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Best Value Visual & Performing Arts Schools in Colorado

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2023 Best Value Visual & Performing Arts Schools in Colorado

Highlighting Quality Schools With More Affordable Pricing

12 Colleges
$14,000 Avg Tuition & Fees*
$27,049 Avg Salary

Finding the Best Visual & Performing Arts School for You

In 2020-2021, 1,943 degrees and certificates were awarded to visual and performing arts students who went to a Colorado college or university. This makes it the #11 most popular major in the state.

Today's students have lots of options to pick from when considering higher education opportunities. 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.

Along with in-depth profiles of schools and the programs they offer, Course Advisor has created the Best Value Visual & Performing Arts Schools in Colorado to help you in your search for the best school for you. Our analysis looked at 12 schools in Colorado to see which programs offered the best value experiences for visual and performing arts students with the aim of identifying those quality schools that are more affordable than some of their counterparts.

When determining this ranking, we place a high emphasis on the school's quality as well as its sticker price. Even though a college may be affordable, it may not offer value. Specifically, our score for quality is discounted by the published tuition and fees charged by the given college. This gives the cost per unit of quality for each college. The more quality your dollar buys, the better the value.

Our calculations use out-of-state tuition and fees in our nationwide and regional rankings. For statewide rankings, we use average in-state tuition and fees.

2023 Best Value Visual & Performing Arts Schools in Colorado

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

Top 10 Best Visual & Performing Arts Schools

#1

Arapahoe Community College

Littleton, CO
$4,080 Average Tuition & Fees

Our 2023 rankings named Arapahoe Community College the best value school in Colorado for visual and performing arts students. Arapahoe Community College is a large public school located in the suburb of Littleton.

The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at Arapahoe Community College are $4,080 a year. Visual & Performing Arts majors at Arapahoe Community College take out an average of $23,985 in student loans while working on their egree.

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$3,947 Average Tuition & Fees

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Community College of Aurora. It ranked #2 on our 2023 Best Value Visual & Performing Arts Schools in Colorado list. Located in the city of Aurora, CCA is a public school with a medium-sized student population.

In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at CCA are $3,947 per year.

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$9,384 Average Tuition & Fees

A rank of #3 on this year’s list means University of Colorado Denver/Anschutz Medical Campus is a great value for visual and performing arts students. Located in the large city of Denver, CU Anschutz is a public school with a very large student population.

CU Anschutz undergraduate students pay an average of $9,384 in in-state tuition and fees each year. On average, visual and performing arts graduates from CU Anschutz take out $25,837 in student loans while working on their degree. Assuming that a graduate chooses a 10-year repayment plan, the average monthly loan payment is $267.

In addition to its great value ranking, CU Anschutz is in the top 20% of all schools on our Best Visual & Performing Arts Schools in Colorado list.

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$12,188 Average Tuition & Fees

The excellent programs at Colorado State University - Fort Collins helped the school earn the #4 place on this year’s ranking of the best visual and performing arts schools in Colorado. Colorado State is a very large public school located in the midsize city of Fort Collins.

Colorado State undergraduate students pay an average of $12,188 in in-state tuition and fees each year. On average, visual and performing arts graduates from Colorado State take out $25,232 in student loans while working on their degree. For students who choose a 10-year repayment plan, the average monthly student loan payment is $467.

Colorado State did well in our overall quality rankings, too. It placed #3 on our Best Visual & Performing Arts Schools in Colorado list.

Full Visual & Performing Arts at Colorado State University - Fort Collins Report

$10,666 Average Tuition & Fees

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend University of Northern Colorado. The school came in at #5 on this year’s Best Value Visual & Performing Arts Schools in Colorado list. University of Northern Colorado is a large public school located in the midsize city of Greeley.

The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at University of Northern Colorado are $10,666 a year. While working on their degree, visual and performing arts majors at University of Northern Colorado accumulate an average of around $24,382 in student debt. For students who choose a 10-year repayment plan, the average monthly student loan payment is $349.

Full Visual & Performing Arts at University of Northern Colorado Report

#6

Fort Lewis College

Durango, CO
$9,004 Average Tuition & Fees

Fort Lewis College came in at #6 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Visual & Performing Arts Schools in Colorado ranking. FLC is a small public school located in the distant town of Durango.

FLC undergraduate students pay an average of $9,004 in in-state tuition and fees each year. On average, visual and performing arts graduates from FLC take out $17,881 in student loans while working on their degree.

Full Visual & Performing Arts at Fort Lewis College Report

$12,610 Average Tuition & Fees

University of Colorado Boulder did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best value schools for visual and performing arts students. It came in at #7 on the list. Located in the midsize city of Boulder, CU - Boulder is a public college with a very large student population.

CU - Boulder undergraduate students pay an average of $12,610 in in-state tuition and fees each year. On average, visual and performing arts graduates from CU - Boulder take out $20,437 in student loans while working on their degree.

CU - Boulder also made our Best Visual & Performing Arts Schools in Colorado list, coming in at #5.

Full Visual & Performing Arts at University of Colorado Boulder Report

#8

Colorado Mesa University

Grand Junction, CO
$9,000 Average Tuition & Fees

Colorado Mesa University landed the #8 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value visual and performing arts programs. Colorado Mesa is a moderately-sized public school located in the city of Grand Junction.

In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Colorado Mesa are $9,000 per year. Visual & Performing Arts majors at Colorado Mesa take out an average of $28,244 in student loans while working on their egree.

Full Visual & Performing Arts at Colorado Mesa University Report

$10,021 Average Tuition & Fees

Metropolitan State University of Denver came in at #9 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Visual & Performing Arts Schools in Colorado ranking. Located in the city of Denver, MSU Denver is a public school with a fairly large student population.

The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at MSU Denver are $10,021 a year. While working on their degree, visual and performing arts majors at MSU Denver accumulate an average of around $27,681 in student debt.

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$10,662 Average Tuition & Fees

Western Colorado University ranked #10 on this year’s Best Value Visual & Performing Arts Schools in Colorado list. Located in the town of Gunnison, Western is a public school with a small student population.

Western undergraduate students pay an average of $10,662 in in-state tuition and fees each year.

Full Visual & Performing Arts at Western Colorado University Report

Best Value Visual & Performing Arts Colleges in the Rocky Mountains Region

Explore all the Best Value Visual & Performing Arts Colleges in the Rocky Mountains Area or other specific states within that region.

State Degrees Awarded
Utah 1,871
Montana 318
Idaho 591
Wyoming 179

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

Majors Similar to Visual & Performing Arts

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 12 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).
  • Credit for the banner image above goes to Bonnielou2013.

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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