ADBLOCK #102
College Factual  by our College Data Analytics Team
       Unbiased Factual Guarantee

2026 Best Value Other Design & Applied Arts Schools in the New England Region

2 Colleges in the United States
$26,250 Avg Student Debt
$57,824 Avg Median Earnings (10yr)
2026 Best Value Other Design & Applied Arts Badge [Other Design & Applied Arts](/majors/visual-and-performing-arts/design-and-applied-arts/design-and-applied-arts-other/) is a field worth comparing on the balance of cost and outcomes. The schools below stand out for delivering a strong other design & applied arts education at a price that pays off.

For its 2026 best-value ranking, College Factual looked at 9 schools to find the best return on investment for other design & applied arts students.

What’s on this page:

ADBLOCK #159
DEBUG: Raw major_slug = ""
DEBUG: Initial offers_url = "https://www.collegefactual.com/majors/visual-and-performing-arts/design-and-applied-arts/design-and-applied-arts-other/offers.json", major_slug = ""
DEBUG: After cleaning major_slug = ""
DEBUG: Before URL cleaning = "https://www.collegefactual.com/majors/visual-and-performing-arts/design-and-applied-arts/design-and-applied-arts-other/offers.json"
DEBUG: After TrimSuffix = "https://www.collegefactual.com/majors/visual-and-performing-arts/design-and-applied-arts/design-and-applied-arts-other/offers.json"
DEBUG: After HTTPS placeholder = "HTTPS_TEMP_PLACEHOLDERwww.collegefactual.com/majors/visual-and-performing-arts/design-and-applied-arts/design-and-applied-arts-other/offers.json"
DEBUG: After slash cleaning = "HTTPS_TEMP_PLACEHOLDERwww.collegefactual.com/majors/visual-and-performing-arts/design-and-applied-arts/design-and-applied-arts-other/offers.json"
DEBUG: After URL cleaning = "https://www.collegefactual.com/majors/visual-and-performing-arts/design-and-applied-arts/design-and-applied-arts-other/offers.json"
DEBUG: offers_url = https://www.collegefactual.com/majors/visual-and-performing-arts/design-and-applied-arts/design-and-applied-arts-other/offers.json
DEBUG: major_slug = ""
DEBUG: offers_url is valid, proceeding to fetch data
DEBUG: offers_data.offers found, count = 7
DEBUG: Specific major detected (cip4 = 50.04), keeping min_relevance at 0.8
DEBUG: Starting relevance filtering - min_relevance = 0.8, max_relevance = 1
DEBUG: Checking offer "BA in Graphic Design & Media Arts" with relevance 0.9
DEBUG: ✓ Offer "BA in Graphic Design & Media Arts" ACCEPTED (relevance 0.9)
DEBUG: Checking offer "AA in Digital Photography" with relevance 0.8
DEBUG: ✓ Offer "AA in Digital Photography" ACCEPTED (relevance 0.8)
DEBUG: Checking offer "BA in Digital Photography" with relevance 0.8
DEBUG: ✓ Offer "BA in Digital Photography" ACCEPTED (relevance 0.8)
DEBUG: Checking offer "BA in Game Art & Development" with relevance 0.8
DEBUG: ✓ Offer "BA in Game Art & Development" ACCEPTED (relevance 0.8)
DEBUG: Checking offer "BA in Graphic Design & Media Arts - Web Design" with relevance 0.8
DEBUG: ✓ Offer "BA in Graphic Design & Media Arts - Web Design" ACCEPTED (relevance 0.8)
DEBUG: Checking offer "" with relevance 0.8
DEBUG: ✓ Offer "" ACCEPTED (relevance 0.8)
DEBUG: Checking offer "BS in Game Programming & Development" with relevance 0.5
DEBUG: ✗ Offer "BS in Game Programming & Development" REJECTED (relevance 0.5)
DEBUG: relevant_offers count = 6
DEBUG: relevant_offers > 0, checking for ESYOH offers
DEBUG: ESYOH filtering - found 0 ESYOH offers with relevance >= 0.8
DEBUG: esyoh_offers count = 0
DEBUG: No ESYOH offers, checking direct offers

2026 Best Value Other Design & Applied Arts Schools in the New England Region

Below are the schools that deliver the strongest value in other design & applied arts, balancing cost against outcomes.

Best Value Other Design & Applied Arts Schools

1

University Of Massachusetts Dartmouth tops our 2026 list of the best value other design & applied arts schools in the New England Region. Set in the suburb of North Dartmouth, University Of Massachusetts Dartmouth is a moderately-sized public institution. The average in-state cost of tuition and fees is $15,612, with out-of-state students paying around $32,567. Other Design & Applied Arts graduates carry a median of $27,000 in student loans. Other Design & Applied Arts graduates of University Of Massachusetts Dartmouth earn a median of $54,669 early in their careers. Weighed against typical debt, the earnings make a compelling case for value. The acceptance rate is 91%.

2

Massachusetts College Of Art And Design came in at #2 on our 2026 list of the best value other design & applied arts schools. Massachusetts College Of Art And Design is a mid-sized public school located in the city of Boston. Expect in-state tuition and fees of around $15,400, compared with $43,400 for out-of-state students. Students borrow a median of $22,500 to complete the other design & applied arts program here. Soon after graduation, other design & applied arts degree recipients from Massachusetts College Of Art And Design generally make around $24,706. Weighed against typical debt, the earnings make a compelling case for value. The acceptance rate is 76%.

3
Lesley University crest
Lesley University
Cambridge, MA

A rank of #3 makes Lesley University one of the best values for other design & applied arts. Set in the city of Cambridge, Lesley University is a mid-sized private not-for-profit institution. Students from in state pay about $34,256 in tuition and fees. Other Design & Applied Arts graduates carry a median of $26,500 in student loans. Early-career other design & applied arts graduates make about $25,227. Weighed against typical debt, the earnings make a compelling case for value. Roughly 97% of applicants are accepted.

4

Northeastern University came in at #4 on our 2026 list of the best value other design & applied arts schools. Northeastern University is a very large private not-for-profit school located in the city of Boston. Expect in-state tuition and fees of around $66,162. Students borrow a median of $28,250 to complete the other design & applied arts program here. Other Design & Applied Arts graduates of Northeastern University earn a median of $49,727 early in their careers. Set against $28,250 in median debt, that is a healthy payoff. The acceptance rate is 5%.

5

Students looking for strong value in other design & applied arts will find it at Montserrat College Of Art, which ranked #5. Montserrat College Of Art is a small private not-for-profit school located in the suburb of Beverly. Expect in-state tuition and fees of around $40,690. Typical student debt for other design & applied arts graduates is $27,000. Soon after graduation, other design & applied arts degree recipients from Montserrat College Of Art generally make around $20,704. Set against $27,000 in median debt, that is a healthy payoff.

Narrow Other Design & Applied Arts Schools by State

ADBLOCK #173
View All Other Design & Applied Arts Rankings >

ADBLOCK #115

Notes and References

This ranking is produced by College Factual (MF_RANKING_2025), 2026 edition. Schools are scored on the balance of cost (tuition and student debt) against student outcomes (post-graduation earnings) — a measure of return on investment, drawn primarily from the U.S. Department of Education (IPEDS and College Scorecard).

Ranking method: College Major Best Value · 9 schools evaluated.

*Averages shown above reflect the top 2 ranked schools only.

More about our data sources and methodologies.

ADBLOCK #116

Popular Reports

College Rankings
Best by Location
Degree Guides by Major
Graduate Programs
ADBLOCK #613

Compare Your School Options