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2024 Best Design & Applied Arts Schools in the Far Western US Region

55 Colleges in the Far Western US Region
5,956 Design Degrees Awarded
$32,100 Avg Early-Career Salary
Design & Applied Arts is of the hottest degree programs in the United States, coming in as the #36 most popular major in the country. This means there are lots of options to choose from when you decide to get your degree.

College Factual reviewed 55 schools in the Far Western US Region to determine which ones were the best for degree seekers in the field of design & applied arts. Combined, these schools handed out 5,956 degrees in design & applied arts to qualified students.

What's on this page: * Degree-Level Rankings

Choosing a Great Design & Applied Arts School

Best Design & Applied Arts Schools in the Far Western US Region Your choice of design & applied arts school matters, so we have put together these rankings to help you make your decision. We derive our Best Overall Design & Applied Arts School rankings by rolling up our degree-level rankings after weighting them by the number of degrees awarded at each school.

In order to find the schools that are the best fit for you, you may want to filter to one of the degree levels below.

Design & Applied Arts Rankings by Degree Level

Associate Degrees in Design
Bachelor's Degrees in Design
Master's Degrees in Design

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 Schools in the Far Western US Region list, to help you choose the best school for you. If you'd like to restrict your choices to just one part of the country, you can filter this list by location.

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.

If you want to learn more about how we derive our rankings, see College Factual's Methodology.

Best Schools for Design & Applied Arts in the Far Western US Region

Although we recommend filtering by degree level first, you can view the list below to see which schools give the educational experience for the design degree levels they offer.

10 Top Far Western US Region Schools in Design

1
Bachelor's Degree Highest Degree Type
288 Design Degrees Awarded
$27,983 Median Starting Salary

It's hard to beat FIDM/Fashion Institute of Design & Merchandising - Los Angeles if you want to pursue a degree in design & applied arts. Located in the city of Los Angeles, FIDM Los Angeles is a private for-profit school with a small student population.

There were approximately 288 design & applied arts students who graduated with this degree at FIDM Los Angeles in the most recent year we have data available. Students who receive their degree from the design program earn about $27,983 in the first couple years of their career.

More information about a degree in design & applied arts from FIDM/Fashion Institute of Design & Merchandising - Los Angeles

2
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
67 Design Degrees Awarded
13.4% Growth in Graduates

Any student who is interested in design & applied arts has to check out University of Southern California. Located in the large city of Los Angeles, USC is a private not-for-profit university with a fairly large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #11 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means USC is a great university overall.

There were about 67 design & applied arts students who graduated with this degree at USC in the most recent data year. Soon after graduating, design degree recipients usually make an average of $29,631 at the beginning of their careers.

More information about a degree in design & applied arts from University of Southern California

3
Bachelor's Degree Highest Degree Type
228 Design Degrees Awarded
$38,040 Median Starting Salary

University of California - Davis is one of the finest schools in the United States for getting a degree in design & applied arts. UC Davis is a fairly large public university located in the suburb of Davis. A Best Colleges rank of #52 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means UC Davis is a great university overall.

There were roughly 228 design & applied arts students who graduated with this degree at UC Davis in the most recent year we have data available. Degree recipients from the design & applied arts major at University of California - Davis earn $5,940 above the standard graduate in this field when they enter the workforce.

More information about a degree in design & applied arts from University of California - Davis

4
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
38 Design Degrees Awarded
$49,494 Median Starting Salary

It is difficult to beat University of Washington - Seattle Campus if you wish to pursue a degree in design & applied arts. UW Seattle is a very large public university located in the large city of Seattle. A Best Colleges rank of #37 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means UW Seattle is a great university overall.

There were roughly 38 design & applied arts students who graduated with this degree at UW Seattle in the most recent year we have data available. Those design & applied arts students who get their degree from University of Washington - Seattle Campus earn $17,394 more than the average design graduate.

