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2024 Best Visual & Performing Arts Schools in the Southwest Region

59 Colleges in the Southwest Region
17,851 Visual & Performing Arts Degrees Awarded
$27,608 Avg Early-Career Salary
A degree in visual & performing arts is more popular than many other degrees. In fact, it ranks #10 out of 38 on popularity of all such degrees in the nation. This means you won't have too much trouble finding schools that offer the degree.

College Factual reviewed 59 schools in the Southwest Region to determine which ones were the best for degree seekers in the field of visual & performing arts. When you put them all together, these colleges and universities awarded 17,851 degrees in visual & performing arts during the 2020-2021 academic year.

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

Choosing a Great Visual & Performing Arts School

Best Visual & Performing Arts Schools in the Southwest Region Your choice of visual & performing arts school matters, so we have put together these rankings to help you make your decision. We derive our Best Overall Visual & Performing Arts School rankings by rolling up our degree-level rankings after weighting them by the number of degrees awarded at each school.

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 & Performing Arts
Bachelor's Degrees in Visual & Performing Arts
Master's Degrees in Visual & Performing Arts
Doctor's Degrees in Visual & Performing Arts

Since the program you select can have a significant impact on your future, we've developed a number of rankings, including this Best Visual & Performing Arts Schools in the Southwest Region list, to help you choose the best school for you. You can also filter this list by location to find schools closer to 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.

More information on how we come up with our rankings can be found here: College Factual's Data Methodology.

Best Schools for Visual & Performing Arts in the Southwest Region

If you aren't interested in a particular degree level and want to know which schools are the overall best at delivering an education for the visual & performing arts degrees they offer, see the list below.

10 Top Southwest Region Schools in Visual & Performing Arts

1
Rice crest
Rice University
Houston, TX
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
129 Visual & Performing Arts Degrees Awarded
7.8% Growth in Graduates

Every student pursuing a degree in visual & performing arts needs to look into Rice University. Rice is a medium-sized private not-for-profit university located in the large city of Houston. A Best Colleges rank of #16 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means Rice is a great university overall.

There were about 129 visual & performing arts students who graduated with this degree at Rice in the most recent year we have data available. Graduates who receive their degree from the visual & performing arts program earn an average of $28,275 for their early career.

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

2
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
580 Visual & Performing Arts Degrees Awarded
18.1% Growth in Graduates

The University of Texas at Austin is one of the finest schools in the United States for getting a degree in visual & performing arts. Located in the large city of Austin, UT Austin is a public university with a very large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #36 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means UT Austin is a great university overall.

There were roughly 580 visual & performing arts students who graduated with this degree at UT Austin in the most recent data year. Visual & Performing Arts degree recipients from The University of Texas at Austin get an earnings boost of approximately $5,328 over the average income of visual & performing arts graduates.

More information about a degree in visual & performing arts from The University of Texas at Austin

3
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
373 Visual & Performing Arts Degrees Awarded
4.8% Growth in Graduates

The University of Texas at Dallas is one of the finest schools in the country for getting a degree in visual & performing arts. Located in the midsize city of Richardson, UT Dallas is a public university with a very large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #216 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means UT Dallas is a great university overall.

There were approximately 373 visual & performing arts students who graduated with this degree at UT Dallas in the most recent year we have data available. Soon after graduation, visual & performing arts degree recipients usually earn about $29,116 in the first five years of their career.

More information about a degree in visual & performing arts from The University of Texas at Dallas

4
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
171 Visual & Performing Arts Degrees Awarded
9.9% Growth in Graduates

It's hard to beat Texas Christian University if you wish to pursue a degree in visual & performing arts. Located in the city of Fort Worth, TCU is a private not-for-profit university with a large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #80 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means TCU is a great university overall.

There were roughly 171 visual & performing arts students who graduated with this degree at TCU in the most recent data year. Those visual & performing arts students who get their degree from Texas Christian University make $2,003 more than the standard visual & performing arts student.

More information about a degree in visual & performing arts from Texas Christian University

5
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
203 Visual & Performing Arts Degrees Awarded
4.4% Growth in Graduates

Located in the large suburb of Dallas, SMU is a private not-for-profit university with a large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #73 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means SMU is a great university overall.

There were approximately 203 visual & performing arts students who graduated with this degree at SMU in the most recent data year. After graduation, visual & performing arts degree recipients typically make an average of $27,552 in the first five years of their career.

More information about a degree in visual & performing arts from Southern Methodist University

6
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
803 Visual & Performing Arts Degrees Awarded
$29,108 Median Starting Salary

ASU - Tempe is a very large public university located in the medium-sized city of Tempe. A Best Colleges rank of #119 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means ASU - Tempe is a great university overall.

There were approximately 803 visual & performing arts students who graduated with this degree at ASU - Tempe in the most recent year we have data available. Students who graduate with their degree from the visual & performing arts program report average early career earnings of $29,108.

More information about a degree in visual & performing arts from Arizona State University - Tempe

7
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
339 Visual & Performing Arts Degrees Awarded
$27,451 Median Starting Salary

Located in the large city of Tucson, University of Arizona is a public university with a fairly large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #133 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means University of Arizona is a great university overall.

There were about 339 visual & performing arts students who graduated with this degree at University of Arizona in the most recent data year. Students who receive their degree from the visual & performing arts program make about $27,451 for their early career.

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

8
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
793 Visual & Performing Arts Degrees Awarded
$28,731 Median Starting Salary

Located in the city of Denton, UNT is a public university with a very large student population. This university ranks 14th out of 115 schools for overall quality in the state of Texas.

There were approximately 793 visual & performing arts students who graduated with this degree at UNT in the most recent data year. Students who graduate with their degree from the visual & performing arts program state that they receive average early career income of $28,731.

More information about a degree in visual & performing arts from University of North Texas

9
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
199 Visual & Performing Arts Degrees Awarded
31.7% Growth in Graduates

Baylor is a fairly large private not-for-profit university located in the medium-sized city of Waco. A Best Colleges rank of #123 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means Baylor is a great university overall.

There were approximately 199 visual & performing arts students who graduated with this degree at Baylor in the most recent data year. Students who graduate with their degree from the visual & performing arts program report average early career wages of $25,277.

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

10
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
385 Visual & Performing Arts Degrees Awarded
10.4% Growth in Graduates

Located in the city of Houston, UH is a public university with a fairly large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #211 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means UH is a great university overall.

There were roughly 385 visual & performing arts students who graduated with this degree at UH in the most recent data year. Degree recipients from the visual & performing arts degree program at University of Houston earn $5,399 more than the typical college grad in this field when they enter the workforce.

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

Best Visual & Performing Arts Colleges by State

Explore the best visual & performing arts schools for a specific state in the Southwest Region .

State Colleges Degrees Awarded
Arizona 38 2,287
Texas 38 7,645
New Mexico 38 489
Oklahoma 38 1,200

View All Rankings >

Visual & Performing Arts Majors to Study

Major Annual Graduates
Fine & Studio Arts 7,643
Design & Applied Arts 3,286
Music 2,896
Drama & Theater Arts 1,410
Film, Video & Photographic Arts 1,036
General Visual & Performing Arts 844
Dance 413
Arts & Media Management 317
Other Visual Art 5
Community/Environmental/Socially-Engaged Art 1

View All Visual & Performing Arts Related Majors >

Notes and References

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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