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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.

$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.

Top 15 theatre programs by median completer earnings

Theatre bachelor's (CIP 50.05) · higher is higher early-career pay

median earnings

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

Source U.S. Department of Education, College Scorecard Field of Study As of Mar-Jul 2026 retrievals

The full top 100

# School Name StateMedian EarningsMedian DebtCompleters
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.