2023 Best Design & Applied Arts Schools
Finding the Best Design & Applied Arts School for You
Design & Applied Arts is the #36 most popular major in the country with 36,301 degrees and certificates awarded in 2020-2021.
Today's students have lots of options to pick from when considering higher education opportunities. With more and more schools offering online options, you could even register for a great program on the other side of the country. On top of that, there are a considerable number of trade schools that offer fast-track entry to many fields.
To assist you in seeing some of the education options that are available to you, Course Advisor has created its Best Design & Applied Arts Schools ranking. Our analysis looked at 459 schools in the United States to see which programs offered the best educational experiences for students.
View our full ranking methodology.
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2023 Best Design & Applied Arts Schools in the United States
The following schools top our list of the Best Design & Applied Arts Colleges.
Top 25 Top Schools in Design & Applied Arts
Our 2023 rankings named The Creative Circus the best school in the United States for design and applied arts students. Located in the large city of Atlanta, The Creative Circus is a private for-profit school with a fairly small student population.
After completing their degree, design graduates from The Creative Circus carry an average student debtload of $28,334.
A rank of #2 on this year’s list means University of Notre Dame is a great place for design and applied arts students. Notre Dame is a fairly large private not-for-profit school located in the suburb of Notre Dame.
On average, design graduates from Notre Dame take out $19,000 in student loans while working on their degree.
Read full report on Design & Applied Arts at University of Notre Dame
The excellent programs at Gnomon helped the school earn the #3 place on this year’s ranking of the best design and applied arts schools in the United States. Gnomon is a small private for-profit school located in the city of Hollywood.
On average, design graduates from Gnomon take out $41,000 in student loans while working on their degree.
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend Miami Ad School at Portfolio Center. The school came in at #4 on this year’s Best Design & Applied Arts Schools list. Miami Ad School at Portfolio Center is a fairly small private for-profit school located in the large city of Atlanta.
The average amount in student loans that design majors at Miami Ad School at Portfolio Center take out is $25,250.
Read full report on Design & Applied Arts at Miami Ad School at Portfolio Center
The excellent programs at Illinois Institute of Technology helped the school earn the #5 place on this year’s ranking of the best design and applied arts schools in the United States. Illinois Tech is a moderately-sized private not-for-profit school located in the city of Chicago.
Carnegie Mellon University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best schools for design and applied arts students. It came in at #6 on the list. Located in the city of Pittsburgh, Carnegie Mellon is a private not-for-profit school with a large student population.
While working on their degree, design majors at Carnegie Mellon accumulate an average of around $25,532 in student debt.
Read full report on Design & Applied Arts at Carnegie Mellon University
Virginia Tech ranked #7 on this year’s Best Design & Applied Arts Schools list. Located in the small city of Blacksburg, Virginia Tech is a public college with a fairly large student population.
While working on their degree, design majors at Virginia Tech accumulate an average of around $27,000 in student debt.
Georgia Institute of Technology - Main Campus came in at #8 in this year’s edition of the Best Design & Applied Arts Schools ranking. Located in the city of Atlanta, Georgia Tech is a public college with a fairly large student population.
On average, design graduates from Georgia Tech take out $22,125 in student loans while working on their degree.
The University of Texas at Austin landed the #9 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best design and applied arts programs. UT Austin is a very large public school located in the city of Austin.
Design majors at UT Austin take out an average of $19,750 in student loans while working on their egree.
Lawrence Technological University ranked #10 on this year’s Best Design & Applied Arts Schools list. Located in the small city of Southfield, Lawrence Tech is a private not-for-profit school with a small student population.
Full Design & Applied Arts at Lawrence Technological University Report
Madison Area Technical College did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best schools for design and applied arts students. It came in at #11 on the list. Located in the city of Madison, Madison College is a public college with a fairly large student population.
While working on their degree, design majors at Madison College accumulate an average of around $14,374 in student debt.
With a ranking of #12, The Modern College of Design did quite well on this year’s best schools for design and applied arts students. Located in the city of Kettering, The Modern College of Design is a private for-profit college with a small student population.
While working on their degree, design majors at The Modern College of Design accumulate an average of around $5,500 in student debt. When it comes time to repay the loan, graduates who are on a 10-year repayment plan pay an average monthly payment of $279.
Read full report on Design & Applied Arts at The Modern College of Design
University of Wisconsin - Madison came in at #13 in this year’s edition of the Best Design & Applied Arts Schools ranking. UW - Madison is a fairly large public school located in the large city of Madison.
The average amount in student loans that design majors at UW - Madison take out is $23,854.
Sacred Heart University came in at #14 in this year’s edition of the Best Design & Applied Arts Schools ranking. Sacred Heart is a moderately-sized private not-for-profit school located in the large suburb of Fairfield.
University of Washington - Seattle Campus landed the #15 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best design and applied arts programs. Located in the large city of Seattle, UW Seattle is a public school with a very large student population.
Design majors at UW Seattle take out an average of $13,702 in student loans while working on their egree.
Read full report on Design & Applied Arts at University of Washington - Seattle Campus
North Dakota State University - Main Campus came in at #16 in this year’s edition of the Best Design & Applied Arts Schools ranking. Located in the medium-sized city of Fargo, North Dakota State University is a public college with a fairly large student population.
