Top performing arts schools | TopUniversities
32,555
Views

Top performing arts schools

User Image

Chloe Lane

Updated Sep 24, 2025
32,555 Views

Save

Share

 
Performing arts students at a music recital
The most recent QS World University Rankings by Subject includes a ranking of the world’s top performing arts schools. The ranking features a mixture of comprehensive universities and dedicated institutions in this field.

The subject rankings are compiled using four indicators; academic reputation, employer reputation, research citations per paper and the H-index (a way of measuring the productivity and impact of the published work of a scientist or scholar). You can find out more about the methodology used here.

Read on to discover the top universities for performing arts in each world region, starting with a look at the top 10

Global Rank
University
Location
1

Global Rank

Royal College of Music
Royal College of MusicLondon, United Kingdom
London, United Kingdom
2

Global Rank

Royal Academy of Music
Royal Academy of MusicLondon, United Kingdom
London, United Kingdom
=4

Global Rank

London, United Kingdom
=4

Global Rank

Vienna, Austria
6

Global Rank

Glasgow, United Kingdom
7

Global Rank

New York University (NYU)
New York University (NYU)New York City, United States
New York City, United States
8

Global Rank

The Juilliard School
The Juilliard SchoolNew York City, United States
New York City, United States
9

Global Rank

Frederiksberg, Denmark
10

Global Rank

Royal Northern College of Music (RNCM)
Royal Northern College of Music (RNCM)Manchester, United Kingdom
Manchester, United Kingdom

Top performing arts schools in the US and Canada

The US is home to an impressive number of performing arts schools featured in this year’s ranking, including Julliard School, which earns a top score for its employer reputation.

Other mentionable universities in the US include fellow Ivy League Group universities; Yale University and Stanford University.

Heading north to Canada, which is home to a few top performing arts schools, with McGill University and the University of Toronto among the top performers.

Top performing arts schools in Europe

Europe contains many of the top performing arts schools, including the University of Music and Performing Arts Vienna which has a very impressive reputation among academics. Another top performing arts school in Austria featuring in this year’s ranking is the University Mozarteum Salzburg.

Similarly to the US, the UK claims many of the top performing arts schools, including the Guildhall School of Music and Drama, the University of Cambridge, Royal Holloway University of London and the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland.

France has universities featuring in the ranking this year, including Sorbonne UniversityUniversité Sorbonne Nouvelle Paris 3 and Conservatoire national supérieur de musique et de danse de Paris (CNSMDP).

Germany also performs well with universities featuring in the rankings, including Hochschule für Musik und Theater Hamburg and Hochschule für Musik Hanns Eisler Berlin.

In the Nordic countries, Finland is represented by Sibelius Academy and Sweden by the Royal College of Music in Stockholm. Denmark has the Royal Academy of Music, Aarhus and The Royal Danish Academy of Music. Norway’s Norwegian Academy of Music also performs well.

Top performing arts schools in Asia

Over to Asia now, where Hong Kong (SAR) scores well with three performing arts schools featured in the ranking. Hong Kong’s top entrant is the Hong Kong Academy of Performing Arts, which rises more than 38 places this year to steal 13th place – making it the highest ranked performing arts school in Asia.

South Korea and Malaysia also both perform well, with top universities including Korea National University of Arts and Malaysia’s UCSI University and Universiti Malaya (UM).

Mainland China has the Central Academy of Drama, China, while the University of Tokyo is among the most notable universities in Japan.

Top performing arts schools in Australia and New Zealand

Australia boasts several top performing arts schools in the rankings this year, including the University of MelbourneMonash University and the University of Sydney. Other notable Australian universities include Australian National University and Griffith University.

New Zealand is represented by the University of Auckland, University of Otago and Victoria University of Wellington.

  • Angella Frost
  • Imen Chermiti

saved this article

  • Angella Frost
  • Imen Chermiti

+ 1 others saved this article