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2024 Best Design & Applied Arts Bachelor's Degree Schools in Pennsylvania

19 Colleges in Pennsylvania
991 Bachelor's Degrees
$33,864 Avg Early-Career Salary
Design & Applied Arts is of the hottest bachelor's degree programs in the United States, coming in as the #27 most popular major in the country. This means there are lots of options to choose from when you decide to get your degree.

In 2024, College Factual analyzed 19 schools in order to identify the top ones for its Best Design & Applied Arts Bachelor's Degree Schools in Pennsylvania ranking. Combined, these schools handed out 991 bachelor's degrees in design & applied arts to qualified students.

What's on this page: * Our Methodology

Choosing a Great Design & Applied Arts School for Your Bachelor's Degree

Best Design & Applied Arts Bachelor's Degree Schools in Pennsylvania Your choice of design & applied arts for getting your bachelor's degree school matters. Important measures of a quality design program can vary widely even among the top schools. To make it into this list, a school must excel in the following areas.

A Great Overall School

The overall quality of a bachelor's degree school is important to ensure a quality education, not just how well they do in a particular major. To take this into account we include a college's overall Best Colleges ranking which itself looks at a combination of various factors like degree completion, educational resources, student body caliber and post-graduation earnings for the school as a whole.

Early-Career Earnings

One measure we use to determine the quality of a school is to look at the average salary of bachelor's graduates during the early years of their career. That is, everyone wants their bachelor's degree to be worth something, and salaries are one measure of determining that.

Other Factors We Consider

The metrics below are just some of the other metrics that we use to determine our rankings.

Our complete ranking methodology documents in more detail how we consider these factors to identify the best schools for design & applied arts students working on their bachelor's degree.

One Size Does Not Fit All

Rankings by Location Check Out Other Locales
More Design Rankings Other Ranking Categories

Since the program you select can have a significant impact on your future, we've developed a number of rankings, including this Best Design & Applied Arts Bachelor's Degree Schools in Pennsylvania list, to help you choose the best school for you.

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. 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 Schools for Bachelor’s Students to Study Design & Applied Arts in Pennsylvania

The following list ranks the best colleges and universities for pursuing a bachelor's degree in design & applied arts.

10 Top Pennsylvania Schools for a Bachelor's in Design

1
37 Annual Graduates
$85,041 Median Starting Salary
$24,500 Median Student Debt

Carnegie Mellon University is a good decision for students pursuing a bachelor's degree in design & applied arts. Carnegie Mellon is a large private not-for-profit university located in the large city of Pittsburgh.

Design & Applied Arts bachelor's degree recipients from Carnegie Mellon University earn a boost of about $51,177 above the average earnings of design & applied arts graduates.

More information about a bachelor’s in design & applied arts from Carnegie Mellon University

2
UPenn crest
University of Pennsylvania
Philadelphia, PA
5 Annual Graduates

University of Pennsylvania is one of the best schools in the country for getting a bachelor's degree in design & applied arts. UPenn is a fairly large private not-for-profit university located in the large city of Philadelphia.More information about a bachelor’s in design & applied arts from University of Pennsylvania

3
Drexel crest
Drexel University
Philadelphia, PA
193 Annual Graduates
$35,133 Median Starting Salary
$27,000 Median Student Debt

Drexel University is a great decision for individuals pursuing a bachelor's degree in design & applied arts. Drexel is a fairly large private not-for-profit university located in the large city of Philadelphia.

Bachelor's students who receive their degree from the design program earn around $35,133 in the first couple years of their career.

More information about a bachelor’s in design & applied arts from Drexel University

4
Temple crest
Temple University
Philadelphia, PA
63 Annual Graduates
$43,047 Median Starting Salary
$26,875 Median Student Debt

Temple University is a wonderful decision for students interested in a bachelor's degree in design & applied arts. Temple is a very large public university located in the city of Philadelphia.

Bachelor's recipients from the design & applied arts degree program at Temple University earn $9,183 above the average graduate with the same degree when they enter the workforce.

More information about a bachelor’s in design & applied arts from Temple University

5
UArts crest
The University of the Arts
Philadelphia, PA
56 Annual Graduates
$21,067 Median Starting Salary
$27,000 Median Student Debt

UArts is a small private not-for-profit university located in the city of Philadelphia.

Bachelor's graduates who receive their degree from the design program make an average of $21,067 in their early career salary.

More information about a bachelor’s in design & applied arts from The University of the Arts

6
46 Annual Graduates
$23,976 Median Starting Salary
$27,000 Median Student Debt

Moore College is a small private not-for-profit college located in the city of Philadelphia.

Students who graduate with their bachelor's from the design program report average early career wages of $23,976.

More information about a bachelor’s in design & applied arts from Moore College of Art and Design

7
67 Annual Graduates
$35,919 Median Starting Salary
$27,000 Median Student Debt

Located in the town of Kutztown, Kutztown University is a public university with a medium-sized student population.

Those design & applied arts students who get their bachelor's degree from Kutztown University of Pennsylvania make $2,055 more than the average design student.

More information about a bachelor’s in design & applied arts from Kutztown University of Pennsylvania

8
Messiah crest
Messiah University
Mechanicsburg, PA
2 Annual Graduates

Located in the suburb of Mechanicsburg, Messiah is a private not-for-profit university with a small student population.More information about a bachelor’s in design & applied arts from Messiah University

9
63 Annual Graduates
$32,645 Median Starting Salary
$27,000 Median Student Debt

IUP is a moderately-sized public university located in the distant town of Indiana.

After graduation, design bachelor's recipients generally make an average of $32,645 in their early careers.

More information about a bachelor’s in design & applied arts from Indiana University of Pennsylvania - Main Campus

10
Albright crest
Albright College
Reading, PA
31 Annual Graduates
$29,236 Median Starting Salary
$27,000 Median Student Debt

Located in the small city of Reading, Albright is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population.

Students who graduate with their bachelor's from the design program state that they receive average early career earnings of $29,236.

More information about a bachelor’s in design & applied arts from Albright College

Best Design & Applied Arts Colleges in the Middle Atlantic Region

Explore all the Best Design & Applied Arts Schools in the Middle Atlantic Area or other specific states within that region.

State Colleges Degrees Awarded
New York 275 2,536
Maryland 207 232
New Jersey 193 358
Delaware 130 25
District of Columbia 126 39

View All Rankings >

One of 10 majors within the Visual & Performing Arts area of study, Design & Applied Arts has other similar majors worth exploring.

Design Focus Areas

Major Annual Graduates
Graphic Design 289
Visual Communications 117
Fashion Design 107
Commercial & Advertising Art 98
Interior Design 96
Other Design & Applied Arts 86
Illustration 83
Game & Interactive Media Design 67
Industrial Design 48

Related Major Annual Graduates
Fine & Studio Arts 913
Music 632
Drama & Theater Arts 615
Film, Video & Photographic Arts 521
Dance 261
General Visual & Performing Arts 173
Arts & Media Management 156
Crafts, Folk Art & Artisanry 16
Other Visual Art 1

Notes and References

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