by our College Data Analytics Team
Students have lots of options to chooose from today when trying to decide which college to attend. At College Factual, we’re committed to helping you make that decision by providing information such as that found in our “Most Well Attended Graphic Design Major” ranking.
In 2020-2021, 8,710 people earned their degree in graphic design, making the major the 107th most popular in the United States.
This year’s “Most Well Attended Graphic Design Major” ranking analyzed 553 colleges that offered a degree in graphic design. To top this list, a school must have a successful graphic design program that graduates more students in the field than other colleges that offer the same major.
Check out our ranking methodology for more information.
Since the program you select can have a significant impact on your future, we’ve developed a number of rankings, including this “Most Well Attended Graphic Design Major” list, to help you choose the best school for you.
To further help you make the college decision, we’ve developed a unique tool called College Combat that allows you to compare schools based on the factors that matter the most to you. Go ahead and give it a try, or bookmark the link so you can check it out later.
The following schools top our list of the Best “Most Well Attended Graphic Design Major”.
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Southern New Hampshire University. It ranked #1 on our 2023 Most Well Attended Graphic Design Major list. SNHU is a private not-for-profit institution located in Manchester, New Hampshire. The school has a large population, and it awarded 388 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Queens College. It ranked #2 on our 2023 Most Well Attended Graphic Design Major list. Queens College is a fairly large school located in Queens, New York that handed out 131 ’s graphic design degrees in 2020-2021.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 4.1%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Out of the 553 schools in the Most Well Attended Graphic Design Major that were part of this year’s ranking, California State Polytechnic University - Pomona landed the #3 spot on the list. California State Polytechnic University - Pomona is located in Pomona, California and, has a large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 113 ’s graphic design degrees to qualified students.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 2.6%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 87%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.
Read more about Graphic Design at California State Polytechnic University - Pomona
Out of the 553 schools in the Most Well Attended Graphic Design Major that were part of this year’s ranking, Liberty University landed the #4 spot on the list. Located in Lynchburg, Virginia, this large private not-for-profit school awarded 104 degrees to qualified ’s graphic design students in 2020-2021.
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Art Center College of Design. The school came in at #5 for the Most Well Attended Graphic Design Major. Located in Pasadena, California, this small private not-for-profit school awarded 99 degrees to qualified ’s graphic design students in 2020-2021.
Since the school has a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 8 to 1, those pursuing a degree will have more opportunities to interact with their professors. The low undergrad student loan default rate of 3.2% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%.
Read full report on Graphic Design at Art Center College of Design
Maryland Institute College of Art did quite well in the 2023 Most Well Attended Graphic Design Major ranking, coming in at #6. This small school is located in Baltimore, Maryland, and it awarded 95 ’s graphic design degrees in 2020-2021.
The impressive undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 8 to 1 means that students may have more opportunities to work more closely with their professors than they would at other schools. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 4.1%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Full Maryland Institute College of Art Graphic Design Report
Iowa State University did quite well in the 2023 Most Well Attended Graphic Design Major ranking, coming in at #7. Ames, Iowa is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out ’s graphic design degrees to 86 students in 2020-2021. With a freshman retention rate of 89%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 2.4%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. Portland State University ranked #8 on this year’s Most Well Attended Graphic Design Major list. Portland State University is a large school located in Portland, Oregon that handed out 83 ’s graphic design degrees in 2020-2021. The low undergrad student loan default rate of 4.7% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%. With a ranking of #9, University of Minnesota - Twin Cities did quite well on the 2023 Most Well Attended Graphic Design Major list. University of Minnesota - Twin Cities is a large school located in Minneapolis, Minnesota that handed out 75 ’s graphic design degrees in 2020-2021. The low undergrad student loan default rate of 1.7% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%. With a freshman retention rate of 93%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students. Read full report on Graphic Design at University of Minnesota - Twin Cities Pratt Institute - Main came in at #10 in this year’s edition of the Most Well Attended Graphic Design Major ranking. This medium-sized school is located in Brooklyn, New York, and it awarded 74 ’s graphic design degrees in 2020-2021. The undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 9 to 1 is a sign that students will have more opportunities to engage with their professors one-on-one. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 4.5%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. Read full report on Graphic Design at Pratt Institute - Main7
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Grand Canyon University came in at #11 in this year’s edition of the Most Well Attended Graphic Design Major ranking. Phoenix, Arizona is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The private for-profit school handed out ’s graphic design degrees to 69 students in 2020-2021.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 5.0%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Read full report on Graphic Design at Grand Canyon University
Columbia College Chicago did quite well in the 2023 Most Well Attended Graphic Design Major ranking, coming in at #11. This medium-sized school is located in Chicago, Illinois, and it awarded 69 ’s graphic design degrees in 2020-2021. Temple University came in at #13 in this year’s edition of the Most Well Attended Graphic Design Major ranking. Located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, this large public school awarded 67 degrees to qualified ’s graphic design students in 2020-2021. The low undergrad student loan default rate of 3.5% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 87%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. Oakland University ranked #14 on this year’s Most Well Attended Graphic Design Major list. Oakland is a fairly large public school situated in Rochester Hills, Michigan. It awarded 58 ’s graphic design degrees in 2020-2021. The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 3.6%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. Virginia Commonwealth University came in at #15 in this year’s edition of the Most Well Attended Graphic Design Major ranking. Located in Richmond, Virginia, this large public school handed out 56 diplomas to qualified ’s graphic design students in 2020-2021. The low undergrad student loan default rate of 2.6% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%.11
