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2022 Best Value Design Schools in the Southwest Region For Those Making $0-$30k

49 Ranked Colleges
3,229 Degrees Awarded
$8,900 Avg Net Price*
Best Value Design Schools in the Southwest Region For Those Making $0-$30k

With all of the options students have for higher education today, it can be tough to choose which direction to take. At College Factual, we’re committed to helping you make that decision by providing information such as that found in our “Best Value Design Schools in the Southwest Region For Those Making $0-$30k” ranking.

In 2019-2020, 36,854 people earned their degree in design and applied arts, making the major the 34th most popular in the United States. In 2017-2018, design and applied arts graduates who were awarded their degree in 2015-2017, earned an average of $29,542 and had an average of $27,114 in loans still to pay off.

Across the Southwest region, there were 3,229 design and applied arts graduates with average earnings and debt of $27,160 and $27,678 respectively.

For this year’s “Best Value Design Schools in the Southwest Region For Those Making $0-$30k” ranking, we looked at 49 colleges that offer a degree in design and applied arts. Not only do the schools that top this list have excellent design and applied arts programs, but they also cost less that schools of similar quality.

To come up with these rankings, we looked at factors such as the cost to attend the school after aid is awarded and overall quality of the design and applied arts program at the school. See our ranking methodology to learn more.

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 “Best Value Design Schools in the Southwest Region For Those Making $0-$30k”.

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. If you’re torn between two schools, you can use it to help you see how they stack up against one another. Bookmark it so you can compare any new schools that might interest you.

Best Value Design Schools in the Southwest Region For Those Making $0-$30k

The colleges and universities below are the best for southwest region design students whose families make $0-$30k.

Top 25 Best Value Colleges for Design & Applied Arts (Income $0-$30k) in the Southwest Region

Out of the 49 schools in the Best Value Design Schools in the Southwest Region For Those Making $0-$30k that were part of this year’s ranking, Austin Community College District landed the #1 spot on the list. Located in Austin, Texas, this large public school handed out 73 degrees to qualified ’s design students in 2019-2020.

Austin Community College District also made our “Best Design & Applied Arts Schools in the Southwest Region” list, coming in at #14. The estimated yearly cost for Austin Community College District is $3,134 for Southwest Region Design students whose families make $0-$30k.

Read full report on Design & Applied Arts at Austin Community College District

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Collin County Community College District. It ranked #2 on our 2022 Best Value Design Schools in the Southwest Region For Those Making $0-$30k list. Collin County Community College District is a large school located in McKinney, Texas that handed out 173 ’s design degrees in 2019-2020.

Collin County Community College District also took the #6 spot in our “Best Design & Applied Arts Schools in the Southwest Region” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for Collin County Community College District is $4,565 for Southwest Region Design students whose families make $0-$30k.

Full Collin County Community College District Design & Applied Arts Report

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of North Texas. It ranked #3 on our 2022 Best Value Design Schools in the Southwest Region For Those Making $0-$30k list. UNT is a large public school situated in Denton, Texas. It awarded 117 ’s design degrees in 2019-2020.

UNT did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #9 on our “Best Design & Applied Arts Schools in the Southwest Region” list. It costs about $8,521 for southwest region design students whose families make $0-$30k per year to attend University of North Texas.

With a freshman retention rate of 85%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students.

Full UNT Design & Applied Arts Report

Out of the 49 schools in the Best Value Design Schools in the Southwest Region For Those Making $0-$30k that were part of this year’s ranking, Arizona State University - Tempe landed the #4 spot on the list. Arizona State University - Tempe is a large public school situated in Tempe, Arizona. It awarded 221 ’s design degrees in 2019-2020.

ASU - Tempe not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #5 on our “Best Design & Applied Arts Schools in the Southwest Region” list. The yearly cost to attend Arizona State University - Tempe is $7,044 for Southwest Region Design students whose families make $0-$30k.

With a freshman retention rate of 86%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students.

Read more about Design & Applied Arts at Arizona State University - Tempe

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Oklahoma State University - Main Campus. The school came in at #5 for the Best Value Design Schools in the Southwest Region For Those Making $0-$30k. This large school is located in Stillwater, Oklahoma, and it awarded 59 ’s design degrees in 2019-2020.

In addition to being on our southwest region design students whose families make $0-$30k list, OSU has also earned the #10 rank in our “Best Design & Applied Arts Schools in the Southwest Region” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for OSU is $8,669 for Southwest Region Design students whose families make $0-$30k.

The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 85%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.

Full OSU Design & Applied Arts Report

Oklahoma State University Institute of Technology did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Design Schools in the Southwest Region For Those Making $0-$30k ranking, coming in at #6. Oklahoma State University Institute of Technology is located in Okmulgee, Oklahoma and, has a small student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 13 ’s design degrees to qualified students.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at OSU Institute of Technology, the school also landed the #22 spot in our “Best Design & Applied Arts Schools in the Southwest Region” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for Oklahoma State University Institute of Technology is $4,771 for Southwest Region Design students whose families make $0-$30k.

