2023 Most Focused Colleges for Music in California
163
Ranked Colleges
$36,900
Avg Cost*
When it comes to choosing a college, students have a lot of options - but not all of them are good. One of our goals at College Factual is to give you as much information as we can - such as our “Schools Highly Focused on Music Major in California” ranking - to help you make that decision.
In 2021-2022, 25,860 people earned their degree in music, making the major the 43rd most popular in the United States. In , music graduates who were awarded their degree in , earned an average of $27,123 and had an average of $27,532 in loans still to pay off.
Across California, there were 3,501 music graduates with average earnings and debt of $23,084 and $26,111 respectively.
This year’s “Schools Highly Focused on Music Major in California” ranking looked at 163 colleges that offer degrees in a bachelor’s in music. This a ranking of the schools where the largest percentage of students has enrolled in music.
See our ranking methodology to learn more.
More Ways to Rank Music Schools
Since picking the right college can be one of the most important decisions of your life, we’ve developed the “Schools Highly Focused on Music Major in California” ranking, along with many other major-related rankings, to help you make that decision.
To further help you make the college decision, we’ve developed a unique tool called College Combat that allows you to compare schools based on the factors that matter the most to you. Test it out by comparing your favorite schools against others you are considering, or bookmark the tool so you can experiment with it later.
Schools Highly Focused on Music Major in California
The colleges and universities below are the best for california music students.
Top 25 Most Focused Colleges for Music in California
Out of the 163 schools in the Schools Highly Focused on Music Major in California that were part of this year’s ranking, California Jazz Conservatory landed the #1 spot on the list. California Jazz Conservatory is located in Berkeley, California and, has a small student population. In 2021-2022, this school awarded 5 ’s music degrees to qualified students.
With a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 5 to 1, it’s easy to see that the school is committed to helping their undergraduates succeed. The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 4.5%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Full California Jazz Conservatory Music Report
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Los Angeles College of Music. It ranked #2 on our 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Music Major in California list. Los Angeles College of Music is a small school located in Pasadena, California that handed out 40 ’s music degrees in 2021-2022.
Since the school has a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 5 to 1, those pursuing a degree will have more opportunities to interact with their professors.
Read more about Music at LACM
Out of the 163 schools in the Schools Highly Focused on Music Major in California that were part of this year’s ranking, San Francisco Conservatory of Music landed the #3 spot on the list. SFCM is a small private not-for-profit school situated in San Francisco, California. It awarded 134 ’s music degrees in 2021-2022.
With a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 3 to 1, it’s easy to see that the school is committed to helping their undergraduates succeed. With a freshman retention rate of 91%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students. The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 1.1%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Read more about Music at SFCM
Out of the 163 schools in the Schools Highly Focused on Music Major in California that were part of this year’s ranking, Los Angeles Film School landed the #4 spot on the list. This medium-sized school is located in Hollywood, California, and it awarded 578 ’s music degrees in 2021-2022.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 4.6%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Full Los Angeles Film School Music Report
Out of the 163 schools in the Schools Highly Focused on Music Major in California that were part of this year’s ranking, Musicians Institute landed the #5 spot on the list. Musicians Institute is a small private for-profit school situated in Hollywood, California. It awarded 170 ’s music degrees in 2021-2022.
With a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 5 to 1, it’s easy to see that the school is committed to helping their undergraduates succeed. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 0.6%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Full Musicians Institute Music Report
California Institute of the Arts landed the #6 spot on the 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Music Major in California ranking. This small school is located in Valencia, California, and it awarded 53 ’s music degrees in 2021-2022.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 1.6%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. The undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 7 to 1 is a sign that students will have more opportunities to engage with their professors one-on-one. With a freshman retention rate of 94%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students.
Full CalArts Music Report
Bethesda University landed the #7 spot on the 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Music Major in California ranking. Bethesda University is a private not-for-profit institution located in Anaheim, California. The school has a small population, and it awarded 2 ’s degrees in 2021-2022.
The undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 10 to 1 is a sign that students will have more opportunities to engage with their professors one-on-one.
Full Bethesda University Music Report
World Mission University landed the #8 spot on the 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Music Major in California ranking. This small school is located in Los Angeles, California, and it awarded 12 ’s music degrees in 2021-2022.
The impressive undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 7 to 1 means that students may have more opportunities to work more closely with their professors than they would at other schools.
Full World Mission University Music Report
Holy Names University did quite well in the 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Music Major in California ranking, coming in at #9. HNU is a small school located in Oakland, California that handed out 15 ’s music degrees in 2021-2022.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 2.1%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. Since the school has a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 9 to 1, those pursuing a degree will have more opportunities to interact with their professors.
