Design and Applied Arts
92 schools compared · Average earnings $28,654/yr
Schools Offering
92
Avg Grad Earnings
$28,654/yr
Avg TradeSchoolWorth Score
37/100
AI-Proof Rating
Resilient
58% of tasks AI-shielded
Best Schools for Design and Applied Arts
Top 92 schools ranked by TradeSchoolWorth Score. Click any row for full earnings projections and AI-proof analysis.
| # | School | Score | Earnings | AI-Proof | ROI |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Century College White Bear Lake, MN |
65 61–67 |
$43,778/yr | Moderate | 69.8x |
| 2 | Austin Community College District Austin, TX |
65 61–66 |
$40,289/yr | Moderate | 85.2x |
| 3 | Wake Technical Community College Raleigh, NC |
64 60–67 |
$32,153/yr | Moderate | 187.0x |
| 4 | Scottsdale Community College Scottsdale, AZ |
63 60–64 |
$38,676/yr | Moderate | 77.4x |
| 5 | Collin County Community College District McKinney, TX |
62 58–64 |
$33,456/yr | Moderate | 88.7x |
| 6 | Oakland Community College Auburn Hills, MI |
61 57–63 |
$38,657/yr | Moderate | 63.0x |
| 7 | Gnomon Hollywood, CA |
60 56–62 |
$80,221/yr | Moderate | 26.5x |
| 8 | Miami Ad School-Atlanta Atlanta, GA |
60 55–62 |
$56,833/yr | Moderate | 36.5x |
| 9 | Miami Ad School Miami, FL |
60 55–62 |
$56,833/yr | Moderate | 36.5x |
| 10 | Palm Beach State College Lake Worth, FL |
60 56–62 |
$36,768/yr | Moderate | 59.3x |
| 11 | College of DuPage Glen Ellyn, IL |
59 55–61 |
$32,133/yr | Moderate | 73.4x |
| 12 | Johnson County Community College Overland Park, KS |
59 54–61 |
$32,030/yr | Moderate | 80.9x |
| 13 | Dallas College Dallas, TX |
57 53–59 |
$31,478/yr | Moderate | 65.4x |
| 14 | Waukesha County Technical College Pewaukee, WI |
56 53–55 |
$39,095/yr | Moderate | 35.8x |
| 15 | Forsyth Technical Community College Winston-Salem, NC |
56 52–58 |
$29,715/yr | Moderate | 64.9x |
| 16 | Gwinnett Technical College Lawrenceville, GA |
55 51–57 |
$32,851/yr | Moderate | 57.5x |
| 17 | Central Piedmont Community College Charlotte, NC |
55 51–56 |
$30,979/yr | Moderate | 57.2x |
| 18 | Century College White Bear Lake, MN |
54 51–55 |
$39,850/yr | Moderate | 31.8x |
| 19 | Seminole State College of Florida Sanford, FL |
54 50–55 |
$31,347/yr | Moderate | 47.6x |
| 20 | Miami Dade College Miami, FL |
54 50–56 |
$30,466/yr | Moderate | 52.7x |
| 21 | Minneapolis Community and Technical College Minneapolis, MN |
53 51–53 |
$40,230/yr | Moderate | 25.9x |
| 22 | Salt Lake Community College Salt Lake City, UT |
53 50–53 |
$34,227/yr | Moderate | 37.9x |
| 23 | Arapahoe Community College Littleton, CO |
53 48–56 |
$32,100/yr | Moderate | 51.1x |
| 24 | Interior Designers Institute Newport Beach, CA |
52 49–53 |
$52,768/yr | Moderate | 7.2x |
| 25 | Metropolitan Community College Area Omaha, NE |
52 48–55 |
$29,902/yr | Moderate | 54.8x |
| 26 | College of DuPage Glen Ellyn, IL |
51 47–52 |
$31,463/yr | Moderate | 35.4x |
| 27 | Guilford Technical Community College Jamestown, NC |
51 46–55 |
$24,827/yr | Moderate | 75.2x |
| 28 | Montana State University Bozeman, MT |
50 46–51 |
$36,931/yr | Moderate | 21.8x |
| 29 | Fox Valley Technical College Appleton, WI |
50 47–52 |
