2023 Best Visual & Performing Arts Schools in the Great Lakes Region
Finding the Best Visual & Performing Arts School for You
In 2020-2021, 149,215 visual and performing arts students received a degree or certificate, making the major the #10 most popular in the country.
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 Schools in the Great Lakes Region to help you in your search for the best school for you. This report analyzed 93 schools in the Great Lakes Region to see which ones offered the best programs for students.
View our full ranking methodology.
2023 Best Visual & Performing Arts Schools in the Great Lakes Region
The colleges and universities below are the best for visual and performing arts majors pursuing a .
Top 15% Best Visual & Performing Arts Schools
Our analysis found University of Notre Dame to be the best school for visual and performing arts students who want to pursue a degree in the Great Lakes Region . Located in the suburb of Notre Dame, Notre Dame is a private not-for-profit school with a fairly large student population.
The average amount in student loans that visual and performing arts majors at Notre Dame take out is $19,625.
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You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Madison Area Technical College. It ranked #2 on our 2023 Best Visual & Performing Arts Schools in the Great Lakes Region list. Madison College is a fairly large public school located in the large city of Madison.
The average amount in student loans that visual and performing arts majors at Madison College take out is $14,374.
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You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Northwestern University. It ranked #3 on our 2023 Best Visual & Performing Arts Schools in the Great Lakes Region list. Located in the city of Evanston, Northwestern is a private not-for-profit college with a very large student population.
The average amount in student loans that visual and performing arts majors at Northwestern take out is $17,079. When it comes time to repay the loan, graduates who are on a 10-year repayment plan pay an average monthly payment of $431.
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You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Michigan State University. It ranked #4 on our 2023 Best Visual & Performing Arts Schools in the Great Lakes Region list. Michigan State is a very large public school located in the small city of East Lansing.
Visual & Performing Arts majors at Michigan State take out an average of $28,422 in student loans while working on their egree. The average monthly payment of a loan this size is about $389, assuming that the borrower is on a 10-year repayment plan.
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A rank of #5 on this year’s list means University of Wisconsin - Madison is a great place for visual and performing arts students. Located in the large city of Madison, UW - Madison is a public college with a very large student population.
On average, visual and performing arts graduates from UW - Madison take out $21,365 in student loans while working on their degree.
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With a ranking of #6, University of Evansville did quite well on this year’s best schools for visual and performing arts students. UE is a small private not-for-profit school located in the midsize city of Evansville.
On average, visual and performing arts graduates from UE take out $23,970 in student loans while working on their degree.
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Purdue University - Main Campus landed the #7 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best visual and performing arts programs. Located in the city of West Lafayette, Purdue is a public college with a very large student population.
While working on their degree, visual and performing arts majors at Purdue accumulate an average of around $23,266 in student debt. This translates to an average monthly loan payment of $329, based on a 10-year repayment plan.
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University of Michigan - Ann Arbor ranked #8 on this year’s Best Visual & Performing Arts Schools in the Great Lakes Region list. Located in the city of Ann Arbor, U-M is a public college with a very large student population.
Visual & Performing Arts majors at U-M take out an average of $18,520 in student loans while working on their egree. This translates to an average monthly loan payment of $354, based on a 10-year repayment plan.
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University of Wisconsin - Eau Claire landed the #9 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best visual and performing arts programs. Located in the city of Eau Claire, UW - Eau Claire is a public college with a large student population.
On average, visual and performing arts graduates from UW - Eau Claire take out $25,656 in student loans while working on their degree.
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Eastern Illinois University came in at #10 in this year’s edition of the Best Visual & Performing Arts Schools in the Great Lakes Region ranking. Located in the town of Charleston, EIU is a public college with a moderately-sized student population.
While working on their degree, visual and performing arts majors at EIU accumulate an average of around $25,868 in student debt.
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University of Wisconsin - Stout landed the #11 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best visual and performing arts programs. UW - Stout is a medium-sized public school located in the town of Menomonie.
On average, visual and performing arts graduates from UW - Stout take out $29,166 in student loans while working on their degree. The average monthly payment of a loan this size is about $131, assuming that the borrower is on a 10-year repayment plan.
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With a ranking of #12, DePauw University did quite well on this year’s best schools for visual and performing arts students. Located in the town of Greencastle, DePauw is a private not-for-profit school with a small student population.
On average, visual and performing arts graduates from DePauw take out $26,500 in student loans while working on their degree.
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Wheaton College Illinois came in at #13 in this year’s edition of the Best Visual & Performing Arts Schools in the Great Lakes Region ranking. Wheaton College Illinois is a small private not-for-profit school located in the large suburb of Wheaton.
After completing their degree, visual and performing arts graduates from Wheaton College Illinois carry an average student debtload of $25,153.
Full Visual & Performing Arts at Wheaton College Illinois Report
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Here are some additional great schools for Visual & Performing Arts students in the Great Lakes Region that almost earned our Best Visual & Performing Arts Schools in the Great Lakes Region award.
| Rank | College | Location |
|---|---|---|
| 14 | University of Wisconsin - Whitewater | Whitewater, WI |
| 15 | University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign | Champaign, IL |
| 16 | College for Creative Studies | Detroit, MI |
| 17 | Illinois State University | Normal, IL |
| 18 | University of Wisconsin - Stevens Point | Stevens Point, WI |
Best Visual & Performing Arts Colleges by State
Explore the best visual and performing arts colleges for a specific state in the Great Lakes region.
| State | Degrees Awarded |
|---|---|
| Indiana | 2,306 |
| Michigan | 3,433 |
| Ohio | 4,641 |
| Illinois | 5,502 |
| Wisconsin | 2,248 |
More Visual & Performing Arts Rankings in the Great Lakes Region
Rankings in Majors Related to Visual & Performing Arts
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 |
Most Popular Related Majors
| 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 25 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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