Best Music Director programs in North Carolina, ranked by enrollment
Conduct, direct, plan, and lead instrumental or vocal performances by musical artists or groups, such as orchestras, bands, choirs, and glee clubs; or create original works of.
24 schools in North Carolina run programs that feed this job, graduating 330 people a year. The job pays a median of $63,380 in North Carolina across about 200 jobs (BLS OEWS May 2025).
Fields of study in North Carolina that lead to this job
Grouped at the 4-digit CIP level. Numbers are graduates per year in this state.
11 programs in North Carolina that lead to this job
Ranked by graduates per year in North Carolina (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 North Carolina page.
| # | Program | Graduates / yr | Share of pipeline | Schools | Grad earnings (1 yr) | Median debt |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | CIP 50.0903In North Carolina → | 224 | 67.9% | 15 | $25,929 | $25,980 |
| 2 | CIP 50.0509In North Carolina → | 21 | 6.4% | 4 | $20,667 | $24,994 |
| 3 | CIP 50.1003In North Carolina → | 18 | 5.5% | 2 | $28,050 | $25,468 |
| 4 | CIP 50.0905In North Carolina → | 17 | 5.2% | 2 | $25,929 | $25,980 |
| 5 | CIP 50.0913In North Carolina → | 17 | 5.2% | 2 | $25,929 | $25,980 |
| 6 | CIP 50.0904In North Carolina → | 9 | 2.7% | 2 | $25,929 | $25,980 |
| 7 | Religious/Sacred Musicmain feeder CIP 39.0501In North Carolina → | 8 | 2.4% | 2 | $30,092 | $27,000 |
| 8 | CIP 50.0999In North Carolina → | 6 | 1.8% | 3 | $25,929 | $25,980 |
| 9 | Worship Ministrymain feeder CIP 39.0502In North Carolina → | 5 | 1.5% | 1 | $30,092 | $27,000 |
| 10 | CIP 50.0908In North Carolina → | 4 | 1.2% | 4 | $25,929 | $25,980 |
| 11 | CIP 50.0906In North Carolina → | 1 | 0.3% | 1 | $25,929 | $25,980 |
Top 24 schools in North Carolina
Ranked by graduates per year into this job. Graduate earnings are reported for 6 of the 24 schools in this state.
| # | School | Graduates / yr | Top feeder program | Grad earnings (1 yr) | Grad rate | Net price | Acceptance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | University of North Carolina at Greensboro Greensboro, NC Public · 5 feeder programs | 99 | Music Performance, General | $15,670 | 56% | — | 89% |
| 2 | University of North Carolina School of the Arts Winston Salem, NC Public · 2 feeder programs | 53 | Music Performance, General | — | 78% | — | 30% |
| 3 | Appalachian State University Boone, NC Public · 2 feeder programs | 39 | Music Performance, General | $23,304 | 75% | — | 90% |
| 4 | Western Carolina University Cullowhee, NC Public · 1 feeder programs | 26 | Music Performance, General | $26,135 | 60% | — | 82% |
| 5 | University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Chapel Hill, NC Public · 2 feeder programs | 22 | Musicology and Ethnomusicology | $32,880 | 91% | — | 15% |
| 6 | Elon University Elon, NC Private not-for-profit · 3 feeder programs | 20 | Musical Theatre | $24,345 | 84% | $33,688 | 66% |
| 7 | University of North Carolina Asheville Asheville, NC Public · 1 feeder programs | 15 | Music Technology | — | 54% | — | 92% |
| 8 | University of North Carolina at Charlotte Charlotte, NC Public · 1 feeder programs | 14 | Music Performance, General | $38,831 | 69% | — | 80% |
| 9 | Meredith College Raleigh, NC Private not-for-profit · 3 feeder programs | 9 | Music Performance, General | — | 70% | $19,552 | 74% |
| 10 | Lenoir - Rhyne University Hickory, NC Private not-for-profit · 2 feeder programs | 5 | Religious/Sacred Music | — | 48% | $23,920 | 85% |
| 11 | Manna University Fayetteville, NC Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 5 | Religious/Sacred Music | — | 80% | $20,171 | 53% |
| 12 | Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary Wake Forest, NC Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 5 | Worship Ministry | — | 58% | $6,608 | 75% |
| 13 | Salem College Winston-Salem, NC Private not-for-profit · 2 feeder programs | 3 | Music, Other | — | 57% | $19,415 | 77% |
| 14 | Catawba College Salisbury, NC Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 2 | Musical Theatre | — | 47% | $17,916 | 75% |
| 15 | High Point University High Point, NC Private not-for-profit · 2 feeder programs | 2 | Music, Other | — | 74% | $37,072 | 75% |
| 16 | Lees - McRae College Banner Elk, NC Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 2 | Musical Theatre | — | 42% | $23,349 | 77% |
| 17 | Wingate University Wingate, NC Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 2 | Music Performance, General | — | 46% | $21,585 | 91% |
| 18 | Campbell University Buies Creek, NC Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 1 | Music Theory and Composition | — | 61% | $23,331 | 87% |
| 19 | East Carolina University Greenville, NC Public · 1 feeder programs | 1 | Music Performance, General | — | 63% | — | 89% |
