AP Music Theory credit: what score you need
The minimum qualifying score, credit hours and course equivalent at 1,644 colleges that publish an AP Music Theory policy.
Quick answer
1,279 of 1,644 colleges (78%) award credit for AP Music Theory at a score of 3. 320 require a 4 and 45 require a 5. The most commonly awarded amount is 3 credit hours. Each row below links to the college’s own published policy page. Data captured July 30, 2026.
Placement is not credit
A further 11 colleges publish an AP Music Theory policy that grants placement only — you may skip the introductory course, but you earn no credit hours toward the degree and the cost of those hours does not go away. Those colleges are deliberately excluded from the counts above.
Colleges that award credit for AP Music Theory
Showing 120 of 1,644 colleges, lowest qualifying score first. Narrow by state below for the full list in your state.
| College | Min score | Credits | Counts as | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 Southern New Hampshire University Manchester, New Hampshire | 3 | 3 | MUS-211 | Policy |
 Grand Canyon University Phoenix, Arizona | 3 | 6 | — | Policy |
 Texas A & M University-College Station College Station, Texas | 3 | 3 | MUSC 204 and 208 | Policy |
 University of Central Florida Orlando, Florida | 3 | — | MUT 1001 | Policy |
 Ivy Tech Community College Indianapolis, Indiana | 3 | 3 | HUMA 117 | Policy |
 Liberty University Lynchburg, Virginia | 3 | 3 | MUSC 1XX Music Elective-Lower Level | Policy |
 University of Maryland Global Campus Adelphi, Maryland | 3 | 3 | — | Policy |
 Ohio State University-Main Campus Columbus, Ohio | 3 | 2 | Music 1121 | Policy |
 The University of Texas at Austin Austin, Texas | 3 | 3 | MUS 306M | Policy |
 Tarrant County College District Fort Worth, Texas | 3 | 3 | MUSI 1306 | Policy |
 Purdue University-Main Campus West Lafayette, Indiana | 3 | — | MUSIC 1XXXX | Policy |
 Kennesaw State University Kennesaw, Georgia | 3 | — | MUSI 1T00 | Policy |
 Florida International University Miami, Florida | 3 | 3 | MUT 1001 | Policy |
 Houston Community College Houston, Texas | 3 | 4 | MUSI 1211-1212 | Policy |
 University of Houston Houston, Texas | 3 | 6 | MUSI 1301, 1303 | Policy |
 California State University-Fullerton Fullerton, California | 3 | 6 | MUS 101 (3), Electives (3) | Policy |
 Indiana University-Bloomington Bloomington, Indiana | 3 | 3 | MUS-Z 111 | Policy |
 University of South Florida Tampa, Florida | 3 | 3 | MUT 1001 | Policy |
 University of Wisconsin-Madison Madison, Wisconsin | 3 | 3 | MUSIC 151 | Policy |
 Valencia College Orlando, Florida | 3 | 3 | MUT 1111 (Music Theory 1) | Policy |
 Miami Dade College Miami, Florida | 3 | 7 | MUT 1001, MUT 1111 & MUT 1241 | Policy |
 University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign Champaign, Illinois | 3 | 2 | Music 1-- | Policy |
 California State University-Long Beach Long Beach, California | 3 | 6 | MUS 140 & MUS elective | Policy |
 University of Florida Gainesville, Florida | 3 | 3 | MUT1001 | Policy |
 University of California-San Diego La Jolla, California | 3 | 8 | — | Policy |
 San Diego State University San Diego, California | 3 | 6 | MUSIC 105 and 3 units of MUSIC 299 | Policy |
 University of California-Berkeley Berkeley, California | 3 | 5 | — | Policy |
 University of California-Los Angeles Los Angeles, California | 3 | 8 | — | Policy |
 California State University-Northridge Northridge, California | 3 | 6 | No Equivalency | Policy |
 The University of Alabama Tuscaloosa, Alabama | 3 | 3 | TRGS HU | Policy |
 Brigham Young University Provo, Utah | 3 | 2 | MUS 190 | Policy |
 Florida State University Tallahassee, Florida | 3 | 3 | MUT 1001 | Policy |
 University of California-Davis Davis, California | 3 | 8 | MUS 003A & MUS 003B | Policy |
 University of Washington-Seattle Campus Seattle, Washington | 3 | 2 | MUSIC 116 | Policy |
 University of Colorado Boulder Boulder, Colorado | 3 | 3 | MUSC 1081 | Policy |
 University of Georgia Athens, Georgia | 3 | 0 | MUSI 3550 | Policy |
 Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University Blacksburg, Virginia | 3 | 3 | MUS 2025 | Policy |
 University of Maryland-College Park College Park, Maryland | 3 | 3 | MUSC 140 (DSSP) | Policy |
 Oregon State University Corvallis, Oregon | 3 | 8 | MUS 121,122 + Elective | Policy |
 University of California-Irvine Irvine, California | 3 | 8 | Elective credit only | Policy |
 Louisiana State University and Agricultural & Mechanical College Baton Rouge, Louisiana | 3 | 3 | MUS 1799 | Policy |
 University of Cincinnati-Main Campus Cincinnati, Ohio | 3 | 3 | FAM 1000BLOCK | Policy |
