{
  "major": "Design",
  "slug": "design",
  "field": "Arts & Design",
  "as_of": "2026",
  "url": "https://collegeranked.com/best-design-schools/",
  "source": "U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard (2026 release); U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics",
  "metric_definitions": {
    "median_earnings": "Median earnings one year after graduation (Scorecard)",
    "net_price": "Average annual cost of attendance after grant aid. For PUBLIC schools this reflects IN-STATE cost; out-of-state students pay more.",
    "roi_10yr_usd": "Ten years of earnings minus four years of net price",
    "public": "true = public university (net_price is in-state basis); false = private (residency-neutral)"
  },
  "total_colleges_with_reported_data": 267,
  "shown": 25,
  "ranking": [
    {
      "rank": 1,
      "school": "University of Washington-Seattle Campus",
      "state": "WA",
      "median_earnings": 63449,
      "net_price": 14091,
      "roi_10yr_usd": 578126,
      "public": true
    },
    {
      "rank": 2,
      "school": "University of California-Los Angeles",
      "state": "CA",
      "median_earnings": 57615,
      "net_price": 12548,
      "roi_10yr_usd": 525958,
      "public": true
    },
    {
      "rank": 3,
      "school": "Georgia Institute of Technology-Main Campus",
      "state": "GA",
      "median_earnings": 52694,
      "net_price": 12116,
      "roi_10yr_usd": 478476,
      "public": true
    },
    {
      "rank": 4,
      "school": "University of Florida",
      "state": "FL",
      "median_earnings": 43144,
      "net_price": 6541,
      "roi_10yr_usd": 405276,
      "public": true
    },
    {
      "rank": 5,
      "school": "The University of Texas at Austin",
      "state": "TX",
      "median_earnings": 44506,
      "net_price": 19857,
      "roi_10yr_usd": 365632,
      "public": true
    },
    {
      "rank": 6,
      "school": "Northeastern University",
      "state": "MA",
      "median_earnings": 49727,
      "net_price": 30915,
      "roi_10yr_usd": 373610,
      "public": false
    },
    {
      "rank": 7,
      "school": "University of Houston",
      "state": "TX",
      "median_earnings": 47461,
      "net_price": 14276,
      "roi_10yr_usd": 417506,
      "public": true
    },
    {
      "rank": 8,
      "school": "University of Southern California",
      "state": "CA",
      "median_earnings": 64846,
      "net_price": 32740,
      "roi_10yr_usd": 517500,
      "public": false
    },
    {
      "rank": 9,
      "school": "Ohio State University-Main Campus",
      "state": "OH",
      "median_earnings": 45176,
      "net_price": 17339,
      "roi_10yr_usd": 382404,
      "public": true
    },
    {
      "rank": 10,
      "school": "Florida State University",
      "state": "FL",
      "median_earnings": 49144,
      "net_price": 11297,
      "roi_10yr_usd": 446252,
      "public": true
    },
    {
      "rank": 11,
      "school": "University of Notre Dame",
      "state": "IN",
      "median_earnings": 46825,
      "net_price": 26780,
      "roi_10yr_usd": 361130,
      "public": false
    },
    {
      "rank": 12,
      "school": "Washington State University",
      "state": "WA",
      "median_earnings": 44823,
      "net_price": 14971,
      "roi_10yr_usd": 388346,
      "public": true
    },
    {
      "rank": 13,
      "school": "University of Delaware",
      "state": "DE",
      "median_earnings": 42585,
      "net_price": 17799,
      "roi_10yr_usd": 354654,
      "public": true
    },
    {
      "rank": 14,
      "school": "University of Cincinnati-Main Campus",
      "state": "OH",
      "median_earnings": 52526,
      "net_price": 25648,
      "roi_10yr_usd": 422668,
      "public": true
    },
    {
      "rank": 15,
      "school": "University of Wisconsin-Madison",
      "state": "WI",
      "median_earnings": 49780,
      "net_price": 17354,
      "roi_10yr_usd": 428384,
      "public": true
    },
    {
      "rank": 16,
      "school": "North Carolina State University at Raleigh",
      "state": "NC",
      "median_earnings": 44930,
      "net_price": 17303,
      "roi_10yr_usd": 380088,
      "public": true
    },
    {
      "rank": 17,
      "school": "Texas State University",
      "state": "TX",
      "median_earnings": 44396,
      "net_price": 16805,
      "roi_10yr_usd": 376740,
      "public": true
    },
    {
      "rank": 18,
      "school": "California State University-Long Beach",
      "state": "CA",
      "median_earnings": 37395,
      "net_price": 10440,
      "roi_10yr_usd": 332190,
      "public": true
    },
    {
      "rank": 19,
      "school": "Weber State University",
      "state": "UT",
      "median_earnings": 40507,
      "net_price": 10258,
      "roi_10yr_usd": 364038,
      "public": true
    },
    {
      "rank": 20,
      "school": "Western Michigan University",
      "state": "MI",
      "median_earnings": 39077,
      "net_price": 15273,
      "roi_10yr_usd": 329678,
      "public": true
    },
    {
      "rank": 21,
      "school": "University of Minnesota-Twin Cities",
      "state": "MN",
      "median_earnings": 42462,
      "net_price": 16778,
      "roi_10yr_usd": 357508,
      "public": true
    },
    {
      "rank": 22,
      "school": "Metropolitan State University of Denver",
      "state": "CO",
      "median_earnings": 39450,
      "net_price": 15327,
      "roi_10yr_usd": 333192,
      "public": true
    },
    {
      "rank": 23,
      "school": "Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University",
      "state": "VA",
      "median_earnings": 46761,
      "net_price": 24953,
      "roi_10yr_usd": 367798,
      "public": true
    },
    {
      "rank": 24,
      "school": "Bellevue College",
      "state": "WA",
      "median_earnings": 45947,
      "net_price": 11430,
      "roi_10yr_usd": 413750,
      "public": true
    },
    {
      "rank": 25,
      "school": "Purdue University-Main Campus",
      "state": "IN",
      "median_earnings": 44602,
      "net_price": 14600,
      "roi_10yr_usd": 387620,
      "public": true
    }
  ]
}