| 20 | Mars Hill University Mars Hill, NC Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 1 | Music Performance, General | — | 45% | $20,402 | 68% |
| 21 | Methodist University Fayetteville, NC Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 1 | Music Performance, General | — | 44% | $24,551 | 75% |
| 22 | Montreat College Montreat, NC Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 1 | Music Management | — | 50% | $25,763 | 69% |
| 23 | University of Mount Olive Mount Olive, NC Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 1 | Voice and Opera | — | 52% | $16,473 | 76% |
| 24 | Wake Forest University Winston-Salem, NC Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 1 | Music Performance, General | — | 89% | $20,914 | 22% |
All 24 schools in North Carolina
Every school in North Carolina 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| University of North Carolina at Greensboro | Greensboro | Public | 99 | 5 |
| University of North Carolina School of the Arts | Winston Salem | Public | 53 | 2 |
| Appalachian State University | Boone | Public | 39 | 2 |
| Western Carolina University | Cullowhee | Public | 26 | 1 |
| University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill | Chapel Hill | Public | 22 | 2 |
| Elon University | Elon | Private not-for-profit | 20 | 3 |
| University of North Carolina Asheville | Asheville | Public | 15 | 1 |
| University of North Carolina at Charlotte | Charlotte | Public | 14 | 1 |
| Meredith College | Raleigh | Private not-for-profit | 9 | 3 |
| Lenoir - Rhyne University | Hickory | Private not-for-profit | 5 | 2 |
| Manna University | Fayetteville | Private not-for-profit | 5 | 1 |
| Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary | Wake Forest | Private not-for-profit | 5 | 1 |
| Salem College | Winston-Salem | Private not-for-profit | 3 | 2 |
| Catawba College | Salisbury | Private not-for-profit | 2 | 1 |
| High Point University | High Point | Private not-for-profit | 2 | 2 |
What music directors and composers earn in North Carolina
What people already working in this job earn (BLS OEWS May 2025). Not graduate earnings.
U.S. median $73,710. North Carolina pays below the national figure.
1.00× means the state has its expected share of these jobs.
Metro areas in North Carolina
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 Music Directors and Composers page.
How to become a Music Director
Job zone 4 of 5 · SVP 7.0 to < 8.0- Typical entry education
- Bachelor's degree
- Work experience needed
- Less than 5 years
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 North Carolina
Every major mapped to this job
The official federal mapping behind the rankings above.
All 12 majors mapped to Music Directors and Composers12 of them graduated someone in the latest IPEDS year. NCES CIP 2020 → SOC 2018 crosswalk.+
- 39.0501Religious/Sacred Music
- 39.0502Worship Ministry
- 50.0509Musical Theatre
- 50.0903Music Performance, General
- 50.0904Music Theory and Composition
- 50.0905Musicology and Ethnomusicology
- 50.0906Conducting
- 50.0908Voice and Opera
- 50.0913Music Technology
- 50.0917Sound Arts
- 50.0999Music, Other
- 50.1003Music Management
Common questions
Answers for people weighing music directors and composers programs in North Carolina.
What degree do you need to become a Music Director?+
Bachelor's degree is the typical entry-level education BLS reports for this occupation. The most common program people actually graduate from is Music Performance, General, which awarded 224 degrees in North Carolina in 2024-25, 67.9% of everyone graduating from a program that feeds this career.
Which college majors lead to becoming a Music Director?+
The NCES CIP-to-SOC crosswalk maps 11 programs to this occupation. The largest are Music, Drama/Theatre Arts and Stagecraft, Arts, Religious Music and Worship. Together they graduate about 330 people a year in North Carolina.
How much do music directors and composers earn in North Carolina?+
The median is $63,380 a year (BLS OEWS May 2025). That is 14.0% below the U.S. median of $73,710. 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 music directors and composers growing?+
BLS projects a -0.3% change in employment between 2024 and 2034, little or no change, with roughly 4,300 openings a year nationally once retirements and job changes are counted.
How many schools offer programs for this career in North Carolina?+
24 institutions in North Carolina reported graduates from at least one of the 11 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 music directors and composers work under?+
Employers advertise this work under many names. O*NET records Conductor, Choir Director, Music Composer, Music Director among the most commonly reported, all mapping to SOC 27-2041.
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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