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Best Visual & Performing Arts Schools in Virginia

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2023 Best Visual & Performing Arts Schools in Virginia

14 Colleges
$26,234 Avg Salary
$25,261 Avg Student Debt

Finding the Best Visual & Performing Arts School for You

In 2020-2021, 3,471 degrees and certificates were awarded to visual and performing arts students who went to a Virginia college or university. This makes it the #12 most popular major in the state.

It's not easy to decide which program to enroll in when you have so many options available. 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.

The Best Visual & Performing Arts Schools in Virginia ranking is one of many tools that Course Advisor has developed to help you make your educational decision. This report analyzed 14 schools in Virginia to see which ones offered the best programs for students.

View our full ranking methodology.

2023 Best Visual & Performing Arts Schools in Virginia

The colleges and universities below are the best for visual and performing arts majors pursuing a .

Top 10 Best Visual & Performing Arts Schools

#1

Virginia Tech

Blacksburg, VA

Our 2023 rankings named Virginia Tech the best school in Virginia for visual and performing arts students. Located in the city of Blacksburg, Virginia Tech is a public school with a fairly large student population.

On average, visual and performing arts graduates from Virginia Tech take out $27,133 in student loans while working on their degree.

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Out of the 14 schools in Virginia that were part of this year’s ranking, John Tyler Community College landed the # 2 spot on the list. Located in the suburb of Chester, John Tyler Community College is a public college with a moderately-sized student population.

Visual & Performing Arts majors at John Tyler Community College take out an average of $5,418 in student loans while working on their egree.

Read full report on Visual & Performing Arts at John Tyler Community College

#3

James Madison University

Harrisonburg, VA

The excellent programs at James Madison University helped the school earn the #3 place on this year’s ranking of the best visual and performing arts schools in Virginia. JMU is a fairly large public school located in the small city of Harrisonburg.

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.

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Out of the 14 schools in Virginia that were part of this year’s ranking, University of Virginia - Main Campus landed the # 4 spot on the list. Located in the suburb of Charlottesville, University of Virginia is a public college with a fairly large student population.

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

#5

Regent University

Virginia Beach, VA

Out of the 14 schools in Virginia that were part of this year’s ranking, Regent University landed the # 5 spot on the list. Regent is a fairly large private not-for-profit school located in the city of Virginia Beach.

Read full report on Visual & Performing Arts at Regent University

#6

Marymount University

Arlington, VA

Marymount University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best schools for visual and performing arts students. It came in at #6 on the list. Located in the midsize city of Arlington, Marymount is a private not-for-profit school with a small student population.

The average amount in student loans that visual and performing arts majors at Marymount take out is $30,375.

Full Visual & Performing Arts at Marymount University Report

#7

George Mason University

Fairfax, VA

George Mason University came in at #7 in this year’s edition of the Best Visual & Performing Arts Schools in Virginia ranking. Located in the suburb of Fairfax, GMU is a public college with a fairly large student population.

Visual & Performing Arts majors at GMU take out an average of $25,123 in student loans while working on their egree.

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#8

Radford University

Radford, VA

Radford University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best schools for visual and performing arts students. It came in at #8 on the list. Radford is a moderately-sized public school located in the suburb of Radford.

Visual & Performing Arts majors at Radford take out an average of $25,625 in student loans while working on their egree.

Full Visual & Performing Arts at Radford University Report

#9

Shenandoah University

Winchester, VA

With a ranking of #9, Shenandoah University did quite well on this year’s best schools for visual and performing arts students. Located in the small city of Winchester, Shenandoah is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population.

After completing their degree, visual and performing arts graduates from Shenandoah carry an average student debtload of $26,964.

Read full report on Visual & Performing Arts at Shenandoah University

Virginia Commonwealth University ranked #10 on this year’s Best Visual & Performing Arts Schools in Virginia list. Located in the medium-sized city of Richmond, VCU is a public college with a fairly large student population.

Visual & Performing Arts majors at VCU take out an average of $25,571 in student loans while working on their egree. This translates to an average monthly loan payment of $280, based on a 10-year repayment plan.

Read More…

Best Visual & Performing Arts Colleges in the Southeast Region

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

State Degrees Awarded
North Carolina 3,215
West Virginia 405
South Carolina 1,360
Florida 7,291
Arkansas 830
Mississippi 696
Tennessee 2,629
Louisiana 1,147
Alabama 1,142
Kentucky 1,067
Georgia 4,322

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 14 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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