Read more about Design & Applied Arts at Oklahoma State University Institute of Technology

#7

Texas Tech University

Lubbock, Texas

Texas Tech University ranked #7 on this year’s Best Value Design Schools in the Southwest Region For Those Making $0-$30k list. Texas Tech University is a large public school situated in Lubbock, Texas. It awarded 13 ’s design degrees in 2019-2020.

Texas Tech also made our “Best Design & Applied Arts Schools in the Southwest Region” list, coming in at #7. The yearly cost to attend Texas Tech University is $12,317 for Southwest Region Design students whose families make $0-$30k.

The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 87%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.

Full Texas Tech Design & Applied Arts Report

The University of Texas at Austin came in at #8 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Design Schools in the Southwest Region For Those Making $0-$30k ranking. UT Austin is located in Austin, Texas and, has a large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 67 ’s design degrees to qualified students.

UT Austin also took the #1 spot in our “Best Design & Applied Arts Schools in the Southwest Region” ranking. The yearly cost to attend UT Austin is $12,203 for Southwest Region Design students whose families make $0-$30k.

The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 2.7%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 97%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.

Read more about Design & Applied Arts at UT Austin

With a ranking of #9, Texas Woman’s University did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Design Schools in the Southwest Region For Those Making $0-$30k list. Texas Woman’s University is a fairly large public school situated in Denton, Texas. It awarded 7 ’s design degrees in 2019-2020.

The yearly cost to attend Texas Woman’s University is $6,706 for Southwest Region Design students whose families make $0-$30k.

Full Texas Woman’s University Design & Applied Arts Report

#10

Pima Community College

Tucson, Arizona

With a ranking of #10, Pima Community College did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Design Schools in the Southwest Region For Those Making $0-$30k list. Pima County Community College District is located in Tucson, Arizona and, has a fairly large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 24 ’s design degrees to qualified students.

It costs about $2,574 for southwest region design students whose families make $0-$30k per year to attend Pima County Community College District.

Full Pima Community College Design & Applied Arts Report

Stephen F Austin State University ranked #11 on this year’s Best Value Design Schools in the Southwest Region For Those Making $0-$30k list. Stephen F Austin State University is a fairly large school located in Nacogdoches, Texas that handed out 14 ’s design degrees in 2019-2020.

SFASU also made our “Best Design & Applied Arts Schools in the Southwest Region” list, coming in at #16. It costs about $8,650 for Southwest Region Design students whose families make $0-$30k per year to attend SFASU.

Full Stephen F Austin State University Design & Applied Arts Report

#12

Texas State University

San Marcos, Texas

Texas State University ranked #12 on this year’s Best Value Design Schools in the Southwest Region For Those Making $0-$30k list. Texas State is a public institution located in San Marcos, Texas. The school has a large population, and it awarded 133 ’s degrees in 2019-2020.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at Texas State, the school also landed the #8 spot in our “Best Design & Applied Arts Schools in the Southwest Region” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for Texas State University is $11,125 for Southwest Region Design students whose families make $0-$30k.

Read more about Design & Applied Arts at Texas State

#13

San Antonio College

San Antonio, Texas

San Antonio College came in at #13 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Design Schools in the Southwest Region For Those Making $0-$30k ranking. San Antonio College is a public institution located in San Antonio, Texas. The school has a fairly large population, and it awarded 46 ’s degrees in 2019-2020.

The yearly cost to attend San Antonio College is $5,183 for southwest region design students whose families make $0-$30k.

Full San Antonio College Design & Applied Arts Report

#14

University of Houston

Houston, Texas

University of Houston came in at #14 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Design Schools in the Southwest Region For Those Making $0-$30k ranking. UH is a large public school situated in Houston, Texas. It awarded 37 ’s design degrees in 2019-2020.

UH did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #13 on our “Best Design & Applied Arts Schools in the Southwest Region” list. The yearly cost to attend UH is $10,203 for Southwest Region Design students whose families make $0-$30k.

Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 86%.

Full University of Houston Design & Applied Arts Report

The University of Texas at Dallas did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Design Schools in the Southwest Region For Those Making $0-$30k ranking, coming in at #15. UT Dallas is a large public school situated in Richardson, Texas. It awarded 188 ’s design degrees in 2019-2020.

UT Dallas also made our “Best Design & Applied Arts Schools in the Southwest Region” list, coming in at #12. The yearly cost to attend UT Dallas is $10,857 for Southwest Region Design students whose families make $0-$30k.

The student loan default rate at the school is 4.9%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 90%.

