student population. This university ranks 50th out of 91 schools for overall quality in the state of Ohio.

There were about 28 music students who graduated with this degree at Capital in the most recent data year. Those music students who get their degree from Capital University make $3,553 more than the average music graduate.

More information about a degree in music from Capital University

8
Bachelor's Degree Highest Degree Type
22nd Most Popular In OH

UDayton is a fairly large private not-for-profit university located in the midsize city of Dayton. A Best Colleges rank of #227 out of 2,152 colleges nationwide means UDayton is a great university overall.

There were about 6 music students who graduated with this degree at UDayton in the most recent data year.

More information about a degree in music from University of Dayton

9
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
96 Music Degrees Awarded
3.1% Growth in Graduates

Cleveland Institute of Music is a small private not-for-profit school located in the large city of Cleveland.

There were approximately 96 music students who graduated with this degree at Cleveland Institute of Music in the most recent data year. Students who graduate with their degree from the music program state that they receive average early career wages of $19,558.

More information about a degree in music from Cleveland Institute of Music

10
Bachelor's Degree Highest Degree Type
7th Most Popular In OH

Baldwin Wallace College is a small private not-for-profit university located in the large suburb of Berea. This university ranks 25th out of 91 colleges for overall quality in the state of Ohio.

There were about 30 music students who graduated with this degree at Baldwin Wallace College in the most recent year we have data available.

More information about a degree in music from Baldwin Wallace University

Best Music Colleges in the Great Lakes Region

Explore all the Best Music Schools in the Great Lakes Area or other specific states within that region.

State Colleges Degrees Awarded
Michigan 322 726
Illinois 304 1,091
Indiana 294 599
Wisconsin 273 356

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 549
General Music 238
Music Theory & Composition 75
Music Pedagogy 75
Other Music 57
Music Technology 32
Keyboard Instruments 22
Jazz Studies 21
Conducting 19
Voice Performance 18

View All Music Focus Areas >

Majors Similar to Music

Related Major Annual Graduates
Design & Applied Arts 1,960
Fine & Studio Arts 741
Drama & Theater Arts 522
Film, Video & Photographic Arts 364
General Visual & Performing Arts 205
Arts & Media Management 143
Dance 102
Other Visual Art 17
Crafts, Folk Art & Artisanry 2

View All Music Related Majors >

Notes and References

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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