2025 Best Design & Applied Arts Master's Degree Schools in California
If you plan on getting your master's degree in
design & applied arts, you won't be alone since the degree program is ranked #72 in the country in terms of popularity. As a result, there are many college that offer the degree, making your choice of school a hard one.
In 2025, College Factual analyzed 5 schools in order to identify the top ones for its Best Design & Applied Arts Master's Degree Schools in California ranking. When you put them all together, these colleges and universities awarded 186 master's degrees in design & applied arts during the 2022-2023 academic year.
Jump to one of the following sections: * Our Methodology
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Featured Design & Applied Arts Programs
Learn about start dates, transferring credits, availability of financial aid, and more by contacting the universities below.
AA in Digital Photography
Take the first step toward a career of visual expression and doing what you love with this online associate degree from Southern New Hampshire University.
Learn More
BA in Digital Photography
Learn to create a striking portfolio and hone the skills you need to succeed in the world of professional photography with this online digital photography degree from Southern New Hampshire University.
Learn More
Choosing a Great Design & Applied Arts School for Your Master's Degree
Your choice of design & applied arts for getting your master's degree school matters. This section explores some of the factors we include in our ranking and how much they vary depending on the school you select. 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 for a Master's Degree 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 master's graduates during the early years of their career. That is, everyone wants their master'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:
- Major Focus - How much a school focuses on design & applied arts students vs. other majors.
- Major Demand - How many other design & applied arts students want to attend this school to pursue a master's degree.
- Educational Resources - The amount of money and other resources allocated to students while they are pursuing their degree. These resources include such things as number of students per instructor and education expenditures per student.
- Student Debt - How much debt design & applied arts students go into to obtain their master's degree and how well they are able to pay back that debt.
- Accreditation - Whether a school is regionally accredited and/or accredited by a recognized design & applied arts related body.
Our complete ranking methodology documents in more detail how we consider these factors to identify the best schools for design & applied arts students working on their master's degree.
More Ways to Rank Design & Applied Arts Schools
The design 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 Design & Applied Arts Master's Degree Schools in California.
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Featured Design & Applied Arts Programs
Learn about start dates, transferring credits, availability of financial aid, and more by contacting the universities below.
AA in Digital Photography
Take the first step toward a career of visual expression and doing what you love with this online associate degree from Southern New Hampshire University.
Learn More
BA in Digital Photography
Learn to create a striking portfolio and hone the skills you need to succeed in the world of professional photography with this online digital photography degree from Southern New Hampshire University.
Learn More