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2022 Most Popular Bachelor's Degree Colleges for Design & Applied Arts in the Far Western US Region

73 Colleges in the Far Western US Region
3,029 Bachelor's Degrees
$33,037 Avg Early-Career Salary
Ranked #27 in popularity, design and applied arts is one of the most sought-after bachelor's degree programs in the nation. This means there are lots of options to choose from when you decide to get your degree.

For its 2022 ranking, College Factual looked at 73 schools in the Far Western US Region to determine which ones were the most popular for design and applied arts students pursuing a bachelor's degree. When you put them all together, these colleges and universities awarded 3,029 bachelor's degrees in design and applied arts during the 2019-2020 academic year.

What's on this page: * Other Rankings

Choosing a Great Design & Applied Arts School for Your Bachelor's Degree

Most Popular Bachelor's Degree Colleges for Design & Applied Arts in the Far Western US Region Your choice of school for getting your bachelor's degree in design matters. One of the reasons we created our Most Popular Bachelor's Degree Colleges for Design & Applied Arts in the Far Western US Region ranking is to help you make that choice.

A high popularity ranking isn't always a sign that a school has a great overall quality ranking for design and applied arts, but it does mean that many students are choosing the school for some reason. Sometimes this is because the school offers a great educational experience, it is a good value, or it is highly focused on the program.

One Size Does Not Fit All

Associate Degrees in Design
Master's Degrees in Design
Overall Popularity in Design

We have also developed a number of other rankings to help guide you in your decision-making process. To begin with, if this is not the degree level you are most interested in, you may want to check out one of the others noted above. If you would prefer to limit your search to a specific state or region of the county, see our rankings by location. Plus, you can view our other rankings for design and applied arts.

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. 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.

The following list ranks the most popular colleges and universities for pursuing a bachelor's degree in design and applied arts. Only those schools that rank in the top 15% of all the schools we analyze get awarded with a place on this list.

10 Most Well Attended Schools for Design Students Working on Their Bachelor's

1
235 Annual Bachelor's Degrees
#1 Most Popular In CA
#3 Best Quality In CA

University of California - Davis is one of the most popular schools in the country for getting a bachelor's degree in design and applied arts. UC Davis is a fairly large public university located in the suburb of Davis. Potential students might also be interested to know that the school ranks #3 in quality for bachelor's degrees in design and applied arts in California.

There were approximately 235 design and applied arts individuals who graduated with this degree at UC Davis in the most recent year we have data available.

Students who graduate with their bachelor's from the design program report average early career income of $33,900.

More information about a bachelor’s in design and applied arts from University of California - Davis

2
223 Annual Bachelor's Degrees
#2 Most Popular In CA
#4 Best Quality In CA

You'll be surrounded by many like-minded peers at Art Center College of Design if you wish to pursue a bachelor's degree in design and applied arts. Art Center College of Design is a small private not-for-profit college located in the midsize city of Pasadena. You also may be intersted to know that the school ranks #4 in quality for bachelor's degrees in design and applied arts in California.

There were approximately 223 design and applied arts individuals who graduated with this degree at Art Center College of Design in the most recent data year.

Those design and applied arts students who get their bachelor's degree from Art Center College of Design make $16,863 more than the standard design graduate.

More information about a bachelor’s in design and applied arts from Art Center College of Design

3
156 Annual Bachelor's Degrees
#3 Most Popular In CA
#9 Best Quality In CA

You'll be surrounded by many like-minded peers at California College of the Arts if you wish to pursue a bachelor's degree in design and applied arts. Located in the city of San Francisco, California College of the Arts is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population. This isn't the only ranking where the school placed. It's also #9 in quality for bachelor's degrees in design and applied arts in California.

There were about 156 design and applied arts individuals who graduated with this degree at California College of the Arts in the most recent year we have data available.

Bachelor's recipients from the design and applied arts degree program at California College of the Arts earn $5,063 above the average graduate with the same degree shortly after graduation.

More information about a bachelor’s in design and applied arts from California College of the Arts

4
153 Annual Bachelor's Degrees
#4 Most Popular In CA
#5 Best Quality In CA

Any student pursuing a degree in a bachelor's degree in design and applied arts needs to look into San Jose State University. Located in the large city of San Jose, San Jose State is a public university with a fairly large student population. Potential students might also be interested to know that the school ranks #5 in quality for bachelor's degrees in design and applied arts in California.

There were approximately 153 design and applied arts individuals who graduated with this degree at San Jose State in the most recent year we have data available.

Design & Applied Arts bachelor's degree recipients from San Jose State University earn a boost of about $20,363 over the typical income of design and applied arts graduates.

