Design

Types of Degrees Design Majors Are Getting

The following table lists how many design & applied arts graduations there were for each degree level during the last year for which data was available.

Education Level	Number of Grads
Bachelor’s Degree	19,777
Associate Degree	7,578
Basic Certificate	4,459
Undergraduate Certificate	2,420
Master’s Degree	1,688
Graduate Certificate	77
Doctor’s Degree	20

What Design Majors Need to Know

O*NET surveyed people in occupations related to design and asked them what knowledge areas, skills, and abilities were important for their jobs. The responses were rated on a scale of 1 to 5 with 5 being most important.

Knowledge Areas for Design Majors

Design majors often go into careers in which the following knowledge areas are important:

• English Language - Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.
• Design - Knowledge of design techniques, tools, and principles involved in production of precision technical plans, blueprints, drawings, and models.
• Fine Arts - Knowledge of the theory and techniques required to compose, produce, and perform works of music, dance, visual arts, drama, and sculpture.
• Computers and Electronics - Knowledge of circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.
• Communications and Media - Knowledge of media production, communication, and dissemination techniques and methods. This includes alternative ways to inform and entertain via written, oral, and visual media.

Skills for Design Majors

design majors are found most commonly in careers in which the following skills are important:

• Active Listening - Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.
• Speaking - Talking to others to convey information effectively.
• Reading Comprehension - Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work related documents.
• Critical Thinking - Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions or approaches to problems.
• Judgment and Decision Making - Considering the relative costs and benefits of potential actions to choose the most appropriate one.

Abilities for Design Majors

Design majors often go into careers where the following abilities are vital:

• Oral Expression - The ability to communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand.
• Oral Comprehension - The ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.
• Written Comprehension - The ability to read and understand information and ideas presented in writing.
• Originality - The ability to come up with unusual or clever ideas about a given topic or situation, or to develop creative ways to solve a problem.
• Near Vision - The ability to see details at close range (within a few feet of the observer).

What Can You Do With a Design Major?

People with a design degree often go into the following careers:

Job Title	Job Growth Rate	Median Salary
Architecture Professors	10.5%	$86,980
Art Directors	5.4%	$92,780
Art, Drama, and Music Professors	12.0%	$69,960
Artists and Related Workers	5.5%	$65,390
Commercial and Industrial Designers	4.3%	$66,590
Designers	5.6%	$60,570
Fashion Designers	2.5%	$72,720
Graphic Designers	4.2%	$50,370
Interior Designers	4.5%	$53,370
Multimedia Artists and Animators	8.4%	$72,520
Professors	9.4%	$65,660
Set and Exhibit Designers	10.3%	$54,270

Who Is Getting a Bachelor’s Degree in Design?

Design & Applied Arts runs middle of the road when it comes to popularity, ranking #27 out of all the undergraduate majors we track. In 2021, about 19,770 graduates completed their bachelor’s degree in this field. This major is dominated by women with about 72% of recent graduates being female.

Racial-Ethnic Diversity

At the countrywide level, the racial-ethnic distribution of design majors is as follows:

Race/Ethnicity	Number of Grads
Asian	1,932
Black or African American	1,341
Hispanic or Latino	2,883
White	10,158
International Students	1,768
Other Races/Ethnicities	1,695

Geographic Diversity

Americans aren’t the only ones with an interest in Design. About 8.9% of those with this major are international students.

Amount of Education Required for Careers Related to Design

Some degrees associated with design may require an advanced degree, while others may not even require a bachelor’s in the field. In general, the more advanced your degree the more career options will open up to you. However, there is significant time and money that needs to be invested into your education so weigh the pros and cons.

How much schooling do you really need to compete in today’s job market? People currently working in careers related to design have obtained the following education levels.

Education Level	Percentage of Workers
Less than a High School Diploma	1.8%
High School Diploma - or the equivalent (for example, GED)	4.4%
Post-Secondary Certificate - awarded for training completed after high school (for example, in agriculture or natural resources, computer services, personal or culinary services, engineering technologies, healthcare, construction trades, mechanic and repair technologies, or precision production)	1.4%
Some College Courses	9.4%
Associate’s Degree (or other 2-year degree)	11.3%
Bachelor’s Degree	40.5%
Post-Baccalaureate Certificate - awarded for completion of an organized program of study; designed for people who have completed a Baccalaureate degree but do not meet the requirements of academic degrees carrying the title of Master.	1.5%
Master’s Degree	15.6%
Post-Master’s Certificate - awarded for completion of an organized program of study; designed for people who have completed a Master’s degree but do not meet the requirements of academic degrees at the doctoral level.	0.3%
First Professional Degree - awarded for completion of a program that: requires at least 2 years of college work before entrance into the program, includes a total of at least 6 academic years of work to complete, and provides all remaining academic requirements to begin practice in a profession.	3.8%
Doctoral Degree	10.7%

Online Design Programs

The following table lists the number of programs by degree level, along with how many schools offered online courses in the field.

Degree Level	Colleges Offering Programs	Colleges Offering Online Classes
Certificate (Less Than 1 Year)	0	0
Certificate (1-2 years)	390	13
Certificate (2-4 Years)	41	3
Associate’s Degree	782	41
Bachelor’s Degree	42	6
Post-Baccalaureate	0	0
Master’s Degree	193	15
Post-Master’s	5	0
Doctor’s Degree (Research)	8	0
Doctor’s Degree (Professional Practice)	0	0
Doctor’s Degree (Other)	0	0

Majors Related to Design

You may also be interested in one of the following majors related to design.

Major	Number of Grads
Fine & Studio Arts	36,332
Music	26,167
Film, Video & Photographic Arts	18,531
Drama & Theater Arts	16,853
General Visual & Performing Arts	6,785
Arts & Media Management	4,722
Dance	3,233
Other Visual Art	1,026
Crafts, Folk Art & Artisanry	102
Community/Environmental/Socially-Engaged Art	6

References

*The racial-ethnic minorities count is calculated by taking the total number of students and subtracting white students, international students, and students whose race/ethnicity was unknown. This number is then divided by the total number of students at the school to obtain the racial-ethnic minorities percentage.

• College Factual
• College Scorecard
• National Center for Education Statistics
• O*NET Online
• U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
• Usual Weekly Earnings of Wage and Salary Workers First Quarter 2020

More about our data sources and methodologies.