18
Colleges in North Carolina
4,085
Visual & Performing Arts Degrees Awarded
$27,860
Avg Early-Career Salary
Visual & Performing Arts is above average in terms of popularity with it being the #10 most popular degree program in the country. So, you have a fair amount of options to choose from when looking for a school.
For its 2025 ranking, College Factual looked at 18 schools in North Carolina to determine which ones were the best for visual & performing arts students pursuing a degree. When you put them all together, these colleges and universities awarded 4,085 degrees in visual & performing arts annually.
What's on this page: * Degree-Level Rankings
The visual & performing arts program you select can have a big impact on your future. That's why we developed our collection of Best Schools for Visual & Performing Arts rankings. In order to come up with a best overall ranking for visual & performing arts schools, we combine our degree-level rankings, weighting them by the number of degrees awarded at each level.
In order to find the schools that are the best fit for you, you may want to filter to one of the degree levels below.
The visual & performing 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 Visual & Performing Arts Schools in North Carolina.
More interested in schools in a specific area of the country? Filter this list by region or state.
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.
Read more about College Factual's methodology.
The schools below may not offer all types of visual & performing arts degrees so you may want to filter by degree level first. However, they are great for the degree levels they do offer.
Every student who is interested in visual & performing arts needs to check out University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Located in the city of Chapel Hill, UNC Chapel Hill is a public university with a very large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #38 out of 2,152 colleges nationwide means UNC Chapel Hill is a great university overall.
There were approximately 126 visual & performing arts students who graduated with this degree at UNC Chapel Hill in the most recent data year. Students who graduate with their degree from the visual & performing arts program report average early career wages of $27,901.
More information about a degree in visual & performing arts from University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Elon University is one of the best schools in the country for getting a degree in visual & performing arts. Elon is a medium-sized private not-for-profit university located in the midsize suburb of Elon. A Best Colleges rank of #190 out of 2,152 schools nationwide means Elon is a great university overall.
There were approximately 110 visual & performing arts students who graduated with this degree at Elon in the most recent data year. Graduates who receive their degree from the visual & performing arts program earn around $24,345 in their early career salary.
More information about a degree in visual & performing arts from Elon University
University of North Carolina School of the Arts is one of the finest schools in the country for getting a degree in visual & performing arts. Located in the large city of Winston Salem, UNCSA is a public university with a small student population.
There were roughly 276 visual & performing arts students who graduated with this degree at UNCSA in the most recent year we have data available. Students who receive their degree from the visual & performing arts program make an average of $21,787 in their early career salary.
More information about a degree in visual & performing arts from University of North Carolina School of the Arts
North Carolina State University is a good decision for students pursuing a degree in visual & performing arts. Located in the city of Raleigh, NC State is a public university with a fairly large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #122 out of 2,152 schools nationwide means NC State is a great university overall.
There were approximately 148 visual & performing arts students who graduated with this degree at NC State in the most recent data year. Visual & Performing Arts degree recipients from North Carolina State University earn a boost of around $19,012 above the average income of visual & performing arts graduates.
More information about a degree in visual & performing arts from North Carolina State University
Appalachian State is a fairly large public university located in the distant town of Boone. A Best Colleges rank of #401 out of 2,152 schools nationwide means Appalachian State is a great university overall.
There were approximately 258 visual & performing arts students who graduated with this degree at Appalachian State in the most recent year we have data available. Those visual & performing arts students who get their degree from Appalachian State University earn $2,223 more than the average visual & performing arts graduate.
More information about a degree in visual & performing arts from Appalachian State University
UNCW is a fairly large public university located in the midsize city of Wilmington. A Best Colleges rank of #415 out of 2,152 schools nationwide means UNCW is a great university overall.
There were roughly 155 visual & performing arts students who graduated with this degree at UNCW in the most recent year we have data available. Graduates who receive their degree from the visual & performing arts program make around $27,797 in their early career salary.
More information about a degree in visual & performing arts from University of North Carolina at Wilmington
Wake Technical Community College is a fairly large public college located in the large suburb of Raleigh. A Best Colleges rank of #461 out of 2,152 schools nationwide means Wake Technical Community College is a great college overall.
There were roughly 493 visual & performing arts students who graduated with this degree at Wake Technical Community College in the most recent data year. Those visual & performing arts students who get their degree from Wake Technical Community College earn $4,293 more than the typical visual & performing arts student.
More information about a degree in visual & performing arts from Wake Technical Community College
Located in the large city of Greensboro, UNC Greensboro is a public university with a large student population. This university ranks 17th out of 93 schools for overall quality in the state of North Carolina.
There were approximately 348 visual & performing arts students who graduated with this degree at UNC Greensboro in the most recent year we have data available. Students who graduate with their degree from the visual & performing arts program report average early career wages of $22,741.
More information about a degree in visual & performing arts from University of North Carolina at Greensboro
UNC Charlotte is a fairly large public university located in the large city of Charlotte. A Best Colleges rank of #367 out of 2,152 colleges nationwide means UNC Charlotte is a great university overall.
There were roughly 161 visual & performing arts students who graduated with this degree at UNC Charlotte in the most recent year we have data available. After graduation, visual & performing arts degree recipients typically make about $24,273 at the beginning of their careers.
More information about a degree in visual & performing arts from University of North Carolina at Charlotte
Located in the small city of Greenville, ECU is a public university with a very large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #275 out of 2,152 colleges nationwide means ECU is a great university overall.
There were roughly 194 visual & performing arts students who graduated with this degree at ECU in the most recent data year. Students who graduate with their degree from the visual & performing arts program report average early career income of $23,758.
More information about a degree in visual & performing arts from East Carolina University
