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2024 Best Design & Applied Arts Schools in Tennessee

10 Colleges in Tennessee
354 Design Degrees Awarded
$29,525 Avg Early-Career Salary
Ranked #36 in popularity, design & applied arts is one of the most sought-after degree programs in the nation. So, there are lots of possibilities to explore when you're trying to determine where you want to get your degree.

College Factual looked at 10 colleges and universities when compiling its 2024 Best Design & Applied Arts Schools in Tennessee ranking. When you put them all together, these colleges and universities awarded 354 degrees in design & applied arts during the 2020-2021 academic year.

Jump to one of the following sections: * Degree-Level Rankings

Choosing a Great Design & Applied Arts School

Best Design & Applied Arts Schools in Tennessee The design program you select can have a big impact on your future. That's why we developed our collection of Best Schools for Design & Applied Arts rankings. For our Best Overall Design & Applied Arts School rankings, we roll up the results of our degree-level rankings, weighted by the number of degrees awarded at that level.

You may want to choose one of the degree levels below to find the schools of most interest to you.

Pick Your Design & Applied Arts Degree Level

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

Since picking the right college can be one of the most important decisions of your life, we've developed the Best Design & Applied Arts Schools in Tennessee ranking, along with many other major-related rankings, to help you make that decision. More interested in schools in a specific area of the country? Filter this list by region or state.

To further help you make the college decision, we've developed a unique tool called College Combat that allows you to compare schools based on the factors that matter the most to you. Go ahead and give it a try, or bookmark the link so you can check it out later.

Read more about College Factual's methodology.

Best Schools for Design & Applied Arts in Tennessee

The schools below may not offer all types of design degrees so you may want to filter by degree level first. However, they are great for the degree levels they do offer.

10 Top Tennessee Schools in Design

1
Belmont crest
Belmont University
Nashville, TN
Bachelor's Degree Highest Degree Type
2nd Most Popular In TN
38 Design Degrees Awarded

Every student who is interested in design & applied arts needs to look into Belmont University. Belmont is a moderately-sized private not-for-profit university located in the large city of Nashville. A Best Colleges rank of #206 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means Belmont is a great university overall.

There were approximately 38 design & applied arts students who graduated with this degree at Belmont in the most recent data year.

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

2
Bachelor's Degree Highest Degree Type
$38,452 Median Starting Salary

Any student pursuing a degree in design & applied arts needs to check out The University of Tennessee - Knoxville. Located in the city of Knoxville, UT Knoxville is a public university with a fairly large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #173 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means UT Knoxville is a great university overall.

There were approximately 18 design & applied arts students who graduated with this degree at UT Knoxville in the most recent year we have data available. Design & Applied Arts degree recipients from The University of Tennessee - Knoxville get an earnings boost of about $8,927 over the typical earnings of design & applied arts graduates.

More information about a degree in design & applied arts from The University of Tennessee - Knoxville

3
Lipscomb crest
Lipscomb University
Nashville, TN
Bachelor's Degree Highest Degree Type
6th Most Popular In TN
22.2% Growth in Graduates

Any student pursuing a degree in design & applied arts needs to check out Lipscomb University. Lipscomb is a small private not-for-profit university located in the city of Nashville. A Best Colleges rank of #577 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means Lipscomb is a great university overall.

There were about 18 design & applied arts students who graduated with this degree at Lipscomb in the most recent year we have data available.

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

4
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
$45,039 Median Starting Salary
$27,000 Median Student Debt

Every student who is interested in design & applied arts has to look into The University of Tennessee - Chattanooga. Located in the medium-sized city of Chattanooga, UT Chattanooga is a public university with a large student population. This university ranks 16th out of 45 colleges for overall quality in the state of Tennessee.

There were roughly 11 design & applied arts students who graduated with this degree at UT Chattanooga in the most recent data year. Degree recipients from the design & applied arts degree program at The University of Tennessee - Chattanooga earn $15,514 more than the average college grad with the same degree when they enter the workforce.

