10
Colleges
743,175
Bachelor's Degrees
$37,256
Avg Cost*
With 743,175 bachelor's degrees handed out in 2021-2022, general visual & performing arts is the #79 most popular major in California. This means that of the 5,415,716 bachelor's that were awarded in the country, 13.7% were from a college or university in the state.
This year's Best Value Bachelor's Degree Colleges for General Visual & Performing Arts in California ranking looked at 10 colleges that offer a bachelor's in visual arts. When talking about the 'best value', we do not simply mean those with the lowest price. Instead, we are looking at those visual arts schools that offer a high quality educational experience at a price lower than expected.
When calculating average cost, we take tuition, fees, room and board, books and supplies, and other related expenses into account. We then subtract the average financial aid award. The is meant to give you an idea of how much money you'll need to pay out-of-pocket through loans, external scholarships, or other methods. Your cost may be different from the average one, depending on your income and other factors.
One Size Does Not Fit All
When choosing the right school for you, it's important to arm yourself with all the facts you can. To that end, we've created a number of major-specific rankings, including this Best Value Visual Arts Schools list to help you make the college decision.
In addition to College Factual's rankings, you may want to take a look at College Combat, our unique tool that lets you pit your favorite schools head-to-head and compare how they rate on factors that most interest you.
When you have some time, check it out - you may want to bookmark the link so you don't forget it.
Check out the visual arts programs at these schools if you want to get the best value for your money.
University of California - San Diego landed the #1 spot in our 2024 rankings for best value general visual & performing arts schools. Located in the city of La Jolla, UCSD is a public college with a very large student population. UCSD also made our Best General Visual & Performing Arts Schools in California list, coming in at #2.
It takes about 4.3 years for the average student at UCSD to complete their degree, and on average, the annual cost to attend the school is $39,251. This makes the estimated cost of a bachelor’s degree from UCSD be around $168,387. When students graduate in a lesser amount of time, they can save thousands of dollars.
Full General Visual & Performing Arts at University of California - San Diego Report
California State University - San Marcos comes in at #2 in this year's ranking. Located in the suburb of San Marcos, CSUSM is a public college with a fairly large student population. CSUSM also took the #6 spot in our Best General Visual & Performing Arts Schools in California rankings.
The average student at CSUSM graduates in less than 4.9 years, and on average, the annual cost to attend the school is $24,745. Putting this cost and the average time to graduate together, we find that the average amount you’ll pay to get a bachelor’s degree from CSUSM is $121,498. When students graduate in a lesser amount of time, they can save thousands of dollars.
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California State University - Channel Islands earned the #3 spot in our 2024 rankings. CSUCI is a moderately-sized public school located in the suburb of Camarillo. As a testament to the quality of education offered at CSUCI, the school also landed the #9 rank in our Best General Visual & Performing Arts Schools in California ranking.
The average amount of time it takes for a student to receive their degree at CSUCI is 4.7 years, and it costs about $27,406 per year to attend the school. Looking at these numbers together, we estimate that the average cost of a bachelor’s degree from CSUCI is about $129,904. If you can shave even one term off your degree, you can save a substantial amount of money.
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Our rankings recognize Academy of Art University as the #4 school in this year's rankings. Located in the large city of San Francisco, Academy of Art University is a private for-profit school with a medium-sized student population. Academy of Art University not only placed well in our value rankings. It is also #4 on our Best General Visual & Performing Arts Schools in California list.
The average amount of time it takes for a student to receive their degree at Academy of Art University is 5.1 years, and the average full-time cost to attend the school is around $37,346. This makes the estimated cost of a bachelor’s degree from Academy of Art University be around $189,718. Graduating sooner can prevent you from having to pay more money out of pocket.
Full General Visual & Performing Arts at Academy of Art University Report
Columbia College Hollywood earned the #5 spot in our 2024 rankings. Located in the city of Tarzana, Columbia College Hollywood is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population.
If you can shave even one term off your degree, you can save a substantial amount of money.
Read full report on General Visual & Performing Arts at Columbia College Hollywood
The #6 spot in this year's ranking belongs to Azusa Pacific University. Azusa Pacific is a medium-sized private not-for-profit school located in the large suburb of Azusa. Azusa Pacific not only placed well in our value rankings. It is also #7 on our Best General Visual & Performing Arts Schools in California list.
At Azusa Pacific, the average time it takes a student to graduate is 4.3 years, and it costs about $31,631 per year to attend the school. This means that the average student pays around $137,279 to get a bachelor’s degree from Azusa Pacific. The sooner a student graduates, the more money they can save.
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Gnomon earned the #7 spot in our 2024 rankings. Gnomon is a fairly small private for-profit school located in the city of Hollywood.
Read full report on General Visual & Performing Arts at Gnomon
The #8 spot in this year's ranking belongs to Otis College of Art and Design. Located in the large city of Los Angeles, Otis College of Art and Design is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population. As a testament to the quality of education offered at Otis College of Art and Design, the school also landed the #3 rank in our Best General Visual & Performing Arts Schools in California ranking.
At Otis College of Art and Design, the average time it takes a student to graduate is 4.2 years, and the yearly average cost to attend the school is $49,599. When we combine these numbers, we estimate that the cost to get a bachelor’s degree from Otis College of Art and Design is $208,316. When students graduate in a lesser amount of time, they can save thousands of dollars.
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Our rankings recognize University of San Francisco as the #9 school in this year's rankings. Located in the large city of San Francisco, USFCA is a private not-for-profit college with a moderately-sized student population. In addition to being on our best value list, USFCA has also earned the #5 rank in our Best General Visual & Performing Arts Schools in California ranking.
At USFCA, the average time it takes a student to graduate is 4.1 years, and on average, the annual cost to attend the school is $47,432. Looking at these numbers together, we estimate that the average cost of a bachelor’s degree from USFCA is about $195,894. If you can shave even one term off your degree, you can save a substantial amount of money.
Read full report on General Visual & Performing Arts at University of San Francisco
University of Southern California landed the #10 spot in our 2024 rankings for best value general visual & performing arts schools. Located in the city of Los Angeles, USC is a private not-for-profit school with a fairly large student population. USC also took the #1 spot in our Best General Visual & Performing Arts Schools in California rankings.
It takes the average student at USC about 4.2 years to graduate, and the average full-time cost to attend the school is around $40,635. This makes the estimated cost of a bachelor’s degree from USC be around $169,448. When students graduate in a lesser amount of time, they can save thousands of dollars.
Read full report on General Visual & Performing Arts at University of Southern California