Read more about Music at Holy Names University
With a ranking of #10, Cogswell College did quite well on the 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Music Major in California list. Cogswell is a private for-profit institution located in San Jose, California. The school has a small population, and it awarded 9 ’s degrees in 2021-2022.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 0.6% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%.
Read more about Music at Cogswell College
The Master’s University and Seminary landed the #11 spot on the 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Music Major in California ranking. The Master’s University and Seminary is a small private not-for-profit school situated in Santa Clarita, California. It awarded 9 ’s music degrees in 2021-2022.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 0.6% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%.
Read full report on Music at The Master’s University
Westmont College ranked #12 on this year’s Schools Highly Focused on Music Major in California list. Located in Santa Barbara, California, this small private not-for-profit school awarded 2 degrees to qualified ’s music students in 2021-2022.
Since the school has a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 10 to 1, those pursuing a degree will have more opportunities to interact with their professors. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 0.6%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. With a freshman retention rate of 85%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students.
Full Westmont Music Report
Academy of Art University came in at #14 in this year’s edition of the Schools Highly Focused on Music Major in California ranking. Located in San Francisco, California, this medium-sized private for-profit school awarded 30 degrees to qualified ’s music students in 2021-2022.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 1.2% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%.
Read full report on Music at Academy of Art University
Azusa Pacific University landed the #15 spot on the 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Music Major in California ranking. Azusa Pacific University is a private not-for-profit institution located in Azusa, California. The school has a medium-sized population, and it awarded 47 ’s degrees in 2021-2022.
The impressive undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 10 to 1 means that students may have more opportunities to work more closely with their professors than they would at other schools. The low undergrad student loan default rate of 1.1% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%.
Full Azusa Pacific Music Report
Occidental College came in at #16 in this year’s edition of the Schools Highly Focused on Music Major in California ranking. Oxy is a private not-for-profit institution located in Los Angeles, California. The school has a small population, and it awarded 12 ’s degrees in 2021-2022.
With a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 9 to 1, it’s easy to see that the school is committed to helping their undergraduates succeed. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 92%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 0.2%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Read more about Music at Oxy
Biola University came in at #17 in this year’s edition of the Schools Highly Focused on Music Major in California ranking. This medium-sized school is located in La Mirada, California, and it awarded 20 ’s music degrees in 2021-2022.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 0.7%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 88%.
Read more about Music at Biola
California State University - Northridge came in at #18 in this year’s edition of the Schools Highly Focused on Music Major in California ranking. Located in Northridge, California, this large public school handed out 180 diplomas to qualified ’s music students in 2021-2022.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 1.7%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Full California State University - Northridge Music Report
La Sierra University did quite well in the 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Music Major in California ranking, coming in at #19. La Sierra is a small private not-for-profit school situated in Riverside, California. It awarded 8 ’s music degrees in 2021-2022.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 1.3% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%.
Read full report on Music at La Sierra
William Jessup University did quite well in the 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Music Major in California ranking, coming in at #20. This small school is located in Rocklin, California, and it awarded 3 ’s music degrees in 2021-2022.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 2.0%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Full William Jessup University Music Report
University of Redlands landed the #21 spot on the 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Music Major in California ranking. University of Redlands is located in Redlands, California and, has a small student population. In 2021-2022, this school awarded 45 ’s music degrees to qualified students.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 0.6% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%.
Full University of Redlands Music Report
California Lutheran University landed the #22 spot on the 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Music Major in California ranking. CLU is a private not-for-profit institution located in Thousand Oaks, California. The school has a small population, and it awarded 16 ’s degrees in 2021-2022.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 1.0%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Read more about Music at CLU
With a ranking of #23, Claremont Graduate University did quite well on the 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Music Major in California list. Located in Claremont, California, this small private not-for-profit school awarded 6 diplomas to qualified ’s music students in 2021-2022.
The impressive undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of to 1 means that students may have more opportunities to work more closely with their professors than they would at other schools. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 1.8%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Read full report on Music at Claremont Graduate University
Vanguard University of Southern California ranked #24 on this year’s Schools Highly Focused on Music Major in California list. Vanguard University of Southern California is a small private not-for-profit school situated in Costa Mesa, California. It awarded 3 ’s music degrees in 2021-2022.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 1.1% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%.
Read full report on Music at Vanguard
Chapman University landed the #25 spot on the 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Music Major in California ranking. Orange, California is the setting for this fairly large institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out ’s music degrees to 38 students in 2021-2022.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 0.6% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%. With a freshman retention rate of 92%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students.
Full Chapman Music Report