Program ranking · CIP 50.05 bachelor's · College Scorecard · Mar-Jul 2026 retrievals

Best Colleges for Theatre

Using U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard field-of-study data retrieved March-July 2026, these colleges rank highest on median earnings for Theatre (CIP 50.05) bachelor's completers. Rankings use earnings only - not prestige, selectivity, or editorial judgment - and require at least 25 completers so tiny suppressed cohorts do not dominate the list.

Compiled by PlainCollege , College outcomes data analysis

$64,880
Highest theatre earnings: 100
Colleges ranked: $37,748
#100 cutoff

The list in one line

Every college on this list reports at least $37,748 median earnings for Theatre bachelor's (CIP 50.05) completers. University of Notre Dame leads at $64,880.

According to the U.S. Department of Education's College Scorecard.

$64,880
#1 - University of Notre: $37,748
#100 - the cutoff to make this list: 25+
completers required per school: 848
US schools offering this CIP

Earnings are field-of-study medians for federally aided completers who were working and not enrolled; see methodology for horizon and lag details.

University of Notre Dame

$64,880
University of California…

$55,555
University of Cincinnati…

$54,000
Chapman University

$51,611
Western Connecticut Stat…

$50,955
University of Utah

$49,802
University of Illinois U…

$49,323
Northwestern University

$49,316
Loyola Marymount Univers…

$49,135
The University of Texas at

$48,781
University of North Caro…

$48,664
Texas State University

$48,502
California State Univers…

$47,676
University of Oklahoma-N…

$47,587
West Texas A & M

$47,175

What this shows Theatre medians mix performance, production, and teaching roles - debt still matters when arts-market pay varies sharply by metro.

