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Of the 492 Music & Performing Arts universities in the United States, Cornell University ranks highest at #13 in the QS World University Rankings 2026. It is followed by University of Chicago (QS World #13) and Princeton University (QS World #15). The universities on this list offer 1,109 matching courses between them.
492 universities · ranked best first
how we rankPublic University · 1 course in Music & Performing Arts
Public University · 1 course in Music & Performing Arts
Public University · 1 course in Music & Performing Arts
Public University · 3 courses in Music & Performing Arts
Public University · 2 courses in Music & Performing Arts
Public University · 2 courses in Music & Performing Arts
Public University · 20 courses in Music & Performing Arts
Public University · 1 course in Music & Performing Arts
Public University · 1 course in Music & Performing Arts
Public University · 1 course in Music & Performing Arts
Public University · 1 course in Music & Performing Arts
Public University · 2 courses in Music & Performing Arts
Public University · 3 courses in Music & Performing Arts
Public University · 2 courses in Music & Performing Arts
Public University · 2 courses in Music & Performing Arts
Public University · 1 course in Music & Performing Arts
Public University · 1 course in Music & Performing Arts
Public University · 2 courses in Music & Performing Arts
Public University · 2 courses in Music & Performing Arts
Public University · 2 courses in Music & Performing Arts
Public University · 1 course in Music & Performing Arts
Public University · 2 courses in Music & Performing Arts
Public University · 1 course in Music & Performing Arts
Public University · 1 course in Music & Performing Arts
Music & Performing Arts at other levels
Related subjects
By university type
37 of these universities hold a QS World position, from #13 (Cornell University) to #596 (University of Iowa); they are listed first, in that order. The rest are ordered by research impact. Cornell University has the largest research record in this group, with 57,855,264 citations and an h-index of 1,875. 5 universities have neither a QS position nor a research record yet and appear at the end, marked "Not yet ranked".
The split is 490 public to 2 private institutions. By location, Ohio (2), New York (2) and Massachusetts (2) account for the most of those we can place. Ohio State University-Main Campus is the largest, with 45,638 students.
By level: 802 bachelor's, 40 master's, 30 diploma and 22 professional. Within the subject, the largest areas are Music & Performing Arts (1,053), Music (26), Theatre & Drama (11) and Dance (8). The usual length is 4 years and 2 years. 99% are full-time and 15 can be studied online. Start dates lean to Fall (100% of courses with a stated intake) and Spring (98% of courses with a stated intake). Berklee College of Music offers the widest choice, with 42 of these courses.
We hold indicative fees for 13 of these universities. Wayne State College is the least expensive at USD 8,216 a year and The Catholic University of America the most at USD 58,378; the middle of the range is about USD 19,531. Check each university's own fee page before you budget — figures change every year.
Cornell University (QS World #13), University of Chicago (QS World #13) and Princeton University (QS World #15) lead this list. QS World positions come first; the rest are ranked by research impact.
Of those with published fees, Wayne State College is the least expensive at about USD 8,216 a year. Fees are indicative — confirm on the university's site.
490 public and 2 private universities are on this list.
Most listed courses run 4 years, with 2 years the next most common.
Fall is the main intake — 100% of courses with a stated start date begin then, and Spring is the second.
15 of these courses are listed as online.
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