Major Rankings

Best Colleges for Fine and Studio Arts

Ranked by graduate earnings. Data from the U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard — updated 2026.

Programs tracked: 385

Avg grad salary: $34,299

Total graduates: 21,762

Top Colleges for Fine and Studio Arts — Ranked by Graduate Earnings

Showing schools with reported earnings data. Earnings reflect median graduate salary 4 years after graduation (or 1 year where 4-year data is unavailable).

#	School	Median Salary (4yr)	Starting Salary (1yr)	Graduates	Median Debt	Admit Rate
1	Williams College Williamstown, MA	$72,010	$34,560	22	$11,850	10.0%
2	Cal Poly SLO San Luis Obispo, CA	$67,430	$36,006	50	$19,198	29.8%
3	Cornell University Ithaca, NY	$63,028	$31,073	18	$17,153	8.2%
4	Southern Methodist University Dallas, TX	$57,200	$38,154	16	N/A	61.2%
5	Marist University Poughkeepsie, NY	$55,375	$31,907	50	$25,529	64.7%
6	Loyola Marymount University Los Angeles, CA	$53,748	$27,210	51	$23,600	40.3%
7	USC Los Angeles, CA	$53,102	$50,161	38	$21,125	10.0%
8	University of Pittsburgh Pittsburgh, PA	$53,037	$26,709	29	$23,477	49.7%
9	Fordham University Bronx, NY	$49,855	$35,929	45	$24,495	56.3%
10	University of Michigan Ann Arbor, MI	$49,529	$31,367	149	$19,319	17.9%
11	Monmouth University West Long Branch, NJ	$49,388	$29,353	29	$27,000	89.5%
12	Binghamton University Vestal, NY	$49,326	$25,751	50	$22,286	37.7%
13	Columbia University New York, NY	$49,320	$51,435	24	$26,853	4.2%
14	NYU New York, NY	$49,316	$25,053	22	$27,000	9.4%
15	University of Massachusetts-Lowell Lowell, MA	$49,153	$36,236	50	$27,000	85.2%
16	University of Houston-Clear Lake Houston, TX	$48,711	$25,274	41	$21,369	75.3%
17	The College of New Jersey Ewing, NJ	$48,408	$33,214	110	$25,000	62.1%
18	California State University-East Bay Hayward, CA	$48,049	$33,220	64	$16,625	96.8%
19	University of Utah Salt Lake City, UT	$47,300	$33,081	60	$23,506	87.2%
20	Skidmore College Saratoga Springs, NY	$46,934	$30,480	19	$18,500	22.9%
21	University of Maryland College Park, MD	$46,659	$32,031	72	$20,000	44.8%
22	UC Berkeley Berkeley, CA	$46,596	$20,368	53	$13,254	11.7%
23	University of Connecticut Storrs, CT	$46,590	$24,419	37	$23,750	53.9%
24	University of Connecticut-Avery Point Groton, CT	$46,590	$24,419	37	$23,750	86.5%
25	University of Connecticut-Hartford Campus Hartford, CT	$46,590	$24,419	37	$23,750	86.5%
26	University of Connecticut-Stamford Stamford, CT	$46,590	$24,419	37	$23,750	80.2%
27	University of Connecticut-Waterbury Campus Waterbury, CT	$46,590	$24,419	37	$23,750	87.0%
28	James Madison University Harrisonburg, VA	$46,476	$33,501	113	$23,001	76.3%
29	George Fox University Newberg, OR	$46,357	$31,401	27	$26,000	96.4%
30	Saint Cloud State University Saint Cloud, MN	$45,346	$30,051	19	$31,000	95.0%
31	University of Colorado Denver/Anschutz Medical Campus Denver, CO	$44,742	$31,144	110	$25,490	77.8%
32	University of Virginia Charlottesville, VA	$44,659	$23,372	18	$19,500	16.9%
33	University of Massachusetts-Amherst Amherst, MA	$44,644	$18,072	30	$27,000	57.8%
34	University of Missouri-Columbia Columbia, MO	$44,535	$23,034	40	$22,000	77.0%
35	Lycoming College Williamsport, PA	$44,387	$25,858	20	$27,000	67.9%
36	University of Wyoming Laramie, WY	$43,820	$27,156	28	$15,880	97.4%
37	UC San Diego La Jolla, CA	$43,657	$21,777	25	$15,218	24.5%
38	Rowan University Glassboro, NJ	$43,592	$26,119	75	$21,708	77.8%
39	University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire Eau Claire, WI	$43,436	$34,582	54	$25,371	76.1%
40	University of Maryland-Baltimore County Baltimore, MD	$43,351	$23,879	61	$24,625	74.2%
41	Northeastern Illinois University Chicago, IL	$43,277	$30,845	28	$20,319	70.4%
42	Bridgewater State University Bridgewater, MA	$43,219	$29,595	87	$27,000	89.2%
43	Towson University Towson, MD	$43,056	$29,958	152	$17,978	82.8%
44	Fort Hays State University Hays, KS	$43,029	$31,909	44	$22,937	91.8%
45	UCLA Los Angeles, CA	$42,938	$21,220	96	$14,000	8.7%
46	Southern Connecticut State University New Haven, CT	$42,897	$26,549	44	$25,000	81.1%
47	Montana State University Bozeman, MT	$42,773	$32,265	72	$26,000	86.8%
48	Virginia Tech Blacksburg, VA	$42,596	$36,927	42	$26,323	57.0%
49	CUNY Lehman College Bronx, NY	$42,498	$27,582	50	$9,630	55.4%
50	Concordia College at Moorhead Moorhead, MN	$42,321	$29,986	20	$27,000	63.1%
51	Texas Woman's University Denton, TX	$42,240	$35,115	36	$26,019	95.0%
52	Illinois State University Normal, IL	$42,181	$35,967	90	$20,125	89.0%
53	Eastern Connecticut State University Willimantic, CT	$42,170	$23,534	43	$22,250	80.5%
54	New Jersey City University Jersey City, NJ	$42,001	$19,326	71	$19,000	89.2%
55	Boston University Boston, MA	$41,954	$17,374	17	$27,000	10.8%
56	University of Missouri-Kansas City Kansas City, MO	$41,917	$25,476	32	$25,500	75.0%
57	Metropolitan State University of Denver Denver, CO	$41,899	$26,102	62	$31,000	99.1%
58	The University of Texas at Arlington Arlington, TX	$41,880	$25,156	176	$26,562	81.3%
59	University of Georgia Athens, GA	$41,747	$34,056	136	$21,947	37.2%
60	University of Nebraska at Kearney Kearney, NE	$41,622	$40,501	27	$16,101	85.8%

Source: U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard. Earnings are median among graduates who received federal financial aid.

Choosing the Best Fine and Studio Arts Program

Graduate Earnings

Median salary 4 years post-graduation measures the long-term ROI of a program. Higher earnings with lower debt means better financial outcomes.

Program Size

Graduate count signals program maturity. Larger programs often have stronger alumni networks and more job placement resources.

Debt-to-Earnings Ratio

Compare median debt against starting salary. A ratio below 1x means most graduates can repay loans within a year of earnings.

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