 University of South Carolina-Columbia Columbia, South Carolina | 3 | 3 | MUSC 114 | Policy |
 California State University-Sacramento Sacramento, California | 3 | 6 | — | Policy |
 College of Southern Nevada Las Vegas, Nevada | 3 | — | — | Policy |
 University of Arkansas Fayetteville, Arkansas | 3 | 3 | MUSC 10003 & MUTH 10003 | Policy |
 Georgia State University Atlanta, Georgia | 3 | 3 | MUS 1099 | Policy |
 George Mason University Fairfax, Virginia | 3 | 3 | MUSI 100 | Policy |
 The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley Edinburg, Texas | 3 | 3 | MUSI 1076A | Policy |
 San Jose State University San Jose, California | 3 | 6 | Elective | Policy |
 North Carolina State University at Raleigh Raleigh, North Carolina | 3 | 3 | MUS 120 | Policy |
 University of Utah Salt Lake City, Utah | 3 | 3 | MUSC 1100 | Policy |
 Austin Community College District Austin, Texas | 3 | — | MUSI 1311 & MUSI 1116 | Policy |
 Collin County Community College District McKinney, Texas | 3 | 3 | MUSI 1311 | Policy |
 Mt San Antonio College Walnut, California | 3 | 6 | MUS 7 | Policy |
 Colorado State University-Fort Collins Fort Collins, Colorado | 3 | 3 | MU 111 | Policy |
 East Los Angeles College Monterey Park, California | 3 | 3 | — | Policy |
 California State Polytechnic University-Pomona Pomona, California | 3 | 6 | MU 1201 | Policy |
 University of Nevada-Las Vegas Las Vegas, Nevada | 3 | 3 | General Elective - Music | Policy |
 Broward College Fort Lauderdale, Florida | 3 | 3 | MUT 1001 | Policy |
 Ashford University San Diego, California | 3 | 3 | AESTHETIC AWARENESS & REASONING COMPETENCY | Policy |
 University of North Carolina at Charlotte Charlotte, North Carolina | 3 | 1 | MUSC 1101 | Policy |
 Florida Atlantic University Boca Raton, Florida | 3 | 2 | MUT 1001 | Policy |
 University of California-Santa Barbara Santa Barbara, California | 3 | 8 | Music 11 | Policy |
 University of Kentucky Lexington, Kentucky | 3 | 3 | MUS 174 | Policy |
 University of Missouri-Columbia Columbia, Missouri | 3 | 2 | Music 1211 | Policy |
 El Paso Community College El Paso, Texas | 3 | — | MUSI 1311 | Policy |
 Clemson University Clemson, South Carolina | 3 | 4 | MUSC 1420, 1430 | Policy |
 University of California-Riverside Riverside, California | 3 | 8 | — | Policy |
 Santa Ana College Santa Ana, California | 3 | 8 | MUS 111, 112 | Policy |
 Long Beach City College Long Beach, California | 3 | 6 | MUSIC 1P (3) and MUSIC 99P | — |
 University of Illinois Chicago Chicago, Illinois | 3 | 3 | MUS 107 | Policy |
 Washington State University Pullman, Washington | 3 | 2 | — | Policy |
 California Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo San Luis Obispo, California | 3 | 9 | MU 101 and Elective Units | Policy |
 California State University-Los Angeles Los Angeles, California | 3 | 3 | — | Policy |
 The University of Texas at Dallas Richardson, Texas | 3 | 3 | MUSI 2328 | Policy |
 Santa Monica College Santa Monica, California | 3 | 3 | — | Policy |
 California State University-Fresno Fresno, California | 3 | 6 | MUSIC Elective | Policy |
 Georgia Southern University Statesboro, Georgia | 3 | 3 | MUSC 1331 | Policy |
 Oklahoma State University-Main Campus Stillwater, Oklahoma | 3 | 2 | MUSI 1002 | Policy |
 Virginia Commonwealth University Richmond, Virginia | 3 | 3 | MHIS 115 | Policy |
 Pasadena City College Pasadena, California | 3 | 3 | MUSC 001A | Policy |
 University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Chapel Hill, North Carolina | 3 | 3 | MUSC 121 | Policy |
 The University of Texas at El Paso El Paso, Texas | 3 | 3 | MUST 1311 | Policy |
 Palm Beach State College Lake Worth, Florida | 3 | 3 | MUT1001, MUT1111, MUT1241L | Policy |
 Utah State University Logan, Utah | 3 | 3 | MUSC 1100 (BCA) | Policy |
 University at Buffalo Buffalo, New York | 3 | 3 | APC999TR | Policy |
 University of Pittsburgh-Pittsburgh Campus Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania | 3 | 3 | MUSIC 0100 | Policy |
 San Francisco State University San Francisco, California | 3 | 6 | — | Policy |
 East Carolina University Greenville, North Carolina | 3 | 3 | MUSC 1008 (Non Music Majors Only) | Policy |
 University of Kansas Lawrence, Kansas | 3 | 3 | MTHC 105 | Policy |
 University of Oregon Eugene, Oregon | 3 | 4 | MUS 131, MUS 134 | Policy |
 Appalachian State University Boone, North Carolina | 3 | 3 | Elective Credit | Policy |
 Kent State University at Kent Kent, Ohio | 3 | 3 | MUS 11121 | Policy |
 Grand Valley State University Allendale, Michigan | 3 | 3 | MUS 130 | Policy |
 University of Mississippi University, Mississippi | 3 | 3 | Mus 105 | Policy |
 University of Delaware Newark, Delaware | 3 | 3 | MUSC 166DE | Policy |
