2023 Best Value Visual & Performing Arts Schools in the Southwest Region
Identifying Quality Schools at More Affordable Prices
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.
There are lots of options to pick from today when trying to decide which program is right for you. As online education oppotunities continue to grow, you're not restricted to just schools in your local area anymore. Even some of the 'big name' schools are offering online courses. Also, there are a number of trade schools with offerings that you might find attractive.
The Best Value Visual & Performing Arts Schools in the Southwest Region ranking is one of many tools that Course Advisor has developed to help you make your educational decision. Our analysis looked at 55 schools in the Southwest Region 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. More specifically, we discount our quality score by the published tuition and fees charged by a school. This gives the cost per unit of quality for each college. The value is determined by how much quality your dollar buys.
Our calculations use out-of-state tuition and fees in our nationwide and regional rankings. Average in-state tuition and fees are used for our statewide rankings.
Top 10 Best Visual & Performing Arts Schools
Our analysis found Collin County Community College District to be the best value school for visual and performing arts students who want to pursue a degree in the Southwest Region . Located in the midsize suburb of McKinney, Collin County Community College District is a public college with a very large student population.
Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Collin County Community College District are $5,104 per year.
Collin County Community College District excels when it comes to quality. It’s ranked in the top 10% of all schools on our Best Visual & Performing Arts Schools in the Southwest Region list.
Read full report on Visual & Performing Arts at Collin County Community College District
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The excellent programs at Scottsdale Community College helped the school earn the #2 place on this year’s ranking of the best visual and performing arts schools in the Southwest Region . Scottsdale Community College is a moderately-sized public school located in the rural area of Scottsdale.
Scottsdale Community College undergraduate students pay an average of $7,854 in tuition and fees each year. The average amount in student loans that visual and performing arts majors at Scottsdale Community College take out is $11,594.
As a testament to the quality of education it offers, Scottsdale Community College also is in the top 20% of our Best Visual & Performing Arts Schools in the Southwest Region ranking.
Read full report on Visual & Performing Arts at Scottsdale Community College
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You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend El Centro College. It ranked #3 on our 2023 Best Value Visual & Performing Arts Schools in the Southwest Region list. El Centro College is a very large public school located in the city of Dallas.
Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at El Centro College are $6,000 per year. The average amount in student loans that visual and performing arts majors at El Centro College take out is $13,783.
El Centro College also claimed a spot on our Best Visual & Performing Arts Schools in the Southwest Region list. It’s in the top 5% of all schools in this category.
Full Visual & Performing Arts at El Centro College Report
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The excellent programs at West Texas A&M University helped the school earn the #4 place on this year’s ranking of the best visual and performing arts schools in the Southwest Region . Located in the fringe town of Canyon, West Texas A&M University is a public college with a medium-sized student population.
Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at West Texas A&M University are $11,208 per year. The average amount in student loans that visual and performing arts majors at West Texas A&M University take out is $21,825.
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A rank of #5 on this year’s list means Institute of American Indian and Alaska Native Culture and Arts Development is a great value for visual and performing arts students. Institute of American Indian Arts is a small public school located in the rural area of Santa Fe.
Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Institute of American Indian Arts are $5,321 per year.
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Austin Community College District landed the #6 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value visual and performing arts programs. Austin Community College District is a very large public school located in the large city of Austin.
Austin Community College District undergraduate students pay an average of $10,590 in tuition and fees each year. After completing their degree, visual and performing arts graduates from Austin Community College District carry an average student debtload of $14,840.
On top of its placing in our value ranking, Austin Community College District also did well on our Best Visual & Performing Arts Schools in the Southwest Region list. It’s in the top 15% of all schools reviewed in this analysis.
Full Visual & Performing Arts at Austin Community College District Report
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With a ranking of #7, Arizona State University - Skysong did quite well on this year’s best value schools for visual and performing arts students. Located in the medium-sized city of Scottsdale, ASU - Skysong is a public college with a fairly large student population.
Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at ASU - Skysong are $13,092 per year. On average, visual and performing arts graduates from ASU - Skysong take out $23,686 in student loans while working on their degree. For students who choose a 10-year repayment plan, the average monthly student loan payment is $287.
As a testament to the quality of education it offers, ASU - Skysong also is in the top 10% of our Best Visual & Performing Arts Schools in the Southwest Region ranking.
Full Visual & Performing Arts at Arizona State University - Skysong Report
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Sessions College for Professional Design came in at #8 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Visual & Performing Arts Schools in the Southwest Region ranking. Sessions College is a fairly small private for-profit school located in the medium-sized city of Tempe.
The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at Sessions College are $12,440 a year. Visual & Performing Arts majors at Sessions College take out an average of $19,864 in student loans while working on their egree.
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Texas Woman’s University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best value schools for visual and performing arts students. It came in at #9 on the list. TWU is a fairly large public school located in the city of Denton.
The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at TWU are $18,186 a year. On average, visual and performing arts graduates from TWU take out $24,837 in student loans while working on their degree.
Read full report on Visual & Performing Arts at Texas Woman’s University
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Texas A&M University - Commerce came in at #10 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Visual & Performing Arts Schools in the Southwest Region ranking. Texas A&M Commerce is a large public school located in the distant town of Commerce.
Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Texas A&M Commerce are $22,266 per year. On average, visual and performing arts graduates from Texas A&M Commerce take out $27,236 in student loans while working on their degree. For students who choose a 10-year repayment plan, the average monthly student loan payment is $192.
Full Visual & Performing Arts at Texas A&M University - Commerce Report
Request InformationBest Visual & Performing Arts Colleges by State
Explore the best visual and performing arts schools for a specific state in the Southwest region.
| State | Degrees Awarded |
|---|---|
| Arizona | 2,294 |
| Texas | 7,696 |
| New Mexico | 493 |
| Oklahoma | 1,205 |
More Visual & Performing Arts Rankings in the Southwest Region
Visual & Performing Arts Related Majors for 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 |
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 25 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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