Private nonprofit

The New England Conservatory of Music

Boston, Massachusetts·Private not-for-profit, 4-year or above·New England·necmusic.edu
6-yr Graduation
73%
+11.5pp vs peer
Total enrollment
853
peer median 524
Avg net price
$42,556
+$1.2k vs peer
Use this data
Ask Clema

Admissions & acceptance rate

First-time freshman admissions: how selective the college is, and how many admitted students choose to enroll.

Applied
1,112
1,112 candidates competed
Admitted
457
41.1% acceptance rate
Enrolled
135
29.5% yield

Graduation rate & outcomes

Completion, retention, and the equity gap between Pell and non-Pell students.

Overall completion
73%+11.5pp vs peer
4-year graduation
47%
6-year graduation (bachelor’s)
73%
Full-time retention
88%

Pell equity

3.0pp gap
Pell recipients
63%
Non-Pell
60%

Pell recipients graduate at a higher rate than non-Pell students here — unusual and worth investigating.

Program outcomes

Federal Program Performance Data: how each program's graduate earnings and debt measure up under Financial Value Transparency and Gainful Employment.

Of 6 Title IV programs, 0 pass the federal Gainful Employment test and 2 fail. 4 have graduate earnings too small to publish, so they carry no pass/fail verdict.

Total programs
6
Passing
0
0.0% of portfolio
Failing (GE)
2
33.3% of portfolio
Fail rate
33.3%
+32.7pp vs 0.6% national

Pass / fail distribution

6programs
  • Passing0 · 0.0%
  • No Data4 · 66.7%
  • Failing2 · 33.3%

Severity spectrum

Critical
1
Severe
1
Recoverable
0
At Risk
0
Watch
0
Safe
0
No data
4

Tiers band programs by how far graduate earnings sit above or below the benchmark, from Critical (below −15%) through Safe (above +25%). No data means earnings were privacy-suppressed.

Earnings premium gap

Graduate earnings versus the federal benchmark, worst gaps first.

2
Music
Bachelor Degree · Visual And Performing Arts
-22.5%
$26,985 vs $34,808
Music
Master's Degree · Visual And Performing Arts
-5.7%
$45,532 vs $48,304

Debt vs earnings

Median completer debt against median graduate earnings, highest burden first.

2
Music
Bachelor Degree · Visual And Performing Arts
100%
$26,902 debt · $26,985 earn
Music
Master's Degree · Visual And Performing Arts
90%
$41,000 debt · $45,532 earn

Accreditation status & history

Who accredits the institution, current standing, and any past actions.

AccreditedInstitutional accreditor

New England Commission of Higher Education

Accredited since 1951Next review Jun 2029
AccreditedInstitutional accreditor

National Association of Schools of Music, Commission on Accreditation

Accredited since 1928

Programmatic accreditations · 1

Action history · 3

  1. Apr 2019Renewal of Accreditation
    New England Commission of Higher Education
  2. Aug 2014Change in Agency recognition
    National Association of Schools of Music, Commission on Accreditation · Music (MUS) - Institutions and units within institutions offering degree-granting and/or non-degree-granting programs
  3. Mar 2010Renewal of Accreditation
    New England Commission of Higher Education

Source: U.S. Dept. of Education

Tuition & cost

What families actually pay, broken down by family income.

Net price by family income

Aid exceeds costFamily pays
$0–30k$26,175
$30–48k
$48–75k$33,525
$75–110k$46,237
$110k+$49,187

Negative values mean aid exceeds the published cost of attendance for that income band.

Avg net price (private)
$42,556
+$1,198vs peer median $41,358
Federal loans
25.5%
In-state tuition
$58,550
Out-of-state
$58,550

Federal aid volume & trends

Pell grants and federal Direct Loan volume disbursed to students, and how they've trended.

In AY 2024–25, 49 students received $287K in Pell grants, alongside $6.3M in federal Direct Loans.

Pell recipients
49
AY 2024–25
Pell disbursed
$287K
$287,140 total
Direct Loans
$6.3M
390 loan awards

Pell recipients · 5-year trend

0k
20
0k
21
0k
22
0k
23
0k
24

Loan volume by type · AY 2024–25

Subsidized$327K
77 loan awards
Unsubsidized · UG$350K
96 loan awards
Unsubsidized · Grad$1.7M
92 loan awards
Parent PLUS$2.2M
62 loan awards
Grad PLUS$1.7M
63 loan awards

Loan awards count each loan type a student holds, not unique borrowers; one student may carry several (e.g. subsidized and unsubsidized), so the per-type figures are the reliable detail.

