AP Music Theory credit at Texas colleges
Every Texas college with a published AP Music Theory credit policy — minimum score, credit hours, and the course it replaces.
Quick answer
50 of 60 Texas colleges (83%) award credit for AP Music Theory at a score of 3. 8 require a 4 and 2 require a 5. The lowest bar in the state is a 3 at Texas A & M University-College Station (3 credit hours). 59 of these colleges link to their own policy page below. Captured July 30, 2026.
| College | Min score | Credits | Counts as | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 Texas A & M University-College Station College Station | 3 | 3 | MUSC 204 and 208 | Policy |
| 3 | 3 | MUS 306M | Policy | |
 Tarrant County College District Fort Worth | 3 | 3 | MUSI 1306 | Policy |
 Houston Community College Houston | 3 | 4 | MUSI 1211-1212 | Policy |
 University of Houston Houston | 3 | 6 | MUSI 1301, 1303 | Policy |
| 3 | 3 | MUSI 1076A | Policy | |
| 3 | — | MUSI 1311 & MUSI 1116 | Policy | |
| 3 | 3 | MUSI 1311 | Policy | |
 El Paso Community College El Paso | 3 | — | MUSI 1311 | Policy |
 The University of Texas at Dallas Richardson | 3 | 3 | MUSI 2328 | Policy |
| 3 | 3 | MUST 1311 | Policy | |
 San Antonio College San Antonio | 3 | 2 | MUSI 1211 or MUSI 1311 | Policy |
 Northwest Vista College San Antonio | 3 | 2 | MUSI 1211 or MUSI 1311 | Policy |
 Tarleton State University Stephenville | 3 | 3 | MUSC 1311 | Policy |
 Texas Christian University Fort Worth | 3 | 3 | MUSI 10003 | Policy |
 St Philip's College San Antonio | 3 | 2 | MUSI 1211 or MUSI 1311 | Policy |
| 3 | 3 | MUSI 1306 | Policy | |
 Prairie View A & M University Prairie View | 3 | 3 | MUSC 1311 | Policy |
 Texas A & M University-Corpus Christi Corpus Christi | 3 | 4 | MUSI 1311 & MUSI 1116 | — |
 Palo Alto College San Antonio | 3 | 2 | MUSI 1211 or MUSI 1311 | Policy |
| 3 | 3 | MUSI 1311 | Policy | |
| 3 | 3 | MUSI 1311 | Policy | |
CTC Central Texas College Killeen | 3 | 6 | MUSI 1311 & 1312 | Policy |
LC Laredo College Laredo | 3 | 3 | MUSI 1301 | Policy |
| 3 | 3 | MUSI 1311 | Policy | |
 Texas A & M University-Kingsville Kingsville | 3 | 8 | MUSI 1316, MUSI 1317, MUSI 1116, MUSI 1117 | Policy |
 University of the Incarnate Word San Antonio | 3 | 6 | MUSI 1321, 1322 | Policy |
 Odessa College Odessa | 3 | 6 | MUSI 1311 & 1312 | Policy |
 Midwestern State University Wichita Falls | 3 | 6 | MUSC 1603, 1613 | Policy |
 Weatherford College Weatherford | 3 | 3 | MUSI 1311 | Policy |
| 3 | 1 | MUSI 1101 | Policy | |
 Angelina College Lufkin | 3 | 6 | MUSI 1311 & MUSI 1312 | Policy |
 Hill College Hillsboro | 3 | 3 | MUSI 1311 | Policy |
 Wayland Baptist University Plainview | 3 | 8 | MUSI 1401 and MUSI 2412 | Policy |
 St. Mary's University San Antonio | 3 | 6 | MU 1321 and 1322 | Policy |
 Texas A&M University-Texarkana Texarkana | 3 | 6 | MUSI 1311,1312 | Policy |
 Texas Wesleyan University Fort Worth | 3 | 2 | — | Policy |
 Texarkana College Texarkana | 3 | 6 | MUSI 1311 & 1312 | Policy |
 LeTourneau University Longview | 3 | 3 | MUSC2003 | Policy |
 Lamar State College-Port Arthur Port Arthur | 3 | — | MUSI 1301 | Policy |
| 3 | — | Fine Arts requirement | Policy | |
 Panola College Carthage | 3 | 3 | MUSI1311 & MUSI 1116 | Policy |
| 3 | 6 | MUS 1311, 1312 | Policy | |
 East Texas Baptist University Marshall | 3 | 3 | MUSI 1308 | Policy |
| 3 | 3 | MUSI 131 | Policy | |
 Lubbock Christian University Lubbock | 3 | — | MUS 1305 and 1105 | Policy |
 Our Lady of the Lake University San Antonio | 3 | 3 | 3 Semester hours in Music | Policy |
 Schreiner University Kerrville | 3 | — | MUSC 1304 & 1305 | Policy |
HPU Howard Payne University Brownwood | 3 | 4 | MUS 1213, MUS 1233 | Policy |
 Dallas Christian College Dallas | 3 | 3 | MUSC 1310 | Policy |
| 4 | 4 | Music 1301 & 1101 | Policy | |
| 4 | 3 | MUTH 10XX | Policy | |
 Angelo State University San Angelo | 4 | 2 | Music 1211 | Policy |
 Rice University Houston | 4 | 3 | MUSI 107 | Policy |
 Trinity University San Antonio | 4 | 2 | MUSC 1203 | Policy |
 Southwestern University Georgetown | 4 | 4 | MUT76-101 Aural Skills I, and MUT76-103 Music Theory I: Fundamentals | Policy |
 University of Dallas Irving | 4 | 3 | MUS 1320 | Policy |
 Austin College Sherman | 4 | 1 | MUS 119 | Policy |
 Lamar University Beaumont | 5 | 3 | MUTY 1211 and 1116 | Policy |
 Abilene Christian University Abilene | 5 | 3 | MUST 131 | Policy |
AP Music Theory credit in other states
How we ranked this
One row per Texas 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 — permission to skip a course without earning credit hours — are excluded. Credit hours and course equivalents are reproduced exactly as the college published them; “—” means no value was published and we do not estimate one. A page is published for a state only when at least 8 colleges back it.
Frequently asked questions
Which Texas colleges give credit for AP Music Theory?+
60 colleges in Texas publish a credit-bearing policy for AP Music Theory. 50 of them (83%) award credit at a score of 3, 8 require a 4, and 2 require a 5. The full list, with credit hours and the course each exam replaces, is in the table on this page.
What is the lowest AP Music Theory score that earns credit in Texas?+
3. Texas A & M University-College Station in College Station awards credit at a score of 3, worth 3 credit hours, counting as MUSC 204 and 208. 50 Texas colleges in total set their bar at a 3 or lower.
Does in-state residency change AP credit in Texas?+
No. AP credit policy is set per institution and applies to admitted students regardless of residency — residency affects tuition rate, not credit awards. What does vary is the school within a university: engineering and nursing colleges commonly set higher bars than arts and sciences. The rules shown here are the ones that apply to all students at each college.
How do I verify these Texas AP credit policies?+
59 of the 60 colleges on this page link to their own published AP credit page in the Source column; our snapshot was taken July 30, 2026. The college's page is authoritative and can change between admission cycles, so confirm there before building a graduation plan around the credit.
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.