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2022 Best Value Master’s Degree Colleges for Design & Applied Arts (Income $75-$110k) in California

9 Ranked Colleges
241 Degrees Awarded
$38,900 Avg Grad Tuition & Fees*
Best Value Design Schools for a Master's in California For Those Making $75-$110k

It’s not easy to decide which college to attend when there so many options available for students. At College Factual, we’re committed to helping you make that decision by providing information such as that found in our “Best Value Design Schools for a Master’s in California For Those Making $75-$110k” ranking.

Design & Applied Arts is the 34th most popular major in the country with 36,854 degrees awarded in 2019-2020. In 2017-2018, design and applied arts graduates who were awarded their degree in 2015-2017, earned an average of $29,542 and had an average of $27,114 in loans still to pay off.

Across California, there were 4,692 design and applied arts graduates with average earnings and debt of $30,196 and $27,472 respectively. At the master’s degree level specifically, there were 241 design and applied arts graduates with average earnings and debt of $60,281 and $50,119 respectively.

This year’s “Best Value Design Schools for a Master’s in California For Those Making $75-$110k” ranking looked at 9 colleges that offer degrees in a bachelor’s in design and applied arts. The schools that top this list are recognized because they have great design and applied arts programs and cost less that schools of similar quality.

To come up with these rankings, we looked at factors such as the cost to attend the school after aid is awarded and overall quality of the design and applied arts program at the school. Check out our ranking methodology for more information.

More Ways to Rank Design & Applied Arts Schools

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 Design Schools for a Master’s in California For Those Making $75-$110k” list to help you make the college decision.

We’ve created a tool called College Combat that lets you create your own customized comparisons based on the factors that matter the most to you. Test it out by comparing your favorite schools against others you are considering, or bookmark the tool so you can experiment with it later.

Best Value Design Schools for a Master’s in California For Those Making $75-$110k

The colleges and universities below are the best for california master’s degree design students whose families make $75-$110k.

Top 9 Best Value Master’s Degree Colleges for Design & Applied Arts (Income $75-$110k) in California

#1

University of California - Los Angeles

Los Angeles, California
#3 in overall quality

Out of the 9 schools in the Best Value Design Schools for a Master’s in California For Those Making $75-$110k that were part of this year’s ranking, University of California - Los Angeles landed the #1 spot on the list. University of California - Los Angeles is a public institution located in Los Angeles, California. The school has a large population, and it awarded 9 masters’s degrees in 2019-2020.

UCLA did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #3 on our “Best Design & Applied Arts Master’s Degree Schools in California” list. Although you might pay more or less depending on your area of study, average graduate tuition and fees at UCLA are $28,131.

Read more about Design & Applied Arts at UCLA

#2

San Francisco State University

San Francisco, California
#8 in overall quality

Out of the 9 schools in the Best Value Design Schools for a Master’s in California For Those Making $75-$110k that were part of this year’s ranking, San Francisco State University landed the #2 spot on the list. San Francisco, California is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out masters’s design degrees to 3 students in 2019-2020.

SFSU did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #8 on our “Best Design & Applied Arts Master’s Degree Schools in California” list. Average graduate tuition and fees at SFSU are $17,944, but some majors have different tuition rates.

Read full report on Design & Applied Arts at SFSU

#3

University of Southern California

Los Angeles, California

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend University of Southern California. The school came in at #3 for the Best Value Design Schools for a Master’s in California For Those Making $75-$110k. University of Southern California is a large school located in Los Angeles, California that handed out 25 masters’s design degrees in 2019-2020.

USC also made our “Best Design & Applied Arts Master’s Degree Schools in California” list, coming in at #1. Average graduate tuition and fees at USC are $48,715, but you may pay more or less depending on your major.

Full USC Design & Applied Arts Report

#4

California College of the Arts

San Francisco, California

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend California College of the Arts. The school came in at #4 for the Best Value Design Schools for a Master’s in California For Those Making $75-$110k. Located in San Francisco, California, this small private not-for-profit school handed out 44 degrees to qualified masters’s design students in 2019-2020.

California College of the Arts did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #2 on our “Best Design & Applied Arts Master’s Degree Schools in California” list. Average graduate tuition and fees at California College of the Arts are $53,795, but you may pay more or less depending on your major.

Read more about Design & Applied Arts at California College of the Arts

#5

Laguna College of Art and Design

Laguna Beach, California
#7 in overall quality

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Laguna College of Art and Design. The school came in at #5 for the Best Value Design Schools for a Master’s in California For Those Making $75-$110k. This small school is located in Laguna Beach, California, and it awarded 9 masters’s design degrees in 2019-2020.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at LCAD, the school also landed the #7 spot in our “Best Design & Applied Arts Master’s Degree Schools in California” ranking. Average graduate tuition and fees at LCAD are $37,700, but you may pay more or less depending on your major.

Full LCAD Design & Applied Arts Report

#6

Art Center College of Design

Pasadena, California
#5 in overall quality

Art Center College of Design did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Design Schools for a Master’s in California For Those Making $75-$110k ranking, coming in at #6. Art Center College of Design is a small private not-for-profit school situated in Pasadena, California. It awarded 29 masters’s design degrees in 2019-2020.

Art Center College of Design not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #5 on our “Best Design & Applied Arts Master’s Degree Schools in California” list. Although you might pay more or less depending on your area of study, average graduate tuition and fees at Art Center College of Design are $49,090.

Full Art Center College of Design Design & Applied Arts Report

#7

Academy of Art University

San Francisco, California

Academy of Art University came in at #7 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Design Schools for a Master’s in California For Those Making $75-$110k ranking. Academy of Art University is a medium-sized private for-profit school situated in San Francisco, California. It awarded 102 masters’s design degrees in 2019-2020.

Academy of Art University did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #4 on our “Best Design & Applied Arts Master’s Degree Schools in California” list. Average graduate tuition and fees at Academy of Art University are $27,688, but some majors have different tuition rates.

Read more about Design & Applied Arts at Academy of Art University

#8

Otis College of Art and Design

Los Angeles, California
#6 in overall quality

Otis College of Art and Design did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Design Schools for a Master’s in California For Those Making $75-$110k ranking, coming in at #8. Otis College of Art and Design is a small school located in Los Angeles, California that handed out 11 masters’s design degrees in 2019-2020.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at Otis College of Art and Design, the school also landed the #6 spot in our “Best Design & Applied Arts Master’s Degree Schools in California” ranking. Average graduate tuition and fees at Otis College of Art and Design are $49,680, but some majors have different tuition rates.

Read more about Design & Applied Arts at Otis College of Art and Design

#9

New York Film Academy

Burbank, California
#9 in overall quality

With a ranking of #9, New York Film Academy did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Design Schools for a Master’s in California For Those Making $75-$110k list. Located in Burbank, California, this small private for-profit school awarded 8 degrees to qualified masters’s design students in 2019-2020.

New York Film Academy also made our “Best Design & Applied Arts Master’s Degree Schools in California” list, coming in at #9. Although you might pay more or less depending on your area of study, average graduate tuition and fees at New York Film Academy are $35,457.

Read more about Design & Applied Arts at New York Film Academy

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Notes and References

References

  • 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 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).
  • Information about the national average student loan default rate is from the U.S. Department of Education and refers to data about the 2016 borrower cohort tracking period for which the cohort default rate (CDR) was 10.1%.

Read more about our data sources and methodologies

Footnotes

  • *Average salary, average net price, and average tuition and fees are for the top schools only.
  • Some schools otherwise deserving of recognition may have been removed from this ranking in the event that new data identified post-publication warranted it, or at the request of the school.

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