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

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

Students have lots of options to chooose from today when trying to decide which college to attend. College Factual was founded, in part, to help students make the decision as to what would be the best school for them. Our “Best Vallue Design Schools for a Master’s in California For Those Making Over $110k” ranking is part of that endeavor.

In 2019-2020, 36,854 people earned their degree in design and applied arts, making the major the 34th most popular in the United States. 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.

For this year’s “Best Vallue Design Schools for a Master’s in California For Those Making Over $110k” ranking, we looked at 9 colleges that offer a degree in design and applied arts. Not only do the schools that top this list have excellent design and applied arts programs, but they also 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. See our ranking methodology to learn more.

More Ways to Rank Design & Applied Arts Schools

The design school you choose to invest your time and money in matters. To help you make the decision that is right for you, we’ve developed a number of major-specific rankings, including this list of “Best Vallue Design Schools for a Master’s in California For Those Making Over $110k”.

In addition to our rankings, you can take two colleges and compare them based on the criteria that matters most to you in our unique tool, College Combat. If you’re torn between two schools, you can use it to help you see how they stack up against one another. Bookmark it so you can compare any new schools that might interest you.

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Best Vallue Design Schools for a Master’s in California For Those Making Over $110k

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

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

#1

University of California - Los Angeles

Los Angeles, California
#3 in overall quality

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend University of California - Los Angeles. The school came in at #1 for the Best Vallue Design Schools for a Master’s in California For Those Making Over $110k. UCLA is a large school located in Los Angeles, California that handed out 9 masters’s design degrees in 2019-2020.

UCLA also made our “Best Design & Applied Arts Master’s Degree Schools in California” list, coming in at #3. Average graduate tuition and fees at University of California - Los Angeles are $28,131, but you may pay more or less depending on your major.

Full UCLA Design & Applied Arts Report

#2

San Francisco State University

San Francisco, California
#8 in overall quality

Out of the 9 schools in the Best Vallue Design Schools for a Master’s in California For Those Making Over $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 not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #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 you may pay more or less depending on your major.

Read more about Design & Applied Arts at SFSU

#3

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 #3 for the Best Vallue Design Schools for a Master’s in California For Those Making Over $110k. LCAD is a small private not-for-profit school situated in Laguna Beach, California. It awarded 9 masters’s design degrees in 2019-2020.

LCAD did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #7 on our “Best Design & Applied Arts Master’s Degree Schools in California” list. Average graduate tuition and fees at LCAD are $37,700, but you may pay more or less depending on your major.

Read full report on Design & Applied Arts at LCAD

#4

California College of the Arts

San Francisco, California

Out of the 9 schools in the Best Vallue Design Schools for a Master’s in California For Those Making Over $110k that were part of this year’s ranking, California College of the Arts landed the #4 spot on the list. California College of the Arts is located in San Francisco, California and, has a small student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 44 masters’s design degrees to qualified students.

California College of the Arts also took the #2 spot in our “Best Design & Applied Arts Master’s Degree Schools in California” ranking. Although you might pay more or less depending on your area of study, average graduate tuition and fees at California College of the Arts are $53,795.

Read full report on Design & Applied Arts at California College of the Arts

#5

Academy of Art University

San Francisco, California

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Academy of Art University. The school came in at #5 for the Best Vallue Design Schools for a Master’s in California For Those Making Over $110k. Located in San Francisco, California, this medium-sized private for-profit school handed out 102 diplomas to qualified masters’s design students 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 full report on Design & Applied Arts at Academy of Art University

#6

University of Southern California

Los Angeles, California

University of Southern California ranked #6 on this year’s Best Vallue Design Schools for a Master’s in California For Those Making Over $110k list. USC is a large private not-for-profit school situated in Los Angeles, California. It awarded 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 some majors have different tuition rates.

Read more about Design & Applied Arts at USC

#7

Art Center College of Design

Pasadena, California
#5 in overall quality

Art Center College of Design landed the #7 spot on the 2022 Best Vallue Design Schools for a Master’s in California For Those Making Over $110k ranking. Pasadena, California is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out masters’s design degrees to 29 students in 2019-2020.

Art Center College of Design also made our “Best Design & Applied Arts Master’s Degree Schools in California” list, coming in at #5. Average graduate tuition and fees at Art Center College of Design are $49,090, but you may pay more or less depending on your major.

Read more about Design & Applied Arts at Art Center College of Design

#8

Otis College of Art and Design

Los Angeles, California
#6 in overall quality

Otis College of Art and Design landed the #8 spot on the 2022 Best Vallue Design Schools for a Master’s in California For Those Making Over $110k ranking. Otis College of Art and Design is a private not-for-profit institution located in Los Angeles, California. The school has a small population, and it awarded 11 masters’s degrees in 2019-2020.

In addition to being on our california master’s degree design students whose families make more than $110k list, Otis College of Art and Design has also earned the #6 rank 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 you may pay more or less depending on your major.

Full Otis College of Art and Design Design & Applied Arts Report

#9

New York Film Academy

Burbank, California
#9 in overall quality

New York Film Academy came in at #9 in this year’s edition of the Best Vallue Design Schools for a Master’s in California For Those Making Over $110k ranking. New York Film Academy is a private for-profit institution located in Burbank, California. The school has a small population, and it awarded 8 masters’s degrees in 2019-2020.

New York Film Academy not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #9 on our “Best Design & Applied Arts Master’s Degree Schools in California” list. Average graduate tuition and fees at New York Film Academy are $35,457, but you may pay more or less depending on your major.

Full New York Film Academy Design & Applied Arts Report

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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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