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Best Visual & Performing Arts Graduate Certificate Schools in California

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2023 Best Visual & Performing Arts Graduate Certificate Schools in California

7 Colleges
$42,822 Avg Salary

Finding the Best Visual & Performing Arts Graduate Certificate School for You

Visual & Performing Arts is one of the most popular subjects to study in California. With 22,397 degrees and certificates handed out in 2020-2021, it ranked 10th out of all the majors we track in the state.

With all the programs available today, it can be tough to choose which one is the best for you. You're no longer limited to schools in your local area, either, since online programs are becoming more prevalent. Or you may find the programs at a trade school to be a better alternative for you.

Along with in-depth profiles of schools and the programs they offer, Course Advisor has created the Best Visual & Performing Arts Graduate Certificate Schools in California to help you in your search for the best school for you. Our analysis looked at 7 schools in California to see which graduate certificate programs offered the best educational experiences for students. Factors related to overall quality of the school, post-graduation earnings, average student debt, and more accumulated were considered when coming up with this list.

View our full ranking methodology.

2023 Best Visual & Performing Arts Graduate Certificate Schools in California

The following schools top our list of the Best Visual & Performing Arts Graduate Certificate Colleges.

Top California Schools for a Postbaccalaureate Certificates in Visual & Performing Arts

Our analysis found American Film Institute Conservatory to be the best school for visual and performing arts students who want to pursue a graduate certificate in California. American Film Institute is a fairly small private not-for-profit school located in the city of Los Angeles.

Full Visual & Performing Arts at American Film Institute Conservatory Report

A rank of #2 on this year’s list means University of Southern California is a great place for visual and performing arts students working on their graduate certificate. USC is a fairly large private not-for-profit school located in the large city of Los Angeles.

Full Visual & Performing Arts at University of Southern California Report

Out of the 7 schools in California that were part of this year’s ranking, California State University - Long Beach landed the # 3 spot on the list. Located in the city of Long Beach, CSULB is a public school with a fairly large student population.

Full Visual & Performing Arts at California State University - Long Beach Report

#4

University of Redlands

Redlands, CA

A rank of #4 on this year’s list means University of Redlands is a great place for visual and performing arts students working on their graduate certificate. Located in the city of Redlands, University of Redlands is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population.

Read full report on Visual & Performing Arts at University of Redlands

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Laguna College of Art and Design. It ranked #5 on our 2023 Best Visual & Performing Arts Graduate Certificate Schools in California list. LCAD is a small private not-for-profit school located in the rural area of Laguna Beach.

Read full report on Visual & Performing Arts at Laguna College of Art and Design

California State University - Monterey Bay did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for visual and performing arts students to get a graduate certificate. It came in at #6 on the list. CSUMB is a medium-sized public school located in the midsize suburb of Seaside.

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San Francisco Conservatory of Music ranked #7 on this year’s Best Visual & Performing Arts Graduate Certificate Schools in California list. SFCM is a small private not-for-profit school located in the large city of San Francisco.

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Best Visual & Performing Arts Colleges in the Far Western US Region

Explore all the Best Visual & Performing Arts Schools in the Far Western US Area or other specific states within that region.

State Degrees Awarded
Washington 1,718
Oregon 1,672
Hawaii 196
Nevada 554
Alaska 60

Visual & Performing Arts Majors to Study

Major Annual Graduates
Fine & Studio Arts 37,413
Design & Applied Arts 36,301
Music 25,910
Drama & Theater Arts 17,341
Film, Video & Photographic Arts 16,778
General Visual & Performing Arts 6,355
Arts & Media Management 4,788
Dance 3,288
Other Visual Art 912
Crafts, Folk Art & Artisanry 119
Community/Environmental/Socially-Engaged Art 10

Related Major Annual Graduates
Liberal Arts / Sciences & Humanities 556,813
English Language & Literature 54,635
Foreign Languages & Linguistics 33,333
Theology & Religious Vocations 27,459
Philosophy & Religious Studies 19,993

Notes and References

*These averages are for the top 7 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).
  • Credit for the banner image above goes to Bonnielou2013.

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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