More information about a degree in design & applied arts from The University of Tennessee - Chattanooga

5
Bachelor's Degree Highest Degree Type
13th Most Popular In TN

UofM is a fairly large public university located in the large city of Memphis. A Best Colleges rank of #748 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means UofM is a great university overall.

There were about 7 design & applied arts students who graduated with this degree at UofM in the most recent year we have data available.

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

6
Bachelor's Degree Highest Degree Type
$28,196 Median Starting Salary
$16,727 Median Student Debt

Located in the city of Johnson City, ETSU is a public university with a fairly large student population. This university ranks 11th out of 45 schools for overall quality in the state of Tennessee.

There were approximately 28 design & applied arts students who graduated with this degree at ETSU in the most recent year we have data available. After graduation, design degree recipients usually make about $28,196 in the first five years of their career.

More information about a degree in design & applied arts from East Tennessee State University

7
Bachelor's Degree Highest Degree Type
$31,628 Median Starting Salary

Middle Tennessee State University is a fairly large public university located in the medium-sized city of Murfreesboro. This university ranks 12th out of 45 schools for overall quality in the state of Tennessee.

There were about 16 design & applied arts students who graduated with this degree at Middle Tennessee State University in the most recent year we have data available. Design & Applied Arts degree recipients from Middle Tennessee State University receive an earnings boost of about $2,103 over the average earnings of design & applied arts graduates.

More information about a degree in design & applied arts from Middle Tennessee State University

8

Chattanooga State Community College is a moderately-sized public college located in the medium-sized city of Chattanooga. This college ranks 23rd out of 45 schools for overall quality in the state of Tennessee.

There were about 27 design & applied arts students who graduated with this degree at Chattanooga State Community College in the most recent data year. After graduation, design degree recipients generally earn about $23,624 in the first five years of their career.

More information about a degree in design & applied arts from Chattanooga State Community College

9
Associate Degree Highest Degree Type
$25,394 Median Starting Salary

Located in the city of Nashville, Nashville State Community College is a public college with a medium-sized student population. This college ranks 38th out of 45 schools for overall quality in the state of Tennessee.

There were approximately 16 design & applied arts students who graduated with this degree at Nashville State Community College in the most recent data year. Students who receive their degree from the design program make an average of $25,394 in their early career salary.

More information about a degree in design & applied arts from Nashville State Community College

10
Nossi College of Art crest
Nossi College of Art
Nashville, TN
Bachelor's Degree Highest Degree Type
42 Design Degrees Awarded
$28,478 Median Starting Salary

Nossi College of Art is a small private for-profit college located in the large city of Nashville.

There were approximately 42 design & applied arts students who graduated with this degree at Nossi College of Art in the most recent data year. Graduates who receive their degree from the design program make an average of $28,478 in their early career salary.

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

Best Design & Applied Arts Colleges in the Southeast Region

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

State Colleges Degrees Awarded
Georgia 287 1,446
Florida 282 1,127
North Carolina 279 944
Virginia 274 889
South Carolina 248 316
Kentucky 244 84
Louisiana 242 84
Mississippi 234 81
Arkansas 234 228
Alabama 233 246
West Virginia 207 114

View All Rankings >

Design & Applied Arts is one of 10 different types of Visual & Performing Arts programs to choose from.

Design Concentrations

Major Annual Graduates
Commercial & Advertising Art 106
Interior Design 91
Graphic Design 88
Visual Communications 34
Commercial Photography 15
Illustration 11
Fashion Design 7
Game & Interactive Media Design 2

View All Design Focus Areas >

Majors Similar to Design

Related Major Annual Graduates
Music 831
Arts & Media Management 602
Fine & Studio Arts 440
Film, Video & Photographic Arts 290
Drama & Theater Arts 251
General Visual & Performing Arts 57
Dance 19

View All Design Related Majors >

Notes and References

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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