by our College Data Analytics Team
When it comes to choosing a college, students have a lot of options - but not all of them are good. College Factual has developed its “Most Well Attended Visual & Performing Arts Major for a Bachelor’s” ranking as one item you can use to help make this decision.
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.
At the bachelor’s degree level specifically, there were 94,717 visual and performing arts graduates with average earnings and debt of $39,682 and $26,217 respectively.
For this year’s “Most Well Attended Visual & Performing Arts Major for a Bachelor’s” ranking, we looked at 1,443 colleges that offer a degree in visual and performing arts. The schools that top this list are recognized because they have one of the most popular visual and performing arts programs in the United States.
Check out our ranking methodology for more information.
Since the program you select can have a significant impact on your future, we’ve developed a number of rankings, including this “Most Well Attended Visual & Performing Arts Major for a Bachelor’s” list, to help you choose the best school for you.
In addition to College Factual’s rankings, you may want to take a look at College Combat, our unique tool that lets you pit your favorite schools head-to-head and compare how they rate on factors that most interest you. When you have some time, check it out - you may want to bookmark the link so you don’t forget it.
The colleges and universities below are the best for bachelor’s degree visual & performing arts students.
Out of the 1,443 schools in the Most Well Attended Visual & Performing Arts Major for a Bachelor’s 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 1,489 bachelors’s visual and performing arts degrees in 2020-2021.
Read more about Visual & Performing Arts at Full Sail University
Out of the 1,443 schools in the Most Well Attended Visual & Performing Arts Major for a Bachelor’s that were part of this year’s ranking, Savannah College of Art and Design landed the #2 spot on the list. Savannah, Georgia is the setting for this fairly large institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out bachelors’s visual and performing arts degrees to 1,391 students in 2020-2021.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 3.2% 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%.
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend University of Central Florida. The school came in at #3 for the Most Well Attended Visual & Performing Arts Major for a Bachelor’s. UCF is a large public school situated in Orlando, Florida. It awarded 991 bachelors’s visual and performing arts degrees in 2020-2021.
The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 92%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 3.7%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend New York University. The school came in at #4 for the Most Well Attended Visual & Performing Arts Major for a Bachelor’s. NYU is a large private not-for-profit school situated in New York, New York. It awarded 963 bachelors’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. 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 low undergrad student loan default rate of 1.7% 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%.
Out of the 1,443 schools in the Most Well Attended Visual & Performing Arts Major for a Bachelor’s that were part of this year’s ranking, California State University - Long Beach landed the #5 spot on the list. CSULB is a large public school situated in Long Beach, California. It awarded 949 bachelors’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 89%. 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%.
Columbia College Chicago did quite well in the 2023 Most Well Attended Visual & Performing Arts Major for a Bachelor’s ranking, coming in at #6. Columbia College Chicago is located in Chicago, Illinois and, has a medium-sized student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 837 bachelors’s visual and performing arts degrees to qualified students.
The New School came in at #7 in this year’s edition of the Most Well Attended Visual & Performing Arts Major for a Bachelor’s ranking. This fairly large school is located in New York, New York, and it awarded 834 bachelors’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.
Read full report on Visual & Performing Arts at New School University
Berklee College of Music landed the #8 spot on the 2023 Most Well Attended Visual & Performing Arts Major for a Bachelor’s ranking. Berklee College of Music is a medium-sized private not-for-profit school situated in Boston, Massachusetts. It awarded 793 bachelors’s visual and performing arts degrees in 2020-2021.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 4.4%, which is quite low when compared to the national default 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 more about Visual & Performing Arts at Berklee College of Music
Fashion Institute of Technology did quite well in the 2023 Most Well Attended Visual & Performing Arts Major for a Bachelor’s ranking, coming in at #9. FIT SUNY is a public institution located in New York, New York. The school has a medium-sized population, and it awarded 671 bachelors’s degrees in 2020-2021.
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 2.0%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Read full report on Visual & Performing Arts at Fashion Institute of Technology
Arizona State University - Tempe came in at #10 in this year’s edition of the Most Well Attended Visual & Performing Arts Major for a Bachelor’s ranking. ASU - Tempe is located in Tempe, Arizona and, has a large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 651 bachelors’s visual and performing arts degrees to qualified students.
With a freshman retention rate of 86%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 4.5%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Read full report on Visual & Performing Arts at Arizona State University - Tempe
Belmont University ranked #11 on this year’s Most Well Attended Visual & Performing Arts Major for a Bachelor’s list. This medium-sized school is located in Nashville, Tennessee, and it awarded 643 bachelors’s visual and performing arts degrees 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%.
University of North Texas did quite well in the 2023 Most Well Attended Visual & Performing Arts Major for a Bachelor’s ranking, coming in at #12. UNT is a public institution located in Denton, Texas. The school has a large population, and it awarded 638 bachelors’s degrees in 2020-2021.
The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 85%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.
With a ranking of #13, San Francisco State University did quite well on the 2023 Most Well Attended Visual & Performing Arts Major for a Bachelor’s list. SFSU is a public institution located in San Francisco, California. The school has a large population, and it awarded 615 bachelors’s degrees in 2020-2021.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 4.3% 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%.
