Majors

Best Colleges for Visual and Performing Arts, by Earnings

196 of the colleges we track award a bachelor's degree in Visual and Performing Arts, about 3,630 degrees a year. Across the 53 that report earnings, graduates make a median of $41,129 four years after finishing.

Rank	College	State	Median earnings, 4 years out	Degrees a year	Acceptance rate
1	Champlain College	VT	$57,883	51	82.9%
2	Texas A&M University	TX	$57,002	9	57.4%
3	George Mason University	VA	$54,703	140	87.5%
4	University of Texas at Austin	TX	$53,829	97	26.6%
5	University of Central Florida	FL	$52,922	423	40.1%
6	University of Missouri	MO	$50,205	39	78.5%
7	Lesley University	MA	$49,175	30	96.9%
8	Arizona State University	AZ	$48,589	16	89.9%
9	California State University-San Marcos	CA	$48,043	76	95.1%
10	University of Wisconsin-Whitewater	WI	$47,819	33	85.7%
11	University of Florida	FL	$47,546	63	24.2%
12	SUNY Oneonta	NY	$47,321	44	69.6%
13	Otis College of Art and Design	CA	$47,220	101	81.8%
14	Bowling Green State University-Main Campus	OH	$46,944	30	81%
15	University of California-San Diego	CA	$45,915	62	26.7%
16	Pennsylvania State University	PA	$45,170	7	60.6%
17	Pennsylvania State University-Penn State Abington	PA	$45,170	6	96.8%
18	Pennsylvania State University-Penn State Altoona	PA	$45,170	4	98.1%
19	University of New Mexico-Main Campus	NM	$44,091	9	95.2%
20	Longwood University	VA	$44,066	28	90.2%
21	Ramapo College of New Jersey	NJ	$43,063	22	70.6%
22	Christopher Newport University	VA	$42,907	40	86%
23	Temple University	PA	$42,731	6	80.4%
24	Grand Canyon University	AZ	$42,219	53	78.9%
25	University of Mary Washington	VA	$41,509	15	79.8%
26	Bloomfield College of Montclair State University	NJ	$41,156	56	69.7%
27	University of Wisconsin-Stout	WI	$41,129	21	87.7%
28	State University of New York at New Paltz	NY	$41,097	34	61.6%
29	University of Kentucky	KY	$40,538	68	92.9%
30	University of North Carolina Asheville	NC	$40,444	27	91.9%
31	Stockton University	NJ	$40,199	30	88.9%
32	Bennington College	VT	$39,958	29	44.5%
33	SUNY at Purchase College	NY	$39,791	23	74.1%
34	Iowa State University	IA	$39,403	11	88.7%
35	Worcester State University	MA	$39,037	7	88%
36	Mississippi State University	MS	$38,939	48	77.6%
37	University of Massachusetts-Dartmouth	MA	$38,676	26	90.6%
38	University of Southern Mississippi	MS	$38,599	18	99.1%
39	Rogers State University	OK	$37,996	18
40	The University of Tennessee-Martin	TN	$37,930	19	88.2%
41	The University of Texas at Dallas	TX	$37,825	353	65.1%
42	University of Houston-Downtown	TX	$37,668	29	90%
43	University of Colorado Colorado Springs	CO	$37,628	41	97.4%
44	Wichita State University	KS	$37,012	59	94%
45	Oregon State University	OR	$35,819	1	77.3%
46	Marshall University	WV	$35,126	22	95.7%
47	Stetson University	FL	$35,045	38	71.6%
48	SUNY College at Potsdam	NY	$33,743	10	77.7%
49	Southeast Missouri State University	MO	$33,293	37	73.5%
50	Jackson State University	MS	$33,213	11	93.2%
51	Savannah State University	GA	$33,175	9
52	Mississippi University for Women	MS	$29,090	7	90.3%
53	New Mexico State University-Main Campus	NM	$27,875	25	89%

143 more colleges award this degree but have no earnings figure, usually because the program is small.

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Frequently asked questions

Which college has the highest-paid Visual and Performing Arts graduates?

Champlain College ($57,883), Texas A&M University ($57,002), George Mason University ($54,703), University of Texas at Austin ($53,829), University of Central Florida ($52,922) report the highest median earnings four years after graduation.

How much do Visual and Performing Arts majors make?

The median across 53 colleges is $41,129 four years after graduation. By college it runs from $27,875 to $57,883.

Which colleges have the biggest Visual and Performing Arts programs?

By bachelor's degrees awarded in a year: University of Central Florida (423), The University of Texas at Dallas (353), George Mason University (140), Otis College of Art and Design (101), University of Texas at Austin (97).

Does a higher-earning program mean a better program?

Not on its own. Earnings reflect where graduates live, what jobs they take, and who enrolled in the first place, as well as the teaching. The figures cover only graduates who received federal financial aid, and small programs are left out, so a college missing from this list may still have a strong department.

Source: College Scorecard, Most Recent Data by Field of Study (U.S. Department of Education), 2026-06-10 release, federal program category "Visual and Performing Arts, General". Earnings are medians for graduates who received federal financial aid, working and not enrolled, four years after a bachelor's degree.