Music Theory & Composition

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Total Degrees
Awarded in 2017

1,274

declining 10.2%

Median In-State
Public Tuition

$8,493

growing 8.23%

Median Out-of-State
Private Tuition

$38,150

growing 4.09%

Average Wage

$58,627

growing 2.69%

People in Workforce

2.15M

growing 5.42%

Average Employee Age

growing 0.514%

About

The locations with the highest concentration of Music Theory & Composition degree recipients are New York, NY, Boston, MA, and Chicago, IL. The locations with a relatively high number of Music Theory & Composition degree recipients are Redmond, WA, Montpelier, VT, and Danbury, CT. The most common degree awarded to students studying Music Theory & Composition is a bachelors degree.

Photo by hobvias sudoneighm

Visual & Performing Arts Music

Institutions

Information about the types of higher education institutions that grant degrees in Music Theory & Composition and the types of students that study this field. Full Sail University awards the most degrees in Music Theory & Composition in the US, but McNally Smith College of Music and Vermont College of Fine Arts have the highest percentage of degrees awarded in Music Theory & Composition.

Tuition costs for Music Theory & Composition majors are, on average, $8,493 for in-state public colleges, and $38,150 for out of state private colleges.

The most common sector, by number of institutions, that offers Music Theory & Composition programs are Private not-for-profit, 4-year or above institutions (125 total). The most common sector, by number of degrees awarded, is Private not-for-profit, 4-year or above (629 completions).

Institutions

Institution with the Most Degrees Awarded in Music Theory & Composition

The most common sector, by number of degrees awarded in Music Theory & Composition, is Private not-for-profit, 4-year or above (629 completions).

The following chart shows the share of universities that offer Music Theory & Composition programs, by the total number of completions, colored and grouped by their sector.

Tuition Costs for Common Institutions

$8,493

Median In-State Public

$38,150

Median Out of State Private

Full Sail University has the most Music Theory & Composition degree recipients, with 328 degrees awarded in 2017.

The following bar chart shows the state tuition for the top 5 institutions with the most degrees awarded in Music Theory & Composition.

Specialized Colleges

Highest Concentration Institution

Out of all institutions that offer Music Theory & Composition programs and have at least 5 graduates in those programs, McNally Smith College of Music and Vermont College of Fine Arts have the highest percentage of degrees awarded in Music Theory & Composition, with 15.6% and 11.9%, respectively.

Degrees Awarded by County

Counties with the Most Degrees Awarded in Music Theory & Composition

This map shows the counties in the United States colored by the highest number of degrees awarded in Music Theory & Composition by year.

Growth in Awarded Degrees

Counties with the Fastest Growing Number of Degrees Awarded

This map shows the counties in the United States colored by the highest growth in degrees awarded for Music Theory & Composition.

Employment

Information on the businesses and industries that employ Visual & Performing Arts graduates and on wages and locations for those in the field.

The average salary for Visual & Performing Arts majors is $58,627 and the most common occupations are Elementary & middle school teachers, Graphic designers, and Postsecondary teachers.

The industry that employs the most Visual & Performing Arts majors is Elementary & secondary schools, though the highest paying industry, by average wage, is Psychiatric and substance abuse hospitals.

Wages

Yearly Income for Common Jobs

The closest comparable data for the 6 Digit Course Music Theory & Composition is from the 2 Digit Course Visual & Performing Arts.

$58,627

Average Wage in Workforce

± $1,024

2.69%

1 Year Growth

± 2.43%

The average salary for Visual & Performing Arts majors is $58,627 and the most common occupations are Elementary & middle school teachers, Graphic designers, and Postsecondary teachers.

This chart shows the average annual salaries of the most common occupations for Visual & Performing Arts majors.

Highest Paying Locations

The closest comparable data for the 6 Digit Course Music Theory & Composition is from the 2 Digit Course Visual & Performing Arts.

Highest Paying Pumas

This map shows the public use micro areas (PUMAs) in the United States colored by the average salary of Visual & Performing Arts majors.

Note that the census collects information tied to where people live, not where they work. It is possible that Visual & Performing Arts majors live and work in the same place, but it is also possible that they live and work in two different places.

Occupations

Most Common

The closest comparable data for the 6 Digit Course Music Theory & Composition is from the 2 Digit Course Visual & Performing Arts.

The most common occupations Visual & Performing Arts majors, by number of employees, are Elementary & middle school teachers, Graphic designers, and Postsecondary teachers.

Most Specialized

The closest comparable data for the 6 Digit Course Music Theory & Composition is from the 2 Digit Course Visual & Performing Arts.

Compared to other majors, there are an unusually high number of Visual & Performing Arts majors working as Graphic designers, Commercial and industrial designers, and Interior designers.

Highest Paid

The closest comparable data for the 6 Digit Course Music Theory & Composition is from the 2 Digit Course Visual & Performing Arts.

The highest paid occupations by median income for Visual & Performing Arts majors are Physicians, Nurse anesthetists, and Chief executives & legislators.

Occupations by Share

The closest comparable data for the 6 Digit Course Music Theory & Composition is from the 2 Digit Course Visual & Performing Arts.

2.15M

2018 Workforce

± 35,763

5.42%

1 Year Growth

± 2.26%

The number of Visual & Performing Arts graduates in the workforce has been growing at a rate of 5.42%, from 2.04M in 2017 to 2.15M in 2018.

