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Design & Applied Arts

Types of Degrees Design & Applied Arts Majors Are Earning

Students pursuing Design & Applied Arts can earn degrees at several award levels.

Award Level	Graduates
Certificate	2,649
Associate’s Degree	8,370
Bachelor’s Degree	20,229
Master’s Degree	7,311
Doctor’s Degree	21

What Design & Applied Arts Majors Need to Know

Studies in Design & Applied Arts develop a specific mix of knowledge, skills, and abilities — derived from O*NET surveys of workers in occupations that Design & Applied Arts graduates commonly enter.

Knowledge Areas

This major prepares you for careers needing Design & Applied Arts emphasizes the following knowledge areas:

• Fine Arts — Importance 4.3 / 5; level 5.5 / 7.
• English Language — Importance 4.0 / 5; level 4.8 / 7.
• Education and Training — Importance 3.9 / 5; level 5.1 / 7.
• Design — Importance 3.6 / 5; level 4.3 / 7.
• Computers and Electronics — Importance 3.5 / 5; level 4.2 / 7.

^{Importance is rated 1–5; level is 1–7. Source: ONET Online — weighted across related occupations.*}

Skills

The skill set built by a Design & Applied Arts program reflects the day-to-day work of related occupations:

• Speaking — Importance 4.2 / 5; level 4.4 / 7.
• Active Listening — Importance 4.0 / 5; level 4.0 / 7.
• Reading Comprehension — Importance 3.9 / 5; level 4.4 / 7.
• Instructing — Importance 3.8 / 5; level 4.1 / 7.
• Active Learning — Importance 3.7 / 5; level 4.0 / 7.

Abilities

Abilities most relevant to Design & Applied Arts careers — again drawn from O*NET surveys of related occupations:

• Oral Expression — Importance 4.1 / 5; level 4.6 / 7.
• Written Comprehension — Importance 4.0 / 5; level 4.5 / 7.
• Oral Comprehension — Importance 3.9 / 5; level 4.6 / 7.
• Written Expression — Importance 3.9 / 5; level 4.4 / 7.
• Originality — Importance 3.8 / 5; level 4.1 / 7.

Common Job Activities

Day-to-day, Design & Applied Arts graduates report doing:

Activity	Frequency / Importance
Thinking Creatively	4.8 / 7
Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates	4.5 / 7
Establishing and Maintaining Interpersonal Relationships	4.3 / 7
Making Decisions and Solving Problems	4.3 / 7
Organizing, Planning, and Prioritizing Work	4.2 / 7
Getting Information	4.2 / 7
Working with Computers	4.1 / 7
Training and Teaching Others	4.1 / 7
Updating and Using Relevant Knowledge	4.0 / 7
Coaching and Developing Others	3.8 / 7

Technology Skills Used on the Job

Most frequently-cited tools used by Design & Applied Arts professionals:

Tool / Software	Category	In-Demand
Adobe Photoshop	Graphics or photo imaging software	✓
Adobe Creative Cloud software	Graphics or photo imaging software	✓
Microsoft Excel	Spreadsheet software	✓
Adobe Illustrator	Graphics or photo imaging software	✓
Microsoft Office software	Office suite software	✓
Adobe InDesign	Desktop publishing software	✓
Adobe Acrobat	Document management software	—
Adobe After Effects	Video creation and editing software	✓
Microsoft Word	Word processing software	✓
Microsoft PowerPoint	Presentation software	✓
JavaScript	Web platform development software	✓
Hypertext markup language HTML	Web platform development software	✓

^{Source: ONET Online technology skills, weighted across related occupations.*}

Sample Job Titles

Real job postings for Design & Applied Arts graduates include:

• Associate Professor
• Instructor
• Adjunct Instructor
• Assistant Professor
• College Professor
• College Faculty Member
• Adjunct Professor
• Professor
• University Faculty Member
• Elementary Art Instructor
• Choir Teacher
• Open Rank Professor
• Lighting Design Lecturer
• Adjunct Music Professor
• Music Theory Teacher