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University of Nevada - Las Vegas came in at #15 in this year’s edition of the Most Well Attended Graphic Design Major ranking. UNLV is a large public school situated in Las Vegas, Nevada. It awarded 56 ’s graphic design degrees in 2020-2021.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 4.9%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Read full report on Graphic Design at University of Nevada - Las Vegas
Bellevue University came in at #17 in this year’s edition of the Most Well Attended Graphic Design Major ranking. This fairly large school is located in Bellevue, Nebraska, and it awarded 54 ’s graphic design degrees in 2020-2021. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 3.1%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. California Baptist University landed the #18 spot on the 2023 Most Well Attended Graphic Design Major ranking. This fairly large school is located in Riverside, California, and it awarded 52 ’s graphic design degrees in 2020-2021. The low undergrad student loan default rate of 3.1% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%. With a ranking of #19, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign did quite well on the 2023 Most Well Attended Graphic Design Major list. Champaign, Illinois is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out ’s graphic design degrees to 51 students in 2020-2021. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 2.3%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 94%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. Read more about Graphic Design at University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign Boston University did quite well in the 2023 Most Well Attended Graphic Design Major ranking, coming in at #19. Located in Boston, Massachusetts, this large private not-for-profit school handed out 51 diplomas to qualified ’s graphic design students in 2020-2021. Since the school has a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 10 to 1, those pursuing a degree will have more opportunities to interact with their professors. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 92%. The low undergrad student loan default rate of 1.4% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%.17
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University of Illinois at Chicago did quite well in the 2023 Most Well Attended Graphic Design Major ranking, coming in at #21. University of Illinois at Chicago is a large school located in Chicago, Illinois that handed out 50 ’s graphic design degrees in 2020-2021.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 2.5% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%.
Northeastern University ranked #22 on this year’s Most Well Attended Graphic Design Major list. Northeastern University is a private not-for-profit institution located in Boston, Massachusetts. The school has a large population, and it awarded 49 ’s degrees in 2020-2021. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 1.5%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. With a freshman retention rate of 97%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students. Madison Area Technical College ranked #23 on this year’s Most Well Attended Graphic Design Major list. Madison Area Technical College is a fairly large public school situated in Madison, Wisconsin. It awarded 48 ’s graphic design degrees in 2020-2021. Read full report on Graphic Design at Madison Area Technical College With a ranking of #24, Los Angeles Film School did quite well on the 2023 Most Well Attended Graphic Design Major list. Located in Hollywood, California, this medium-sized private for-profit school awarded 47 diplomas to qualified ’s graphic design students in 2020-2021. With a ranking of #24, Coastal Carolina University did quite well on the 2023 Most Well Attended Graphic Design Major list. Coastal Carolina University is a fairly large public school situated in Conway, South Carolina. It awarded 47 ’s graphic design degrees in 2020-2021. Read full report on Graphic Design at Coastal Carolina University22
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Gateway Technical College ranked #24 on this year’s Most Well Attended Graphic Design Major list. This medium-sized school is located in Kenosha, Wisconsin, and it awarded 47 ’s graphic design degrees in 2020-2021.
The impressive undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 7 to 1 means that students may have more opportunities to work more closely with their professors than they would at other schools.
Read full report on Graphic Design at Gateway Technical College
Not only did these schools make the top 49 list, but they also landed in the top 15% of this year’s ranking:27
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While not in the ’top 50’, these schools make the top 15% of this year’s ranking:Rank College Location 51 Berkeley College - Woodland Park Woodland Park, NJ 51 Purchase College Purchase, NY 51 Oakland Community College Bloomfield Hills, MI 54 University of Northern Iowa Cedar Falls, IA 55 Monroe Community College Rochester, NY 55 Lesley University Cambridge, MA 55 County College of Morris Randolph, NJ 55 South Dakota State University Brookings, SD 55 SUNY New Paltz New Paltz, NY 55 Saginaw Valley State University University Center, MI 61 Santa Monica College Santa Monica, CA 61 Suffolk University Boston, MA 61 Laguna College of Art and Design Laguna Beach, CA 61 University of South Florida - Main Campus Tampa, FL 61 Saint Louis Community College Saint Louis, MO
| Rank | College | Location |
|---|---|---|
| 61 | Cuyahoga Community College District | Cleveland, OH |
| 67 | Cedarville University | Cedarville, OH |
| 67 | College of Southern Nevada | Las Vegas, NV |
| 67 | FIDM/Fashion Institute of Design & Merchandising - Los Angeles | Los Angeles, CA |
| 67 | College for Creative Studies | Detroit, MI |
| 71 | Wichita State University | Wichita, KS |
| 71 | Waukesha County Technical College | Pewaukee, WI |
| 71 | Chapman University | Orange, CA |
| 71 | Western Technical College | La Crosse, WI |
| 71 | The University of the Arts | Philadelphia, PA |
| 71 | Longwood University | Farmville, VA |
| 71 | Central Michigan University | Mount Pleasant, MI |
| 71 | Montclair State University | Montclair, NJ |
| 79 | Thomas Jefferson University | Philadelphia, PA |
| 79 | South Texas College | McAllen, TX |
| 79 | Ohio University - Athens Campus | Athens, OH |
| 79 | North Carolina State University | Raleigh, NC |
| 79 | University of Houston | Houston, TX |
| 79 | Foothill College | Los Altos Hills, CA |
| 79 | Universidad del Turabo | Gurabo, PR |
Read more about our data sources and methodologies