On average, design graduates from North Dakota State University take out $27,000 in student loans while working on their degree.
Read full report on Design & Applied Arts at North Dakota State University - Main Campus
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign landed the #17 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best design and applied arts programs. UIUC is a fairly large public school located in the small city of Champaign.
On average, design graduates from UIUC take out $22,407 in student loans while working on their degree. For students who choose a 10-year repayment plan, the average monthly student loan payment is $501.
Luther College did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best schools for design and applied arts students. It came in at #18 on the list. Luther is a small private not-for-profit school located in the town of Decorah.
Washington University in St Louis came in at #19 in this year’s edition of the Best Design & Applied Arts Schools ranking. Located in the suburb of Saint Louis, WUSTL is a private not-for-profit college with a fairly large student population.
After completing their degree, design graduates from WUSTL carry an average student debtload of $15,808.
Full Design & Applied Arts at Washington University in St Louis Report
Texas Christian University ranked #20 on this year’s Best Design & Applied Arts Schools list. Located in the large city of Fort Worth, TCU is a private not-for-profit college with a fairly large student population.
Read full report on Design & Applied Arts at Texas Christian University
Drake University landed the #21 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best design and applied arts programs. Located in the city of Des Moines, Drake is a private not-for-profit school with a small student population.
Alexandria Technical & Community College ranked #22 on this year’s Best Design & Applied Arts Schools list. ATCC is a small public school located in the town of Alexandria.
Design majors at ATCC take out an average of $12,000 in student loans while working on their egree.
Read full report on Design & Applied Arts at Alexandria Technical & Community College
Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best schools for design and applied arts students. It came in at #23 on the list. Located in the city of Troy, RPI is a private not-for-profit college with a medium-sized student population.
While working on their degree, design majors at RPI accumulate an average of around $27,000 in student debt.
Read full report on Design & Applied Arts at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute
Purdue University - Main Campus did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best schools for design and applied arts students. It came in at #24 on the list. Purdue is a very large public school located in the small city of West Lafayette.
On average, design graduates from Purdue take out $23,266 in student loans while working on their degree. The average monthly payment of a loan this size is about $329, assuming that the borrower is on a 10-year repayment plan.
Read full report on Design & Applied Arts at Purdue University - Main Campus
University of South Dakota did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best schools for design and applied arts students. It came in at #25 on the list. Located in the town of Vermillion, USD is a public college with a medium-sized student population.
Rest of the Top Best Design & Applied Arts Schools
Additional Award Winners
This section represents the remainder of the colleges awarded a Best Design & Applied Arts Schools badge. Showing in this list means the college was ranked in the top 15% of the 459 different United States design and applied arts schools we analyzed.
| Rank | College | Location |
|---|---|---|
| 51 | San Jose State University | San Jose, CA |
| 52 | University of Minnesota - Twin Cities | Minneapolis, MN |
| 53 | Bellevue University | Bellevue, NE |
| 54 | University of Arkansas | Fayetteville, AR |
| 54 | Chapman University | Orange, CA |
| 56 | University of Kentucky | Lexington, KY |
| 57 | University of Evansville | Evansville, IN |
| 58 | Illinois State University | Normal, IL |
| 59 | American Institute of Interior Design | Fountain Hills, AZ |
| 60 | University of Dayton | Dayton, OH |
| 61 | Florida State University | Tallahassee, FL |
| 62 | University of Nebraska - Lincoln | Lincoln, NE |
| 63 | Messiah University | Mechanicsburg, PA |
| 64 | Taylor University | Upland, IN |
| 65 | Scottsdale Community College | Scottsdale, AZ |
| 66 | Auburn University | Auburn, AL |
| 67 | Arapahoe Community College | Littleton, CO |
| 68 | Cogswell College | San Jose, CA |
Honorable Mentions
These are some additional schools worth mentioning that are also great but just didn't quite make the cut to earn our top Best Design & Applied Arts Schools award.
Design & Applied Arts by Region
View the Best Design & Applied Arts Schools for a specific region near you.
| Region |
|---|
| Southeast |
| New England |
| Rocky Mountains |
| Plains States |
| Middle Atlantic |
| Far Western US |
| Southwest |
| Great Lakes |
More Design & Applied Arts Rankings
Rankings in Majors Related to Design
One of 10 majors within the area of study, design and applied arts has other similar majors worth exploring.
Most Popular Majors Related to Design
| Related Major | Annual Graduates |
|---|---|
| Fine & Studio Arts | 37,413 |
| Music | 25,910 |
| Drama & Theater Arts | 17,341 |
| Film, Video & Photographic Arts | 16,778 |
| General Visual & Performing Arts | 6,355 |
Notes and References
*These averages are for the top 25 schools only.
- Read more about our ranking methodology.
- The Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) from the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), a branch of the U.S. Department of Education (DOE) serves as the core of the rest of our data about colleges.
- Some other college data, including much of the graduate earnings data, comes from the U.S. Department of Education’s (College Scorecard).
More about our data sources and methodologies.
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