2025 Best Visual & Performing Arts Associate Degree Schools in California

If you plan on getting your associate degree in visual & performing arts, you won't be alone since the degree program is ranked #9 in the country in terms of popularity. This means you won't have too much trouble finding schools that offer the degree.

In 2025, College Factual analyzed 5 schools in order to identify the top ones for its Best Visual & Performing Arts Associate Degree Schools in California ranking. When you put them all together, these colleges and universities awarded 6,375 associate degrees in visual & performing arts during the 2022-2023 academic year.

Jump to one of the following sections: * Our Methodology

• Best Associate Degree Schools List

Choosing a Great Visual & Performing Arts School for Your Associate Degree

Your choice of visual & performing arts for getting your associate degree school matters. Important measures of a quality visual & performing arts program can vary widely even among the top schools. When choosing a school we recommend considering some of the following factors:

Quality Overall Is Important

The overall quality of a associate degree school is important to ensure a good education, not just how well they do in a particular major. To make it into this list a school must rank well in our overall Best Colleges ranking. This ranking considered factors such as graduation rates, overall graduate earnings and other educational resources to identify great colleges and universities.

Average Earnings

One measure we use to determine the quality of a school is to look at the average salary of associate graduates during the early years of their career. This is because one of the main reasons people pursue their associate degree is to enable themselves to find better-paying positions.

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 visual & performing arts students vs. other majors.
• Major Demand - The number of visual & performing arts students who choose to seek a associate degree at the school.
• 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 visual & performing arts to pay back their student loans after receiving their associate degree.
• Accreditation - Whether a school is regionally accredited and/or accredited by a recognized visual & performing arts related body.

Our complete ranking methodology documents in more detail how we consider these factors to identify the best colleges for visual & performing arts students working on their associate degree.

One Size Does Not Fit All

Since picking the right college can be one of the most important decisions of your life, we've developed the Best Visual & Performing Arts Associate Degree Schools in California ranking, along with many other major-related rankings, to help you make that decision.

Best Schools for Associate Students to Study Visual & Performing Arts in California

Learn about the top ranked colleges and universities for visual & performing arts students seeking a an associate degree.

Top California Schools for an Associate in Visual & Performing Arts

1

FIDM/Fashion Institute of Design & Merchandising - Los Angeles
Los Angeles, CA

Associate Degree Highest Degree Type

235 Annual Graduates

FIDM/Fashion Institute of Design & Merchandising - Los Angeles is a great decision for individuals interested in an associate degree in visual & performing arts. FIDM Los Angeles is a small private for-profit school located in the large city of Los Angeles.More information about a associate in visual & performing arts from FIDM/Fashion Institute of Design & Merchandising - Los Angeles

2

American Academy of Dramatic Arts - Los Angeles
Los Angeles, CA

Associate Degree Highest Degree Type

110 Annual Graduates

American Academy of Dramatic Arts - Los Angeles is one of the finest schools in the United States for getting an associate degree in visual & performing arts. American Academy of Dramatic Arts - Los Angeles is a small private not-for-profit school located in the city of Los Angeles.More information about a associate in visual & performing arts from American Academy of Dramatic Arts - Los Angeles

3

Academy of Art University
San Francisco, CA

Master's Degree Highest Degree Type

46 Annual Graduates

Academy of Art University is one of the finest schools in the country for getting an associate degree in visual & performing arts. Located in the large city of San Francisco, Academy of Art University is a private for-profit university with a moderately-sized student population.More information about a associate in visual & performing arts from Academy of Art University

4

Los Angeles Film School
Hollywood, CA

Associate Degree Highest Degree Type

452 Annual Graduates

Any student pursuing a degree in an associate degree in visual & performing arts needs to take a look at Los Angeles Film School. Located in the large city of Hollywood, LA Film School is a private for-profit school with a medium-sized student population.More information about a associate in visual & performing arts from Los Angeles Film School

5

Interior Designers Institute
Newport Beach, CA

Associate Degree Highest Degree Type

25 Annual Graduates

Located in the city of Newport Beach, Interior Designers Institute is a private for-profit school with a small student population.More information about a associate in visual & performing arts from Interior Designers Institute

Best Visual & Performing Arts Colleges in the Far Western US Region

Explore all the Best Visual & Performing Arts Schools in the Far Western US Area or other specific states within that region.

State	Colleges	Degrees Awarded
Oregon	35	225
Nevada	35	120
Washington	33	231
Hawaii	24	25

View All Rankings >

Visual & Performing Arts Majors to Study

Major	Annual Graduates
Fine & Studio Arts	2,322
Design & Applied Arts	1,151
Music	921
Drama & Theater Arts	710
General Visual & Performing Arts	694
Film, Video & Photographic Arts	479
Dance	83
Other Visual Art	10
Arts & Media Management	5

Notes and References

• 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).
• Credit for the banner image above goes to Bonnielou2013. More about our data sources and methodologies.