# Music (bachelor's degree)

CIP 50.09. Page: https://educationguide.com/degrees/music

## Earnings
- Graduates 4 years after finishing: median $43,753 across 263 colleges (middle half $39,549–$49,186); median federal debt $25,988
- All workers ages 25-34 with a bachelor's in Music: median $45,805 (all bachelor's $62,049; high school $35,638; Census ACS 2020-2024)

## Jobs graduates hold (ages 25-34)
| Job | Share | U.S. median wage | Growth 2025-35 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Other Teachers And Instructors | 6% | not reported | — |
| Musicians And Singers | 6% | not reported | 0.3% |
| Elementary And Middle School Teachers | 5% | $64,170 | -0.4% |
| Other Managers | 3% | not reported | — |
| Secondary School Teachers | 3% | $70,930 | -0.2% |
| Music Directors And Composers | 2% | $73,710 | 1.2% |
| Software Developers | 2% | $135,980 | 10.2% |
| Retail Salespersons | 2% | $35,410 | -0.3% |

## By state
| State | Graduates 4 yrs (colleges) | Ages 25-34 (respondents) |
|---|---|---|
| AL | $41,768 (5) | — |
| AZ | $41,610 (3) | — |
| CA | $42,269 (23) | $52,145 (579) |
| CO | $39,186 (6) | $50,274 (102) |
| CT | $56,104 (8) | — |
| FL | $41,298 (9) | $34,633 (162) |
| GA | $34,150 (5) | — |
| IA | $50,180 (3) | — |
| IL | $44,072 (14) | $46,177 (160) |
| IN | $38,682 (5) | — |
| KY | $39,168 (7) | — |
| LA | $39,440 (4) | — |
| MA | $39,692 (7) | $48,881 (124) |
| MD | $39,287 (6) | — |
| MI | $46,444 (6) | — |
| MN | $44,136 (6) | — |
| MO | $40,496 (5) | — |
| NC | $40,206 (8) | $45,686 (100) |
| NJ | $50,418 (11) | $41,286 (130) |
| NY | $41,122 (13) | $50,274 (394) |
| OH | $44,037 (17) | $47,717 (100) |
| OK | $44,068 (4) | — |
| OR | $39,928 (5) | — |
| PA | $42,222 (10) | $47,226 (140) |
| TN | $45,100 (11) | $48,881 (218) |
| TX | $55,572 (20) | $53,696 (245) |
| UT | $40,597 (5) | — |
| VA | $47,586 (9) | $55,622 (102) |
| WA | $41,181 (5) | — |
| WI | $44,346 (4) | — |

## Top colleges by graduate earnings (published states)
1. Sonoma State University (CA): $65,533
2. Christopher Newport University (VA): $63,852
3. University of Florida (FL): $61,446
4. University of Redlands (CA): $59,275
5. University of California-San Diego (CA): $58,071
6. Old Dominion University (VA): $52,028
7. James Madison University (VA): $51,882
8. Biola University (CA): $50,781
9. Florida International University (FL): $50,677
10. Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University (VA): $48,028
11. California State University-Long Beach (CA): $47,831
12. University of California-Los Angeles (CA): $47,779

Method: https://educationguide.com/how-we-score#degrees

Free to reuse with attribution: cite "EducationGuide.com" with a link to the page URL. Most figures are U.S. government data (public domain); loan default rates and athletics come from the Urban Institute Education Data Portal (ODC-By 1.0, attribution required) and founding years from Wikidata (CC0). O*NET data: CC BY 4.0, O*NET 31.0 (USDOL/ETA).