by our College Data Analytics Team
When it comes to choosing a college, students have a lot of options - but not all of them are good. College Factual has developed its “Most Well Attended Design Major in the New England Region” ranking as one item you can use to help make this decision.
Design & Applied Arts is the 36th most popular major in the country with 36,301 degrees awarded in 2020-2021. In 2019-2020, design and applied arts graduates who were awarded their degree in 2017-2019, earned an average of $31,426 and had an average of $25,481 in loans still to pay off.
Across the New England region, there were 1,952 design and applied arts graduates with average earnings and debt of $35,122 and $26,301 respectively.
For this year’s “Most Well Attended Design Major in the New England Region” ranking, we looked at 75 colleges that offer a degree in design and applied arts. To top this list, a school must have a successful design and applied arts program that graduates more students in the field than other colleges that offer the same major.
See our ranking methodology to learn more.
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 “Most Well Attended Design Major in the New England Region”.
To further help you make the college decision, we’ve developed a unique tool called College Combat that allows you to compare schools 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.
The following schools top our list of the Best “Most Well Attended Design Major in the New England Region”.
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Southern New Hampshire University. It ranked #1 on our 2023 Most Well Attended Design Major in the New England Region list. This large school is located in Manchester, New Hampshire, and it awarded 388 ’s design degrees in 2020-2021.
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Massachusetts College of Art and Design. It ranked #2 on our 2023 Most Well Attended Design Major in the New England Region list. This small school is located in Boston, Massachusetts, and it awarded 214 ’s design degrees in 2020-2021.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 2.8% 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%. The impressive undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 9 to 1 means that students may have more opportunities to work more closely with their professors than they would at other schools.
Full Massachusetts College of Art and Design Design & Applied Arts Report
Out of the 75 schools in the Most Well Attended Design Major in the New England Region that were part of this year’s ranking, Northeastern University landed the #3 spot on the list. Northeastern University is a large private not-for-profit school situated in Boston, Massachusetts. It awarded 75 ’s design degrees in 2020-2021.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 1.5%, 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.
Out of the 75 schools in the Most Well Attended Design Major in the New England Region that were part of this year’s ranking, Lesley University landed the #4 spot on the list. Lesley University is a small private not-for-profit school situated in Cambridge, Massachusetts. It awarded 74 ’s design degrees in 2020-2021.
The undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 9 to 1 is a sign that students will have more opportunities to engage with their professors one-on-one. The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 3.2%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Out of the 75 schools in the Most Well Attended Design Major in the New England Region that were part of this year’s ranking, Rhode Island School of Design landed the #5 spot on the list. Rhode Island School of Design is a small school located in Providence, Rhode Island that handed out 73 ’s design degrees in 2020-2021.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 2.3%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. With a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 9 to 1, it’s easy to see that the school is committed to helping their undergraduates succeed. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 85%.
Out of the 75 schools in the Most Well Attended Design Major in the New England Region that were part of this year’s ranking, New England Institute of Technology landed the #5 spot on the list. New England Tech is located in East Greenwich, Rhode Island and, has a small student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 73 ’s design degrees to qualified students.
With a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 10 to 1, it’s easy to see that the school is committed to helping their undergraduates succeed. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 2.2%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Read more about Design & Applied Arts at New England Institute of Technology
Wentworth Institute of Technology ranked #7 on this year’s Most Well Attended Design Major in the New England Region list. This small school is located in Boston, Massachusetts, and it awarded 62 ’s design degrees in 2020-2021.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 2.5% 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%.
With a ranking of #8, University of Massachusetts - Dartmouth did quite well on the 2023 Most Well Attended Design Major in the New England Region list. UMass Dartmouth is a medium-sized public school situated in North Dartmouth, Massachusetts. It awarded 59 ’s design degrees in 2020-2021.
Read more about Design & Applied Arts at University of Massachusetts - Dartmouth
With a ranking of #9, Boston University did quite well on the 2023 Most Well Attended Design Major in the New England Region list. Boston U is a private not-for-profit institution located in Boston, Massachusetts. The school has a large population, and it awarded 51 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.
With a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 10 to 1, it’s easy to see that the school is committed to helping their undergraduates succeed. The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 1.4%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 92%.
