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2024 Best Design & Applied Arts Schools in the New England Region

27 Colleges in the New England Region
1,952 Design Degrees Awarded
$35,122 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.

In 2024, College Factual analyzed 27 schools in order to identify the top ones for its Best Design & Applied Arts Schools in the New England Region ranking. Combined, these schools handed out 1,952 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 New England 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 New England 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 New England 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 New England Region Schools in Design

1
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
75 Design Degrees Awarded
14.7% Growth in Graduates

Every student pursuing a degree in design & applied arts needs to take a look at Northeastern University. Located in the large city of Boston, Northeastern is a private not-for-profit university with a very large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #59 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means Northeastern is a great university overall.

There were approximately 75 design & applied arts students who graduated with this degree at Northeastern in the most recent year we have data available. Design & Applied Arts degree recipients from Northeastern University get an earnings boost of about $9,993 above the typical earnings of design & applied arts graduates.

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

2
Boston U crest
Boston University
Boston, MA
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
51 Design Degrees Awarded
5.9% Growth in Graduates

Boston University is a wonderful decision for students interested in a degree in design & applied arts. Located in the large city of Boston, Boston U is a private not-for-profit university with a fairly large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #54 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means Boston U is a great university overall.

There were approximately 51 design & applied arts students who graduated with this degree at Boston U in the most recent year we have data available. Degree recipients from the design & applied arts degree program at Boston University make $11,322 more than the average college graduate in this field when they enter the workforce.

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

3
Yale crest
Yale University
New Haven, CT
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
8th Most Popular In CT

Any student who is interested in design & applied arts needs to take a look at Yale University. Yale is a large private not-for-profit university located in the midsize city of New Haven. A Best Colleges rank of #8 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means Yale is a great university overall.

There were roughly 13 design & applied arts students who graduated with this degree at Yale in the most recent year we have data available.

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

4
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
214 Design Degrees Awarded
18.2% Growth in Graduates

Any student pursuing a degree in design & applied arts has to look into Massachusetts College of Art and Design. Massachusetts College of Art and Design is a small public college located in the large city of Boston.

There were roughly 214 design & applied arts students who graduated with this degree at Massachusetts College of Art and Design in the most recent year we have data available. After graduating, design degree recipients generally earn an average of $28,792 in the first five years of their career.

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

5
Bachelor's Degree Highest Degree Type
62 Design Degrees Awarded
4.8% Growth in Graduates

WIT is a small private not-for-profit school located in the large city of Boston. A Best Colleges rank of #234 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means WIT is a great school overall.

There were about 62 design & applied arts students who graduated with this degree at WIT in the most recent data year. Design & Applied Arts degree recipients from Wentworth Institute of Technology get an earnings boost of approximately $15,376 above the typical income of design & applied arts majors.

More information about a degree in design & applied arts from Wentworth Institute of Technology

6
Bachelor's Degree Highest Degree Type
73 Design Degrees Awarded
$46,625 Median Starting Salary

Located in the medium-sized city of Providence, RISD is a private not-for-profit school with a small student population.

There were roughly 73 design & applied arts students who graduated with this degree at RISD in the most recent data year. Design & Applied Arts degree recipients from Rhode Island School of Design earn a boost of around $11,503 above the average income of design & applied arts majors.

More information about a degree in design & applied arts from Rhode Island School of Design

7
Endicott crest
Endicott College
Beverly, MA
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
48 Design Degrees Awarded
12.5% Growth in Graduates

Located in the suburb of Beverly, Endicott is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population. A Best Colleges rank of #499 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means Endicott is a great college overall.

There were approximately 48 design & applied arts students who graduated with this degree at Endicott in the most recent year we have data available. Degree recipients from the design & applied arts major at Endicott College get $9,836 more than the average graduate with the same degree shortly after graduation.

More information about a degree in design & applied arts from Endicott College

8
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
43 Design Degrees Awarded
11.6% Growth in Graduates

Located in the city of Boston, Suffolk is a private not-for-profit university with a medium-sized student population. A Best Colleges rank of #165 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means Suffolk is a great university overall.

There were approximately 43 design & applied arts students who graduated with this degree at Suffolk in the most recent data year. Degree recipients from the design & applied arts degree program at Suffolk University earn $5,514 more than the typical college grad in this field shortly after graduation.

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

9
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
59 Design Degrees Awarded
25.4% Growth in Graduates

Located in the suburb of North Dartmouth, UMass Dartmouth is a public university with a moderately-sized student population. This university ranks 41st out of 63 schools for overall quality in the state of Massachusetts.

There were roughly 59 design & applied arts students who graduated with this degree at UMass Dartmouth in the most recent year we have data available. After graduating, design degree recipients generally earn an average of $32,703 in their early careers.

More information about a degree in design & applied arts from University of Massachusetts - Dartmouth

10
Lesley crest
Lesley University
Cambridge, MA
Bachelor's Degree Highest Degree Type
74 Design Degrees Awarded
9.5% Growth in Graduates

Lesley is a small private not-for-profit university located in the midsize city of Cambridge. This university ranks 27th out of 63 colleges for overall quality in the state of Massachusetts.

There were approximately 74 design & applied arts students who graduated with this degree at Lesley in the most recent data year. Soon after graduation, design degree recipients usually earn about $30,949 at the beginning of their careers.

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

Best Design & Applied Arts Colleges by State

Explore the best design & applied arts schools for a specific state in the New England Region .

State Colleges Degrees Awarded
Massachusetts 301 885
Connecticut 241 241
New Hampshire 210 456
Maine 202 24
Rhode Island 200 159
Vermont 194 99

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 890
Illustration 267
Game & Interactive Media Design 172
Visual Communications 168
Commercial & Advertising Art 147
Interior Design 114
Industrial Design 76
Fashion Design 66
Other Design & Applied Arts 45
Commercial Photography 7

View All Design Concentrations >

Related Major Annual Graduates
Music 2,151
Fine & Studio Arts 2,034
Film, Video & Photographic Arts 1,367
Drama & Theater Arts 985
Arts & Media Management 393
General Visual & Performing Arts 271
Dance 172
Other Visual Art 69
Community/Environmental/Socially-Engaged Art 9
Crafts, Folk Art & Artisanry 6

View All Design Related Majors >

Notes and References

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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