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2024 Best Visual & Performing Arts Bachelor's Degree Schools in the Middle Atlantic Region

121 Colleges in the Middle Atlantic Region
18,488 Bachelor's Degrees
$25,827 Avg Early-Career Salary
a bachelor's degree in visual & performing arts is more popular than many other degrees. In fact, it ranks #9 out of 38 on popularity of all such degrees in the nation. As a result, there are many college that offer the degree, making your choice of school a hard one.

For its 2024 ranking, College Factual looked at 121 schools in the Middle Atlantic Region to determine which ones were the best for visual & performing arts students pursuing a bachelor's degree. Combined, these schools handed out 18,488 bachelor's degrees in visual & performing arts to qualified students.

Jump to one of the following sections: * Our Methodology

Choosing a Great Visual & Performing Arts School for Your Bachelor's Degree

Best Visual & Performing Arts Bachelor's Degree Schools in the Middle Atlantic Region Your choice of visual & performing arts for getting your bachelor's degree school matters. Important measures of a quality visual & performing arts program can vary widely even among the top schools. To make it into this list, a school must excel in the following areas.

A Great Overall School

A school that excels in educating for a particular major and degree level must be a great school overall as well. To make it into this list a school must rank well in our overall Best Colleges ranking. This ranking considered factors such as graduation rates, overall graduate earnings and other educational resources to identify great colleges and universities.

Early-Career Earnings

One measure we use to determine the quality of a school is to look at the average salary of bachelor's graduates during the early years of their career. That is, everyone wants their bachelor's degree to be worth something, and salaries are one measure of determining that.

Other Factors We Consider

In addition to the above, you should consider some of the following factors:

Our full ranking methodology documents in more detail how we consider these factors to identify the best schools for visual & performing arts students working on their bachelor's degree.

One Size Does Not Fit All

Rankings by Location Check Out Other Locales
More Visual & Performing Arts Rankings Other Ranking Categories

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

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.

Best Schools for Bachelor’s Students to Study Visual & Performing Arts in the Middle Atlantic Region

Learn about the top ranked colleges and universities for visual & performing arts students seeking a a bachelor's degree. Only those schools that rank in the top 15% of all the schools we analyze get awarded with a place on this list.

18 Top Middle Atlantic Region Schools for a Bachelor's in Visual & Performing Arts

1
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
120 Annual Graduates

Columbia University in the City of New York is one of the finest schools in the United States for getting a bachelor's degree in visual & performing arts. Located in the large city of New York, Columbia is a private not-for-profit university with a very large student population.More information about a bachelor’s in visual & performing arts from Columbia University in the City of New York

2
NYU crest
New York University
New York, NY
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
963 Annual Graduates

It is hard to beat New York University if you wish to pursue a bachelor's degree in visual & performing arts. Located in the city of New York, NYU is a private not-for-profit university with a fairly large student population.More information about a bachelor’s in visual & performing arts from New York University

3
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
139 Annual Graduates

Every student who is interested in a bachelor's degree in visual & performing arts has to take a look at Carnegie Mellon University. Located in the city of Pittsburgh, Carnegie Mellon is a private not-for-profit university with a large student population.More information about a bachelor’s in visual & performing arts from Carnegie Mellon University

4
Juilliard crest
The Juilliard School
New York, NY
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
114 Annual Graduates

The Juilliard School is a great option for students interested in a bachelor's degree in visual & performing arts. Located in the city of New York, Juilliard is a private not-for-profit school with a small student population.More information about a bachelor’s in visual & performing arts from The Juilliard School

5
UPenn crest
University of Pennsylvania
Philadelphia, PA
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
81 Annual Graduates

Located in the large city of Philadelphia, UPenn is a private not-for-profit university with a very large student population.More information about a bachelor’s in visual & performing arts from University of Pennsylvania

