Find Schools

Study Area & Zipcode

Most Popular Design & Applied Arts Bachelor's Degree Schools in the Plains States Region

Find Schools Near

2023 Most Popular Design & Applied Arts Bachelor's Degree Schools in the Plains States Region

84 Colleges
$33,319 Avg Salary
$28,541 Avg Student Debt

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 assist you in seeing some of the education options that are available to you, Course Advisor has created its Most Popular Design & Applied Arts Bachelor's Degree Schools in the Plains States Region ranking. Our analysis looked at 84 schools in the Plains States Region to see which bachelor's degree programs were the most popular for students. To create this ranking we looked at how many students graduated from the Design & Applied Arts program at each school on the list.

The colleges and universities below are the most popular for design majors pursuing a bachelor's degree.

Our analysis found Iowa State University to be the most popular school for design and applied arts students who want to pursue a bachelor’s degree in the Plains States Region . Iowa State is a very large public school located in the small city of Ames.

Of the 239 students majoring in design at Iowa State, 30% are male and 70% are female.

Design majors at Iowa State take out an average of $24,944 in student loans while working on their Bachelor's Degree. For students who choose a 10-year repayment plan, the average monthly student loan payment is $262.

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

A rank of #2 on this year’s list means University of Minnesota - Twin Cities is a great place for design and applied arts students working on their bachelor’s degree. Located in the city of Minneapolis, UMN Twin Cities is a public college with a fairly large student population.

Women make up 79% of the design majors at the school.

On average, design graduates from UMN Twin Cities take out $23,261 in student loans while working on their Bachelor's Degree. When it comes time to repay the loan, graduates who are on a 10-year repayment plan pay an average monthly payment of $298.

Full Design & Applied Arts at University of Minnesota - Twin Cities Report

#3

University of Kansas

Lawrence, KS

The in-demand bachelor’s degree programs at University of Kansas helped the school earn the #3 place on this year’s ranking of the most popular design and applied arts schools in the Plains States Region . Located in the small city of Lawrence, KU is a public college with a fairly large student population.

About 70% of the students majoring in design at the school are women while 30% are male.

For students who choose a 10-year repayment plan, the average monthly student loan payment is $283.

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

A rank of #4 on this year’s list means Minneapolis College of Art and Design is a great place for design and applied arts students working on their bachelor’s degree. Located in the large city of Minneapolis, MCAD is a private not-for-profit school with a small student population.

Of the 67 students majoring in design at MCAD, 30% are male and 70% are female.

After completing their Bachelor's Degree, design graduates from MCAD carry an average student debt load of $28,622. The average monthly payment of a loan this size is about $323, assuming that the borrower is on a 10-year repayment plan.

Full Design & Applied Arts at Minneapolis College of Art and Design Report

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Washington University in St Louis. It ranked #5 on our 2023 Most Popular Design & Applied Arts Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region list. Located in the large suburb of Saint Louis, WUSTL is a private not-for-profit college with a large student population.

Women make up 84% of the design majors at the school.

Read More…

#6

Bellevue University

Bellevue, NE

Bellevue University came in at #6 in this year’s edition of the Most Popular Design & Applied Arts Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region ranking. Located in the large suburb of Bellevue, Bellevue University is a private not-for-profit school with a large student population.

Women make up 65% of the design majors at the school.

After completing their Bachelor's Degree, design graduates from Bellevue University carry an average student debt load of $30,063.

Read full report on Design & Applied Arts at Bellevue University

#7

Kansas City Art Institute

Kansas City, MO

Kansas City Art Institute landed the #7 spot in the 2023 rankings for the most popular bachelor’s degree design and applied arts programs. Located in the large city of Kansas City, Kansas City Art Institute is a private not-for-profit school with a fairly small student population.

Women make up 75% of the design majors at the school.

While working on their Bachelor's Degree, design majors at Kansas City Art Institute accumulate an average of around $28,288 in student debt.

Full Design & Applied Arts at Kansas City Art Institute Report

#8

University of Northern Iowa

Cedar Falls, IA

University of Northern Iowa came in at #8 in this year’s edition of the Most Popular Design & Applied Arts Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region ranking. Located in the small city of Cedar Falls, UNI is a public school with a moderately-sized student population.

About 88% of the students majoring in design at the school are women while 12% are male.

Read More…

South Dakota State University landed the #9 spot in the 2023 rankings for the most popular bachelor’s degree design and applied arts programs. South Dakota State is a large public school located in the remote town of Brookings.

Women make up 76% of the design majors at the school.

While working on their Bachelor's Degree, design majors at South Dakota State accumulate an average of around $30,985 in student debt.

Read full report on Design & Applied Arts at South Dakota State University

University of Minnesota - Duluth ranked #10 on this year’s Most Popular Design & Applied Arts Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region list. UMN Duluth is a medium-sized public school located in the city of Duluth.

About 57% of the students majoring in design at the school are women while 43% are male.

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

With a ranking of #11, Maryville University of Saint Louis did quite well on this year’s most popular schools for design and applied arts students working on their bachelor’s degree. Maryville U is a fairly large private not-for-profit school located in the large suburb of Saint Louis.

Women make up 86% of the design majors at the school.

While working on their Bachelor's Degree, design majors at Maryville U accumulate an average of around $25,543 in student debt.

Full Design & Applied Arts at Maryville University of Saint Louis Report

University of Nebraska - Lincoln ranked #12 on this year’s Most Popular Design & Applied Arts Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region list. Located in the city of Lincoln, UNL is a public college with a fairly large student population.

Women make up 66% of the design majors at the school.

Full Design & Applied Arts at University of Nebraska - Lincoln Report

Honorable Mentions

These are some additional schools worth mentioning that are also popular but just didn't quite make the cut to earn our top Most Popular Design & Applied Arts Bachelor's Degree Schools in the Plains States Region award.

Rank College Location
13 University of Central Missouri Warrensburg, MO
14 Missouri State University - Springfield Springfield, MO
15 Webster University Saint Louis, MO
15 Wichita State University Wichita, KS

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 28 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.