Source: U.S. Dept. of Education

Student loan default rate

The share of student borrowers who default on federal loans within three years, against the national benchmark.

Of 130 borrowers who entered repayment, 1 (0.7%) defaulted within three years below the 2.3% national rate.

Default rate
0.7%
-1.6pp vs 2.3% national
Borrowers in repayment
130
Defaulted
1
Measurement window
3 years
Federal CDR standard

Default rate vs national, by cohort

2016
0.7%
2017
3.9%
2018
1.6%
2019
0.7%
2020*
0.0%
This institutionNational rate

* Cohorts 2020 and later read near 0% because the federal COVID-19 payment pause (CARES Act) suspended defaults nationwide. These years reflect a national policy, not institutional performance; the 2019 cohort is the last measured under normal repayment.

Source: U.S. Dept. of Education

Academic programs at Necmusic

Top program areas ranked by completions.

Distinct CIP programs13
UndergraduateOffered
GraduateOffered

Top program families by completions

230 total completions
01Visual/Performing Arts
230100.0%

Enrollment trends & demographics

Fall headcount, 12-month unduplicated enrollment, and student body composition.

Fall total
853
12-mo unduplicated
826
Undergraduate
402
Graduate
424

Gender split

Men
55%451
Women
45%375

Race / ethnicity composition

Non-resident
40.7%
White
35.6%
Asian
10.8%
Two or more
8.9%
Black
1.9%
Hispanic
1.6%
Unknown
0.5%

Campus safety & crime statistics

Reported on-campus crimes over the last three years, including violence and hate crimes.

Criminal offenses · per 1,000 students
6.28
5 offenses · 796 students

3-year trend

5.712 yrs ago3.631 yr ago6.28Latest
Offenses · 3-yr
12
Last three years
VAWA · 3-yr
2
DV, dating, stalking
Hate crimes · 3-yr
1
Res-hall fires · 3-yr
0

Criminal offenses by type

Burglary
3
Rape
1
Fondling
1

By location

5total
  • On campus5

Includes 2 in residence halls (a subset of on-campus, not added to the total).

VAWA offenses

0
Domestic violence
0
Dating violence
1
Stalking
1 total under the Violence Against Women Act.

Hate crimes by bias

  • Race1

Arrests vs disciplinary referrals

CategoryArrestsReferrals
Weapons00
Drugs00
Liquor02

Residence-hall fires

No residence-hall fires reported.

Data quality: 2 reports were later determined unfounded across the reporting period and are excluded from the totals above.

Source: U.S. Dept. of Education

Student-faculty ratio

Student-to-faculty ratio and instructional staff counts.

Student-to-faculty
5.0:1
Instructional staff (full-time equivalent)
116

Necmusic vs Peer comparison

The peer institutions Necmusic selected for federal comparison reporting.

GraduationRetentionSelectivityEnrollmentAffordabilityYield
This institutionPeer median

A larger shape on any axis means this institution outperforms its peers on that dimension. For acceptance rate and net price, lower raw values are inverted so "more selective" and "more affordable" appear larger.

Carnegie
SubjectThe New England Conservatory of Music
73%853$42,556
Boston Architectural College
32%853$37,891
Longy School of Music of Bard College
84.4%317$43,291
Maine College of Art & Design
52%76.1%475$36,443
Maine Media College
42
New York School of Interior Design
71%62.9%573$41,358
Peer group median62%76.1%524$41,358

Frequently asked questions about The New England Conservatory of Music

Quick answers to the questions most often asked about Necmusic.

What is the graduation rate at The New England Conservatory of Music?

The New England Conservatory of Music reports a 6-year graduation rate of 73% per the latest IPEDS.

How many students attend The New England Conservatory of Music?

The New England Conservatory of Music reports a total enrollment of 853 students per the latest IPEDS.

What is the average net price at The New England Conservatory of Music?

The average net price at The New England Conservatory of Music is $42,556 per the latest College Scorecard. Net price is the published cost of attendance minus grant aid.

What is the yield rate at The New England Conservatory of Music?

The New England Conservatory of Music's yield rate is 29.5%, the share of admitted students who enrolled, per the latest IPEDS.

Where is The New England Conservatory of Music located?

The New England Conservatory of Music is located in Boston, Massachusetts 02115-5018.

Have a question this page can’t answer?

Ask Clema anything about The New England Conservatory of Music and its peers — plain language in, cited answers out, in minutes instead of days.

Free for teams up to 3 · No credit card