2022 Best Value Associate Degree Colleges for Design & Applied Arts (Income $30-$48k) in California
When it comes to choosing a college, students have a lot of options - but not all of them are good. Our mission at College Factual is to arm you with as much information as we can to help you make that decision. Our “Best Value Design Schools for an Associate in California For Those Making $30-$48k” ranking is one tool we have developed to help in this regard.
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 California, there were 4,692 design and applied arts graduates with average earnings and debt of $30,196 and $27,472 respectively. At the associate degree level specifically, there were 1,223 design and applied arts graduates with average earnings and debt of $36,451 and $19,634 respectively.
This year’s “Best Value Design Schools for an Associate in California For Those Making $30-$48k” ranking looked at 9 colleges that offer degrees in a bachelor’s in design and applied arts. This ranking identifies schools with high-quality design and applied arts programs that also have a lower cost than 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. For more information, check out our ranking methodology.
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Since picking the right college can be one of the most important decisions of your life, we’ve developed the “Best Value Design Schools for an Associate in California For Those Making $30-$48k” ranking, along with many other major-related rankings, to help you make that decision.
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. 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 for an Associate in California For Those Making $30-$48k
The colleges and universities below are the best for california associate degree design students whose families make $30-$48k.
Top 9 Best Value Associate Degree Colleges for Design & Applied Arts (Income $30-$48k) in California
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Santa Rosa Junior College. It ranked #1 on our 2022 Best Value Design Schools for an Associate in California For Those Making $30-$48k list. Located in Santa Rosa, California, this fairly large public school awarded 19 degrees to qualified associates’s design students in 2019-2020.
SRJC did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #3 on our “Best Design & Applied Arts Associate Degree Schools in California” list. The estimated yearly cost for Santa Rosa Junior College is $4,975 for California Associate Degree Design students whose families make $30-$48k.
Out of the 9 schools in the Best Value Design Schools for an Associate in California For Those Making $30-$48k that were part of this year’s ranking, Mt. San Antonio College landed the #2 spot on the list. Located in Walnut, California, this large public school handed out 23 degrees to qualified associates’s design students in 2019-2020.
Mt. SAC did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #7 on our “Best Design & Applied Arts Associate Degree Schools in California” list. The estimated yearly cost for Mt. SAC is $1,599 for California Associate Degree Design students whose families make $30-$48k.
Read more about Design & Applied Arts at Mt. San Antonio College
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Los Angeles Trade Technical College. It ranked #3 on our 2022 Best Value Design Schools for an Associate in California For Those Making $30-$48k list. Los Angeles Trade Technical College is a public institution located in Los Angeles, California. The school has a fairly large population, and it awarded 29 associates’s degrees in 2019-2020.
Los Angeles Trade Technical College did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #5 on our “Best Design & Applied Arts Associate Degree Schools in California” list. It costs about $6,814 for California Associate Degree Design students whose families make $30-$48k per year to attend Los Angeles Trade Technical College.
Read full report on Design & Applied Arts at Los Angeles Trade Technical College
Out of the 9 schools in the Best Value Design Schools for an Associate in California For Those Making $30-$48k that were part of this year’s ranking, Platt College - San Diego landed the #5 spot on the list. Platt College - San Diego is a private for-profit institution located in San Diego, California. The school has a small population, and it awarded 75 associates’s degrees in 2019-2020.
Platt College - San Diego did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #9 on our “Best Design & Applied Arts Associate Degree Schools in California” list. It costs about $24,640 for California Associate Degree Design students whose families make $30-$48k per year to attend Platt College - San Diego.
Read more about Design & Applied Arts at Platt College - San Diego
FIDM/Fashion Institute of Design & Merchandising - Los Angeles did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Design Schools for an Associate in California For Those Making $30-$48k ranking, coming in at #6. Located in Los Angeles, California, this small private for-profit school handed out 318 degrees to qualified associates’s design students in 2019-2020.
In addition to being on our california associate degree design students whose families make $30-$48k list, FIDM Los Angeles has also earned the #1 rank in our “Best Design & Applied Arts Associate Degree Schools in California” ranking. It costs about $38,804 for California Associate Degree Design students whose families make $30-$48k per year to attend FIDM Los Angeles.
Mount Saint Mary’s University landed the #6 spot on the 2022 Best Value Design Schools for an Associate in California For Those Making $30-$48k ranking. MSMU is located in Los Angeles, California and, has a small student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 1 associates’s design degrees to qualified students.
MSMU also took the #4 spot in our “Best Design & Applied Arts Associate Degree Schools in California” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for Mount Saint Mary’s University is $27,376 for california associate degree design students whose families make $30-$48k.
Since the school has a student-to-faculty ratio of 10 to 1, those pursuing a degree will have more opportunities to interact with their professors. The low student loan default rate of 2.2% 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%.
Full Mount Saint Mary’s University Design & Applied Arts Report
Academy of Art University did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Design Schools for an Associate in California For Those Making $30-$48k ranking, coming in at #8. San Francisco, California is the setting for this medium-sized institution of higher learning. The private for-profit school handed out associates’s design degrees to 18 students in 2019-2020.
In addition to being on our california associate degree design students whose families make $30-$48k list, Academy of Art University has also earned the #6 rank in our “Best Design & Applied Arts Associate Degree Schools in California” ranking. It costs about $34,125 for California Associate Degree Design students whose families make $30-$48k per year to attend Academy of Art University.
Read full report on Design & Applied Arts at Academy of Art University
Platt College - Ontario ranked #9 on this year’s Best Value Design Schools for an Associate in California For Those Making $30-$48k list. Platt College - Ontario is a small private for-profit school situated in Ontario, California. It awarded 15 associates’s design degrees in 2019-2020.
Platt College - Ontario not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #10 on our “Best Design & Applied Arts Associate Degree Schools in California” list. It costs about $24,002 for california associate degree design students whose families make $30-$48k per year to attend Platt College - Ontario.
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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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