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Best Design & Applied Arts Schools in Pennsylvania

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2023 Best Design & Applied Arts Schools in Pennsylvania

29 Colleges
$31,864 Avg Salary
$27,344 Avg Student Debt

Finding the Best Design & Applied Arts School for You

In 2020-2021, 1,238 degrees and certificates were awarded to design and applied arts students who went to a Pennsylvania college or university. This makes it the #39 most popular major in the state.

Today's students have lots of options to pick from when considering higher education opportunities. You can choose a traditional brick and mortar school, or with the growth of online education, you can attend a school half-way across the country without even leaving your house. Also there are many trade schools that offer short-term programs that open up more career options.

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 in Pennsylvania ranking. This report analyzed 29 schools in Pennsylvania to see which ones offered the best programs for students.

View our full ranking methodology.

2023 Best Design & Applied Arts Schools in Pennsylvania

The following schools top our list of the Best Design & Applied Arts Colleges.

Top 10 Best Design & Applied Arts Schools

#1

Carnegie Mellon University

Pittsburgh, PA

Our analysis found Carnegie Mellon University to be the best school for design and applied arts students who want to pursue a degree in Pennsylvania. Located in the city of Pittsburgh, Carnegie Mellon is a private not-for-profit college with a large student population.

The average amount in student loans that design majors at Carnegie Mellon take out is $25,532.

Read full report on Design & Applied Arts at Carnegie Mellon University

#2

University of Pennsylvania

Philadelphia, PA

Out of the 29 schools in Pennsylvania that were part of this year’s ranking, University of Pennsylvania landed the # 2 spot on the list. UPenn is a fairly large private not-for-profit school located in the large city of Philadelphia.

Read full report on Design & Applied Arts at University of Pennsylvania

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend Bloomsburg University of Pennsylvania. The school came in at #3 on this year’s Best Design & Applied Arts Schools in Pennsylvania list. Located in the small city of Bloomsburg, Bloomsburg is a public college with a moderately-sized student population.

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You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend Millersville University of Pennsylvania. The school came in at #4 on this year’s Best Design & Applied Arts Schools in Pennsylvania list. Millersville is a medium-sized public school located in the suburb of Millersville.

Full Design & Applied Arts at Millersville University of Pennsylvania Report

#5

Messiah University

Mechanicsburg, PA

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend Messiah University. The school came in at #5 on this year’s Best Design & Applied Arts Schools in Pennsylvania list. Messiah is a small private not-for-profit school located in the suburb of Mechanicsburg.

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Slippery Rock University of Pennsylvania 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. SRU is a moderately-sized public school located in the town of Slippery Rock.

Full Design & Applied Arts at Slippery Rock University of Pennsylvania Report

#7

Temple University

Philadelphia, PA

Temple University ranked #7 on this year’s Best Design & Applied Arts Schools in Pennsylvania list. Located in the city of Philadelphia, Temple is a public school with a fairly large student population.

Design majors at Temple take out an average of $26,000 in student loans while working on their egree.

Read full report on Design & Applied Arts at Temple University

With a ranking of #8, York College of Pennsylvania did quite well on this year’s best schools for design and applied arts students. YCP is a small private not-for-profit school located in the midsize suburb of York.

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#9

Drexel University

Philadelphia, PA

Drexel University came in at #9 in this year’s edition of the Best Design & Applied Arts Schools in Pennsylvania ranking. Located in the city of Philadelphia, Drexel is a private not-for-profit college with a very large student population.

The average amount in student loans that design majors at Drexel take out is $27,000. When it comes time to repay the loan, graduates who are on a 10-year repayment plan pay an average monthly payment of $888.

Read More…

With a ranking of #10, Kutztown University of Pennsylvania did quite well on this year’s best schools for design and applied arts students. Kutztown University is a moderately-sized public school located in the fringe town of Kutztown.

After completing their degree, design graduates from Kutztown University carry an average student debtload of $27,000. Assuming that a graduate chooses a 10-year repayment plan, the average monthly loan payment is $294.

Full Design & Applied Arts at Kutztown University of Pennsylvania Report

Best Design & Applied Arts Colleges in the Middle Atlantic Region

Explore all the Best Design & Applied Arts Colleges in the Middle Atlantic Area or other specific states within that region.

State Degrees Awarded
New York 4,391
Maryland 617
New Jersey 532
District of Columbia 84
Delaware 59

One of 10 majors within the area of study, design and applied arts has other similar majors worth exploring.

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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