Read more about Visual & Performing Arts at San Francisco State University
University of Southern California ranked #14 on this year’s Most Well Attended Visual & Performing Arts Major for a Bachelor’s list. University of Southern California is located in Los Angeles, California and, has a large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 613 bachelors’s visual and performing arts degrees to qualified students.
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%. Since the school has a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 9 to 1, those pursuing a degree will have more opportunities to interact with their professors. With a freshman retention rate of 91%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students.
California State University - Fullerton ranked #15 on this year’s Most Well Attended Visual & Performing Arts Major for a Bachelor’s list. Cal State Fullerton is located in Fullerton, California and, has a large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 599 bachelors’s visual and performing arts degrees to qualified students.
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 school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 2.5%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Full California State University - Fullerton Visual & Performing Arts Report
Virginia Commonwealth University landed the #16 spot on the 2023 Most Well Attended Visual & Performing Arts Major for a Bachelor’s ranking. Located in Richmond, Virginia, this large public school awarded 580 degrees to qualified bachelors’s visual and performing arts students in 2020-2021.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 2.6%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Read more about Visual & Performing Arts at Virginia Commonwealth University
With a ranking of #17, School of the Art Institute of Chicago did quite well on the 2023 Most Well Attended Visual & Performing Arts Major for a Bachelor’s list. School of the Art Institute of Chicago is a small school located in Chicago, Illinois that handed out 576 bachelors’s visual and performing arts degrees in 2020-2021.
Since the school has a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 8 to 1, those pursuing a degree will have more opportunities to interact with their professors.
Read more about Visual & Performing Arts at School of the Art Institute of Chicago
Pratt Institute - Main ranked #18 on this year’s Most Well Attended Visual & Performing Arts Major for a Bachelor’s list. Pratt Institute is located in Brooklyn, New York and, has a medium-sized student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 555 bachelors’s visual and performing arts degrees to qualified students.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 4.5%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 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.
Southern New Hampshire University landed the #19 spot on the 2023 Most Well Attended Visual & Performing Arts Major for a Bachelor’s ranking. SNHU is a large private not-for-profit school situated in Manchester, New Hampshire. It awarded 501 bachelors’s visual and performing arts degrees in 2020-2021.
Texas State University ranked #20 on this year’s Most Well Attended Visual & Performing Arts Major for a Bachelor’s list. This large school is located in San Marcos, Texas, and it awarded 487 bachelors’s visual and performing arts degrees in 2020-2021.
Read full report on Visual & Performing Arts at Texas State University
Los Angeles Film School came in at #21 in this year’s edition of the Most Well Attended Visual & Performing Arts Major for a Bachelor’s ranking. Hollywood, California is the setting for this medium-sized institution of higher learning. The private for-profit school handed out bachelors’s visual and performing arts degrees to 481 students in 2020-2021.
University of California - Santa Cruz landed the #22 spot on the 2023 Most Well Attended Visual & Performing Arts Major for a Bachelor’s ranking. University of California - Santa Cruz is a public institution located in Santa Cruz, California. The school has a fairly large population, and it awarded 477 bachelors’s degrees in 2020-2021.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 2.9%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 85%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.
Emerson College landed the #22 spot on the 2023 Most Well Attended Visual & Performing Arts Major for a Bachelor’s ranking. Emerson College is a medium-sized private not-for-profit school situated in Boston, Massachusetts. It awarded 477 bachelors’s visual and performing arts degrees in 2020-2021.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 3.2% 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%.
Middle Tennessee State University ranked #24 on this year’s Most Well Attended Visual & Performing Arts Major for a Bachelor’s list. Middle Tennessee State University is a large school located in Murfreesboro, Tennessee that handed out 476 bachelors’s visual and performing arts degrees in 2020-2021.
Read more about Visual & Performing Arts at Middle Tennessee State University
California State University - Northridge came in at #25 in this year’s edition of the Most Well Attended Visual & Performing Arts Major for a Bachelor’s ranking. This large school is located in Northridge, California, and it awarded 471 bachelors’s visual and performing arts degrees in 2020-2021.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 3.7%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Full California State University - Northridge 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 | The University of the Arts | Philadelphia, PA |
| 53 | University of Minnesota - Twin Cities | Minneapolis, MN |
| 54 | Maryland Institute College of Art | Baltimore, MD |
| 55 | Art Center College of Design | Pasadena, CA |
| 56 | Liberty University | Lynchburg, VA |
| 57 | University of Houston | Houston, TX |
| 58 | University of California - Riverside | Riverside, CA |
| 59 | Chapman University | Orange, CA |
| 60 | University of Nevada - Las Vegas | Las Vegas, NV |
| 60 | University of Wisconsin - Milwaukee | Milwaukee, WI |
| 60 | University of North Carolina at Greensboro | Greensboro, NC |
| 63 | University of Washington - Seattle Campus | Seattle, WA |
| 64 | University of Colorado Denver/Anschutz Medical Campus | Denver, CO |
| 65 | Appalachian State University | Boone, NC |
| Rank | College | Location |
|---|---|---|
| 214 | West Chester University of Pennsylvania | West Chester, PA |
| 214 | Champlain College | Burlington, VT |
Read more about our data sources and methodologies
