Online Design & applied arts Bachelor’s degree
18 programs — 12 with federal cost data, the rest suppressed for small class sizes and listed after them, ordered by median debt against median earnings — lowest first.
Data last updated
Specific program
Schools file the same degree under different federal codes — Berklee’s music production sits under “Music, Other”, Academy of Art’s under “Recording Arts”. These groups gather every code a program is actually filed under.
Field
Hide for-profit colleges(6 programs)What our data shows about for-profit collegesAcross the creative fields on this site, students at private for-profit institutions borrow 27% more than students at public ones ($29,332 against $23,033) and earn 15% less four years after completing ($38,361 against $45,110).The combined effect is severe. Median debt at a for-profit equals 70% of a graduate’s annual earnings, against 47% at a public institution. And 10% of for-profit programs leave graduates owing more than they earn in a year — against 1% of public ones. Ten times the rate.This is a pattern across 212 for-profit programs, not a handful of outliers, and it holds in every creative field we cover. It does not mean no for-profit program is worth taking: some appear high in our best-value rankings, and this filter hides those too. It means the odds are materially worse, and the burden of proof sits with the school.Figures are medians computed from the College Scorecard and IPEDS data behind every table on this site.
| Institution | Programcredential and delivery | at completion | 4 yrs after | Median federal loan debt at completion, divided by median earnings four years later. It answers a single question: how much of one year’s income do you owe on the day you finish?Below 50% is generally considered manageable. Above 100% means graduates owe more than they earn in a year, and repayment on a standard ten-year plan starts to consume a serious share of income.Debt covers federal loans only, so real ratios are often worse. Both figures are medians — half of graduates fall on the wrong side of each. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Arizona State University Digital ImmersionAZ · PublicRequest information → | Design and Applied Arts, OtherBachelor’s degree · Fully online | $20,702 | $59,641 | 35% |
| Western Michigan UniversityMI · PublicRequest information → | Graphic DesignBachelor’s degree · Fully onlineWhat this figure actually coversThe federal government reports debt and earnings for a whole program family rather than one degree. At this institution that family also includes:Industrial and Product DesignInterior DesignFashion/Apparel DesignThe figures on this row describe all of them together. We cannot separate them, and we do not estimate. | $27,000 | $58,634 | 46% |
| Central Michigan UniversityMI · PublicRequest information → | Interior DesignBachelor’s degree · Online or on campusWhat this figure actually coversThe federal government reports debt and earnings for a whole program family rather than one degree. At this institution that family also includes:Fashion/Apparel DesignGraphic DesignThe figures on this row describe all of them together. We cannot separate them, and we do not estimate. | $27,500 | $54,254 | 51% |
| Lesley UniversityMA · Private nonprofitRequest information → | IllustrationBachelor’s degree · Online or on campusWhat this figure actually coversThe federal government reports debt and earnings for a whole program family rather than one degree. At this institution that family also includes:Design and Applied Arts, OtherGraphic DesignThe figures on this row describe all of them together. We cannot separate them, and we do not estimate. | $23,333 | $45,099 | 52% |
| California Baptist UniversityCA · Private nonprofitRequest information → | Graphic DesignBachelor’s degree · Online or on campusWhat this figure actually coversThe federal government reports debt and earnings for a whole program family rather than one degree. At this institution that family also includes:Interior DesignIllustrationThe figures on this row describe all of them together. We cannot separate them, and we do not estimate. | $26,000 | $47,494 | 55% |
| University of the Incarnate WordTX · Private nonprofitRequest information → | Graphic DesignBachelor’s degree · Online or on campusWhat this figure actually coversThe federal government reports debt and earnings for a whole program family rather than one degree. At this institution that family also includes:Interior DesignFashion/Apparel DesignGame and Interactive Media DesignThe figures on this row describe all of them together. We cannot separate them, and we do not estimate. | $27,000 | $48,472 | 56% |
