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2022 Best Value Design Schools for a Bachelor’s in Washington

11 Ranked Colleges
361 Degrees Awarded
$20,200 Avg Net Price*
Best Value Design Schools for a Bachelor's in Washington

When pursuing a degree in today’s world, students have many different options to choose from. Our mission at College Factual is to arm you with as much information as we can to help you make that decision. Our “Best Value Design Schools for a Bachelor’s in Washington” ranking is one tool we have developed to help in this regard.

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 Washington, there were 684 design and applied arts graduates with average earnings and debt of $35,042 and $26,172 respectively. At the bachelor’s degree level specifically, there were 361 design and applied arts graduates with average earnings and debt of $39,202 and $21,977 respectively.

For this year’s “Best Value Design Schools for a Bachelor’s in Washington” ranking, we looked at 11 colleges that offer a degree in design and applied arts. This ranking identifies schools with high-quality design and applied arts programs that also have a lower cost than schools of similar quality.

Some of the factors we look at when determining these rankings are overall quality of the design and applied arts program at the school and the cost of the school after aid is awarded among other things. For more information, check out our ranking methodology.

One Size Does Not Fit All

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 Bachelor’s in Washington” list to help you make the college decision.

One of our other unique offerings is College Combat. This tool lets you build your own customized comparisons utilizing the factors that are most important to you. Go ahead and give it a try, or bookmark the link so you can check it out later.

Best Value Design Schools for a Bachelor’s in Washington

The following schools top our list of the Best Best Value Design Schools for a Bachelor’s in Washington.

Top 11 Best Value Bachelor’s Degree Colleges for Design & Applied Arts in Washington

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend University of Washington - Seattle Campus. The school came in at #1 for the Best Value Design Schools for a Bachelor’s in Washington. University of Washington - Seattle Campus is a large public school situated in Seattle, Washington. It awarded 44 bachelors’s design degrees in 2019-2020.

UW Seattle also made our “Best Design & Applied Arts Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Washington” list, coming in at #1. It costs about $13,297 for Washington Bachelor’s Degree Design students per year to attend University of Washington - Seattle Campus.

With a freshman retention rate of 93%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students. The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 2.2%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Read more about Design & Applied Arts at UW Seattle

#2

Western Washington University

Bellingham, Washington

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Western Washington University. The school came in at #2 for the Best Value Design Schools for a Bachelor’s in Washington. Located in Bellingham, Washington, this fairly large public school awarded 66 diplomas to qualified bachelors’s design students in 2019-2020.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at WWU, the school also landed the #2 spot in our “Best Design & Applied Arts Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Washington” ranking. It costs about $16,529 for Washington Bachelor’s Degree Design students per year to attend Western Washington University.

The low student loan default rate of 2.7% 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%.

Read more about Design & Applied Arts at WWU

#3

Washington State University

Pullman, Washington

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Washington State University. It ranked #3 on our 2022 Best Value Design Schools for a Bachelor’s in Washington list. This large school is located in Pullman, Washington, and it awarded 34 bachelors’s design degrees in 2019-2020.

Wazzu also took the #5 spot in our “Best Design & Applied Arts Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Washington” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for Wazzu is $16,358 for washington bachelor’s degree design students.

The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 4.6%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Read more about Design & Applied Arts at Washington State University

#4

Bellevue College

Bellevue, Washington

Out of the 11 schools in the Best Value Design Schools for a Bachelor’s in Washington that were part of this year’s ranking, Bellevue College landed the #4 spot on the list. Bellevue College is a fairly large public school situated in Bellevue, Washington. It awarded 36 bachelors’s design degrees in 2019-2020.

BC did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #9 on our “Best Design & Applied Arts Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Washington” list. The estimated yearly cost for Bellevue College is $7,870 for Washington Bachelor’s Degree Design students.

