Best Musician programs in Illinois, ranked by enrollment
Play one or more musical instruments or sing.
49 schools in Illinois run programs that feed this job, graduating 983 people a year. The job pays a median of $53.12/hr in Illinois across about 1,300 jobs (BLS OEWS May 2025).
Fields of study in Illinois that lead to this job
Grouped at the 4-digit CIP level. Numbers are graduates per year in this state.
12 programs in Illinois that lead to this job
Ranked by graduates per year in Illinois (IPEDS completions). Graduate earnings and debt are national College Scorecard figures reported at the 4-digit CIP level, so specializations within one field share a figure. Each program also links to its own Illinois page.
| # | Program | Graduates / yr | Share of pipeline | Schools | Grad earnings (1 yr) | Median debt |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Music, Generalmain feeder CIP 50.0901In Illinois → | 417 | 42.4% | 46 | $25,929 | $25,980 |
| 2 | Music Performance, Generalmain feeder CIP 50.0903In Illinois → | 246 | 25.0% | 12 | $25,929 | $25,980 |
| 3 | CIP 50.0509In Illinois → | 109 | 11.1% | 7 | $20,667 | $24,994 |
| 4 | Music, Othermain feeder CIP 50.0999In Illinois → | 53 | 5.4% | 5 | $25,929 | $25,980 |
| 5 | Stringed Instrumentsmain feeder CIP 50.0911In Illinois → | 52 | 5.3% | 2 | $25,929 | $25,980 |
| 6 | Voice and Operamain feeder CIP 50.0908In Illinois → | 39 | 4.0% | 5 | $25,929 | $25,980 |
| 7 | Jazz/Jazz Studiesmain feeder CIP 50.0910In Illinois → | 38 | 3.9% | 7 | $25,929 | $25,980 |
| 8 | Keyboard Instrumentsmain feeder CIP 50.0907In Illinois → | 18 | 1.8% | 2 | $25,929 | $25,980 |
| 9 | Music Pedagogymain feeder CIP 50.0912In Illinois → | 4 | 0.4% | 3 | $25,929 | $25,980 |
| 10 | Brass Instrumentsmain feeder CIP 50.0914In Illinois → | 3 | 0.3% | 1 | $25,929 | $25,980 |
| 11 | Woodwind Instrumentsmain feeder CIP 50.0915In Illinois → | 2 | 0.2% | 1 | $25,929 | $25,980 |
| 12 | Percussion Instrumentsmain feeder CIP 50.0916In Illinois → | 2 | 0.2% | 1 | $25,929 | $25,980 |
Top 25 schools in Illinois
Ranked by graduates per year into this job. Graduate earnings are reported for 16 of the 49 schools in this state.
| # | School | Graduates / yr | Top feeder program | Grad earnings (1 yr) | Grad rate | Net price | Acceptance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Northwestern University Evanston, IL Private not-for-profit · 6 feeder programs | 146 | Music Performance, General | $34,823 | 95% | $14,799 | 8% |
| 2 | University of Illinois Urbana - Champaign Champaign, IL Public · 5 feeder programs | 118 | Music, General | $13,128 | 85% | — | 42% |
| 3 | DePaul University Chicago, IL Private not-for-profit · 4 feeder programs | 103 | Music Performance, General | $19,155 | 68% | $28,141 | 76% |
| 4 | Roosevelt University Chicago, IL Private not-for-profit · 10 feeder programs | 95 | Musical Theatre | $21,001 | 35% | $21,085 | 97% |
| 5 | Columbia College Chicago Chicago, IL Private not-for-profit · 3 feeder programs | 91 | Music, General | $19,943 | 52% | $28,087 | 89% |
| 6 | Northern Illinois University Dekalb, IL Public · 2 feeder programs | 68 | Music Performance, General | $42,830 | 49% | — | 70% |
| 7 | Illinois State University Normal, IL Public · 2 feeder programs | 53 | Music, General | $32,853 | 65% | — | 88% |
| 8 | Western Illinois University Macomb, IL Public · 2 feeder programs | 37 | Music Performance, General | $32,666 | 45% | — | 71% |
| 9 | Eastern Illinois University Charleston, IL Public · 1 feeder programs | 36 | Music, General | $37,163 | 47% | — | 65% |
| 10 | Millikin University Decatur, IL Private not-for-profit · 4 feeder programs | 23 | Musical Theatre | $24,013 | 55% | $8,373 | 67% |