FCC Fresno City College Fresno, California | 3 | 3 | — | — |
 St Petersburg College St. Petersburg, Florida | 3 | 3 | MUT X001 if composite score is 3 or higher. MUT X111 and MUT X241 if both aural and non-aural subscores are 3 or higher | Policy |
 Wake Technical Community College Raleigh, North Carolina | 3 | 3 | MUS-121 | Policy |
 Ohio University-Main Campus Athens, Ohio | 3 | 3 | MUS 1000 | Policy |
 Illinois State University Normal, Illinois | 3 | 1 | MUS Elective Credit | Policy |
 Portland Community College Portland, Oregon | 3 | 8 | MUS 110, 111, 111C | Policy |
 Mississippi State University Mississippi State, Mississippi | 3 | 3 | MU 1213 | Policy |
 University of California-Santa Cruz Santa Cruz, California | 3 | 8 | — | Policy |
 Florida State College at Jacksonville Jacksonville, Florida | 3 | 3 | MUT1001 if composite score is 3 or higher. MUT1111 and MUT1241 if both aural and non-aural subscores are 3 or higher | Policy |
 West Virginia University Morgantown, West Virginia | 3 | 3 | MUSC 110 | Policy |
 Montclair State University Montclair, New Jersey | 3 | 3 | MUCP DPT | Policy |
 Old Dominion University Norfolk, Virginia | 3 | 3 | MUSC 1ELE | Policy |
 Stony Brook University Stony Brook, New York | 3 | 3 | MUS 119 | Policy |
 Riverside City College Riverside, California | 3 | 3 | — | Policy |
 Salt Lake Community College Salt Lake City, Utah | 3 | 2 | MUSC 1100 | Policy |
 Columbus State Community College Columbus, Ohio | 3 | 4 | MUS 1221 | Policy |
 Boise State University Boise, Idaho | 3 | 3 | MUS 100XF | Policy |
CBMC CUNY Borough of Manhattan Community College New York, New York | 3 | 3 | MUS 105 | Policy |
 University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee Milwaukee, Wisconsin | 3 | 6 | MUSIC Elective | Policy |
 University of New Mexico-Main Campus Albuquerque, New Mexico | 3 | 4 | MUS 150 & 150L | Policy |
 CUNY Hunter College New York, New York | 3 | 3 | — | Policy |
 Southwestern College Chula Vista, California | 3 | 3 | MUS 131 | Policy |
 Fullerton College Fullerton, California | 3 | 3 | — | Policy |
AP Music Theory credit by state
How we ranked this
One row per college: the lowest score that earns actual credit under the policy that applies to all students, and the largest credit award published at that score. Placement-only policies are excluded and counted separately above. Where a college publishes only a major-specific rule, we do not promote it to a school-wide minimum. Credit hours and course equivalents are reproduced as the college published them; “—” means the college published no value for that field. Colleges are ordered by minimum score, then by enrolment, so the easiest routes to credit appear first — this is not a quality ranking.
Frequently asked questions
What AP Music Theory score do you need for college credit?+
Of the 1,644 colleges with a published AP Music Theory credit policy, 1,279 (78%) award credit at a score of 3, 320 require a 4, and 45 require a 5. There is no single national threshold — the requirement is set by each college, so check the table on this page for the schools on your list.
How many college credits is AP Music Theory worth?+
The most commonly published award is 3 credit hours, but it varies by college and by the score earned — several colleges award more hours for a 4 or 5 than for a 3. The Credits column in the table shows each college's own published figure; a dash means the college publishes a policy but no credit-hour number, and we do not estimate one.
Do all colleges accept AP Music Theory?+
No. This page covers the 1,644 colleges that publish a credit-bearing policy for AP Music Theory, plus 11 more whose policy for this exam grants placement only — permission to skip a course without earning credit hours. Colleges absent from this list either publish no policy for this exam or grant nothing for it. Absence here is not proof a college rejects the exam; it means we have no published rule to cite.
Where can I verify a college's AP Music Theory policy?+
Every row links to the college's own advanced-standing or AP credit page in the Source column. That page is authoritative and current; our copy is a snapshot taken July 30, 2026. Policies change between admission cycles, so verify at the source before counting on credit in a graduation plan.
Keep exploring
Data sources: Each college's own published AP / advanced-standing credit page (captured July 30, 2026) · IPEDS institution directory (names, control, location). Figures are the most recent values published in each federal dataset; cells with no published value are shown as “—” and never estimated. Education does not sell rankings or accept placement fees.