by our College Data Analytics Team
It’s not easy to decide which college to attend when there so many options available for students. Our mission at College Factual is to arm you with as much information as we can to help you make that decision. Our “Most Well Attended Visual & Performing Arts Major” ranking is one tool we have developed to help in this regard.
Visual & Performing Arts is one of the most popular majors in the nation, ranking 10th of all the majors we analyze. In 2020-2021, 149,215 degrees were awarded to students with this major. In 2019-2020, visual and performing arts graduates who were awarded their degree in 2017-2019, earned an average of $26,700 and had an average of $25,051 in loans still to pay off.
This year’s “Most Well Attended Visual & Performing Arts Major” ranking analyzed 2,118 colleges that offered a degree in visual and performing arts. To top this list, a school must have a successful visual and performing arts program that graduates more students in the field than other colleges that offer the same major.
For more information, check out our ranking methodology.
When choosing the right school for you, it’s important to arm yourself with all the facts you can. To that end, we’ve created a number of major-specific rankings, including this “Most Well Attended Visual & Performing Arts Major” list to help you make the college decision.
You can create your own custom comparison that focuses on the factors most important to you using our tool, College Combat. If you’re torn between two schools, you can use it to help you see how they stack up against one another. Bookmark it so you can compare any new schools that might interest you.
The colleges and universities below are the best for visual & performing arts students.
Out of the 2,118 schools in the Most Well Attended Visual & Performing Arts Major that were part of this year’s ranking, Full Sail University landed the #1 spot on the list. This large school is located in Winter Park, Florida, and it awarded 2,551 ’s visual and performing arts degrees in 2020-2021.
Read more about Visual & Performing Arts at Full Sail University
Out of the 2,118 schools in the Most Well Attended Visual & Performing Arts Major that were part of this year’s ranking, Savannah College of Art and Design landed the #2 spot on the list. SCAD is located in Savannah, Georgia and, has a fairly large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 1,867 ’s visual and performing arts degrees to qualified students.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 3.2%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Out of the 2,118 schools in the Most Well Attended Visual & Performing Arts Major that were part of this year’s ranking, Fashion Institute of Technology landed the #3 spot on the list. Fashion Institute of Technology is a medium-sized public school situated in New York, New York. It awarded 1,590 ’s visual and performing arts degrees in 2020-2021.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 2.0%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 88%.
Full Fashion Institute of Technology Visual & Performing Arts Report
Out of the 2,118 schools in the Most Well Attended Visual & Performing Arts Major that were part of this year’s ranking, New York University landed the #4 spot on the list. NYU is a private not-for-profit institution located in New York, New York. The school has a large population, and it awarded 1,494 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.
With a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 8 to 1, it’s easy to see that the school is committed to helping their undergraduates succeed. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 90%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 1.7%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Read full report on Visual & Performing Arts at New York University
Out of the 2,118 schools in the Most Well Attended Visual & Performing Arts Major that were part of this year’s ranking, Los Angeles Film School landed the #5 spot on the list. Hollywood, California is the setting for this medium-sized institution of higher learning. The private for-profit school handed out ’s visual and performing arts degrees to 1,222 students in 2020-2021.
The New School ranked #6 on this year’s Most Well Attended Visual & Performing Arts Major list. The New School is a fairly large private not-for-profit school situated in New York, New York. It awarded 1,206 ’s visual and performing arts degrees in 2020-2021.
The impressive undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 9 to 1 means that students may have more opportunities to work more closely with their professors than they would at other schools.
Read full report on Visual & Performing Arts at The New School
University of Central Florida came in at #7 in this year’s edition of the Most Well Attended Visual & Performing Arts Major ranking. Located in Orlando, Florida, this large public school handed out 1,106 degrees to qualified ’s visual and performing arts students in 2020-2021.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 3.7%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 92%.
California State University - Long Beach did quite well in the 2023 Most Well Attended Visual & Performing Arts Major ranking, coming in at #8. Long Beach, California is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out ’s visual and performing arts degrees to 1,012 students in 2020-2021.
The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 89%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The low undergrad student loan default rate of 2.4% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%.
Full California State University - Long Beach Visual & Performing Arts Report
Berklee College of Music came in at #9 in this year’s edition of the Most Well Attended Visual & Performing Arts Major ranking. Located in Boston, Massachusetts, this medium-sized private not-for-profit school handed out 1,016 degrees to qualified ’s visual and performing arts students in 2020-2021.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 4.4% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%. The undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 9 to 1 is a sign that students will have more opportunities to engage with their professors one-on-one.
Read full report on Visual & Performing Arts at Berklee College of Music
University of Southern California landed the #10 spot on the 2023 Most Well Attended Visual & Performing Arts Major ranking. University of Southern California is a large school located in Los Angeles, California that handed out 1,000 ’s visual and performing arts degrees in 2020-2021.
With a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 9 to 1, it’s easy to see that the school is committed to helping their undergraduates succeed. The low undergrad student loan default rate of 1.3% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%. With a freshman retention rate of 91%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students.
With a ranking of #11, Columbia College Chicago did quite well on the 2023 Most Well Attended Visual & Performing Arts Major list. Columbia College Chicago is a medium-sized school located in Chicago, Illinois that handed out 879 ’s visual and performing arts degrees in 2020-2021.
Read full report on Visual & Performing Arts at Columbia College Chicago
Pratt Institute - Main did quite well in the 2023 Most Well Attended Visual & Performing Arts Major ranking, coming in at #11. This medium-sized school is located in Brooklyn, New York, and it awarded 879 ’s visual and performing arts degrees in 2020-2021.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 4.5%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. With a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 9 to 1, it’s easy to see that the school is committed to helping their undergraduates succeed.
