Find Schools

Study Area & Zipcode

Best Value Design & Applied Arts Schools in Massachusetts

Find Schools Near

2023 Best Value Design & Applied Arts Schools in Massachusetts

Highlighting Quality Schools With More Affordable Pricing

15 Colleges
$27,972 Avg Tuition & Fees*
$34,757 Avg Salary

Finding the Best Design & Applied Arts School for You

Design & Applied Arts is the #42 most popular major in Massachusetts with 887 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 Value Design & Applied Arts Schools in Massachusetts ranking. Our analysis looked at 15 schools in Massachusetts to see which programs offered the best value experiences for design students with the aim of identifying those quality schools that are more affordable than some of their counterparts.

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 Schools in Massachusetts

Check out the design programs at these schools if you want to get the best value for your educational dollar.

Top 10 Best Design & Applied Arts Schools

$5,378 Average Tuition & Fees

Our 2023 rankings named Holyoke Community College the best value school in Massachusetts for design and applied arts students. Located in the large suburb of Holyoke, Holyoke Community College is a public school with a small student population.

Holyoke Community College undergraduate students pay an average of $5,378 in in-state tuition and fees each year.

Read More…

Out of the 15 schools in Massachusetts that were part of this year’s ranking, Springfield Technical Community College landed the # 2 spot on the list. Located in the medium-sized city of Springfield, STCC is a public school with a small student population.

The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at STCC are $5,520 a year.

Full Design & Applied Arts at Springfield Technical Community College Report

$11,675 Average Tuition & Fees

A rank of #3 on this year’s list means Salem State University is a great value for design and applied arts students. Located in the large suburb of Salem, Salem State is a public college with a moderately-sized student population.

In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Salem State are $11,675 per year.

Read full report on Design & Applied Arts at Salem State University

$14,200 Average Tuition & Fees

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Massachusetts College of Art and Design. It ranked #4 on our 2023 Best Value Design & Applied Arts Schools in Massachusetts list. Located in the city of Boston, Massachusetts College of Art and Design is a public college with a small student population.

The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at Massachusetts College of Art and Design are $14,200 a year. Design majors at Massachusetts College of Art and Design take out an average of $22,625 in student loans while working on their egree. Assuming that a graduate chooses a 10-year repayment plan, the average monthly loan payment is $322.

Read More…

#5

Framingham State University

Framingham, MA
$11,380 Average Tuition & Fees

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend Framingham State University. The school came in at #5 on this year’s Best Value Design & Applied Arts Schools in Massachusetts list. Framingham State is a small public school located in the small city of Framingham.

Framingham State undergraduate students pay an average of $11,380 in in-state tuition and fees each year.

Read full report on Design & Applied Arts at Framingham State University

$15,698 Average Tuition & Fees

University of Massachusetts - Lowell did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best value schools for design and applied arts students. It came in at #6 on the list. UMass Lowell is a large public school located in the suburb of Lowell.

In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at UMass Lowell are $15,698 per year.

Read More…

$14,408 Average Tuition & Fees

With a ranking of #7, University of Massachusetts - Dartmouth did quite well on this year’s best value schools for design and applied arts students. UMass Dartmouth is a moderately-sized public school located in the suburb of North Dartmouth.

UMass Dartmouth undergraduate students pay an average of $14,408 in in-state tuition and fees each year. The average amount in student loans that design majors at UMass Dartmouth take out is $27,000.

Read full report on Design & Applied Arts at University of Massachusetts - Dartmouth

#8

Endicott College

Beverly, MA
$36,614 Average Tuition & Fees

Endicott College did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best value schools for design and applied arts students. It came in at #8 on the list. Endicott is a small private not-for-profit school located in the suburb of Beverly.

Endicott undergraduate students pay an average of $36,614 in in-state tuition and fees each year. After completing their degree, design graduates from Endicott carry an average student debtload of $27,000.

Read full report on Design & Applied Arts at Endicott College

$37,650 Average Tuition & Fees

Wentworth Institute of Technology came in at #9 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Design & Applied Arts Schools in Massachusetts ranking. Located in the large city of Boston, WIT is a private not-for-profit school with a small student population.

WIT undergraduate students pay an average of $37,650 in in-state tuition and fees each year. While working on their degree, design majors at WIT accumulate an average of around $27,000 in student debt.

Read full report on Design & Applied Arts at Wentworth Institute of Technology

#10

Northeastern University

Boston, MA
$57,592 Average Tuition & Fees

With a ranking of #10, Northeastern University did quite well on this year’s best value schools for design and applied arts students. Located in the large city of Boston, Northeastern is a private not-for-profit college with a fairly large student population.

The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at Northeastern are $57,592 a year. The average amount in student loans that design majors at Northeastern take out is $26,750.

As a testament to the quality of education it offers, Northeastern also is in the top 20% of our Best Design & Applied Arts Schools in Massachusetts ranking.

Read full report on Design & Applied Arts at Northeastern University

Best Value Design & Applied Arts Colleges in the New England Region

Explore all the Best Value Design & Applied Arts Colleges in the New England Area or other specific states within that region.

State Degrees Awarded
Connecticut 241
New Hampshire 456
Maine 24
Rhode Island 159
Vermont 99

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 15 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.

Featured Schools

Find Schools Near You

Our free school finder matches students with accredited colleges across the U.S.