$32,673/yr | Moderate | 35.9x |
| 30 | Oklahoma City Community College Oklahoma City, OK |
50 46–51 |
$30,101/yr | Moderate | 36.1x |
| 31 | Northern Virginia Community College Annandale, VA |
49 46–51 |
$33,232/yr | Moderate | 28.1x |
| 32 | Madison Area Technical College Madison, WI |
49 45–50 |
$30,710/yr | Moderate | 31.1x |
| 33 | The New School New York, NY |
48 43–50 |
$44,640/yr | Moderate | 4.0x |
| 34 | Kirkwood Community College Cedar Rapids, IA |
48 44–50 |
$32,116/yr | Moderate | 25.9x |
| 35 | Alexandria Technical & Community College Alexandria, MN |
48 44–50 |
$31,830/yr | Moderate | 32.1x |
| 36 | Virginia Western Community College Roanoke, VA |
48 45–49 |
$31,440/yr | Moderate | 29.5x |
| 37 | Delgado Community College New Orleans, LA |
48 45–49 |
$30,248/yr | Moderate | 31.9x |
| 38 | Seattle Central College Seattle, WA |
47 44–49 |
$29,775/yr | Moderate | 29.6x |
| 39 | Gateway Technical College Kenosha, WI |
47 44–49 |
$29,734/yr | Moderate | 34.2x |
| 40 | Milwaukee Area Technical College Milwaukee, WI |
47 41–51 |
$27,795/yr | Moderate | 42.5x |
| 41 | Saint Louis Community College Bridgeton, MO |
47 42–49 |
$25,929/yr | Moderate | 43.2x |
| 42 | Sinclair Community College Dayton, OH |
47 41–51 |
$24,490/yr | Moderate | 52.2x |
| 43 | Front Range Community College Westminster, CO |
46 42–47 |
$21,397/yr | Moderate | 44.1x |
| 44 | Lehigh Carbon Community College Schnecksville, PA |
45 41–46 |
$27,896/yr | Moderate | 25.7x |
| 45 | Nashville State Community College Nashville, TN |
45 42–47 |
$27,412/yr | Moderate | 29.5x |
| 46 | Portland Community College Portland, OR |
45 39–51 |
$26,285/yr | Moderate | 44.3x |
| 47 | Rasmussen University-Minnesota St. Cloud, MN |
44 40–46 |
$32,246/yr | Moderate | 13.8x |
| 48 | Rasmussen University-Wisconsin Green Bay, WI |
44 40–46 |
$32,246/yr | Moderate | 12.5x |
| 49 | Oklahoma State University Institute of Technology Okmulgee, OK |
44 41–46 |
$28,438/yr | Moderate | 23.6x |
| 50 | Monroe Community College Rochester, NY |
44 40–47 |
$27,718/yr | Moderate | 31.9x |
| 51 | Ivy Tech Community College Indianapolis, IN |
44 40–45 |
$26,602/yr | Moderate | 30.1x |
| 52 | Cuyahoga Community College District Cleveland, OH |
44 38–49 |
$22,517/yr | Moderate | 48.0x |
| 53 | Rasmussen University-Florida Ocala, FL |
43 39–45 |
$32,246/yr | Moderate | 9.7x |
| 54 | Rasmussen University-North Dakota Fargo, ND |
43 39–45 |
$32,246/yr | Moderate | 11.7x |
| 55 | Rasmussen University-Illinois Rockford, IL |
43 39–45 |
$32,246/yr | Moderate | 10.9x |
| 56 | Rasmussen University-Kansas Topeka, KS |
43 39–45 |
$32,246/yr | Moderate | 9.5x |
| 57 | Des Moines Area Community College Ankeny, IA |
43 37–48 |
$25,265/yr | Moderate | 39.3x |
| 58 | Macomb Community College Warren, MI |
43 33–52 |
$17,057/yr | Moderate | 61.9x |
| 59 | Western Technical College La Crosse, WI |
42 37–45 |
$23,032/yr | Moderate | 35.9x |
| 60 | International Business College-Indianapolis Indianapolis, IN |
41 37–42 |
$30,284/yr | Moderate | 8.1x |
| 61 | Suffolk County Community College Selden, NY |
41 36–45 |
$24,907/yr | Moderate | 29.2x |
| 62 | Henry Ford College Dearborn, MI |