Read full report on Design & Applied Arts at Boston University
With a ranking of #10, Champlain College did quite well on the 2023 Most Well Attended Design Major in the New England Region list. Champlain is a small private not-for-profit school situated in Burlington, Vermont. It awarded 49 ’s design degrees in 2020-2021.
Endicott College came in at #11 in this year’s edition of the Most Well Attended Design Major in the New England Region ranking. Endicott College is located in Beverly, Massachusetts and, has a small student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 48 ’s design degrees to qualified students.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 2.8%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
With a ranking of #12, Suffolk University did quite well on the 2023 Most Well Attended Design Major in the New England Region list. This medium-sized school is located in Boston, Massachusetts, and it awarded 43 ’s design degrees in 2020-2021.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 4.3%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
University of Hartford did quite well in the 2023 Most Well Attended Design Major in the New England Region ranking, coming in at #13. University of Hartford is located in West Hartford, Connecticut and, has a medium-sized student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 42 ’s design degrees to qualified students.
The undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 8 to 1 is a sign that students will have more opportunities to engage with their professors one-on-one.
Read full report on Design & Applied Arts at University of Hartford
With a ranking of #14, Fitchburg State University did quite well on the 2023 Most Well Attended Design Major in the New England Region list. Fitchburg State is a public institution located in Fitchburg, Massachusetts. The school has a medium-sized population, and it awarded 35 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 4.8%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Read full report on Design & Applied Arts at Fitchburg State
Central Connecticut State University ranked #15 on this year’s Most Well Attended Design Major in the New England Region list. CCSU is located in New Britain, Connecticut and, has a medium-sized student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 34 ’s design degrees to qualified students.
Read full report on Design & Applied Arts at Central Connecticut State University
University of Massachusetts - Lowell ranked #16 on this year’s Most Well Attended Design Major in the New England Region list. Lowell, Massachusetts is the setting for this fairly large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out ’s design degrees to 44 students in 2020-2021.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 3.5% 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%.
University of Bridgeport ranked #17 on this year’s Most Well Attended Design Major in the New England Region list. This small school is located in Bridgeport, Connecticut, and it awarded 32 ’s design degrees in 2020-2021.
Read full report on Design & Applied Arts at University of Bridgeport
With a ranking of #18, New England College did quite well on the 2023 Most Well Attended Design Major in the New England Region list. Located in Henniker, New Hampshire, this small private not-for-profit school awarded 27 degrees to qualified ’s design students in 2020-2021.
Manchester Community College landed the #19 spot on the 2023 Most Well Attended Design Major in the New England Region ranking. Located in Manchester, Connecticut, this small public school handed out 25 degrees to qualified ’s design students in 2020-2021.
Read more about Design & Applied Arts at Manchester Community College
Community College of Vermont came in at #19 in this year’s edition of the Most Well Attended Design Major in the New England Region ranking. CCV is located in Montpelier, Vermont and, has a medium-sized student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 26 ’s design degrees to qualified students.
Maine College of Art landed the #21 spot on the 2023 Most Well Attended Design Major in the New England Region ranking. Maine College of Art is a private not-for-profit institution located in Portland, Maine. The school has a small population, and it awarded 23 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.
The undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 8 to 1 is a sign that students will have more opportunities to engage with their professors one-on-one.
Read more about Design & Applied Arts at Maine College of Art
Bunker Hill Community College landed the #21 spot on the 2023 Most Well Attended Design Major in the New England Region ranking. Boston, Massachusetts is the setting for this medium-sized institution of higher learning. The public school handed out ’s design degrees to 23 students in 2020-2021.
Norwalk Community College ranked #23 on this year’s Most Well Attended Design Major in the New England Region list. NCC is a public institution located in Norwalk, Connecticut. The school has a small population, and it awarded 23 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.
Keene State College came in at #24 in this year’s edition of the Most Well Attended Design Major in the New England Region ranking. Keene State College is located in Keene, New Hampshire and, has a small student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 21 ’s design degrees to qualified students.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 4.3%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Quinnipiac University landed the #25 spot on the 2023 Most Well Attended Design Major in the New England Region ranking. Hamden, Connecticut is the setting for this medium-sized institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out ’s design degrees to 19 students in 2020-2021.
With a freshman retention rate of 89%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 2.3%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Read more about our data sources and methodologies