More information about a degree in design & applied arts from University of Washington - Seattle Campus

5
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
61 Design Degrees Awarded
13.1% Growth in Graduates

UCLA is a very large public university located in the large city of Los Angeles. A Best Colleges rank of #26 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means UCLA is a great university overall.

There were roughly 61 design & applied arts students who graduated with this degree at UCLA in the most recent year we have data available. Degree recipients from the design & applied arts degree program at University of California - Los Angeles earn $7,381 more than the standard graduate in this field shortly after graduation.

More information about a degree in design & applied arts from University of California - Los Angeles

6
Bachelor's Degree Highest Degree Type
201 Design Degrees Awarded
23.9% Growth in Graduates

Located in the city of San Jose, San Jose State is a public university with a very large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #161 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means San Jose State is a great university overall.

There were about 201 design & applied arts students who graduated with this degree at San Jose State in the most recent year we have data available. Degree recipients from the design & applied arts degree program at San Jose State University get $14,496 more than the average college grad in this field shortly after graduation.

More information about a degree in design & applied arts from San Jose State University

7
Bachelor's Degree Highest Degree Type
68 Design Degrees Awarded
2.9% Growth in Graduates

Located in the city of Bellingham, WWU is a public university with a large student population. This university ranks 5th out of 51 schools for overall quality in the state of Washington.

There were approximately 68 design & applied arts students who graduated with this degree at WWU in the most recent year we have data available. Design & Applied Arts degree recipients from Western Washington University get an earnings boost of approximately $7,718 over the average earnings of design & applied arts graduates.

More information about a degree in design & applied arts from Western Washington University

8
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
276 Design Degrees Awarded
8.7% Growth in Graduates

Art Center College of Design is a small private not-for-profit college located in the medium-sized city of Pasadena.

There were approximately 276 design & applied arts students who graduated with this degree at Art Center College of Design in the most recent year we have data available. Those design & applied arts students who get their degree from Art Center College of Design earn $7,917 more than the standard design student.

More information about a degree in design & applied arts from Art Center College of Design

9
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
129 Design Degrees Awarded
24.0% Growth in Graduates

Otis College of Art and Design is a small private not-for-profit college located in the city of Los Angeles.

There were roughly 129 design & applied arts students who graduated with this degree at Otis College of Art and Design in the most recent data year. Design & Applied Arts degree recipients from Otis College of Art and Design get an earnings boost of around $6,397 above the typical income of design & applied arts majors.

More information about a degree in design & applied arts from Otis College of Art and Design

10
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
141 Design Degrees Awarded
7.8% Growth in Graduates

Located in the large city of Long Beach, CSULB is a public university with a fairly large student population. This university ranks 28th out of 168 colleges for overall quality in the state of California.

There were about 141 design & applied arts students who graduated with this degree at CSULB in the most recent year we have data available. Those design & applied arts students who get their degree from California State University - Long Beach earn $8,005 more than the average design grad.

More information about a degree in design & applied arts from California State University - Long Beach

Best Design & Applied Arts Colleges by State

Explore the best design & applied arts schools for a specific state in the Far Western US Region .

State Colleges Degrees Awarded
California 330 3,770
Washington 300 532
Oregon 266 490
Nevada 192 110
Hawaii 164 19

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 1,593
Interior Design 1,089
Visual Communications 1,077
Fashion Design 517
Game & Interactive Media Design 427
Other Design & Applied Arts 368
Illustration 356
Industrial Design 265
Commercial & Advertising Art 226
Commercial Photography 38

View All Design Concentrations >

Related Major Annual Graduates
Fine & Studio Arts 7,646
Film, Video & Photographic Arts 4,641
Music 4,440
Drama & Theater Arts 3,575
General Visual & Performing Arts 1,301
Dance 649
Arts & Media Management 382
Other Visual Art 111
Crafts, Folk Art & Artisanry 14

View All Design Related Majors >

Notes and References

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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