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Evanston, IL · Music

Music at Northwestern

Northwestern graduates about 82 music majors a year, 3% of its graduating class. That puts it 3rd of 749 schools we score for music, a standout program at 97 out of 100. Graduates in the major earn a median $54,000 four years out, 1.23× what the same major pays nationally. Research spending in the field runs about $2 million a year, a rough guide to how many labs and projects undergraduates can join.

97/100Standout#3 of 749 for music →
Graduates a year823% of the class
Median pay 4 years out$54,0001.23× the same major nationally
Research in the field$2Ma year, NSF
Admit rate7%whole school
SAT middle 50%1520–1560whole school

Around Northwestern

A photo of the interior of Dearborn Observatory. The dome is open, the red light
Dearborn Telescope with open domePhoto: Jackricono · CC BY-SA 4.0 · source
The Shakespeare Garden in Evanston (1915). It was established by the Garden Club
Shakespeare Garden (8105928197)Photo: Teemu008 from Palatine, Illinois · CC BY-SA 2.0 · source
Aggelos Katsaggelos
Aggelos KatsaggelosPhoto: Leandros89 · CC0 · source
This represents what PDMS looks like.
FabricwithinPDMSPhoto: Ih2283 · CC BY-SA 4.0 · source

Where music happens

Buildings on campus that fit the field: Music Administration Building, Music Practice Building, Jones Fine and Performing Arts Residential College, Patrick G. and Shirley W. Ryan Center for the Musical Arts, Regenstein Hall of Music, Virginia Wadsworth Wirtz Center for the Performing Arts, Pick-Staiger Concert Hall.

Named buildings on the campus map: Academic 96 · Dorm 44 · Fraternity or sorority house 13 · Arts 8 · Chapel 5 · Athletics 3.

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Nearby in the music ranking

  1. Vanderbilt University 100
  2. Carnegie Mellon University 98
  3. University of Florida 97
  4. New York University 96
  5. Northeastern University 96
  6. Emory University 95

Other strong majors at Northwestern

How the score works

The score is out of 100 and compares Northwestern with every school we score in music. It weighs what graduates earn four years out against the same major nationally (25%), research spending in the field (20%, NSF), how many undergraduate courses the department lists (20%), the student body's test scores (20%) and the size of the program (15%, capped so size alone can't win). 80+ is a standout program, 65+ strong, 45+ solid. Sources: US Department of Education (College Scorecard, IPEDS), NSF HERD, each school's current course catalog, OpenStreetMap and Wikimedia Commons.

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