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2022 Best Value Master’s Degree Colleges for Design & Applied Arts in the Far Western US Region

11 Ranked Colleges
285 Degrees Awarded
$38,900 Avg Grad Tuition & Fees*
Best Value Design Schools for a Master's in the Far Western US Region

When pursuing a degree in today’s world, students have many different options to choose from. 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 the Far Western US Region” ranking.

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 the Far Western US region, there were 6,083 design and applied arts graduates with average earnings and debt of $30,399 and $27,675 respectively. At the master’s degree level specifically, there were 285 design and applied arts graduates with average earnings and debt of $59,319 and $48,880 respectively.

For this year’s “Best Value Design Schools for a Master’s in the Far Western US Region” 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.

When determining these rankings, we looked at things such as overall quality of the design and applied arts program at the school and the cost to attend the school once aid has been awarded. For more information, check out our ranking methodology.

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 the Far Western US Region” list to help you make the college decision.

In addition to College Factual’s rankings, you may want to take a look at College Combat, our unique tool that lets you pit your favorite schools head-to-head and compare how they rate on factors that most interest you. Test it out when you get a chance! You may also want to bookmark the link and share it with others who are trying to make the college decision.

Best Value Design Schools for a Master’s in the Far Western US Region

The colleges and universities below are the best for far western us region master’s degree design students.

Top 11 Best Value Master’s Degree Colleges for Design & Applied Arts in the Far Western US Region

#4 in overall quality

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of Washington - Seattle Campus. It ranked #1 on our 2022 Best Value Design Schools for a Master’s in the Far Western US Region list. University of Washington - Seattle Campus is a large school located in Seattle, Washington that handed out 7 masters’s design degrees in 2019-2020.

UW Seattle did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #4 on our “Best Design & Applied Arts Master’s Degree Schools in the Far Western US Region” list. Although you might pay more or less depending on your area of study, average graduate tuition and fees at University of Washington - Seattle Campus are $30,294.

Read full report on Design & Applied Arts at UW Seattle

#2

University of California - Los Angeles

Los Angeles, California
#3 in overall quality

Out of the 11 schools in the Best Value Design Schools for a Master’s in the Far Western US Region that were part of this year’s ranking, University of California - Los Angeles landed the #2 spot on the list. University of California - Los Angeles is a large public school situated in Los Angeles, California. It awarded 9 masters’s design 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 the Far Western US Region” 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 full report on Design & Applied Arts at University of California - Los Angeles

#3

University of Oregon

Eugene, Oregon
#7 in overall quality

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend University of Oregon. The school came in at #3 for the Best Value Design Schools for a Master’s in the Far Western US Region. University of Oregon is a public institution located in Eugene, Oregon. The school has a large population, and it awarded 13 masters’s degrees in 2019-2020.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at UO, the school also landed the #7 spot in our “Best Design & Applied Arts Master’s Degree Schools in the Far Western US Region” ranking. Average graduate tuition and fees at University of Oregon are $29,991, but you may pay more or less depending on your major.

Read full report on Design & Applied Arts at University of Oregon

#4

Academy of Art University

San Francisco, California

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Academy of Art University. It ranked #4 on our 2022 Best Value Design Schools for a Master’s in the Far Western US Region list. Academy of Art University is located in San Francisco, California and, has a medium-sized student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 102 masters’s design degrees to qualified students.

Academy of Art University also took the #5 spot in our “Best Design & Applied Arts Master’s Degree Schools in the Far Western US Region” ranking. Although you might pay more or less depending on your area of study, average graduate tuition and fees at Academy of Art University are $27,688.

Read full report on Design & Applied Arts at Academy of Art University

#5

Laguna College of Art and Design

Laguna Beach, California
#9 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 the Far Western US Region. Laguna Beach, California is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out masters’s design degrees to 9 students in 2019-2020.

LCAD also took the #9 spot in our “Best Design & Applied Arts Master’s Degree Schools in the Far Western US Region” ranking. Average graduate tuition and fees at Laguna College of Art and Design are $37,700, but you may pay more or less depending on your major.

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

Pacific Northwest College of Art landed the #6 spot on the 2022 Best Value Design Schools for a Master’s in the Far Western US Region ranking. Pacific Northwest College of Art is located in Portland, Oregon and, has a small student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 16 masters’s design degrees to qualified students.

Pacific Northwest College of Art also took the #10 spot in our “Best Design & Applied Arts Master’s Degree Schools in the Far Western US Region” ranking. Average graduate tuition and fees at Pacific Northwest College of Art are $35,772, but some majors have different tuition rates.

Read full report on Design & Applied Arts at Pacific Northwest College of Art

#7

University of Southern California

Los Angeles, California

University of Southern California ranked #7 on this year’s Best Value Design Schools for a Master’s in the Far Western US Region list. Located in Los Angeles, California, this large private not-for-profit school handed out 25 diplomas to qualified masters’s design students in 2019-2020.

In addition to being on our far western us region master’s degree design students list, USC has also earned the #1 rank in our “Best Design & Applied Arts Master’s Degree Schools in the Far Western US Region” ranking. Average graduate tuition and fees at USC are $48,715, but some majors have different tuition rates.

Read full report on Design & Applied Arts at University of Southern California

#8

Art Center College of Design

Pasadena, California
#6 in overall quality

With a ranking of #8, Art Center College of Design did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Design Schools for a Master’s in the Far Western US Region list. Art Center College of Design is located in Pasadena, California and, has a small student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 29 masters’s design degrees to qualified students.

Art Center College of Design did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #6 on our “Best Design & Applied Arts Master’s Degree Schools in the Far Western US Region” 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.

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

#9

Otis College of Art and Design

Los Angeles, California
#8 in overall quality

Otis College of Art and Design landed the #9 spot on the 2022 Best Value Design Schools for a Master’s in the Far Western US Region ranking. Los Angeles, California is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out masters’s design degrees to 11 students in 2019-2020.

Otis College of Art and Design also made our “Best Design & Applied Arts Master’s Degree Schools in the Far Western US Region” list, coming in at #8. 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.

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

#10

New York Film Academy

Burbank, California
#11 in overall quality

New York Film Academy ranked #10 on this year’s Best Value Design Schools for a Master’s in the Far Western US Region list. New York Film Academy is a small private for-profit school situated in Burbank, California. It awarded 8 masters’s design degrees in 2019-2020.

New York Film Academy also took the #11 spot in our “Best Design & Applied Arts Master’s Degree Schools in the Far Western US Region” ranking. 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

#11

California College of the Arts

San Francisco, California

California College of the Arts ranked #11 on this year’s Best Value Design Schools for a Master’s in the Far Western US Region list. San Francisco, California is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out masters’s design degrees to 44 students in 2019-2020.

California College of the Arts also took the #2 spot in our “Best Design & Applied Arts Master’s Degree Schools in the Far Western US Region” ranking. 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.

Full California College of the Arts 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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