Top 20 music school and conservatories in the United States and where to apply.
Application season is open, here are top 20 music school in the United States if you want to study music professionally.
Juilliard School Located in New York, NY https://apply.juilliard.edu/apply/?_ga=2.190051563.1937367850.1662603235-1256428270.1662603235
New England Conservatory Located in Boston, MA https://necmusic.edu/apply
Manhattan School of Music Located in New York, NY https://www.msmnyc.edu/admission/how-to-apply/
Mannes School of Music Located in New York, NY https://www.newschool.edu/mannes/how-to-apply-undergraduate/
Curtis Institute of Music Located in Philadelphia, PA https://www.curtis.edu/apply/applying/
Yale School of Music Located in New Haven, CT https://music.yale.edu/how-apply
Peabody Institute of Music Located in Baltimore, MD https://peabody.jhu.edu/audition-apply/
Eastman School of Music Located in Rochester, NY https://www.esm.rochester.edu/admissions/ugrad/
Berklee College of Music/Boston Conservatory Located in Boston, MA https://college.berklee.edu/admissions/undergraduate/how-to-apply
Oberlin College of Music Located in Oberlin, OH https://www.oberlin.edu/admissions-and-aid/conservatory
San Francisco Conservatory of Music Located in San Francisco, CA https://sfcm.edu/admissions/how-apply
Cleveland Institute of Music Located in Cleveland, OH https://www.cim.edu/admissions/apply
Colburn School of Music Located in Los Angeles, CA https://www.colburnschool.edu/music-academy/apply-music-academy/
Bard College Conservatory of Music
Located in Annandale-On-Hudson, NY
https://www.bard.edu/conservatory/iap/
Ithaca College School of Music Located in Ithaca, NY https://www.ithaca.edu/academics/school-music-theatre-and-dance/music-admission/undergraduate-application-process
Lawrence University Conservatory of Music Located in Appleton, WI https://www.lawrence.edu/admissions-aid/apply
Carnegie Mellon School of Music Located in Pittsburgh, PA https://www.cmu.edu/cfa/music/apply/undergraduate_admission/index.html
Queens College Aaron Copland School of Music Located in Flushing, NY http://qcpages.qc.cuny.edu/music/prospective/apply
Stony Brook Department of Music Located in Stony Brook, NY https://www.stonybrook.edu/commcms/music/academics/apply.php
NYU Tisch School of the Arts Located in New York, NY https://tisch.nyu.edu/admissions/undergraduate-admissions
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This is a helpful roundup for anyone comparing conservatories and music schools during application season. Juilliard and New England Conservatory are obvious benchmarks, but it’s smart to check audition requirements and deadlines early. Practicing for hours can get intense, so I also keep short, low-pressure breaks handy between sessions. If you want something quick that runs without downloads, these browser horror games for school laptops are a fun way to reset before returning to scales, repertoire, or application essays.
This is a helpful roundup for anyone heading into conservatory application season. Juilliard and New England Conservatory are obvious benchmarks, but the broader list is a good reminder to compare audition requirements, deadlines, and studio teachers rather than just prestige. While thinking about competitiveness and percentiles, I also found a fun distraction: this 759 lookup gives exact EP, badges, rarity tier, and percentile for any RNGdle number from 0 to 1,000,000, scored from the official badge table. Useful if you want a quick break from application stress.
Great timing on this list—application season stress is real, and seeing Juilliard and New England Conservatory side by side with direct apply links is genuinely helpful. I’d also remind applicants to check audition repertoire and prescreen deadlines early, since those vary a lot by studio. Slightly off-topic, but while organizing my bookmarks I also used andyandleyley.com for The Coffin of Andy and Leyley endings; not music-related, just a useful guide if anyone here covers games too.
https://virementcasino.com came to mind reading this list, since the sheer number of options made me realize how differently people weigh location versus faculty when narrowing things down. The point about Curtis being tuition-free stood out, because that single detail probably reshapes the entire application strategy for a lot of families. A friend of mine applied to conservatories without ever comparing costs first, and it cost her a year.
https://paysafecardcasinolist.com caught my attention because the range of application deadlines across these schools varies so much, and staying organized is half the battle. The point about location mattering as much as reputation stuck with me, since being near a city with an active music scene can shape your opportunities just as much as the faculty. I went through a similar list a few years back and ended up choosing a smaller program over a big name, which worked out better than I expected.