Best Dancer programs in Texas, ranked by enrollment
Perform dances.
22 schools in Texas run programs that feed this job, graduating 327 people a year. The job pays a median of $35.31/hr in Texas across about 190 jobs (BLS OEWS May 2025).
Fields of study in Texas that lead to this job
Grouped at the 4-digit CIP level. Numbers are graduates per year in this state.
4 programs in Texas that lead to this job
Ranked by graduates per year in Texas (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 Texas page.
| # | Program | Graduates / yr | Share of pipeline | Schools | Grad earnings (1 yr) | Median debt |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Dance, Generalmain feeder CIP 50.0301In Texas → | 233 | 71.3% | 19 | $21,877 | $25,000 |
| 2 | CIP 50.0509In Texas → | 45 | 13.8% | 7 | $20,667 | $24,994 |
| 3 | CIP 50.0512In Texas → | 42 | 12.8% | 2 | $20,667 | $24,994 |
| 4 | Balletmain feeder CIP 50.0302In Texas → | 7 | 2.1% | 1 | $21,877 | $25,000 |
Top 22 schools in Texas
Ranked by graduates per year into this job. Graduate earnings are reported for 7 of the 22 schools in this state.
| # | School | Graduates / yr | Top feeder program | Grad earnings (1 yr) | Grad rate | Net price | Acceptance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | The University of Texas at Austin Austin, TX Public · 2 feeder programs | 57 | Theatre and Dance | $33,261 | 89% | — | 27% |
| 2 | Texas State University San Marcos, TX Public · 2 feeder programs | 47 | Dance, General | $38,967 | 55% | — | 89% |
| 3 | Sam Houston State University Huntsville, TX Public · 2 feeder programs | 38 | Dance, General | $19,202 | 55% | — | 90% |
| 4 | Texas Christian University Fort Worth, TX Private not-for-profit · 3 feeder programs | 28 | Musical Theatre | $21,221 | 86% | $25,823 | 44% |
| 5 | Texas Woman's University Denton, TX Public · 1 feeder programs | 28 | Dance, General | $29,634 | 49% | — | 96% |
| 6 | Texas Tech University Lubbock, TX Public · 1 feeder programs | 19 | Dance, General | — | 69% | — | 73% |
| 7 | Southern Methodist University Dallas, TX Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 18 | Dance, General | — | 84% | $33,246 | 63% |
| 8 | University of North Texas Denton, TX Public · 1 feeder programs | 18 | Dance, General | $25,034 | 61% | — | 72% |
| 9 | West Texas A & M University Canyon, TX Public · 2 feeder programs | 13 | Dance, General | — | 55% | — | 99% |
| 10 | Stephen F Austin State University Nacogdoches, TX Public · 1 feeder programs | 11 | Dance, General | $33,340 | 53% | — | 94% |
| 11 | Austin Community College District Austin, TX Public · 2 feeder programs | 10 | Dance, General | — | 20% | — | — |
| 12 | Tyler Junior College Tyler, TX Public · 1 feeder programs | 8 | Dance, General | — | 27% | — | — |
| 13 | The University of Texas at El Paso El Paso, TX Public · 1 feeder programs | 7 | Dance, General | — | 50% | — | 100% |
| 14 | The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley Edinburg, TX Public · 1 feeder programs | 7 | Dance, General | — | 51% | — | 94% |
| 15 | University of Houston Houston, TX Public · 1 feeder programs | 4 | Dance, General | — | 65% | — | 74% |
| 16 | El Paso Community College El Paso, TX Public · 1 feeder programs | 3 | Dance, General | — | 24% | — | — |
| 17 | Lamar University Beaumont, TX Public · 1 feeder programs | 3 | Theatre and Dance | — | 37% | — | 86% |
| 18 | University of St Thomas Houston, TX Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 3 | Dance, General | — | 69% | $19,546 | 90% |
| 19 | Houston City College Houston, TX Public · 1 feeder programs | 2 | Dance, General | — | 17% | — | — |
| 20 | East Texas Baptist University Marshall, TX Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 1 | Musical Theatre | — | 47% | $23,359 | 58% |
| 21 | South Texas College McAllen, TX Public · 1 feeder programs | 1 | Dance, General | — | 27% | — | — |
| 22 | Temple College Temple, TX Public · 1 feeder programs | 1 | Musical Theatre | — | 32% | — | — |
All 22 schools in Texas
Every school in Texas 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| The University of Texas at Austin | Austin | Public | 57 | 2 |
| Texas State University | San Marcos | Public | 47 | 2 |
| Sam Houston State University | Huntsville | Public | 38 | 2 |
| Texas Christian University | Fort Worth | Private not-for-profit | 28 | 3 |
| Texas Woman's University | Denton | Public | 28 | 1 |
| Texas Tech University | Lubbock | Public | 19 | 1 |
| Southern Methodist University | Dallas | Private not-for-profit | 18 | 1 |
| University of North Texas | Denton | Public | 18 | 1 |
| West Texas A & M University | Canyon | Public | 13 | 2 |
| Stephen F Austin State University | Nacogdoches | Public | 11 | 1 |
| Austin Community College District | Austin | Public | 10 | 2 |
| Tyler Junior College | Tyler | Public | 8 | 1 |
| The University of Texas at El Paso | El Paso | Public | 7 | 1 |
| The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley | Edinburg | Public | 7 | 1 |
| University of Houston | Houston | Public | 4 | 1 |
What dancers earn in Texas
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 Texas, 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 Dancers page.
How to become a Dancer
Job zone 3 of 5 · SVP 6.0 to < 7.0- Typical entry education
- No formal educational credential
- On-the-job training
- Long-term on-the-job training
Most occupations in this zone require training in vocational schools, related on-the-job experience, or an associate's degree.
Previous work-related skill, knowledge, or experience is required for these occupations. For example, an electrician must have completed three or four years of apprenticeship or several years of vocational training, and often must have passed a licensing exam, in order to perform the job.
Employees in these occupations usually need one or two years of training involving both on-the-job experience and informal training with experienced workers. A recognized apprenticeship program may be associated with these occupations.
Top skills
The same job in other states
Where else this occupation employs the most people, and what it pays there.
Related careers in Texas
Every major mapped to this job
The official federal mapping behind the rankings above.
All 5 majors mapped to Dancers5 of them graduated someone in the latest IPEDS year. NCES CIP 2020 → SOC 2018 crosswalk.+
- 50.0301Dance, General
- 50.0302Ballet
- 50.0399Dance, Other
- 50.0509Musical Theatre
- 50.0512Theatre and Dance
Common questions
Answers for people weighing dancers programs in Texas.
What degree do you need to become a Dancer?+
No formal educational credential is the typical entry-level education BLS reports for this occupation. The most common program people actually graduate from is Dance, General, which awarded 233 degrees in Texas in 2024-25, 71.3% of everyone graduating from a program that feeds this career.
Which college majors lead to becoming a Dancer?+
The NCES CIP-to-SOC crosswalk maps 4 programs to this occupation. The largest are Dance, Drama/Theatre Arts and Stagecraft. Together they graduate about 327 people a year in Texas.
How much do dancers earn in Texas?+
The median is $35.31 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 dancers growing?+
BLS projects a +4.5% change in employment between 2024 and 2034, about as fast as average, with roughly 1,800 openings a year nationally once retirements and job changes are counted.
How many schools offer programs for this career in Texas?+
22 institutions in Texas reported graduates from at least one of the 4 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 dancers work under?+
Employers advertise this work under many names. O*NET records Dancer, Ballet Dancer, Company Dancer, Soloist Dancer among the most commonly reported, all mapping to SOC 27-2031.
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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