Read full report on Visual & Performing Arts at Pratt Institute
University of North Texas came in at #13 in this year’s edition of the Most Well Attended Visual & Performing Arts Major ranking. UNT is a large public school situated in Denton, Texas. It awarded 793 ’s visual and performing arts degrees in 2020-2021.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 85%.
Arizona State University - Tempe ranked #14 on this year’s Most Well Attended Visual & Performing Arts Major list. Arizona State University - Tempe is a large public school situated in Tempe, Arizona. It awarded 803 ’s visual and performing arts degrees in 2020-2021.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 4.5%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. With a freshman retention rate of 86%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students.
Read full report on Visual & Performing Arts at Arizona State University - Tempe
With a ranking of #15, School of the Art Institute of Chicago did quite well on the 2023 Most Well Attended Visual & Performing Arts Major list. School of the Art Institute of Chicago is a small school located in Chicago, Illinois that handed out 754 ’s visual and performing arts degrees in 2020-2021.
The impressive undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 8 to 1 means that students may have more opportunities to work more closely with their professors than they would at other schools.
Read more about Visual & Performing Arts at School of the Art Institute of Chicago
University of Cincinnati - Main Campus did quite well in the 2023 Most Well Attended Visual & Performing Arts Major ranking, coming in at #16. UC is located in Cincinnati, Ohio and, has a large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 749 ’s visual and performing arts degrees to qualified students.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 88%. The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 4.7%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Belmont University ranked #17 on this year’s Most Well Attended Visual & Performing Arts Major list. Belmont is located in Nashville, Tennessee and, has a medium-sized student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 659 ’s visual and performing arts degrees to qualified students.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 2.5% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%.
California State University - Fullerton ranked #18 on this year’s Most Well Attended Visual & Performing Arts Major list. Fullerton, California is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out ’s visual and performing arts degrees to 653 students in 2020-2021.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 2.5%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 89%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.
Read more about Visual & Performing Arts at California State University - Fullerton
San Francisco State University ranked #19 on this year’s Most Well Attended Visual & Performing Arts Major list. This large school is located in San Francisco, California, and it awarded 646 ’s visual and performing arts degrees in 2020-2021.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 4.3%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Full San Francisco State University Visual & Performing Arts Report
Virginia Commonwealth University landed the #20 spot on the 2023 Most Well Attended Visual & Performing Arts Major ranking. VCU is a large public school situated in Richmond, Virginia. It awarded 627 ’s visual and performing arts degrees in 2020-2021.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 2.6% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%.
Read more about Visual & Performing Arts at Virginia Commonwealth University
With a ranking of #21, Southern New Hampshire University did quite well on the 2023 Most Well Attended Visual & Performing Arts Major list. This large school is located in Manchester, New Hampshire, and it awarded 599 ’s visual and performing arts degrees in 2020-2021.
Indiana University - Bloomington landed the #22 spot on the 2023 Most Well Attended Visual & Performing Arts Major ranking. IU Bloomington is a large public school situated in Bloomington, Indiana. It awarded 651 ’s visual and performing arts degrees in 2020-2021.
The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 91%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The low undergrad student loan default rate of 3.4% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%.
Temple University did quite well in the 2023 Most Well Attended Visual & Performing Arts Major ranking, coming in at #23. Temple University is located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and, has a large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 617 ’s visual and performing arts degrees to qualified students.
With a freshman retention rate of 87%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students. The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 3.5%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
With a ranking of #24, Academy of Art University did quite well on the 2023 Most Well Attended Visual & Performing Arts Major list. Academy of Art University is a medium-sized private for-profit school situated in San Francisco, California. It awarded 588 ’s visual and performing arts degrees in 2020-2021.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 5.0%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Full Academy of Art University Visual & Performing Arts Report
Florida State University did quite well in the 2023 Most Well Attended Visual & Performing Arts Major ranking, coming in at #25. Florida State is a large school located in Tallahassee, Florida that handed out 583 ’s visual and performing arts degrees in 2020-2021.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 95%. The low undergrad student loan default rate of 2.8% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%.
Full Florida State University Visual & Performing Arts Report
Not only did these schools make the top 50 list, but they also landed in the top 15% of this year’s ranking:
While not in the ‘top 50’, these schools make the top 15% of this year’s ranking:
| Rank | College | Location |
|---|---|---|
| 51 | University of Florida | Gainesville, FL |
| 52 | Drexel University | Philadelphia, PA |
| 53 | Chapman University | Orange, CA |
| 54 | University of Houston | Houston, TX |
| 55 | Northwestern University | Evanston, IL |
| 56 | University of Iowa | Iowa City, IA |
| 57 | Art Center College of Design | Pasadena, CA |
| 58 | San Diego State University | San Diego, CA |
| 58 | The University of Texas at Dallas | Richardson, TX |
| 60 | Ohio State University - Main Campus | Columbus, OH |
| 61 | Michigan State University | East Lansing, MI |
| 62 | Pace University - New York | New York, NY |
| 63 | Brigham Young University - Provo | Provo, UT |
| 63 | Montclair State University | Montclair, NJ |
| 65 | University of Colorado Boulder | Boulder, CO |
| Rank | College | Location |
|---|---|---|
| 316 | University of Wisconsin - Whitewater | Whitewater, WI |
| 317 | Sierra College | Rocklin, CA |
| 317 | Millikin University | Decatur, IL |
| 317 | San Francisco Conservatory of Music | San Francisco, CA |
| 317 | New York School of Interior Design | New York, NY |
| 317 | Metropolitan Community College | Omaha, NE |
| 317 | Old Dominion University | Norfolk, VA |
Read more about our data sources and methodologies
