by our College Data Analytics Team
When pursuing a degree in today’s world, students have many different options to choose from. One of our goals at College Factual is to give you as much information as we can - such as our “Most Well Attended Music Major in the Far Western US Region” ranking - to help you make that decision.
In 2020-2021, 25,910 people earned their degree in music, making the major the 43rd most popular in the United States. In 2019-2020, music graduates who were awarded their degree in 2017-2019, earned an average of $27,160 and had an average of $24,560 in loans still to pay off.
Across the Far Western US region, there were 4,440 music graduates with average earnings and debt of $25,019 and $23,227 respectively.
This year’s “Most Well Attended Music Major in the Far Western US Region” ranking analyzed 224 colleges that offered a degree in music. The schools that top this list are recognized because they have one of the most popular music programs in the United States.
See our ranking methodology to learn more.
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 “Most Well Attended Music Major in the Far Western US Region” list to help you make the college decision.
One of our other unique offerings is College Combat. This tool lets you build your own customized comparisons utilizing the factors that are most important 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.
The colleges and universities below are the best for far western us region music students.
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Los Angeles Film School. It ranked #1 on our 2023 Most Well Attended Music Major in the Far Western US Region list. Los Angeles Film School is a medium-sized school located in Hollywood, California that handed out 705 ’s music degrees in 2020-2021.
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend California State University - Northridge. The school came in at #2 for the Most Well Attended Music Major in the Far Western US Region. CSUN is located in Northridge, California and, has a large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 174 ’s music degrees to qualified students.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 3.7% 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%.
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend University of Southern California. The school came in at #3 for the Most Well Attended Music Major in the Far Western US Region. USC is a large school located in Los Angeles, California that handed out 182 ’s music degrees in 2020-2021.
The impressive undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 9 to 1 means that students may have more opportunities to work more closely with their professors than they would at other schools. With a freshman retention rate of 91%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 1.3%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Out of the 224 schools in the Most Well Attended Music Major in the Far Western US Region that were part of this year’s ranking, California State University - Long Beach landed the #4 spot on the list. California State University - Long Beach is a public institution located in Long Beach, California. The school has a large population, and it awarded 129 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 2.4%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. With a freshman retention rate of 89%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students.
Read more about Music at California State University - Long Beach
Out of the 224 schools in the Most Well Attended Music Major in the Far Western US Region that were part of this year’s ranking, University of California - Los Angeles landed the #5 spot on the list. University of California - Los Angeles is a public institution located in Los Angeles, California. The school has a large population, and it awarded 114 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 1.6% 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%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 96%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.
Read more about Music at University of California - Los Angeles
San Francisco Conservatory of Music did quite well in the 2023 Most Well Attended Music Major in the Far Western US Region ranking, coming in at #6. San Francisco, California is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out ’s music degrees to 132 students in 2020-2021.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 4.1% 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%. Since the school has a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 3 to 1, those pursuing a degree will have more opportunities to interact with their professors.
University of Oregon ranked #7 on this year’s Most Well Attended Music Major in the Far Western US Region list. This large school is located in Eugene, Oregon, and it awarded 105 ’s music degrees in 2020-2021.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 3.1%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
California State University - Fullerton came in at #8 in this year’s edition of the Most Well Attended Music Major in the Far Western US Region ranking. Cal State Fullerton is located in Fullerton, California and, has a large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 89 ’s music degrees to qualified students.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 2.5%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. With a freshman retention rate of 89%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students.
With a ranking of #9, Musicians Institute did quite well on the 2023 Most Well Attended Music Major in the Far Western US Region list. Located in Hollywood, California, this small private for-profit school awarded 143 diplomas to qualified ’s music students in 2020-2021.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 5.0%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. The undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 4 to 1 is a sign that students will have more opportunities to engage with their professors one-on-one.
With a ranking of #10, San Diego State University did quite well on the 2023 Most Well Attended Music Major in the Far Western US Region list. Located in San Diego, California, this large public school awarded 71 degrees to qualified ’s music students in 2020-2021.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 89%. The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 2.2%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Los Angeles College of Music ranked #11 on this year’s Most Well Attended Music Major in the Far Western US Region list. Pasadena, California is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. The private for-profit school handed out ’s music degrees to 67 students in 2020-2021.
