8
Ranked Colleges
427
Degrees Awarded
$23,900
Avg Net Price*
With all of the options students have for higher education today, it can be tough to choose which direction to take. College Factual was founded, in part, to help students make the decision as to what would be the best school for them. Our “Best Value Game and Interactive Media Design Schools in the Far Western US Region For Those Making $0-$30k” ranking is part of that endeavor.
Game & Interactive Media Design is the 293rd most popular major in the country with 2,692 degrees awarded in 2020-2021.
Across the Far Western US region, there were 427 game and interactive media design graduates with average earnings and debt of $0 and $0 respectively.
This year’s “Best Value Game and Interactive Media Design Schools in the Far Western US Region For Those Making $0-$30k” ranking analyzed 8 colleges that offered a degree in game and interactive media design. This ranking identifies schools with high-quality game and interactive media design programs that also have a lower cost than schools of similar quality.
Some of the factors we look at when determining these rankings are overall quality of the game and interactive media design program at the school and the cost of the school after aid is awarded among other things. For more information, check out our ranking methodology.
One Size Does Not Fit All
Since the program you select can have a significant impact on your future, we’ve developed a number of rankings, including this “Best Value Game and Interactive Media Design Schools in the Far Western US Region For Those Making $0-$30k” 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 following schools top our list of the Best Best Value Game and Interactive Media Design Schools in the Far Western US Region For Those Making $0-$30k.
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of Southern California. It ranked #1 on our 2023 Best Value Game and Interactive Media Design Schools in the Far Western US Region For Those Making $0-$30k list. This large school is located in Los Angeles, California, and it awarded 37 ’s game and interactive media design degrees in 2020-2021.
As a testament to the quality of education offered at USC, the school also landed the #1 spot in our “Best Game & Interactive Media Design Schools in the Far Western US Region” ranking. It costs about $17,287 for far western us region game and interactive media design students whose families make $0-$30k per year to attend USC.
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. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 91%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.
Read more about Game & Interactive Media Design at University of Southern California
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend University of California - Santa Cruz. The school came in at #2 for the Best Value Game and Interactive Media Design Schools in the Far Western US Region For Those Making $0-$30k. UC Santa Cruz is a fairly large school located in Santa Cruz, California that handed out 108 ’s game and interactive media design degrees in 2020-2021.
UC Santa Cruz also took the #3 spot in our “Best Game & Interactive Media Design Schools in the Far Western US Region” ranking. It costs about $11,038 for Far Western US Region Game and Interactive Media Design students whose families make $0-$30k per year to attend University of California - Santa Cruz.
With a freshman retention rate of 85%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students. 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%.
Read full report on Game & Interactive Media Design at University of California - Santa Cruz
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend California State University - Chico. It ranked #3 on our 2023 Best Value Game and Interactive Media Design Schools in the Far Western US Region For Those Making $0-$30k list. This fairly large school is located in Chico, California, and it awarded 81 ’s game and interactive media design degrees in 2020-2021.
As a testament to the quality of education offered at Chico State, the school also landed the #5 spot in our “Best Game & Interactive Media Design Schools in the Far Western US Region” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for Chico State is $11,754 for Far Western US Region Game and Interactive Media Design students whose families make $0-$30k.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 4.0%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Full California State University - Chico Game & Interactive Media Design Report
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Woodbury University. The school came in at #4 for the Best Value Game and Interactive Media Design Schools in the Far Western US Region For Those Making $0-$30k. This small school is located in Burbank, California, and it awarded 7 ’s game and interactive media design degrees in 2020-2021.
Woodbury did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #4 on our “Best Game & Interactive Media Design Schools in the Far Western US Region” list. It costs about $25,495 for far western us region game and interactive media design students whose families make $0-$30k per year to attend Woodbury.
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%. Since the school has a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 10 to 1, those pursuing a degree will have more opportunities to interact with their professors.
Read more about Game & Interactive Media Design at Woodbury
Out of the 8 schools in the Best Value Game and Interactive Media Design Schools in the Far Western US Region For Those Making $0-$30k that were part of this year’s ranking, Cogswell College landed the #5 spot on the list. This small school is located in San Jose, California, and it awarded 29 ’s game and interactive media design degrees in 2020-2021.
Cogswell not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #6 on our “Best Game & Interactive Media Design Schools in the Far Western US Region” list. The estimated yearly cost for Cogswell is $22,524 for far western us region game and interactive media design students whose families make $0-$30k.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 3.5%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Full Cogswell College Game & Interactive Media Design Report
Laguna College of Art and Design did quite well in the 2023 Best Value Game and Interactive Media Design Schools in the Far Western US Region For Those Making $0-$30k ranking, coming in at #6. Located in Laguna Beach, California, this small private not-for-profit school handed out 50 diplomas to qualified ’s game and interactive media design students in 2020-2021.
As a testament to the quality of education offered at LCAD, the school also landed the #2 spot in our “Best Game & Interactive Media Design Schools in the Far Western US Region” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for LCAD is $33,241 for far western us region game and interactive media design students whose families make $0-$30k.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 4.0%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Read full report on Game & Interactive Media Design at Laguna College of Art and Design
With a ranking of #7, New York Film Academy did quite well on the 2023 Best Value Game and Interactive Media Design Schools in the Far Western US Region For Those Making $0-$30k list. New York Film Academy is a private for-profit institution located in Burbank, California. The school has a small population, and it awarded 12 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.
New York Film Academy not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #7 on our “Best Game & Interactive Media Design Schools in the Far Western US Region” list. The estimated yearly cost for New York Film Academy is $43,567 for far western us region game and interactive media design students whose families make $0-$30k.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 3.8% 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%. 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 Game & Interactive Media Design at New York Film Academy
SAE Expression College ranked #8 on this year’s Best Value Game and Interactive Media Design Schools in the Far Western US Region For Those Making $0-$30k list. Emeryville, California is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. The private for-profit school handed out ’s game and interactive media design degrees to 13 students in 2020-2021.
In addition to being on our far western us region game and interactive media design students whose families make $0-$30k list, SAE Expression College has also earned the #8 rank in our “Best Game & Interactive Media Design Schools in the Far Western US Region” ranking. The yearly cost to attend SAE Expression College is $26,667 for far western us region game and interactive media design students whose families make $0-$30k.
Read full report on Game & Interactive Media Design at SAE Expression College
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Notes and References
References
- The Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) from the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), a branch of the U.S. Department of Education (DOE) serves as the core of our data about colleges.
- Some other college data, including much of the graduate earnings data, comes from the U.S. Department of Education’s (College Scorecard).
- Information about the national average student loan default rate is from the U.S. Department of Education and refers to data about the 2016 borrower cohort tracking period for which the cohort default rate (CDR) was 10.1%.
Read more about our data sources and methodologies
- *Average salary, average net price, and average tuition and fees are for the top schools only.
- Some schools otherwise deserving of recognition may have been removed from this ranking in the event that new data identified post-publication warranted it, or at the request of the school.