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Best Value Design & Applied Arts Schools in Virginia

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2023 Best Value Design & Applied Arts Schools in Virginia

Identifying Quality Schools at More Affordable Prices

10 Colleges
$15,457 Avg Tuition & Fees*
$31,842 Avg Salary

Finding the Best Design & Applied Arts School for You

With 889 degrees and certificates handed out in 2020-2021, design and applied arts is the #43 most popular major in Virginia.

There are lots of options to pick from today when trying to decide which program is right for you. Along with traditional schools that require in-person attendence, you can attend one of many reputable online schools. Some programs even offer a hybrid experience. Alternatively, you may choose a trade school that prepares you to enter the workforce with knowledge in a specific field.

Along with in-depth profiles of schools and the programs they offer, Course Advisor has created the Best Value Design & Applied Arts Schools in Virginia to help you in your search for the best school for you. This report analyzed 10 schools in Virginia to see which ones offered the best value 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. More specifically, we discount our quality score by the published tuition and fees charged by a school. This gives the cost per unit of quality for each college. The value is determined by how much quality your dollar buys.

Our calculations use out-of-state tuition and fees in our nationwide and regional rankings. Average in-state tuition and fees are used for our statewide rankings.

2023 Best Value Design & Applied Arts Schools in Virginia

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

$5,565 Average Tuition & Fees

Our analysis found Northern Virginia Community College to be the best value school for design and applied arts students who want to pursue a degree in Virginia. Located in the suburb of Annandale, Northern Virginia Community College is a public school with a fairly large student population.

In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Northern Virginia Community College are $5,565 per year. Design majors at Northern Virginia Community College take out an average of $21,281 in student loans while working on their egree.

On top of its placing in our value ranking, Northern Virginia Community College also did well on our Best Design & Applied Arts Schools in Virginia list. It’s in the top 20% of all schools reviewed in this analysis.

Read More…

#2

Virginia Tech

Blacksburg, VA
$14,174 Average Tuition & Fees

The excellent programs at Virginia Tech helped the school earn the #2 place on this year’s ranking of the best design and applied arts schools in Virginia. Virginia Tech is a very large public school located in the small city of Blacksburg.

The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at Virginia Tech are $14,174 a year. On average, design graduates from Virginia Tech take out $27,000 in student loans while working on their degree.

Virginia Tech also took the #3 spot in our Best Design & Applied Arts Schools in Virginia rankings.

Read full report on Design & Applied Arts at Virginia Tech

$5,561 Average Tuition & Fees

Out of the 10 schools in Virginia that were part of this year’s ranking, Tidewater Community College landed the # 3 spot on the list. Located in the city of Norfolk, Tidewater Community College is a public school with a fairly large student population.

Tidewater Community College undergraduate students pay an average of $5,561 in in-state tuition and fees each year. On average, design graduates from Tidewater Community College take out $9,950 in student loans while working on their degree.

Full Design & Applied Arts at Tidewater Community College Report

#4

Radford University

Radford, VA
$11,542 Average Tuition & Fees

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Radford University. It ranked #4 on our 2023 Best Value Design & Applied Arts Schools in Virginia list. Located in the small suburb of Radford, Radford is a public school with a medium-sized student population.

Radford undergraduate students pay an average of $11,542 in in-state tuition and fees each year. While working on their degree, design majors at Radford accumulate an average of around $27,000 in student debt.

Read full report on Design & Applied Arts at Radford University

#5

Liberty University

Lynchburg, VA
$16,160 Average Tuition & Fees

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Liberty University. It ranked #5 on our 2023 Best Value Design & Applied Arts Schools in Virginia list. Liberty University is a very large private not-for-profit school located in the small city of Lynchburg.

In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Liberty University are $16,160 per year. While working on their degree, design majors at Liberty University accumulate an average of around $25,833 in student debt. This translates to an average monthly loan payment of $432, based on a 10-year repayment plan.

Read full report on Design & Applied Arts at Liberty University

$15,028 Average Tuition & Fees

Virginia Commonwealth University came in at #6 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Design & Applied Arts Schools in Virginia ranking. VCU is a fairly large public school located in the midsize city of Richmond.

VCU undergraduate students pay an average of $15,028 in in-state tuition and fees each year. The average amount in student loans that design majors at VCU take out is $26,274. Assuming that a graduate chooses a 10-year repayment plan, the average monthly loan payment is $280.

Full Design & Applied Arts at Virginia Commonwealth University Report

#7

George Mason University

Fairfax, VA
$13,119 Average Tuition & Fees

George Mason University ranked #7 on this year’s Best Value Design & Applied Arts Schools in Virginia list. GMU is a very large public school located in the large suburb of Fairfax.

In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at GMU are $13,119 per year.

GMU excels when it comes to quality. It’s ranked in the top 15% of all schools on our Best Design & Applied Arts Schools in Virginia list.

Full Design & Applied Arts at George Mason University Report

#8

Regent University

Virginia Beach, VA
$18,820 Average Tuition & Fees

Regent University landed the #8 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value design and applied arts programs. Located in the city of Virginia Beach, Regent is a private not-for-profit school with a large student population.

Regent undergraduate students pay an average of $18,820 in in-state tuition and fees each year.

Read full report on Design & Applied Arts at Regent University

#9

Marymount University

Arlington, VA
$35,250 Average Tuition & Fees

Marymount University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best value schools for design and applied arts students. It came in at #9 on the list. Marymount is a small private not-for-profit school located in the city of Arlington.

The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at Marymount are $35,250 a year. After completing their degree, design graduates from Marymount carry an average student debtload of $30,375.

Read full report on Design & Applied Arts at Marymount University

#10

The Art Institute of Virginia Beach

Virginia Beach, VA
$19,354 Average Tuition & Fees

The Art Institute of Virginia Beach ranked #10 on this year’s Best Value Design & Applied Arts Schools in Virginia list. Located in the large city of Virginia Beach, Ai Virginia Beach is a private for-profit college with a fairly small student population.

In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Ai Virginia Beach are $19,354 per year. While working on their degree, design majors at Ai Virginia Beach accumulate an average of around $42,822 in student debt. The average monthly payment of a loan this size is about $381, assuming that the borrower is on a 10-year repayment plan.

Full Design & Applied Arts at The Art Institute of Virginia Beach Report

Best Value Design & Applied Arts Colleges in the Southeast Region

Explore all the Best Value Design & Applied Arts Schools in the Southeast Area or other specific states within that region.

State Degrees Awarded
Georgia 1,446
North Carolina 944
Florida 1,128
Tennessee 296
Kentucky 84
South Carolina 316
Louisiana 84
Arkansas 228
Alabama 246
Mississippi 81
West Virginia 114

Design & Applied Arts is one of 10 different types of programs to choose from.

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 10 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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