2022 Best Value Design Schools for a Doctorate For Those Making $75-$110k

When it comes to choosing a college, students have a lot of options - but not all of them are good. 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 Design Schools for a Doctorate For Those Making $75-$110k” ranking is part of that endeavor.

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.

At the doctor’s degree level specifically, there were 14 design and applied arts graduates with average earnings and debt of $72,680 and $116,043 respectively.

This year’s “Best Value Design Schools for a Doctorate For Those Making $75-$110k” ranking looked at 5 colleges that offer degrees in a bachelor’s 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.

Some of the factors we look at when determining these rankings are overall quality of the design and applied arts 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.

More Ways to Rank Design & Applied Arts Schools

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 a Doctorate For Those Making $75-$110k” ranking, along with many other major-related rankings, to help you make that decision.

We’ve created a tool called College Combat that lets you create your own customized comparisons based on the factors that matter the most to you. 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.

Best Value Design Schools for a Doctorate For Those Making $75-$110k

The following schools top our list of the Best Best Value Design Schools for a Doctorate For Those Making $75-$110k.

Top 5 Best Value Doctor’s Degree Colleges for Design & Applied Arts (Income $75-$110k)

#1

Cornell University

Ithaca, New York

#2 in overall quality

$30,042 Avg Grad Tuition & Fees

Out of the 5 schools in the Best Value Design Schools for a Doctorate For Those Making $75-$110k that were part of this year’s ranking, Cornell University landed the #1 spot on the list. Located in Ithaca, New York, this large private not-for-profit school awarded 2 diplomas to qualified doctorate’s design students in 2019-2020.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at Cornell, the school also landed the #2 spot in our “Best Design & Applied Arts Doctor’s Degree Schools” ranking. Although you might pay more or less depending on your area of study, average graduate tuition and fees at Cornell University are $30,042.

Read full report on Design & Applied Arts at Cornell University

#2

University of Minnesota - Twin Cities

Minneapolis, Minnesota

#3 in overall quality

$28,845 Avg Grad Tuition & Fees

Out of the 5 schools in the Best Value Design Schools for a Doctorate For Those Making $75-$110k that were part of this year’s ranking, University of Minnesota - Twin Cities landed the #2 spot on the list. Minneapolis, Minnesota is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out doctorate’s design degrees to 5 students in 2019-2020.

UMN Twin Cities also made our “Best Design & Applied Arts Doctor’s Degree Schools” list, coming in at #3. Although you might pay more or less depending on your area of study, average graduate tuition and fees at UMN Twin Cities are $28,845.

Read full report on Design & Applied Arts at University of Minnesota - Twin Cities

#3

Illinois Institute of Technology

Chicago, Illinois

#5 in overall quality

$30,695 Avg Grad Tuition & Fees

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Illinois Institute of Technology. The school came in at #3 for the Best Value Design Schools for a Doctorate For Those Making $75-$110k. Illinois Tech is a private not-for-profit institution located in Chicago, Illinois. The school has a medium-sized population, and it awarded 2 doctorate’s degrees in 2019-2020.

Illinois Tech did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #5 on our “Best Design & Applied Arts Doctor’s Degree Schools” list. Average graduate tuition and fees at Illinois Institute of Technology are $30,695, but you may pay more or less depending on your major.

Read more about Design & Applied Arts at Illinois Institute of Technology

#4

Carnegie Mellon University

Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

#1 in overall quality

$47,326 Avg Grad Tuition & Fees

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Carnegie Mellon University. It ranked #4 on our 2022 Best Value Design Schools for a Doctorate For Those Making $75-$110k list. Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania is the setting for this fairly large institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out doctorate’s design degrees to 3 students in 2019-2020.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at Carnegie Mellon, the school also landed the #1 spot in our “Best Design & Applied Arts Doctor’s Degree Schools” ranking. Average graduate tuition and fees at Carnegie Mellon are $47,326, but you may pay more or less depending on your major.

Read full report on Design & Applied Arts at Carnegie Mellon University

#5

Auburn University

Auburn, Alabama

#4 in overall quality

$31,956 Avg Grad Tuition & Fees

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Auburn University. The school came in at #5 for the Best Value Design Schools for a Doctorate For Those Making $75-$110k. Auburn is a large school located in Auburn, Alabama that handed out 2 doctorate’s design degrees in 2019-2020.

Auburn also took the #4 spot in our “Best Design & Applied Arts Doctor’s Degree Schools” ranking. Average graduate tuition and fees at Auburn are $31,956, but some majors have different tuition rates.

Read full report on Design & Applied Arts at Auburn University

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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