Read full report on Design & Applied Arts at UT Dallas

Texas State Technical College came in at #16 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Design Schools in the Southwest Region For Those Making $0-$30k ranking. Waco, Texas is the setting for this fairly large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out ’s design degrees to 52 students in 2019-2020.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at TSTC, the school also landed the #25 spot in our “Best Design & Applied Arts Schools in the Southwest Region” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for Texas State Technical College is $8,535 for southwest region design students whose families make $0-$30k.

Read more about Design & Applied Arts at Texas State Technical College

Texas A&M University - Commerce landed the #17 spot on the 2022 Best Value Design Schools in the Southwest Region For Those Making $0-$30k ranking. Located in Commerce, Texas, this fairly large public school handed out 15 degrees to qualified ’s design students in 2019-2020.

Texas A&M Commerce not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #20 on our “Best Design & Applied Arts Schools in the Southwest Region” list. The yearly cost to attend Texas A&M University - Commerce is $10,013 for Southwest Region Design students whose families make $0-$30k.

Read more about Design & Applied Arts at Texas A&M University - Commerce

With a ranking of #18, San Jacinto Community College did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Design Schools in the Southwest Region For Those Making $0-$30k list. San Jacinto Community College is a large school located in Pasadena, Texas that handed out 62 ’s design degrees in 2019-2020.

It costs about $8,232 for Southwest Region Design students whose families make $0-$30k per year to attend San Jacinto Community College.

Read more about Design & Applied Arts at San Jacinto College

#19

Kilgore College

Kilgore, Texas

Kilgore College ranked #19 on this year’s Best Value Design Schools in the Southwest Region For Those Making $0-$30k list. Located in Kilgore, Texas, this medium-sized public school awarded 15 degrees to qualified ’s design students in 2019-2020.

The estimated yearly cost for Kilgore College is $6,668 for Southwest Region Design students whose families make $0-$30k.

Read more about Design & Applied Arts at Kilgore College

#20

Sam Houston State University

Huntsville, Texas

With a ranking of #20, Sam Houston State University did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Design Schools in the Southwest Region For Those Making $0-$30k list. Located in Huntsville, Texas, this large public school handed out 26 diplomas to qualified ’s design students in 2019-2020.

SHSU not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #21 on our “Best Design & Applied Arts Schools in the Southwest Region” list. It costs about $10,561 for Southwest Region Design students whose families make $0-$30k per year to attend Sam Houston State University.

Full SHSU Design & Applied Arts Report

#21

Northern Arizona University

Flagstaff, Arizona

Northern Arizona University ranked #21 on this year’s Best Value Design Schools in the Southwest Region For Those Making $0-$30k list. Flagstaff, Arizona is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out ’s design degrees to 89 students in 2019-2020.

The estimated yearly cost for Northern Arizona University is $9,251 for southwest region design students whose families make $0-$30k.

Read full report on Design & Applied Arts at Northern Arizona University

#22

Oklahoma Christian University

Edmond, Oklahoma

Oklahoma Christian University ranked #22 on this year’s Best Value Design Schools in the Southwest Region For Those Making $0-$30k list. Edmond, Oklahoma is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out ’s design degrees to 39 students in 2019-2020.

The yearly cost to attend OC is $18,686 for Southwest Region Design students whose families make $0-$30k.

Read full report on Design & Applied Arts at Oklahoma Christian University

#23

Scottsdale Community College

Scottsdale, Arizona

Scottsdale Community College did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Design Schools in the Southwest Region For Those Making $0-$30k ranking, coming in at #23. Scottsdale Community College is a medium-sized public school situated in Scottsdale, Arizona. It awarded 30 ’s design degrees in 2019-2020.

The yearly cost to attend Scottsdale Community College is $8,963 for Southwest Region Design students whose families make $0-$30k.

Full Scottsdale Community College Design & Applied Arts Report

#24

Phoenix College

Phoenix, Arizona

With a ranking of #24, Phoenix College did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Design Schools in the Southwest Region For Those Making $0-$30k list. Phoenix College is a medium-sized school located in Phoenix, Arizona that handed out 47 ’s design degrees in 2019-2020.

The estimated yearly cost for Phoenix College is $8,169 for Southwest Region Design students whose families make $0-$30k.

Full Phoenix College Design & Applied Arts Report

University of Oklahoma Norman Campus came in at #25 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Design Schools in the Southwest Region For Those Making $0-$30k ranking. Located in Norman, Oklahoma, this large public school handed out 45 degrees to qualified ’s design students in 2019-2020.

University of Oklahoma also made our “Best Design & Applied Arts Schools in the Southwest Region” list, coming in at #4. The yearly cost to attend University of Oklahoma Norman Campus is $16,675 for southwest region design students whose families make $0-$30k.

With a freshman retention rate of 87%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students. The low student loan default rate of 4.7% 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%.

Read more about Design & Applied Arts at University of Oklahoma Norman Campus

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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

Footnotes

  • *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.

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