6
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
671 Annual Graduates

Located in the large city of New York, FIT SUNY is a public school with a moderately-sized student population.More information about a bachelor’s in visual & performing arts from Fashion Institute of Technology

7
Associate Degree Highest Degree Type
205 Annual Graduates

American Musical and Dramatic Academy is a small private not-for-profit school located in the large city of New York.More information about a bachelor’s in visual & performing arts from American Musical and Dramatic Academy

8
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
167 Annual Graduates

UMCP is a fairly large public university located in the large suburb of College Park.More information about a bachelor’s in visual & performing arts from University of Maryland - College Park

9
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
317 Annual Graduates

Located in the city of Baltimore, MICA is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population.More information about a bachelor’s in visual & performing arts from Maryland Institute College of Art

10
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
63 Annual Graduates

Johns Hopkins is a fairly large private not-for-profit university located in the city of Baltimore.More information about a bachelor’s in visual & performing arts from Johns Hopkins University

11
New School University crest
The New School
New York, NY
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
834 Annual Graduates

New School University is a large private not-for-profit school located in the large city of New York.More information about a bachelor’s in visual & performing arts from The New School

12
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
555 Annual Graduates

Located in the city of Brooklyn, Pratt Institute is a private not-for-profit school with a medium-sized student population.More information about a bachelor’s in visual & performing arts from Pratt Institute - Main

13
Lafayette crest
Lafayette College
Easton, PA
35 Annual Graduates

Lafayette is a small private not-for-profit college located in the large suburb of Easton.More information about a bachelor’s in visual & performing arts from Lafayette College

14
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
157 Annual Graduates

Located in the midsize city of Rochester, University of Rochester is a private not-for-profit university with a fairly large student population.More information about a bachelor’s in visual & performing arts from University of Rochester

15
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
90 Annual Graduates

GWU is a very large private not-for-profit university located in the city of Washington.More information about a bachelor’s in visual & performing arts from George Washington University

16
Skidmore crest
Skidmore College
Saratoga Springs, NY
73 Annual Graduates

Skidmore is a small private not-for-profit college located in the suburb of Saratoga Springs.More information about a bachelor’s in visual & performing arts from Skidmore College

17
Syracuse crest
Syracuse University
Syracuse, NY
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
273 Annual Graduates

Syracuse is a fairly large private not-for-profit university located in the midsize city of Syracuse.More information about a bachelor’s in visual & performing arts from Syracuse University

18
Temple crest
Temple University
Philadelphia, PA
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
463 Annual Graduates

Located in the large city of Philadelphia, Temple is a public university with a very large student population.More information about a bachelor’s in visual & performing arts from Temple University

Additional Noteworthy Schools

Here are some additional great schools for Visual & Performing Arts students in the Middle Atlantic Region that almost earned our Best Visual & Performing Arts Bachelor's Degree Schools in the Middle Atlantic Region award.

Rank College Location
19 Drexel University Philadelphia, PA
20 University of Pittsburgh - Pittsburgh Campus Pittsburgh, PA
21 University of Delaware Newark, DE
22 Towson University Towson, MD
23 Manhattan School of Music New York, NY
24 Muhlenberg College Allentown, PA
25 American University Washington, DC

Best Visual & Performing Arts Colleges by State

Explore the best visual & performing arts colleges for a specific state in the Middle Atlantic Region .

State Colleges Degrees Awarded
Pennsylvania 37 4,279
New York 37 10,551
New Jersey 34 1,892
Maryland 33 1,285
Delaware 30 100
District of Columbia 28 381

View All Rankings >

Visual & Performing Arts Majors to Study

Major Annual Graduates
Fine & Studio Arts 4,260
Design & Applied Arts 4,181
Drama & Theater Arts 2,941
Music 2,498
Film, Video & Photographic Arts 2,439
Arts & Media Management 705
Dance 686
General Visual & Performing Arts 556
Other Visual Art 206
Crafts, Folk Art & Artisanry 16

Notes and References

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