41 36–43 |
$19,911/yr | Moderate | 36.0x |
| 63 | Horry-Georgetown Technical College Conway, SC |
40 36–43 |
$22,024/yr | Moderate | 30.5x |
| 64 | Spokane Falls Community College Spokane, WA |
40 36–42 |
$21,508/yr | Moderate | 25.5x |
| 65 | Texas State Technical College Waco, TX |
39 34–41 |
$23,345/yr | Moderate | 21.5x |
| 66 | Tidewater Community College Norfolk, VA |
39 35–42 |
$22,935/yr | Moderate | 25.2x |
| 67 | Moraine Park Technical College Fond du Lac, WI |
39 35–41 |
$21,388/yr | Moderate | 21.7x |
| 68 | Chattanooga State Community College Chattanooga, TN |
39 34–43 |
$20,165/yr | Moderate | 33.2x |
| 69 | Community Care College Tulsa, OK |
39 35–41 |
$17,889/yr | Moderate | — |
| 70 | Clary Sage College Tulsa, OK |
39 35–41 |
$17,889/yr | Moderate | — |
| 71 | CUNY Kingsborough Community College Brooklyn, NY |
38 33–42 |
$19,146/yr | Moderate | 31.1x |
| 72 | Academy of Art University San Francisco, CA |
37 32–39 |
$26,478/yr | Moderate | 6.8x |
| 73 | Mohawk Valley Community College Utica, NY |
37 33–39 |
$21,012/yr | Moderate | 16.2x |
| 74 | Northampton County Area Community College Bethlehem, PA |
37 32–41 |
$19,022/yr | Moderate | 27.8x |
| 75 | New England Institute of Technology East Greenwich, RI |
36 32–39 |
$26,282/yr | Moderate | 5.6x |
| 76 | Bryant & Stratton College-Syracuse North Liverpool, NY |
36 32–39 |
$25,506/yr | Moderate | 9.3x |
| 77 | Bryant & Stratton College-Buffalo Buffalo, NY |
36 32–39 |
$25,506/yr | Moderate | 9.4x |
| 78 | Bryant & Stratton College-Greece Rochester, NY |
36 32–39 |
$25,506/yr | Moderate | 9.1x |
| 79 | Bryant & Stratton College-Wauwatosa Wauwatosa, WI |
36 32–39 |
$25,506/yr | Moderate | 8.9x |
| 80 | Nassau Community College Garden City, NY |
36 31–41 |
$18,107/yr | Moderate | 26.3x |
| 81 | Fashion Institute of Technology New York, NY |
36 28–46 |
$14,361/yr | Moderate | 35.1x |
| 82 | FIDM-Fashion Institute of Design & Merchandising Los Angeles, CA |
35 31–37 |
$24,393/yr | Moderate | 5.2x |
| 83 | CUNY Hostos Community College Bronx, NY |
35 28–42 |
$12,863/yr | Moderate | 30.8x |
| 84 | Full Sail University Winter Park, FL |
34 30–36 |
$23,719/yr | Moderate | 3.5x |
| 85 | Sessions College for Professional Design Tempe, AZ |
34 29–39 |
$19,275/yr | Moderate | 16.0x |
| 86 | CUNY LaGuardia Community College Long Island City, NY |
34 29–37 |
$13,554/yr | Moderate | 19.7x |
| 87 | Keiser University-Ft Lauderdale Fort Lauderdale, FL |
33 28–35 |
$20,360/yr | Moderate | 4.3x |
| 88 | NUC University Bayamon, PR |
32 28–34 |
$9,509/yr | Moderate | 10.8x |
| 89 | EDP University of Puerto Rico Inc-San Sebastian San Sebastian, PR |
31 27–33 |
$12,994/yr | Moderate | 8.2x |
| 90 | EDP University of Puerto Rico Inc-San Juan San Juan, PR |
31 27–33 |
$12,994/yr | Moderate | 8.2x |
| 91 | EDP University of Puerto Rico-Humacao Humacao, PR |
31 27–33 |
$12,994/yr | Moderate | 8.2x |
| 92 | EDP University of Puerto Rico-Manati Manati, PR |
31 27–33 |
$12,994/yr | Moderate | 8.2x |
Highest Earning Design and Applied Arts Programs
Schools where Design and Applied Arts graduates earn the most in their first year after graduation.
