College Factual  by our College Data Analytics Team
       Unbiased Factual Guarantee

2024 Best Visual & Performing Arts Schools in California

9 Colleges in California
975 Visual Arts Degrees Awarded
If you plan on majoring in visual & performing arts, you won't be alone since the degree program is ranked #221 in the country in terms of popularity. As a result, there are many college that offer the degree, making your choice of school a hard one.

College Factual looked at 9 colleges and universities when compiling its 2024 Best Visual & Performing Arts Schools in California ranking. Combined, these schools handed out 975 degrees in visual & performing arts to qualified students.

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

Choosing a Great Visual & Performing Arts School

Best Visual & Performing Arts Schools in California The visual arts program you select can have a big impact on your future. That's why we developed our collection of Best Schools for Visual & Performing Arts rankings. For our Best Overall Visual & Performing 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 Visual & Performing Arts Degree Level

Associate Degrees in Visual Arts
Bachelor's Degrees in Visual Arts
Master's Degrees in Visual Arts
Doctor's Degrees in Visual Arts

Since picking the right college can be one of the most important decisions of your life, we've developed the Best Visual & Performing Arts Schools in California ranking, along with many other major-related rankings, to help you make that decision. 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 Visual & Performing Arts in California

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

Top California Schools in Visual Arts

1
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
1st Most Popular In CA
99 Visual Arts Degrees Awarded

Any student who is interested in visual & performing arts has to take a look at University of California - San Diego. UCSD is a very large public university located in the city of La Jolla. A Best Colleges rank of #38 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means UCSD is a great university overall.

There were approximately 99 visual & performing arts students who graduated with this degree at UCSD in the most recent data year.

More information about a degree in visual & performing arts from University of California - San Diego

2
USFCA crest
University of San Francisco
San Francisco, CA
Bachelor's Degree Highest Degree Type
13th Most Popular In CA
28.6% Growth in Graduates

University of San Francisco is one of the best schools in the country for getting a degree in visual & performing arts. USFCA is a medium-sized private not-for-profit university located in the city of San Francisco. A Best Colleges rank of #164 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means USFCA is a great university overall.

There were roughly 14 visual & performing arts students who graduated with this degree at USFCA in the most recent data year.

More information about a degree in visual & performing arts from University of San Francisco

3
Bachelor's Degree Highest Degree Type
45th Most Popular In CA

San Jose State University is a wonderful decision for students interested in a degree in visual & performing arts. San Jose State is a very large public university located in the large city of San Jose. A Best Colleges rank of #161 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means San Jose State is a great university overall.

There were about 4 visual & performing arts students who graduated with this degree at San Jose State in the most recent data year.

More information about a degree in visual & performing arts from San Jose State University

4
Bachelor's Degree Highest Degree Type
4th Most Popular In CA
59 Visual Arts Degrees Awarded

California State University - San Marcos is one of the best schools in the country for getting a degree in visual & performing arts. CSUSM is a large public university located in the large suburb of San Marcos. This university ranks 75th out of 168 schools for overall quality in the state of California.

There were roughly 59 visual & performing arts students who graduated with this degree at CSUSM in the most recent data year.

More information about a degree in visual & performing arts from California State University - San Marcos

5
Bachelor's Degree Highest Degree Type
6th Most Popular In CA
48 Visual Arts Degrees Awarded

Azusa Pacific is a moderately-sized private not-for-profit university located in the large suburb of Azusa. This university ranks 43rd out of 168 colleges for overall quality in the state of California.

There were about 48 visual & performing arts students who graduated with this degree at Azusa Pacific in the most recent data year.

More information about a degree in visual & performing arts from Azusa Pacific University

6
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
75th Most Popular In CA

Located in the large city of Riverside, UCR is a public university with a fairly large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #213 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means UCR is a great university overall.

There were roughly 1 visual & performing arts students who graduated with this degree at UCR in the most recent data year.

More information about a degree in visual & performing arts from University of California - Riverside

7
Bachelor's Degree Highest Degree Type
10th Most Popular In CA
40.0% Growth in Graduates

Located in the midsize suburb of Camarillo, CSUCI is a public university with a medium-sized student population. This university ranks 104th out of 168 colleges for overall quality in the state of California.

There were about 20 visual & performing arts students who graduated with this degree at CSUCI in the most recent data year.

More information about a degree in visual & performing arts from California State University - Channel Islands

8
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
14th Most Popular In CA

Cal State LA is a fairly large public university located in the city of Los Angeles. This university ranks 84th out of 168 colleges for overall quality in the state of California.

There were roughly 13 visual & performing arts students who graduated with this degree at Cal State LA in the most recent year we have data available.

More information about a degree in visual & performing arts from California State University - Los Angeles

9
Associate Degree Highest Degree Type
66th Most Popular In CA

Located in the city of San Diego, San Diego Mesa College is a public college with a fairly large student population. This college ranks 145th out of 168 colleges for overall quality in the state of California.

There were about 2 visual & performing arts students who graduated with this degree at San Diego Mesa College in the most recent data year.

More information about a degree in visual & performing arts from San Diego Mesa College

Best Visual & Performing Arts Colleges in the Far Western US Region

Explore all the Best Visual & Performing Arts Colleges in the Far Western US Area or other specific states within that region.

State Colleges Degrees Awarded
Washington 831 13
Oregon 587 4

View All Rankings >

Visual & Performing Arts is one of 1 different types of General Visual & Performing Arts programs to choose from.

Majors Similar to Visual Arts

Related Major Annual Graduates
Digital Arts 223

View All Visual Arts Related Majors >

Notes and References

More about our data sources and methodologies.

Popular Reports

College Rankings
Best by Location
Degree Guides by Major
Graduate Programs

Compare Your School Options