| Savannah College of Art and DesignGA · Private nonprofitRequest information → | IllustrationBachelor’s degree · Online or on campusOffers: Film and Television (BFA) · Animation (BFA) · Animation (MA/MFA) · Visual Effects (BFA) · Motion Media Design (BFA) · Illustration (BFA) · Illustration (MA/MFA) · Graphic Design (BA/BFA)What this figure actually coversThe federal government reports debt and earnings for a whole program family rather than one degree. At this institution that family also includes:Interior DesignFashion/Apparel DesignDesign and Visual Communications, GeneralThe figures on this row describe all of them together. We cannot separate them, and we do not estimate. | $26,200 | $45,923 | 57% |
| Fitchburg State UniversityMA · PublicRequest information → | Game and Interactive Media DesignBachelor’s degree · Fully onlineWhat this figure actually coversThe federal government reports debt and earnings for a whole program family rather than one degree. At this institution that family also includes:Design and Visual Communications, GeneralThe figures on this row describe all of them together. We cannot separate them, and we do not estimate. | $26,000 | $42,946 | 61% |
| Rasmussen University-FloridaFL · Private for-profitRequest information → | Graphic DesignBachelor’s degree · Fully online | $29,332 | $46,610 | 63% |
| Rasmussen University-North DakotaND · Private for-profitRequest information → | Graphic DesignBachelor’s degree · Fully online | $29,332 | $46,610 | 63% |
| Rasmussen University-IllinoisIL · Private for-profitRequest information → | Graphic DesignBachelor’s degree · Fully online | $29,332 | $46,610 | 63% |
| Full Sail UniversityFL · Private for-profitRequest information → | Design and Applied Arts, OtherBachelor’s degree · Fully onlineOffers: Audio Production (BS) · Music Production (BS) · Recording Arts (BS) · Live Event Production (BS) · Music Business (BS) · Film Production (BFA) · Game Design (BS) · Game Development (BS) · Computer Animation (BS) · Graphic Design (BS) · Digital Marketing (BS)What this figure actually coversThe federal government reports debt and earnings for a whole program family rather than one degree. At this institution that family also includes:Design and Visual Communications, GeneralThe figures on this row describe all of them together. We cannot separate them, and we do not estimate. | $36,827 | $44,962 | 82% |
| California College of ASUCA · Private nonprofitRequest information → | Graphic DesignBachelor’s degree · Fully online | Not reported | Not reported | — |
| Dallas Baptist UniversityTX · Private nonprofitRequest information → | Commercial and Advertising ArtBachelor’s degree · Fully onlineWhat this figure actually coversThe federal government reports debt and earnings for a whole program family rather than one degree. At this institution that family also includes:Graphic DesignCommercial PhotographyThe figures on this row describe all of them together. We cannot separate them, and we do not estimate. | Not reported | Not reported | — |
| Inter American University of Puerto Rico-AguadillaPR · Private nonprofitRequest information → | Graphic DesignBachelor’s degree · Fully online | Not reported | Not reported | — |
| Lakeland UniversityWI · Private nonprofitRequest information → | Graphic DesignBachelor’s degree · Fully online | Not reported | Not reported | — |
| NUC UniversityPR · Private for-profitRequest information → | Graphic DesignBachelor’s degree · Fully onlineWhat this figure actually coversThe federal government reports debt and earnings for a whole program family rather than one degree. At this institution that family also includes:Game and Interactive Media DesignThe figures on this row describe all of them together. We cannot separate them, and we do not estimate. | Not reported | Not reported | — |
| The Modern College of DesignOH · Private for-profitRequest information → | Commercial and Advertising ArtBachelor’s degree · Fully online | Not reported | Not reported | — |
Source: College Scorecard, Field of Study (retrieved September 2026)
How we are paid: StudyCreative earns revenue when readers ask to be connected with a school. No school pays to appear in these figures, to change them, or to be left out of them. Full disclosure.
One thing these figures cannot tell you
Earnings and debt are reported by the federal government at a four-digit program level, so a figure shown against “Design & applied arts” covers every related program at that institution rather than one named degree. That pooling also spans delivery: where a school runs the same credential both online and on campus, the federal figures combine both sets of students. We cannot separate them, and we do not estimate. Full methodology.