The full top 100

#	School Name	State	Median Earnings	Median Debt	Completers
1	University of Notre Dame	IN	$64,880	$19,000	68
2	University of California-Berkeley	CA	$55,555	$15,012	28
3	University of Cincinnati-Main Campus	OH	$54,000	$25,706	62
4	Chapman University	CA	$51,611	$22,500	94
5	Western Connecticut State University	CT	$50,955	$25,000	46
6	University of Utah	UT	$49,802	$19,566	38
7	University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign	IL	$49,323	$20,500	37
8	Northwestern University	IL	$49,316	$17,000	90
9	Loyola Marymount University	CA	$49,135	$20,000	134
10	The University of Texas at Austin	TX	$48,781	$25,711	72
11	University of North Carolina School of the Arts	NC	$48,664	$23,500	86
12	Texas State University	TX	$48,502	$19,500	149
13	California State University-Sacramento	CA	$47,676	$16,396	27
14	University of Oklahoma-Norman Campus	OK	$47,587	$20,044	48
15	West Texas A & M University	TX	$47,175	$19,250	28
16	Ithaca College	NY	$46,563	$26,000	65
17	Fordham University	NY	$46,317	$26,826	32
18	University of Northern Colorado	CO	$46,089	$24,000	68
19	University of Michigan-Ann Arbor	MI	$45,888	$20,379	61
20	Baylor University	TX	$45,706	$24,130	29
21	University at Buffalo	NY	$45,677	$22,500	31
22	University of South Florida	FL	$45,671	$22,342	25
23	George Mason University	VA	$45,656	$27,000	33
24	Nebraska Wesleyan University	NE	$45,420	$27,000	25
25	James Madison University	VA	$45,225	$19,000	63
26	Appalachian State University	NC	$44,986	$23,750	25
27	Pennsylvania State University-Main Campus	PA	$44,913	$27,000	34
28	Full Sail University	FL	$44,878	$20,500	51
29	San Francisco State University	CA	$44,848	$17,940	30
30	Emerson College	MA	$44,760	$25,000	123
31	Western Michigan University	MI	$44,694	$26,731	37
32	University of Arizona	AZ	$44,471	$23,665	38
33	Hofstra University	NY	$44,388	$26,000	32
34	Florida State University	FL	$44,115	$19,500	55
35	University of California-Santa Barbara	CA	$44,106	$16,667	31
36	DePaul University	IL	$44,095	$26,348	70
37	Syracuse University	NY	$44,045	$27,000	61
38	Virginia Commonwealth University	VA	$43,957	$20,500	51
39	Long Island University	NY	$43,904	$26,000	36
40	California State University-Northridge	CA	$43,240	$15,201	53
41	Ball State University	IN	$43,082	$24,340	74
42	University of Minnesota-Twin Cities	MN	$43,055	$19,778	51
43	University of Central Florida	FL	$42,954	$19,500	94
44	Michigan State University	MI	$42,820	$22,185	31
45	Rutgers University-New Brunswick	NJ	$42,712	$21,000	38
46	DeSales University	PA	$42,571	$27,000	32
47	California State University-Fullerton	CA	$42,455	$15,000	93
48	University of North Texas	TX	$42,362	$23,295	56
49	New York University	NY	$42,348	$21,411	416
50	University of Houston	TX	$42,301	-	25
51	Loyola University Chicago	IL	$42,195	$21,500	28
52	Muhlenberg College	PA	$42,092	$27,000	72
53	CUNY New York City College of Technology	NY	$41,880	-	25
54	San Diego State University	CA	$41,812	$15,000	42
55	Arizona State University Campus Immersion	AZ	$41,745	$18,867	59
56	University of Maryland-College Park	MD	$41,742	$20,500	30
57	University of Florida	FL	$41,707	$13,750	66
58	Oklahoma City University	OK	$41,540	$26,863	42
59	Stephen F Austin State University	TX	$41,450	$24,114	41
60	University of California-San Diego	CA	$41,389	$14,458	47
61	Indiana University-Bloomington	IN	$41,328	$21,988	35
62	CUNY Brooklyn College	NY	$41,233	-	25
63	California Institute of the Arts	CA	$41,192	$27,000	31
64	University of North Carolina at Greensboro	NC	$41,108	$24,000	66
65	Winthrop University	SC	$40,948	$27,000	34
66	West Virginia University	WV	$40,942	$19,500	43
67	University of California-Irvine	CA	$40,773	$16,201	86
68	Western Washington University	WA	$40,616	$19,500	42
69	Shenandoah University	VA	$40,457	$27,000	27
70	University of Southern California	CA	$40,415	$12,000	135
71	Utah Valley University	UT	$40,289	$15,500	31
72	Illinois State University	IL	$40,258	$21,500	75
73	Vassar College	NY	$40,165	$20,000	25
74	Point Park University	PA	$40,121	$27,000	85
75	Marymount Manhattan College	NY	$40,086	$27,000	99
76	Carnegie Mellon University	PA	$40,073	$25,000	53
77	University of Nevada-Las Vegas	NV	$40,033	$19,663	47
78	Columbia College Chicago	IL	$39,986	$25,500	144
79	SUNY at Purchase College	NY	$39,974	$25,000	149
80	SUNY at Fredonia	NY	$39,770	$27,000	47
81	Towson University	MD	$39,753	$17,500	41
82	Wagner College	NY	$39,664	$26,949	43
83	Webster University	MO	$39,604	$26,000	53
84	State University of New York at New Paltz	NY	$39,521	$19,875	42
85	University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee	WI	$39,452	$27,000	29
86	Boston University	MA	$39,322	$26,849	59
87	The New School	NY	$39,248	$23,000	80
88	Montclair State University	NJ	$39,248	$21,500	61
89	University of California-Los Angeles	CA	$39,023	$16,825	71
90	University of Central Oklahoma	OK	$38,914	-	28
91	The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley	TX	$38,865	$11,002	29
92	Millikin University	IL	$38,666	$27,000	63
93	Rowan University	NJ	$38,597	$21,500	28
94	Southern Oregon University	OR	$38,487	$21,833	47
95	University of Memphis	TN	$38,440	$19,000	28
96	Kennesaw State University	GA	$38,348	$24,980	42
97	Louisiana State University and Agricultural & Mechanical College	LA	$38,317	$21,000	39
98	California State University-Long Beach	CA	$38,270	$15,000	82
99	Missouri State University-Springfield	MO	$37,959	$22,500	37
100	Roosevelt University	IL	$37,748	$26,000	40

About This Ranking

Schools are ranked by College Scorecard field-of-study median earnings for Theatre (CIP 50.05) bachelor's completers. Only operating schools with at least 25 completers and a published median are included. Ties break toward larger completer cohorts. For the full program profile - including every reporting school and national distribution - see Theatre (bachelor's). Methodology lives on our methodology page.

Caveats and limitations

"Best" here means highest reported median earnings for the stated CIP scope - not teaching quality, licensure pass rates, clinical placement strength, or fit for any one student. This list covers Drama/Theatre Arts and Stagecraft (CIP 50.05) bachelor's programs - music (CIP 50.09) and film/video production paths are ranked separately when demand warrants.

Figures cover federally aided completers only, use Treasury-linked earnings, and describe a lagged cohort. Regional pay scales and graduate-school paths both move the median without proving a causal school effect.

This ranking is for informational purposes only and does not constitute academic or career advice. Earnings do not predict any individual graduate's outcome.

Every figure on PlainCollege is rendered directly from the U.S. Department of Education's College Scorecard data, no number is typed in by an editor. Rankings are computed directly from College Scorecard field-of-study data, no figure is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error on this page. Review the public data changelog. Data current as of Mar-Jul 2026 retrievals.