Full BC Design & Applied Arts Report

Out of the 11 schools in the Best Value Design Schools for a Bachelor’s in Washington that were part of this year’s ranking, Lake Washington Institute of Technology landed the #5 spot on the list. Lake Washington Institute of Technology is a small school located in Kirkland, Washington that handed out 17 bachelors’s design degrees in 2019-2020.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at LWTech, the school also landed the #10 spot in our “Best Design & Applied Arts Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Washington” ranking. It costs about $7,713 for washington bachelor’s degree design students per year to attend LWTech.

Full LWTech Design & Applied Arts Report

#6

Central Washington University

Ellensburg, Washington
#8 in overall quality

Central Washington University came in at #6 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Design Schools for a Bachelor’s in Washington ranking. Central Washington University is a fairly large school located in Ellensburg, Washington that handed out 27 bachelors’s design degrees in 2019-2020.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at CWU, the school also landed the #8 spot in our “Best Design & Applied Arts Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Washington” ranking. The yearly cost to attend CWU is $15,397 for Washington Bachelor’s Degree Design students.

Read more about Design & Applied Arts at Central Washington University

#7

Cornish College of the Arts

Seattle, Washington

Cornish College of the Arts came in at #7 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Design Schools for a Bachelor’s in Washington ranking. Cornish College of the Arts is a small school located in Seattle, Washington that handed out 33 bachelors’s design degrees in 2019-2020.

In addition to being on our washington bachelor’s degree design students list, Cornish College of the Arts has also earned the #6 rank in our “Best Design & Applied Arts Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Washington” ranking. It costs about $39,078 for Washington Bachelor’s Degree Design students per year to attend Cornish College of the Arts.

The low 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%. With a student-to-faculty ratio of 8 to 1, it’s easy to see that the school is committed to helping their undergraduates succeed.

Full Cornish College of the Arts Design & Applied Arts Report

#8

Seattle Pacific University

Seattle, Washington

With a ranking of #8, Seattle Pacific University did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Design Schools for a Bachelor’s in Washington list. Located in Seattle, Washington, this small private not-for-profit school handed out 33 degrees to qualified bachelors’s design students in 2019-2020.

In addition to being on our washington bachelor’s degree design students list, SPU has also earned the #4 rank in our “Best Design & Applied Arts Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Washington” ranking. The yearly cost to attend SPU is $26,505 for washington bachelor’s degree design students.

The low student loan default rate of 2.0% 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 more about Design & Applied Arts at Seattle Pacific University

#9

Whitworth University

Spokane, Washington
#7 in overall quality

With a ranking of #9, Whitworth University did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Design Schools for a Bachelor’s in Washington list. This small school is located in Spokane, Washington, and it awarded 8 bachelors’s design degrees in 2019-2020.

Whitworth did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #7 on our “Best Design & Applied Arts Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Washington” list. It costs about $25,557 for washington bachelor’s degree design students per year to attend Whitworth University.

The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 2.6%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Read more about Design & Applied Arts at Whitworth

#10

Seattle University

Seattle, Washington

Seattle University came in at #10 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Design Schools for a Bachelor’s in Washington ranking. Seattle University is a private not-for-profit institution located in Seattle, Washington. The school has a medium-sized population, and it awarded 32 bachelors’s degrees in 2019-2020.

Seattle U did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #3 on our “Best Design & Applied Arts Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Washington” list. The yearly cost to attend Seattle U is $34,802 for Washington Bachelor’s Degree Design students.

The student loan default rate at the school is 2.1%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. Since the school has a student-to-faculty ratio of 10 to 1, those pursuing a degree will have more opportunities to interact with their professors.

Full Seattle University Design & Applied Arts Report

#11

Northwest College of Art & Design

Poulsbo, Washington

With a ranking of #11, Northwest College of Art & Design did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Design Schools for a Bachelor’s in Washington list. This small school is located in Poulsbo, Washington, and it awarded 20 bachelors’s design degrees in 2019-2020.

In addition to being on our washington bachelor’s degree design students list, NCAD has also earned the #11 rank in our “Best Design & Applied Arts Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Washington” ranking. It costs about $19,480 for washington bachelor’s degree design students per year to attend NCAD.

The low 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%.

Read more about Design & Applied Arts at NCAD

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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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