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Best Value Design & Applied Arts Bachelor's Degree Schools in the Plains States Region

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2023 Best Value Design & Applied Arts Bachelor's Degree Schools in the Plains States Region

Highlighting Quality Schools With More Affordable Pricing

28 Colleges
$24,743 Avg Tuition & Fees*
$33,319 Avg Salary

Finding the Best Design & Applied Arts Bachelor's Degree 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 help you arm yourself with the information you need to make your decision, Course Advisor has developed this Best Value Design & Applied Arts Bachelor's Degree Schools in the Plains States Region ranking. This report analyzed 28 schools in the Plains States Region to see which ones offered the best value bachelor's degree programs for design students. The goal was to highlight schools with more affordable prices than others offering similar quality experiences.

When determining this ranking, we place a high emphasis on the school's quality as well as its sticker price. Even though a college may be affordable, it may not offer value. Specifically, our score for quality is discounted by the published tuition and fees charged by the given college. This gives the cost per unit of quality for each college. The more quality your dollar buys, the better the value.

Our calculations use out-of-state tuition and fees in our nationwide and regional rankings. For statewide rankings, we use average in-state tuition and fees.

2023 Best Value Design & Applied Arts Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region

The following schools top our list of the Best Value Design & Applied Arts Bachelor's Degree Colleges.

Top 10 Best Design & Applied Arts Bachelor's Degree Schools

#1

Bellevue University

Bellevue, NE

Our analysis found Bellevue University to be the best value school for design and applied arts students who want to pursue a bachelor’s degree in the Plains States Region . Located in the large suburb of Bellevue, Bellevue University is a private not-for-profit school with a fairly large student population.

Bellevue University undergraduate students pay an average of $8,310 in tuition and fees each year. The average amount in student loans that design majors at Bellevue University take out while working on their Bachelor's Degree is $30,063.

In addition to its best value ranking, and one of the reasons why the school is on the list, Bellevue University is ranked #3 for overall quality for design in the Plains States Region .

Full Design & Applied Arts at Bellevue University Report

A rank of #2 on this year’s list means Bemidji State University is a great value for design and applied arts students working on their bachelor’s degree. Bemidji State University is a small public school located in the remote town of Bemidji.

Bemidji State University undergraduate students pay an average of $9,806 in tuition and fees each year.

In addition to its great value ranking, Bemidji State University is in the top 20% of all schools on our Best Design & Applied Arts Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region list.

Full Design & Applied Arts at Bemidji State University Report

Out of the 28 schools in the Plains States Region that were part of this year’s ranking, North Dakota State University - Main Campus landed the # 3 spot on the list. Located in the midsize city of Fargo, North Dakota State University is a public college with a large student population.

North Dakota State University undergraduate students pay an average of $14,876 in tuition and fees each year.

Read full report on Design & Applied Arts at North Dakota State University - Main Campus

Out of the 28 schools in the Plains States Region that were part of this year’s ranking, South Dakota State University landed the # 4 spot on the list. South Dakota State is a large public school located in the remote town of Brookings.

South Dakota State undergraduate students pay an average of $12,809 in tuition and fees each year. On average, design graduates from South Dakota State take out $30,985 in student loans while working on their Bachelor's Degree.

Read More…

#5

Saint Cloud State University

Saint Cloud, MN

A rank of #5 on this year’s list means Saint Cloud State University is a great value for design and applied arts students working on their bachelor’s degree. St. Cloud State University is a fairly large public school located in the city of Saint Cloud.

St. Cloud State University undergraduate students pay an average of $18,010 in tuition and fees each year. After completing their Bachelor's Degree, design graduates from St. Cloud State University carry an average student debtload of $26,716.

Read full report on Design & Applied Arts at Saint Cloud State University

Minnesota State University - Moorhead landed the #6 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value bachelor’s degree design and applied arts programs. MSU Moorhead is a medium-sized public school located in the midsize suburb of Moorhead.

Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at MSU Moorhead are $17,564 per year. After completing their Bachelor's Degree, design graduates from MSU Moorhead carry an average student debtload of $21,980.

Full Design & Applied Arts at Minnesota State University - Moorhead Report

#7

University of Northern Iowa

Cedar Falls, IA

University of Northern Iowa did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for design and applied arts students to get a bachelor’s degree. It came in at #7 on the list. Located in the small city of Cedar Falls, UNI is a public college with a medium-sized student population.

UNI undergraduate students pay an average of $19,753 in tuition and fees each year.

As a testament to the quality of education it offers, UNI also is in the top 15% of our Best Design & Applied Arts Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region ranking.

Full Design & Applied Arts at University of Northern Iowa Report

#8

Lindenwood University

Saint Charles, MO

Lindenwood University landed the #8 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value bachelor’s degree design and applied arts programs. Lindenwood University is a medium-sized private not-for-profit school located in the city of Saint Charles.

The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at Lindenwood University are $18,640 a year.

Read full report on Design & Applied Arts at Lindenwood University

Iowa State University landed the #9 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value bachelor’s degree design and applied arts programs. Iowa State is a very large public school located in the small city of Ames.

Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Iowa State are $25,446 per year. The average amount in student loans that design majors at Iowa State take out while working on their Bachelor's Degree is $24,944. For students who choose a 10-year repayment plan, the average monthly student loan payment is $262.

In addition to its great value ranking, Iowa State is in the top 10% of all schools on our Best Design & Applied Arts Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region list.

Read More…

With a ranking of #9, University of Minnesota - Duluth did quite well on this year’s best value schools for design and applied arts students working on their bachelor’s degree. UMN Duluth is a moderately-sized public school located in the city of Duluth.

Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at UMN Duluth are $19,148 per year.

Read full report on Design & Applied Arts at University of Minnesota - Duluth

Best Design & Applied Arts Colleges by State

Explore the best design and applied arts colleges for a specific state in the Plains States region.

State Degrees Awarded
Missouri 432
Minnesota 533
Kansas 229
Iowa 481
Nebraska 223
North Dakota 36
South Dakota 57

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.

  • 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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