| School | 1-Year Earnings | Score | AI-Proof |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gnomon | $80,221/yr | 60 | Moderate |
| Miami Ad School-Atlanta | $56,833/yr | 60 | Moderate |
| Miami Ad School | $56,833/yr | 60 | Moderate |
| Interior Designers Institute | $52,768/yr | 52 | Moderate |
| The New School | $44,640/yr | 48 | Moderate |
| Century College | $43,778/yr | 65 | Moderate |
| Austin Community College District | $40,289/yr | 65 | Moderate |
| Minneapolis Community and Technical College | $40,230/yr | 53 | Moderate |
| Century College | $39,850/yr | 54 | Moderate |
| Waukesha County Technical College | $39,095/yr | 56 | Moderate |
Best ROI for Design and Applied Arts
Schools with the highest earnings-to-tuition ratio for Design and Applied Arts.
| School | ROI Multiple | Earnings | Score |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wake Technical Community College | 187.0x | $32,153/yr | 64 |
| Collin County Community College District | 88.7x | $33,456/yr | 62 |
| Austin Community College District | 85.2x | $40,289/yr | 65 |
| Johnson County Community College | 80.9x | $32,030/yr | 59 |
| Scottsdale Community College | 77.4x | $38,676/yr | 63 |
| Guilford Technical Community College | 75.2x | $24,827/yr | 51 |
| College of DuPage | 73.4x | $32,133/yr | 59 |
| Century College | 69.8x | $43,778/yr | 65 |
| Dallas College | 65.4x | $31,478/yr | 57 |
| Forsyth Technical Community College | 64.9x | $29,715/yr | 56 |
Related Majors
Explore similar fields of study.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much do Design and Applied Arts graduates earn?
Across 92 schools, Design and Applied Arts graduates earn an average of $28,654 per year in their first year after completing the program. Earnings range from $9,509 to $80,221 depending on the school.
How AI-proof is a career in Design and Applied Arts?
Design and Applied Arts is rated "Resilient" for AI resilience, with 58% of job tasks being hands-on work shielded from AI automation. This means some career tasks in this field remain hands-on work that AI cannot replicate.
Which school has the best Design and Applied Arts program?
Based on the TradeSchoolWorth Score (combining earnings, AI resilience, job market size, and ROI), Century College ranks #1 for Design and Applied Arts with a score of 65/100 and graduate earnings of $43,778/yr.
Is Design and Applied Arts worth it?
On average, Design and Applied Arts graduates earn 34.3x their in-state tuition over 10 years. This is a strong return on investment.
About This Data
This page aggregates Design and Applied Arts trade programs across 92 schools using earnings data from the U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard, employment projections from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (2024–2034), and AI resilience research from OpenAI and academic institutions.
The TradeSchoolWorth Score (0–100) combines four equally weighted factors: graduate earnings, AI resilience, job market size, and return on investment. Each school's program page includes three scenarios (strong growth, base case, conservative) showing 10-year earnings projections.
Data: U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard (earnings, debt), Bureau of Labor Statistics 2024–2034
(employment projections), OpenAI GPTs-are-GPTs research (AI task exposure), Felten et al. AIOE.
Last updated 2026.