by our College Data Analytics TeamSchool of the Art Institute of Chicago is a private not-for-profit institution in Chicago, Illinois enrolling 2,805 undergraduates. It accepts 78% of applicants and has an on-time graduation rate of 67%, above the national average of 33%. College Factual ranks it #1,515 of 5,159 colleges nationwide in its 2027 Best Colleges ranking (top 29%), and its Value for Your Money analysis rates it a Fair Price.
Source: IPEDS 2025; College Scorecard July 2026; College Factual rankings 2027. Data as of: July 2026.
School of the Art Institute of Chicago ranks #1,515 of 5,159 colleges nationwide in College Factual’s 2027 Best Colleges ranking, placing it in the top 29%.
College Factual recognizes the best colleges and universities in its annual rankings. These rankings include categories for best overall colleges, best colleges for each major, best value schools, and much more.
According to College Factual’s 2027 analysis, School of the Art Institute of Chicago is ranked #1,515 out of 5,159 schools in the nation that were analyzed for overall quality.
School of the Art Institute of Chicago also holds the #81 spot on the Best Colleges in Illinois ranking.
See all of the rankings for School of the Art Institute of Chicago.
School of the Art Institute of Chicago has an acceptance rate of 78%, which makes it somewhat selective. Make sure it’s not the only school you apply to, even if it’s your school of choice. Whether you get in or not will largely depend on how you compare to other applicants.
Learn more about School of the Art Institute of Chicago admissions.
At School of the Art Institute of Chicago, the student to faculty ratio is an excellent 10 to 1. That’s much better than the national average of 15 to 1. This indicates that many classes will probably be small, and students will have ample opportunities to work closely with their professors and classmates.
In addition to the student to faculty ratio, some people look at what percentage of faculty members are full-time as a sign of how much time professors will be able to spend with their students. This is because part-time teachers may not be on campus as much as their full-time counterparts.
The full-time faculty percentage at School of the Art Institute of Chicago is 22%. This is lower than the national average of 47%.
The freshmen retention rate of 84% tells us that most first-year, full-time students like School of the Art Institute of Chicago enough to come back for another year. This is a fair bit higher than the national average of 68%. That’s certainly something to check off in the good column about the school.
Students are considered to have graduated on time if they finish their studies within four years. At School of the Art Institute of Chicago the on-time graduation rate of first-time, full-time students is 67%. That is great when compared to the national average of 33.3%.
Find out more about the retention and graduation rates at School of the Art Institute of Chicago.
The current enrollment includes 2,805 undergraduates at School of the Art Institute of Chicago.
Get more detailed information on the diversity at School of the Art Institute of Chicago.
The overall average net price of School of the Art Institute of Chicago is $17,140. The affordability of the school largely depends on your financial need since net price varies by income group. See the table below for the net price for different income groups.
| $0-30 K | $30K-48K | $48-75 | $75-110K | $110K + |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| $43,798 | $39,845 | $46,708 | $49,595 | $55,790 |
The net price is calculated by adding tuition, room, board and other costs and subtracting financial aid. Note that the net price is typically less than the published price for a school. For more information on the sticker price of School of the Art Institute of Chicago, see our tuition and fees and room and board pages.
It’s not uncommon for college students to take out loans to pay for school. In fact, almost 66% of students nationwide depend at least partially on loans. At School of the Art Institute of Chicago, approximately 37% of students took out student loans averaging $7,023 a year. That adds up to $28,092 over four years for those students. The student loan default rate is 6.9%. Although this is lower than the national default rate of 10.1%, you’ll still want to keep this in mind when taking out student loans. Get more details about paying for School of the Art Institute of Chicago.
The pay for some majors is higher than others, but on average, students who graduate with a bachelor’s degree from School of the Art Institute of Chicago make about $40,151 a year during their first few years of employment after graduation. Unfortunately, this is 18% less than the average college graduate’s salary of $49,219 per year. However, graduates in your major field may make more.
See which majors at School of the Art Institute of Chicago make the most money.
School of the Art Institute of Chicago is an private not-for-profit institution located in Chicago, Illinois. Chicago is a great location for students who prefer city over country life. Get more details about the location of School of the Art Institute of Chicago.
Contact details for School of the Art Institute of Chicago are listed below.
| Contact Details | |
|---|---|
| Address: | 36 S Wabash, Chicago, IL 60603 |
| Phone: | 3126296118 |
| Website: | www.saic.edu |
| Facebook: | www.facebook.com/saic.events |
| Twitter: | twitter.com/saic_news |
During the most recent year for which we have data, students from 7 majors graduated from School of the Art Institute of Chicago. The following table lists the most popular undergraduate majors along with the average salary graduates from those majors make.
| Most Popular Majors | Completions | Average Salary of Graduates |
|---|---|---|
| Multi-Disciplinary Studies | 902 | NA |
| Fine & Studio Arts | 802 | $25,214 |
| Writing Studies | 29 | $27,550 |
| Rehabilitation Professions | 17 | $42,246 |
| Teacher Education Subject Specific | 15 | $38,461 |
| Arts & Media Management | 12 | NA |
| General Visual & Performing Arts | 11 | NA |
| Architectural Sciences | 9 | NA |
| Design & Applied Arts | 5 | NA |
| Historic Preservation | 2 | NA |
380 students took at least one online class at School of the Art Institute of Chicago.
Online learning is becoming popular at even the oldest colleges and universities in the United States. Not only are online classes great for returning adults with busy schedules, they are also frequented by a growing number of traditional students.
Learn more about online learning at School of the Art Institute of Chicago.
Curious how schools stack up against School of the Art Institute of Chicago? Pit them head to head with College Combat, our free interactive tool that lets you compare colleges on the features that matter most to you.
Footnotes
*The racial-ethnic minorities count is calculated by taking the total number of students and subtracting white students, international students, and students whose race/ethnicity was unknown. This number is then divided by the total number of students at the school to obtain the racial-ethnic minorities percentage.
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