Education Typically Required

Across the occupations open to Design & Applied Arts graduates, the typical level of education actually held by current workers is distributed as:

Education Level	Share of Workers
Master’s degree	33.1%
Bachelor’s degree	30.5%
Doctoral degree	20.8%
Associate’s degree (or other 2-year)	5.1%
Some college courses	3.7%
High school diploma or equivalent	3.0%
Post-master’s certificate	1.4%
First professional degree	1.2%
Post-baccalaureate certificate	0.5%
Less than a high school diploma	0.5%
Postsecondary certificate	0.1%

^{Source: ONET Online education / training / experience requirements.*}

Who Is Earning a Degree in Design & Applied Arts?

Gender Distribution

This field skews predominantly female, with women earning 68.2% of Design & Applied Arts degrees.

Gender	Graduates	Share
Women	26,471	68.2%
Men	12,327	31.8%

Racial-Ethnic Diversity

At the national level, the racial-ethnic distribution of Design & Applied Arts graduates is as follows:

Race / Ethnicity	Graduates	Share
White	19,216	49.5%
Asian	3,282	8.5%
Hispanic or Latino	7,193	18.5%
Black or African American	3,177	8.2%
American Indian / Alaska Native	220	0.6%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander	69	0.2%
Two or More Races	1,599	4.1%
Race Unknown	1,194	3.1%
International Students	2,848	7.3%

^{See minority definition below.}

How Much Do Design & Applied Arts Graduates Earn?

College Scorecard reports median earnings of Design & Applied Arts graduates 1, 4, and 5 years after completion. Earnings tend to climb steadily as graduates gain experience and move into mid-career roles.

Years Out	Median Earnings
1 year	$32,054
4 years	$41,389
5 years	$46,982

By year 5 out, median earnings rise to $46,982 — roughly 47% above the 1-year mark.

^{Source: U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard, field-of-study earnings tracker.}

Online Design & Applied Arts Programs

Distance learning is reported by IPEDS for Design & Applied Arts. The table below shows how many graduates earned at least some of their coursework online (Distance-Ed Available) versus completing the entire program online (Distance-Ed Only).

Award Level	Distance-Ed Available	Distance-Ed Only
Associate’s	42	54
Bachelor’s	38	38
Master’s	18	10

^{Distance-Ed Only = degrees completed entirely online; Distance-Ed Available = degrees including at least some online coursework. Source: IPEDS Completions by Distance Education status.}

Is a Degree in Design & Applied Arts Worth It?

On the earnings side, the federal earnings tracker, Design & Applied Arts graduates earn a median of $41,389 four years after completion — roughly 9% above the national median for workers with only a high school diploma (~$38,000).

^{ROI estimate compares the program’s 4-yr median earnings against the 2023 BLS CPS median earnings for high-school-only workers. Source: U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard + BLS Current Population Survey.}

Related Programs

You may also be interested in these closely related fields of study:

Program	CIP Code
Visual and Performing Arts	50
Arts, Entertainment, and Media Management	50.10
Community/Environmental/Socially-Engaged Art	50.11
Crafts/Craft Design, Folk Art and Artisanry	50.02
Dance	50.03
Drama/Theatre Arts and Stagecraft	50.05
Film/Video and Photographic Arts	50.06
Fine and Studio Arts	50.07
Music	50.09
Visual and Performing Arts, General	50.01
Visual and Performing Arts, Other	50.99
VISUAL AND PERFORMING ARTS	50.00

References

The racial-ethnic minorities count is calculated by taking the total number of students and subtracting white students and international students. This number is then divided by the total number of students to obtain the racial-ethnic minorities percentage.

• College Factual
• National Center for Education Statistics (IPEDS)
• O*NET Online
• U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
• U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard

More about our data sources and methodologies.