The Juilliard School of Music in New York City is arguably the most famous and most prestigious of music colleges in the United States. Juilliard offers several Bachelor of Music degrees, including composition, harpsichord, jazz studies, guitar, orchestral instruments, piano, organ and voice. The school also has a Master of Music program where students can earn degrees in historical performance and orchestral conducting among others.
The Eastman School in Rochester, New York, is another prestigious music school that only accepts about 13 percent of its applicants. Many graduates of Eastman go on to careers in professional orchestras, bands, choirs, opera companies and college music departments.
The Oberlin Conservatory of Music in Ohio is the oldest music conservatory in the United States and confers bachelor's degrees in music history, performance, technology in music and related arts, and jazz studies.
The prestigious Jacobs School of Music at the University of Indiana is No. 4 on the list of top 10 music schools in the United States. Degree programs include a Bachelor of Music in areas such as composition, early music, performance and jazz studies, an Associate of Science degree in the recording arts and string instrument technology, Bachelor of Music Education, Bachelor of Science and Bachelor of Science in Music and an outside field, such as ballet.
Lawrence University in Wisconsin is a music school specifically for undergrads with a faculty of active performers, composers and scholars.
The New England Conservatory in Boston offers majors in woodwinds, string, percussion, brass, conducting and piano among many others.
Mannes College at the New School in New York City is a music conservatory that has both undergraduate and graduate programs. Four-year bachelor's degree programs include Bachelor of Music in areas of study such as voice, theory and classical guitar. Two-year graduate programs include a Master of Music program in areas such as choral conducting, orchestral conducting and vocal accompaniment for pianists.
Rice University's Shepard School of Music in Houston, Texas, is No. 8 on the list with graduates working in the Boston Symphony Orchestra, the New York Philharmonic, the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra and the Chicago and San Fransisco Symphonies.
The University of Michigan School of Music, Theater and Dance includes departments in performing arts technology, musical theater, musicology and theater and drama among others. The school also offers several youth programs concerning band, chamber singers, jazz improvisation and youth symphony orchestra.
Boston's Berklee College of Music rounds out the list with its extensive degree programs, including a five-year dual major program. Majors include music production and engineering, music education, performance, songwriting and professional music. Berklee also offers programs with "focused areas of study" such as Africana Studies, the American Roots Music Program and the Berklee Global Jazz Institute.