VanderCook College of Music

Admission requirements

Test-optional — scores considered if submitted

Source: IPEDS Admissions survey (2022) via Urban Institute. Covers formal factors only — it does not reflect essays, extracurriculars, or other holistic criteria.

Outcomes & value

Median earnings (10 yr)

$47,863

Value (earnings ÷ net price)

2.4×

Median debt at graduation

$27,000

Graduation rate

67%

First-year retention

88%

Reducing loan balance (3 yr)

63%

Pell (lower-income) share

47%

Endowment / student

$5,405

Earnings = median of students working ~10 years after entry; debt = median of graduates. Value divides 10-yr earnings by one year’s net price — read it as earnings per dollar of annual cost, not a full lifetime ROI; it favors lower-cost schools. Source: U.S. Dept. of Education College Scorecard. Figures lag ~2 years and reflect all students, not your intended major.

Financial health

U.S. Dept. of Education Financial Responsibility Composite Score (FY2022-23). Scale −1.0 to 3.0; ≥1.5 meets the standard. Reported for private nonprofit & for-profit institutions only — public universities are state-backed and not scored, so this is a stability signal, not a ranking.

Top-earning majors

Median earnings by field of study (highest credential), ~2 years after completion.

• Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Subject Areas$36,848

Source: U.S. Dept. of Education College Scorecard (field-of-study earnings). Figures cover graduates who received federal aid and lag ~2 years; not all programs report data.

Campus safety

On-campus violent crimes (2024)

0

Per 1,000 students

0.00

On-campus criminal offenses classed as violent (murder/non-negligent manslaughter, rape, robbery, aggravated assault) for the most recent reported year. Source: U.S. Dept. of Education Campus Safety and Security (Clery Act). Counts reflect what’s reported to the school, and urban campuses often report more partly due to non-student incidents nearby — read alongside campus size and setting, not as a standalone safety verdict.

Climate

Pleasant days / yr

88

Summer high

79°F

Winter low

23°F

Annual rain

47.2"

Annual snow

30.1"

Natural-hazard risk

Very High

Pleasant days counts days per year with a mean temperature of 55–75°F, a high at or below 90°F, a low at or above 45°F, and little precipitation — a transparent comfort measure, not a weighting we invented. Computed from Open-Meteo ERA5 daily history (2019–2023). Natural-hazard risk is the county’s composite rating from the FEMA National Risk Index.