2023 Best Visual & Performing Arts Schools in the Southeast 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 can choose a traditional brick and mortar school, or with the growth of online education, you can attend a school half-way across the country without even leaving your house. Also there are many trade schools that offer short-term programs that open up more career options.
To assist you in seeing some of the education options that are available to you, Course Advisor has created its Best Visual & Performing Arts Schools in the Southeast Region ranking. Our analysis looked at 129 schools in the Southeast Region to see which programs offered the best educational experiences for students.
View our full ranking methodology.
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2023 Best Visual & Performing Arts Schools in the Southeast 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 2023 rankings named Duke University the best school in the Southeast Region for visual and performing arts students. Located in the large city of Durham, Duke is a private not-for-profit college with a fairly large student population.
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend Emory University. The school came in at #2 on this year’s Best Visual & Performing Arts Schools in the Southeast Region list. Located in the city of Atlanta, Emory is a private not-for-profit college with a fairly large student population.
A rank of #3 on this year’s list means Virginia Tech is a great place for visual and performing arts students. Virginia Tech is a fairly large public school located in the city of Blacksburg.
On average, visual and performing arts graduates from Virginia Tech take out $27,133 in student loans while working on their degree.
The excellent programs at John Tyler Community College helped the school earn the #4 place on this year’s ranking of the best visual and performing arts schools in the Southeast Region . John Tyler Community College is a moderately-sized public school located in the suburb of Chester.
Visual & Performing Arts majors at John Tyler Community College take out an average of $5,418 in student loans while working on their egree.
Full Visual & Performing Arts at John Tyler Community College Report
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend James Madison University. The school came in at #5 on this year’s Best Visual & Performing Arts Schools in the Southeast Region list. Located in the city of Harrisonburg, JMU is a public college with a very large student population.
On average, visual and performing arts graduates from JMU take out $20,917 in student loans while working on their degree. This translates to an average monthly loan payment of $440, based on a 10-year repayment plan.
With a ranking of #6, University of Virginia - Main Campus did quite well on this year’s best schools for visual and performing arts students. University of Virginia is a fairly large public school located in the small suburb of Charlottesville.
On average, visual and performing arts graduates from University of Virginia take out $17,717 in student loans while working on their degree.
Read full report on Visual & Performing Arts at University of Virginia - Main Campus
With a ranking of #7, University of Georgia did quite well on this year’s best schools for visual and performing arts students. UGA is a fairly large public school located in the medium-sized city of Athens.
On average, visual and performing arts graduates from UGA take out $21,860 in student loans while working on their degree. The average monthly payment of a loan this size is about $241, assuming that the borrower is on a 10-year repayment plan.
Vanderbilt University came in at #8 in this year’s edition of the Best Visual & Performing Arts Schools in the Southeast Region ranking. Located in the city of Nashville, Vanderbilt is a private not-for-profit college with a fairly large student population.
On average, visual and performing arts graduates from Vanderbilt take out $19,500 in student loans while working on their degree.
Read full report on Visual & Performing Arts at Vanderbilt University
Belmont University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best schools for visual and performing arts students. It came in at #9 on the list. Located in the city of Nashville, Belmont is a private not-for-profit school with a moderately-sized student population.
The average amount in student loans that visual and performing arts majors at Belmont take out is $24,644. When it comes time to repay the loan, graduates who are on a 10-year repayment plan pay an average monthly payment of $870.
Harding University came in at #10 in this year’s edition of the Best Visual & Performing Arts Schools in the Southeast Region ranking. Harding is a small private not-for-profit school located in the distant town of Searcy.
Clemson University landed the #11 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best visual and performing arts programs. Located in the suburb of Clemson, Clemson is a public school with a very large student population.
On average, visual and performing arts graduates from Clemson take out $26,167 in student loans while working on their degree. For students who choose a 10-year repayment plan, the average monthly student loan payment is $346.
University of North Carolina School of the Arts did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best schools for visual and performing arts students. It came in at #12 on the list. Located in the midsize city of Winston-Salem, UNCSA is a public school with a small student population.
The average amount in student loans that visual and performing arts majors at UNCSA take out is $26,169. Assuming that a graduate chooses a 10-year repayment plan, the average monthly loan payment is $444.
University of Florida ranked #13 on this year’s Best Visual & Performing Arts Schools in the Southeast Region list. Located in the city of Gainesville, UF is a public college with a fairly large student population.
While working on their degree, visual and performing arts majors at UF accumulate an average of around $17,436 in student debt.
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill landed the #14 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best visual and performing arts programs. Located in the city of Chapel Hill, UNC Chapel Hill is a public school with a fairly large student population.
While working on their degree, visual and performing arts majors at UNC Chapel Hill accumulate an average of around $17,919 in student debt.
Full Visual & Performing Arts at University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Report
Auburn University ranked #15 on this year’s Best Visual & Performing Arts Schools in the Southeast Region list. Auburn is a fairly large public school located in the small city of Auburn.
After completing their degree, visual and performing arts graduates from Auburn carry an average student debtload of $25,000. For students who choose a 10-year repayment plan, the average monthly student loan payment is $618.
Read full report on Visual & Performing Arts at Auburn University
University of Arkansas landed the #16 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best visual and performing arts programs. UARK is a very large public school located in the small city of Fayetteville.
Visual & Performing Arts majors at UARK take out an average of $26,227 in student loans while working on their egree.
Read full report on Visual & Performing Arts at University of Arkansas
Valencia College ranked #17 on this year’s Best Visual & Performing Arts Schools in the Southeast Region list. Valencia College is a fairly large public school located in the city of Orlando.
While working on their degree, visual and performing arts majors at Valencia College accumulate an average of around $13,092 in student debt.
Tulane University of Louisiana did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best schools for visual and performing arts students. It came in at #18 on the list. Tulane is a large private not-for-profit school located in the city of New Orleans.
After completing their degree, visual and performing arts graduates from Tulane carry an average student debtload of $27,000.
The University of Tennessee - Chattanooga came in at #19 in this year’s edition of the Best Visual & Performing Arts Schools in the Southeast Region ranking. Located in the city of Chattanooga, UT Chattanooga is a public college with a fairly large student population.
On average, visual and performing arts graduates from UT Chattanooga take out $26,000 in student loans while working on their degree.
Full Visual & Performing Arts at The University of Tennessee - Chattanooga Report
Additional Noteworthy Schools
These are some additional schools worth mentioning that are also great but just didn't quite make the cut to earn our top Best Visual & Performing Arts Schools in the Southeast Region award.
| Rank | College | Location |
|---|---|---|
| 20 | The University of Tennessee - Knoxville | Knoxville, TN |
| 21 | North Carolina State University | Raleigh, NC |
| 22 | Florida State University | Tallahassee, FL |
| 23 | University of Central Florida | Orlando, FL |
| 24 | University of Kentucky | Lexington, KY |
| 25 | Regent University | Virginia Beach, VA |
Best Visual & Performing Arts Colleges by State
Explore the best visual and performing arts schools for a specific state in the Southeast region.
| State | Degrees Awarded |
|---|---|
| North Carolina | 3,215 |
| West Virginia | 405 |
| South Carolina | 1,360 |
| Florida | 7,291 |
| Virginia | 3,471 |
| Arkansas | 830 |
| Mississippi | 696 |
| Louisiana | 1,147 |
| Alabama | 1,142 |
| Kentucky | 1,067 |
| Georgia | 4,322 |
| Tennessee | 2,629 |
More Visual & Performing Arts Rankings in the Southeast 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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