{
  "major": "Music",
  "slug": "music",
  "field": "Arts & Design",
  "as_of": "2026",
  "url": "https://collegeranked.com/best-music-schools/",
  "source": "U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard (2026 release); U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics",
  "metric_definitions": {
    "median_earnings": "Median earnings one year after graduation (Scorecard)",
    "net_price": "Average annual cost of attendance after grant aid. For PUBLIC schools this reflects IN-STATE cost; out-of-state students pay more.",
    "roi_10yr_usd": "Ten years of earnings minus four years of net price",
    "public": "true = public university (net_price is in-state basis); false = private (residency-neutral)"
  },
  "total_colleges_with_reported_data": 236,
  "shown": 25,
  "ranking": [
    {
      "rank": 1,
      "school": "The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley",
      "state": "TX",
      "median_earnings": 56373,
      "net_price": 4831,
      "roi_10yr_usd": 544406,
      "public": true
    },
    {
      "rank": 2,
      "school": "Texas A&M University-Kingsville",
      "state": "TX",
      "median_earnings": 56072,
      "net_price": 12090,
      "roi_10yr_usd": 512360,
      "public": true
    },
    {
      "rank": 3,
      "school": "The University of Texas at El Paso",
      "state": "TX",
      "median_earnings": 56062,
      "net_price": 9403,
      "roi_10yr_usd": 523008,
      "public": true
    },
    {
      "rank": 4,
      "school": "University of Houston",
      "state": "TX",
      "median_earnings": 52799,
      "net_price": 14276,
      "roi_10yr_usd": 470886,
      "public": true
    },
    {
      "rank": 5,
      "school": "The University of Texas at San Antonio",
      "state": "TX",
      "median_earnings": 47010,
      "net_price": 10836,
      "roi_10yr_usd": 426756,
      "public": true
    },
    {
      "rank": 6,
      "school": "Lamar University",
      "state": "TX",
      "median_earnings": 42328,
      "net_price": 9366,
      "roi_10yr_usd": 385816,
      "public": true
    },
    {
      "rank": 7,
      "school": "Stephen F Austin State University",
      "state": "TX",
      "median_earnings": 47318,
      "net_price": 14260,
      "roi_10yr_usd": 416140,
      "public": true
    },
    {
      "rank": 8,
      "school": "East Texas A&M University",
      "state": "TX",
      "median_earnings": 52282,
      "net_price": 11841,
      "roi_10yr_usd": 475456,
      "public": true
    },
    {
      "rank": 9,
      "school": "University of Nevada-Las Vegas",
      "state": "NV",
      "median_earnings": 47151,
      "net_price": 10359,
      "roi_10yr_usd": 430074,
      "public": true
    },
    {
      "rank": 10,
      "school": "Texas State University",
      "state": "TX",
      "median_earnings": 51158,
      "net_price": 16805,
      "roi_10yr_usd": 444360,
      "public": true
    },
    {
      "rank": 11,
      "school": "Texas Woman's University",
      "state": "TX",
      "median_earnings": 44058,
      "net_price": 11963,
      "roi_10yr_usd": 392728,
      "public": true
    },
    {
      "rank": 12,
      "school": "Ohio University-Eastern Campus",
      "state": "OH",
      "median_earnings": 36252,
      "net_price": 3925,
      "roi_10yr_usd": 346820,
      "public": true
    },
    {
      "rank": 13,
      "school": "Sam Houston State University",
      "state": "TX",
      "median_earnings": 59926,
      "net_price": 16404,
      "roi_10yr_usd": 533644,
      "public": true
    },
    {
      "rank": 14,
      "school": "Ohio University-Chillicothe Campus",
      "state": "OH",
      "median_earnings": 36252,
      "net_price": 5755,
      "roi_10yr_usd": 339500,
      "public": true
    },
    {
      "rank": 15,
      "school": "Ohio University-Southern Campus",
      "state": "OH",
      "median_earnings": 36252,
      "net_price": 5993,
      "roi_10yr_usd": 338548,
      "public": true
    },
    {
      "rank": 16,
      "school": "Ohio University-Lancaster Campus",
      "state": "OH",
      "median_earnings": 36252,
      "net_price": 5650,
      "roi_10yr_usd": 339920,
      "public": true
    },
    {
      "rank": 17,
      "school": "Ohio University-Zanesville Campus",
      "state": "OH",
      "median_earnings": 36252,
      "net_price": 5746,
      "roi_10yr_usd": 339536,
      "public": true
    },
    {
      "rank": 18,
      "school": "Rhode Island College",
      "state": "RI",
      "median_earnings": 34549,
      "net_price": 9478,
      "roi_10yr_usd": 307578,
      "public": true
    },
    {
      "rank": 19,
      "school": "Texas Tech University",
      "state": "TX",
      "median_earnings": 49906,
      "net_price": 19070,
      "roi_10yr_usd": 422780,
      "public": true
    },
    {
      "rank": 20,
      "school": "Tennessee Technological University",
      "state": "TN",
      "median_earnings": 44635,
      "net_price": 14246,
      "roi_10yr_usd": 389366,
      "public": true
    },
    {
      "rank": 21,
      "school": "University of Utah",
      "state": "UT",
      "median_earnings": 42548,
      "net_price": 16200,
      "roi_10yr_usd": 360680,
      "public": true
    },
    {
      "rank": 22,
      "school": "Indiana State University",
      "state": "IN",
      "median_earnings": 41038,
      "net_price": 10873,
      "roi_10yr_usd": 366888,
      "public": true
    },
    {
      "rank": 23,
      "school": "Austin Peay State University",
      "state": "TN",
      "median_earnings": 39008,
      "net_price": 9735,
      "roi_10yr_usd": 351140,
      "public": true
    },
    {
      "rank": 24,
      "school": "Eastern Illinois University",
      "state": "IL",
      "median_earnings": 37163,
      "net_price": 12786,
      "roi_10yr_usd": 320486,
      "public": true
    },
    {
      "rank": 25,
      "school": "The University of Texas at Arlington",
      "state": "TX",
      "median_earnings": 37020,
      "net_price": 13951,
      "roi_10yr_usd": 314396,
      "public": true
    }
  ]
}