New York, NY · Private · 468 undergraduates · urban
The Juilliard School
Extremely selective
Juilliard treats admission as artistic selection first, then builds undergraduate life around intensive conservatory training inside Lincoln Center.
Institutional profile
Top tier Exceptional in academic standing, and strong in student experience.Admission is by audition into a single discipline; general-population earnings measures describe this school poorly.
- Admission
- Audition-led admission
- Price by income
- Varies across five income ranges
- Completion
- 86.7%
2,020 applicants in the reported year
Compare recent average annual costs by household income
$37,827 median earnings 10 years after enrollment
What sets Juilliard apart
Academic design
Undergraduates combine private studio instruction, ensembles, musicianship, theory, history, and liberal arts with frequent rehearsals and public performances.
Admission process
Music applicants follow instrument-specific requirements, often beginning with recorded prescreening before invited candidates advance to live auditions and additional evaluations.
Defining experience
Repeated public performance in Juilliard and Lincoln Center venues is a normal component of professional training.
Can I get in?
Audition-led admission
Music applicants follow instrument-specific requirements, often beginning with recorded prescreening before invited candidates advance to live auditions and additional evaluations.
Recent applicant pool
2,020About 9 in every 100 applicants were admitted.
Audition and portfolio
The audition or portfolio carries the file. The academic record qualifies the applicant; the performance decides the outcome.
In the season card
Where your GPA sits in the entering class
The full entering-class GPA distribution for Juilliard, in nine bands from 4.0 down, with your own record marked on it.
See where I landIn the season card
What Juilliard weighs when it reads a file
See how this college describes the role of grades, testing, essays, recommendations, activities, and demonstrated interest.
- Course rigor
- GPA
- Test scores
- Essay
- Recommendations
- Extracurriculars
- Demonstrated interest
What moves the application
The evidence that separates a strong file
Clear the academic baseline
Undergraduates combine private studio instruction, ensembles, musicianship, theory, history, and liberal arts with frequent rehearsals and public performances.
Complete the specialized assessment
Music applicants follow instrument-specific requirements, often beginning with recorded prescreening before invited candidates advance to live auditions and additional evaluations.
Plan the process early
Check requirements for your instrument early; prescreen repertoire, recording rules, audition dates, and memorization expectations vary substantially by department.
How to apply
Rounds, route, and required materials
Check requirements for your instrument early; prescreen repertoire, recording rules, audition dates, and memorization expectations vary substantially by department.
$35 application fee
Major and program admission
Some fields have their own entry path.
The college admit rate above covers the university as a whole. These requirements apply only to the named program.
Performing and visual artsAdmits separately
What this program asks for, and when it closes.
Can I afford it?
Compare annual cost by household income.
Start with the average net price for your income range, then set that estimate beside your other realistic options.
In the season card
Average annual cost by household income at Juilliard
Compare recent average net prices across five federal income ranges and estimate a 4-year cost for yours.
- $0–30k
- $30–48k
- $48–75k
- $75–110k
- $110k+
Is it worth it?
Completion, debt, and earnings
Read completion, borrowing, field mix, and earnings together. For specialized training, compare those signals with the professional path you intend to follow.
Degree completion across the reported entering cohort
First-year students who return for year two
And what that comes to against what they earn.
Reported 10 years after enrollment
Academic portfolio
Largest bachelor’s fields
How many students finish in each field, and median earnings four years after completing the program.
Music
Admits separately
Dance
Admits separately
Drama/Theatre Arts and Stagecraft
Admits separately
What is campus life like?
Juilliard beyond the classroom
Students study and perform inside Lincoln Center, with residence facilities placing undergraduates close to rehearsal rooms, studios, stages, and other performing artists.
The academic structure
Undergraduates combine private studio instruction, ensembles, musicianship, theory, history, and liberal arts with frequent rehearsals and public performances.
The campus rhythm
Students study and perform inside Lincoln Center, with residence facilities placing undergraduates close to rehearsal rooms, studios, stages, and other performing artists.
What changes the experience
Repeated public performance in Juilliard and Lincoln Center venues is a normal component of professional training.