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.
California Institute of the Arts landed the #12 spot on the 2023 Most Well Attended Music Major in the Far Western US Region ranking. Valencia, California is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out ’s music degrees to 61 students in 2020-2021.
The undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 5 to 1 is a sign that students will have more opportunities to engage with their professors one-on-one. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 4.5%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
California State University - Los Angeles landed the #13 spot on the 2023 Most Well Attended Music Major in the Far Western US Region ranking. Located in Los Angeles, California, this large public school awarded 57 degrees to qualified ’s music students in 2020-2021.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 3.6% 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%.
California State University - Sacramento did quite well in the 2023 Most Well Attended Music Major in the Far Western US Region ranking, coming in at #14. Located in Sacramento, California, this large public school handed out 56 diplomas to qualified ’s music students in 2020-2021.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 3.9% 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 California State University - Sacramento
University of California - Berkeley ranked #15 on this year’s Most Well Attended Music Major in the Far Western US Region list. Located in Berkeley, California, this large public school handed out 54 degrees to qualified ’s music students in 2020-2021.
The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 96%, 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 1.8%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
University of Nevada - Las Vegas landed the #16 spot on the 2023 Most Well Attended Music Major in the Far Western US Region ranking. Las Vegas, Nevada is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out ’s music degrees to 54 students in 2020-2021.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 4.9% 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%.
California State University - Fresno landed the #17 spot on the 2023 Most Well Attended Music Major in the Far Western US Region ranking. Fresno, California is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out ’s music degrees to 52 students in 2020-2021.
With a freshman retention rate of 87%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students. The low undergrad student loan default rate of 3.2% 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%.
San Jose State University ranked #17 on this year’s Most Well Attended Music Major in the Far Western US Region list. San Jose State University is a public institution located in San Jose, California. The school has a large population, and it awarded 52 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 2.9% 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%. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 86%.
University of Washington - Seattle Campus came in at #19 in this year’s edition of the Most Well Attended Music Major in the Far Western US Region ranking. Seattle, Washington is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out ’s music degrees to 51 students in 2020-2021.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 93%. The low undergrad student loan default rate of 2.1% 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 more about Music at University of Washington - Seattle Campus
Azusa Pacific University did quite well in the 2023 Most Well Attended Music Major in the Far Western US Region ranking, coming in at #19. Azusa Pacific is a medium-sized private not-for-profit school situated in Azusa, California. It awarded 51 ’s music degrees in 2020-2021.
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. The low undergrad student loan default rate of 3.3% 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%.
Central Washington University ranked #21 on this year’s Most Well Attended Music Major in the Far Western US Region list. Central Washington University is a fairly large public school situated in Ellensburg, Washington. It awarded 48 ’s music degrees in 2020-2021.
California State University - Chico ranked #21 on this year’s Most Well Attended Music Major in the Far Western US Region list. This fairly large school is located in Chico, California, and it awarded 48 ’s music degrees in 2020-2021.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 4.0%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
With a ranking of #23, University of California - Irvine did quite well on the 2023 Most Well Attended Music Major in the Far Western US Region list. Located in Irvine, California, this large public school awarded 42 diplomas to qualified ’s music students in 2020-2021.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 1.4%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 94%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.
California State Polytechnic University - Pomona came in at #24 in this year’s edition of the Most Well Attended Music Major in the Far Western US Region ranking. Pomona, California is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out ’s music degrees to 39 students in 2020-2021.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 87%. The low undergrad student loan default rate of 2.6% 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%.
Portland State University did quite well in the 2023 Most Well Attended Music Major in the Far Western US Region ranking, coming in at #25. Portland, Oregon is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out ’s music degrees to 38 students in 2020-2021.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 4.7%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
University of California - Santa Barbara did quite well in the 2023 Most Well Attended Music Major in the Far Western US Region ranking, coming in at #25. Santa Barbara, California is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out ’s music degrees to 38 students in 2020-2021.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 1.8%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 91%.
Read more about Music at University of California - Santa Barbara
Not only did these schools make the top 33 list, but they also landed in the top 15% of this year’s ranking:
Read more about our data sources and methodologies