More information about a bachelor’s in design and applied arts from San Jose State University

5
150 Annual Bachelor's Degrees
#5 Most Popular In CA
#10 Best Quality In CA

Located in the large city of San Francisco, SFSU is a public university with a fairly large student population.

There were about 150 design and applied arts students who graduated with this degree at SFSU in the most recent data year.

Those design and applied arts students who get their bachelor's degree from San Francisco State University receive $4,263 more than the average design graduate.

More information about a bachelor’s in design and applied arts from San Francisco State University

6
130 Annual Bachelor's Degrees
#6 Most Popular In CA
#7 Best Quality In CA

Located in the city of Long Beach, CSULB is a public university with a fairly large student population. This isn't the only ranking where the school placed. It's also #7 in quality for bachelor's degrees in design and applied arts in California.

There were roughly 130 design and applied arts students who graduated with this degree at CSULB in the most recent year we have data available.

Those design and applied arts students who get their bachelor's degree from California State University - Long Beach make $7,963 more than the standard design student.

More information about a bachelor’s in design and applied arts from California State University - Long Beach

7
124 Annual Bachelor's Degrees
#7 Most Popular In CA
#25 Best Quality In CA

Chico State is a fairly large public university located in the medium-sized city of Chico.

There were about 124 design and applied arts individuals who graduated with this degree at Chico State in the most recent year we have data available.

After graduation, design bachelor's recipients typically earn an average of $21,800 in their early careers.

More information about a bachelor’s in design and applied arts from California State University - Chico

8
Academy of Art University crest
Academy of Art University
San Francisco, CA
123 Annual Bachelor's Degrees
#8 Most Popular In CA
#23 Best Quality In CA

Academy of Art University is a medium-sized private for-profit university located in the large city of San Francisco.

There were roughly 123 design and applied arts individuals who graduated with this degree at Academy of Art University in the most recent year we have data available.

Bachelor's students who receive their degree from the design program earn an average of $31,100 in the first couple years of their career.

More information about a bachelor’s in design and applied arts from Academy of Art University

9
100 Annual Bachelor's Degrees
#1 Most Popular In OR
#1 Best Quality In OR

Located in the city of Corvallis, Oregon State is a public university with a fairly large student population. This isn't the only ranking where the school placed. It's also #1 in quality for bachelor's degrees in design and applied arts in Oregon.

There were approximately 100 design and applied arts individuals who graduated with this degree at Oregon State in the most recent data year.

Bachelor's graduates who receive their degree from the design program make an average of $33,500 for their early career.

More information about a bachelor’s in design and applied arts from Oregon State University

10
89 Annual Bachelor's Degrees
#9 Most Popular In CA
#11 Best Quality In CA

Located in the suburb of Pomona, Cal Poly Pomona is a public university with a very large student population.

There were roughly 89 design and applied arts individuals who graduated with this degree at Cal Poly Pomona in the most recent year we have data available.

Bachelor's graduates who receive their degree from the design program make about $28,000 in the first couple years of their career.

More information about a bachelor’s in design and applied arts from California State Polytechnic University - Pomona

Honorable Mentions

These are some additional schools worth mentioning that are also great but just didn't quite make the cut to earn our top Most Popular Bachelor's Degree Colleges for Design & Applied Arts in the Far Western US Region award.

Rank College Location
11 Otis College of Art and Design Los Angeles, CA
12 Portland State University Portland, OR
13 University of California - Santa Cruz Santa Cruz, CA
14 Laguna College of Art and Design Laguna Beach, CA
15 Western Washington University Bellingham, WA
16 California State University - Sacramento Sacramento, CA
17 California State University - Fresno Fresno, CA
18 FIDM/Fashion Institute of Design & Merchandising - Los Angeles Los Angeles, CA

Best Design & Applied Arts Colleges by State

Explore the most popular design and applied arts schools for a specific state in the Far Western US Region .

State Colleges Degrees Awarded
California 254 2,112
Washington 229 296
Oregon 178 275
Nevada 117 50
Hawaii 115 38

View All Rankings >

One of 10 majors within the Visual & Performing Arts area of study, Design & Applied Arts has other similar majors worth exploring.

Design Focus Areas

Major Annual Graduates
Visual Communications 748
Graphic Design 670
Interior Design 410
Illustration 283
Other Design & Applied Arts 248
Game & Interactive Media Design 239
Industrial Design 239
Fashion Design 129
Commercial & Advertising Art 63

Related Major Annual Graduates
Fine & Studio Arts 5,058
Film, Video & Photographic Arts 3,147
Drama & Theater Arts 2,081
Music 2,059
General Visual & Performing Arts 561
Dance 423
Arts & Media Management 249
Other Visual Art 75
Crafts, Folk Art & Artisanry 1

Notes and References

Popular Reports

College Rankings
Best by Location
Degree Guides by Major
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