| 11 | Southern Illinois University Edwardsville Edwardsville, IL Public · 2 feeder programs | 22 | Music, General | $34,079 | 57% | — | 97% |
| 12 | Northeastern Illinois University Chicago, IL Public · 1 feeder programs | 20 | Music, General | — | 22% | — | 75% |
| 13 | Wheaton College Wheaton, IL Private not-for-profit · 4 feeder programs | 20 | Music, Other | $26,540 | 85% | $23,461 | 87% |
| 14 | Southern Illinois University - Carbondale Carbondale, IL Public · 1 feeder programs | 19 | Music, General | — | 62% | — | 87% |
| 15 | Illinois Wesleyan University Bloomington, IL Private not-for-profit · 2 feeder programs | 9 | Musical Theatre | $19,490 | 75% | $26,849 | 39% |
| 16 | William Rainey Harper College Palatine, IL Public · 1 feeder programs | 9 | Music, General | — | 48% | — | — |
| 17 | City Colleges of Chicago - Harold Washington College Chicago, IL Public · 1 feeder programs | 8 | Music, General | — | 26% | — | — |
| 18 | College of DuPage Glen Ellyn, IL Public · 1 feeder programs | 8 | Music, General | — | 25% | — | — |
| 19 | Elmhurst University Elmhurst, IL Private not-for-profit · 4 feeder programs | 7 | Jazz/Jazz Studies | $21,759 | 70% | $20,794 | 74% |
| 20 | Loyola University Chicago Chicago, IL Private not-for-profit · 2 feeder programs | 7 | Music, General | — | 73% | $33,454 | 82% |
| 21 | North Central College Naperville, IL Private not-for-profit · 2 feeder programs | 7 | Musical Theatre | $20,416 | 64% | $20,052 | 77% |
| 22 | University of Illinois Chicago Chicago, IL Public · 3 feeder programs | 7 | Music, General | — | 62% | — | 77% |
| 23 | Bradley University Peoria, IL Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 5 | Music, General | $28,137 | 76% | $21,768 | 77% |
| 24 | Knox College Galesburg, IL Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 5 | Music, General | — | 68% | $24,240 | 71% |
| 25 | Lincoln Land Community College Springfield, IL Public · 1 feeder programs | 5 | Music, General | — | 48% | — | — |
All 49 schools in Illinois
Every school in Illinois with a program that feeds this job, ordered by graduates per year. Earnings are shown for the ranked schools above; open a school profile for the rest.
| School | City | Control | Graduates / yr | Feeder programs |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Northwestern University | Evanston | Private not-for-profit | 146 | 6 |
| University of Illinois Urbana - Champaign | Champaign | Public | 118 | 5 |
| DePaul University | Chicago | Private not-for-profit | 103 | 4 |
| Roosevelt University | Chicago | Private not-for-profit | 95 | 10 |
| Columbia College Chicago | Chicago | Private not-for-profit | 91 | 3 |
| Northern Illinois University | Dekalb | Public | 68 | 2 |
| Illinois State University | Normal | Public | 53 | 2 |
| Western Illinois University | Macomb | Public | 37 | 2 |
| Eastern Illinois University | Charleston | Public | 36 | 1 |
| Millikin University | Decatur | Private not-for-profit | 23 | 4 |
| Southern Illinois University Edwardsville | Edwardsville | Public | 22 | 2 |
| Northeastern Illinois University | Chicago | Public | 20 | 1 |
| Wheaton College | Wheaton | Private not-for-profit | 20 | 4 |
| Southern Illinois University - Carbondale | Carbondale | Public | 19 | 1 |
| Illinois Wesleyan University | Bloomington | Private not-for-profit | 9 | 2 |
What musicians and singers earn in Illinois
What people already working in this job earn (BLS OEWS May 2025). Not graduate earnings.
BLS publishes an hourly wage only for this occupation. The work is intermittent, so no annual figure is estimated.
1.00× means the state has its expected share of these jobs.
Metro areas in Illinois, by employment
Job outlook
Bureau of Labor Statistics Employment Projections, 2024 to 2034.
