Ranked #22 in popularity, fine & studio arts is one of the most sought-after bachelor's degree programs in the nation. So, there are lots of possibilities to explore when you're trying to determine where you want to get your degree.
In 2025, College Factual analyzed 2 schools in order to identify the top ones for its Best Fine & Studio Arts Bachelor's Degree Schools in District of Columbia ranking. Combined, these schools handed out 87 bachelor's degrees in fine & studio arts to qualified students.
Average early-career salary of those graduating with their bachelor's degree is one indicator we use in our analysis to find the schools that offer the highest-quality education. After all, your bachelor's degree won't mean much if it doesn't help you find a job that will help you earn a living.
Other Factors We Consider
In addition to the above, you should consider some of the following factors:
Major Focus - How much a school focuses on fine & studio arts students vs. other majors.
Major Demand - How many other fine & studio arts students want to attend this school to pursue a bachelor's degree.
Educational Resources - The amount of money and other resources allocated to students while they are pursuing their degree. These resources include such things as number of students per instructor and education expenditures per student.
Student Debt - How easy is it for fine & studio arts to pay back their student loans after receiving their bachelor's degree.
Accreditation - Whether a school is regionally accredited and/or accredited by a recognized fine & studio arts related body.
Our full ranking methodology documents in more detail how we consider these factors to identify the best colleges for fine & studio arts students working on their bachelor's degree.
The fine arts 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 the Best Fine & Studio Arts Bachelor's Degree Schools in District of Columbia.
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.
Go ahead and give it a try, or bookmark the link so you can check it out later.
Best Schools for Bachelor’s Students to Study Fine & Studio Arts in District of Columbia
The following list ranks the best colleges and universities for pursuing a bachelor's degree in fine & studio arts.
Top District of Columbia Schools for a Bachelor's in Fine Arts
American University is a wonderful option for individuals interested in a bachelor's degree in fine & studio arts. The American University is a fairly large private not-for-profit university located in the city of Washington.
Bachelor's graduates who receive their degree from the fine arts program make around $35,115 in their early career salary.
The bars on the spread charts above show the distribution of the schools on this list +/- one standard deviation from the mean.
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 the rest 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).