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2025 Best Graphic Communications Schools in the Far Western US Region

9 Colleges in the Far Western US Region
2,084 Graphic Communication Degrees Awarded
$27,929 Avg Early-Career Salary
A degree in graphic communications is more popular than many other degrees. In fact, it ranks #122 out of 395 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.

In 2025, College Factual analyzed 9 schools in order to identify the top ones for its Best Graphic Communications Schools in the Far Western US Region ranking. When you put them all together, these colleges and universities awarded 2,084 degrees in graphic communications annually.

What's on this page: * Degree-Level Rankings

Choosing a Great Graphic Communications School

Best Graphic Communications Schools in the Far Western US Region Your choice of graphic communications school matters, so we have put together these rankings to help you make your decision. In order to come up with a best overall ranking for graphic communications schools, we combine our degree-level rankings, weighting them by the number of degrees awarded at each level.

In order to find the schools that are the best fit for you, you may want to filter to one of the degree levels below.

Pick Your Graphic Communications Degree Level

Associate Degrees in Graphic Communication
Bachelor's Degrees in Graphic Communication
Master's Degrees in Graphic Communication

The graphic communication school you choose to invest your time and money in matters. To help you make the decision that is right for you, we've developed a number of major-specific rankings, including this list of the Best Graphic Communications Schools in the Far Western US Region. 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 Graphic Communications in the Far Western US Region

Although we recommend filtering by degree level first, you can view the list below to see which schools give the educational experience for the graphic communication degree levels they offer.

Top Far Western US Region Schools in Graphic Communication

1
Bachelor's Degree Highest Degree Type
83 Graphic Communication Degrees Awarded
$49,029 Median Starting Salary

California Polytechnic State University - San Luis Obispo is a wonderful option for students pursuing a degree in graphic communications. Cal Poly San Luis Obispo is a fairly large public university located in the suburb of San Luis Obispo. A Best Colleges rank of #165 out of 2,152 schools nationwide means Cal Poly San Luis Obispo is a great university overall.

There were approximately 83 graphic communications students who graduated with this degree at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo in the most recent year we have data available. Graphic Communications degree recipients from California Polytechnic State University - San Luis Obispo receive an earnings boost of approximately $21,100 above the typical earnings of graphic communications majors.

More information about a degree in graphic communications from California Polytechnic State University - San Luis Obispo

2
Bachelor's Degree Highest Degree Type
62 Graphic Communication Degrees Awarded
33.9% Growth in Graduates

Art Center College of Design is a wonderful option for students interested in a degree in graphic communications. Art Center College of Design is a small private not-for-profit college located in the city of Pasadena.

There were approximately 62 graphic communications students who graduated with this degree at Art Center College of Design in the most recent year we have data available. Those graphic communications students who get their degree from Art Center College of Design make $39,081 more than the typical graphic communication graduate.

More information about a degree in graphic communications from Art Center College of Design

3
Academy of Art University crest
Academy of Art University
San Francisco, CA
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
192 Graphic Communication Degrees Awarded
$27,481 Median Starting Salary

It is hard to beat Academy of Art University if you want to pursue a degree in graphic communications. Academy of Art University is a moderately-sized private for-profit university located in the city of San Francisco. A Best Colleges rank of #349 out of 2,152 schools nationwide means Academy of Art University is a great university overall.

There were roughly 192 graphic communications students who graduated with this degree at Academy of Art University in the most recent year we have data available. Students who graduate with their degree from the graphic communication program report average early career earnings of $27,481.

More information about a degree in graphic communications from Academy of Art University

4
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
69 Graphic Communication Degrees Awarded
7.2% Growth in Graduates

California College of the Arts is one of the best schools in the country for getting a degree in graphic communications. Located in the large city of San Francisco, California College of the Arts is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population.

There were about 69 graphic communications students who graduated with this degree at California College of the Arts in the most recent year we have data available. Students who receive their degree from the graphic communication program earn an average of $26,481 in the first couple years of their career.

More information about a degree in graphic communications from California College of the Arts

5
Cogswell crest
Cogswell College
San Jose, CA
Bachelor's Degree Highest Degree Type
35 Graphic Communication Degrees Awarded
$33,727 Median Starting Salary

Located in the city of San Jose, Cogswell is a private for-profit college with a fairly small student population.

There were roughly 35 graphic communications students who graduated with this degree at Cogswell in the most recent data year. Graphic Communications degree recipients from Cogswell College receive an earnings boost of around $5,798 over the average income of graphic communications majors.

More information about a degree in graphic communications from Cogswell College

6

LCAD is a fairly small private not-for-profit college located in the rural area of Laguna Beach.

There were roughly 29 graphic communications students who graduated with this degree at LCAD in the most recent data year. Students who graduate with their degree from the graphic communication program state that they receive average early career income of $17,941.

More information about a degree in graphic communications from Laguna College of Art and Design

7
Bachelor's Degree Highest Degree Type
64 Graphic Communication Degrees Awarded
7.8% Growth in Graduates

Located in the city of Honolulu, UH Manoa is a public university with a large student population. This university ranks 2nd out of 10 schools for overall quality in the state of Hawaii.

There were roughly 64 graphic communications students who graduated with this degree at UH Manoa in the most recent year we have data available. Students who receive their degree from the graphic communication program make about $16,556 in the first couple years of working.

More information about a degree in graphic communications from University of Hawaii at Manoa

8
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
67 Graphic Communication Degrees Awarded
$37,605 Median Starting Salary

Digipen is a small private for-profit school located in the city of Redmond. This school ranks 48th out of 50 schools for overall quality in the state of Washington.

There were roughly 67 graphic communications students who graduated with this degree at Digipen in the most recent data year. Graphic Communications degree recipients from DigiPen Institute of Technology get an earnings boost of around $9,676 over the average income of graphic communications graduates.

More information about a degree in graphic communications from DigiPen Institute of Technology

9
Bachelor's Degree Highest Degree Type
67 Graphic Communication Degrees Awarded
47.8% Growth in Graduates

LA Film School is a medium-sized private for-profit school located in the large city of Hollywood.

There were roughly 67 graphic communications students who graduated with this degree at LA Film School in the most recent data year. After graduation, graphic communication degree recipients usually make about $15,529 at the beginning of their careers.

More information about a degree in graphic communications from Los Angeles Film School

Best Graphic Communications Colleges by State

Explore the best graphic communications schools for a specific state in the Far Western US Region .

State Colleges Degrees Awarded
California 330 1,036
Washington 300 150
Oregon 266 16
Nevada 192 0
Hawaii 164 113

View All Rankings >

Graphic Communications is one of 3 different types of Communications Technologies & Support programs to choose from.

Graphic Communication Concentrations

Major Annual Graduates
Animation, Interactive Technology, Video Graphics & Special Effects 1,487
Prepress/Desktop Publishing & Digital Imaging Design 473
General Graphic Communications 103
Graphic & Printing Equipment Operator, General Production 11
Other Graphic Communications 10

View All Graphic Communication Focus Areas >

Majors Similar to Graphic Communication

Related Major Annual Graduates
Audiovisual Communications 1,140
Other Communication Technology 25

View All Graphic Communication Related Majors >

Notes and References

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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