Growth and openings are national. The Bureau of Labor Statistics does not publish employment projections at state level, so these figures describe the occupation across the whole U.S., not this state alone.
How to get in
The full skills, tools, and day-to-day breakdown lives on the national Musicians and Singers page.
How to become a Musician
Job zone 4 of 5 · SVP 7.0 to < 8.0- Typical entry education
- No formal educational credential
- On-the-job training
- Long-term on-the-job training
Most of these occupations require a four-year bachelor's degree, but some do not.
A considerable amount of work-related skill, knowledge, or experience is needed for these occupations. For example, an accountant must complete four years of college and work for several years in accounting to be considered qualified.
Employees in these occupations usually need several years of work-related experience, on-the-job training, and/or vocational training.
Top skills
The same job in other states
Where else this occupation employs the most people, and what it pays there.
Related careers in Illinois
Every major mapped to this job
The official federal mapping behind the rankings above.
All 12 majors mapped to Musicians and Singers12 of them graduated someone in the latest IPEDS year. NCES CIP 2020 → SOC 2018 crosswalk.+
- 50.0509Musical Theatre
- 50.0901Music, General
- 50.0903Music Performance, General
- 50.0907Keyboard Instruments
- 50.0908Voice and Opera
- 50.0910Jazz/Jazz Studies
- 50.0911Stringed Instruments
- 50.0912Music Pedagogy
- 50.0914Brass Instruments
- 50.0915Woodwind Instruments
- 50.0916Percussion Instruments
- 50.0999Music, Other
Common questions
Answers for people weighing musicians and singers programs in Illinois.
What degree do you need to become a Musician?+
No formal educational credential is the typical entry-level education BLS reports for this occupation. The most common program people actually graduate from is Music, General, which awarded 417 degrees in Illinois in 2024-25, 42.4% of everyone graduating from a program that feeds this career.
Which college majors lead to becoming a Musician?+
The NCES CIP-to-SOC crosswalk maps 12 programs to this occupation. The largest are Music, Drama/Theatre Arts and Stagecraft. Together they graduate about 983 people a year in Illinois.
How much do musicians and singers earn in Illinois?+
The median is $53.12 an hour (BLS OEWS May 2025). This is pay for people already working in the occupation, not the same thing as graduate earnings one year after finishing a degree.
Is demand for musicians and singers growing?+
BLS projects a +1.1% change in employment between 2024 and 2034, little or no change, with roughly 19,400 openings a year nationally once retirements and job changes are counted.
How many schools offer programs for this career in Illinois?+
49 institutions in Illinois reported graduates from at least one of the 12 programs that feed this occupation in IPEDS 2024-25. Rankings on this page use graduates per year, because the federal data publishes no enrollment count by program.
What other job titles do musicians and singers work under?+
Employers advertise this work under many names. O*NET records Singer, Musician, Violinist, Choir Member among the most commonly reported, all mapping to SOC 27-2042.
About the data on this page
Rankings use IPEDS completions 2024–25, degrees awarded per year. That is the closest federal measure of how many people a program puts into a career, because no federal dataset publishes enrollment by program. Wages and employment come from BLS OEWS May 2025, growth and openings from BLS Employment Projections 2024-34, and which majors lead to which jobs from the NCES CIP 2020 to SOC 2018 crosswalk. Occupation descriptions, tasks, skills and tools are O*NET 30.3 (CC BY 4.0, U.S. Department of Labor/ETA).
BLS Occupational Employment & Wage Statistics
May 2025Wages, employment counts, location quotients and metro breakdowns.
BLS Employment Projections
2024–34Projected growth, annual openings and typical entry-level education.
IPEDS Completions
2024-25 (provisional)Graduates per year by program and institution — the ranking metric.
College Scorecard, Field of Study
2020-21 cohortsMedian graduate earnings one year after completion, and median debt.
Census Post-Secondary Employment Outcomes
latest availableGraduate earnings 1/5/10 years out, where the state participates.
NCES CIP 2020 and the CIP-to-SOC 2018 crosswalk
CIP 2020 / SOC 2018Which college programs officially lead to this occupation.
O*NET Database 30.3
30.3Tasks, skills, knowledge, tools, job zone and alternate job titles.
Official source →CC BY 4.0, U.S. Department of Labor / ETA
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