When it comes to popularity, an associate degree in instructional media design sits in the middle of the road, ranking #191 out of 328 majors in the country. As such, the degree program isn't offered at every college in the United States, but there are schools that do have a program in the field that are top-notch when it comes to quality.
In 2024, College Factual analyzed 2 schools in order to identify the top ones for its Best Instructional Media Design Associate Degree Schools ranking. When you put them all together, these colleges and universities awarded 77 associate degrees in instructional media design during the 2020-2021 academic year.
One measure we use to determine the quality of a school is to look at the average salary of associate graduates during the early years of their career. This is because one of the main reasons people pursue their associate degree is to enable themselves to find better-paying positions.
Other Factors We Consider
The metrics below are just some of the other metrics that we use to determine our rankings.
Major Focus - How much a school focuses on instructional media design students vs. other majors.
Major Demand - The number of instructional media design students who choose to seek a associate degree at the school.
Educational Resources - How many resources are allocated to students. These resources may include educational expenditures per student, number of students per instructor, and graduation rate among other things.
Student Debt - How easy is it for instructional media design to pay back their student loans after receiving their associate degree.
Accreditation - Whether a school is regionally accredited and/or accredited by a recognized instructional media design related body.
Our full ranking methodology documents in more detail how we consider these factors to identify the best colleges for instructional media design students working on their associate degree.
More Ways to Rank Instructional Media Design Schools
Since the program you select can have a significant impact on your future, we've developed a number of rankings, including this Best Instructional Media Design Associate Degree Schools list, to help you choose the best school for you.
Best Schools for Associate Students to Study Instructional Media Design in the United States
Below you'll see a list of the best colleges and universities for pursuing an associate degree in instructional media design.
Top Schools for an Associate in Instructional Media
It is hard to beat Lone Star College System if you wish to pursue an associate degree in instructional media design. Located in the medium-sized city of The Woodlands, North Harris Montgomery is a public college with a very large student population.
After graduating, instructional media associate recipients typically make around $26,870 in their early careers.
The bars on the spread charts above show the distribution of the schools on this list +/- one standard deviation from the mean.
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).
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