The largest single share of Visual & Performing Arts graduates go on to work as Elementary & middle school teachers (5.38%). This chart shows the various jobs filled by those with a major in Visual & Performing Arts by share of the total number of graduates.

Industries

Most Common

The closest comparable data for the 6 Digit Course Music Theory & Composition is from the 2 Digit Course Visual & Performing Arts.

The most common industries that employ Visual & Performing Arts majors, by number of employees, are Elementary & secondary schools, Colleges, universities & professional schools, including junior colleges, and Specialized design services.

Highest Paid

The closest comparable data for the 6 Digit Course Music Theory & Composition is from the 2 Digit Course Visual & Performing Arts.

The highest paying industries of Visual & Performing Arts majors, by average wage, are Psychiatric and substance abuse hospitals, U. S. Armed Forces: Branch Not Specified, and Computer & peripheral equipment manufacturing.

Industries by Share

The closest comparable data for the 6 Digit Course Music Theory & Composition is from the 2 Digit Course Visual & Performing Arts.

2.15M

2018 Workforce

± 35,763

5.42%

1 Year Growth

± 2.26%

The number of Visual & Performing Arts graduates in the workforce has been growing at a rate of 5.42%, from 2.04M in 2017 to 2.15M in 2018.

The industry which employs the most Visual & Performing Arts graduates by share is Elementary & secondary schools, followed by Colleges, universities & professional schools, including junior colleges. This visualization shows the industries that hire those who major in Visual & Performing Arts.

Specialty Locations

The closest comparable data for the 6 Digit Course Music Theory & Composition is from the 2 Digit Course Visual & Performing Arts.

PUMAS with a relatively high number of Visual & Performing Arts majors

This map shows the public use micro areas (PUMAs) in the United States where there are a relatively high population of Visual & Performing Arts majors.

Diversity

Demographic information on those who earn a degree in Visual & Performing Arts in the US. The average age of a person in the workforce with a degree in Visual & Performing Arts is 41, and the most common degree type these workers hold is a Bachelors Degree. Male employees are more likely to hold Visual & Performing Arts degrees, and White students earn the majority (680) of the degrees.

Workforce Age

The closest comparable data for the 6 Digit Course Music Theory & Composition is from the 2 Digit Course Visual & Performing Arts.

Average Age in 2018

± 0.219 Years

0.514%

1 Year Change

± 0.765%

This chart shows distribution of ages for employees with a degree in Visual & Performing Arts. The most common ages of employees with this major are 28 and 27 years old, which represent 3.73% and 3.48% of the population, respectively.

Degrees Awarded

The most common degree types awarded to students graduating in Music Theory & Composition are Bachelors Degree, Masters Degree, and Research Doctorate.

Workforce Degrees

The closest comparable data for the 6 Digit Course Music Theory & Composition is from the 2 Digit Course Visual & Performing Arts.

The most common degree types held by the working population in Visual & Performing Arts are Bachelors Degree, Masters Degree, and Professional degree.

Gender Imbalance for Common Institutions

Male (74.7%)

Most Common Gender with a Degree in this Field

This chart shows the granted degrees by gender at the 5 institutions that graduate the most students in Music Theory & Composition.

Race & Ethnicity by Degrees Awarded

Most Common Race or Ethnicity

White
680 degrees awarded
Non-resident Alien
164 degrees awarded
Black or African American
124 degrees awarded

This chart shows the number of degrees awarded in Music Theory & Composition for each race & ethnicity. White students earned the largest share of the degrees with this major.

Race & Ethnicity by Gender

Most Common Race/Ethnicity and Gender Combination

White Male
336 degree-grads_ethnicity_genders awarded
Black or African American Male
87 degree-grads_ethnicity_genders awarded
White Female
87 degree-grads_ethnicity_genders awarded

This chart illustrates the differences by gender for each race & ethnicity of Bachelors Degree recipients in Music Theory & Composition. White Male students, who earn most of the degree-grads_ethnicity_genders in this field, are the most common combination of race/ethnicity and gender.

Global Diversity

The closest comparable data for the 6 Digit Course Music Theory & Composition is from the 2 Digit Course Visual & Performing Arts.

Most Common Countries of Origin

Korea
23,589 degree recipients
Mexico
22,675 degree recipients
China
15,823 degree recipients

High Relative Number of Students

Singapore
5.4 times more than expected
Bulgaria
5.37 times more than expected
Malaysia
4.23 times more than expected

There are a relatively high number of people that were born in Singapore that hold Visual & Performing Arts degrees (5.4 times more than expected), and the most common country of origin by total numbers for non-US students earning a degree in this field is Korea (23,589 degree recipients).

Skills

Data on the critical and distinctive skills necessary for those working in the Music Theory & Composition field from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Music Theory & Composition majors need many skills, but most especially Speaking. The revealed comparative advantage (RCA) shows that Music Theory & Composition majors need more than the average amount of Installation, Repairing, and Management of Material Resources.

These two visualizations, one a radial chart and one a bar chart, show the same information, a rating of how necessary the following skills are for Music Theory & Composition majors. Toggle between "value" and "RCA" to see the absolute rating of that skill (value) and the revealed comparative advantage (RCA), or how much greater or lesser that skill's rating is than the average. The longer the bar or the closer the line comes to the circumference of the circle, the more important that skill is. The importance of Installation is very distinctive for majors, but the Speaking, Instructing, and Reading Comprehension are the three most important skills for people in the field.