2025 Best Design & Applied Arts Bachelor's Degree Schools in Michigan

Ranked #27 in popularity, design & applied arts is one of the most sought-after bachelor's degree programs in the nation. So, there are lots of possibilities to explore when you're trying to determine where you want to get your degree.

College Factual reviewed 8 schools in Michigan to determine which ones were the best for bachelor's degree seekers in the field of design & applied arts. Combined, these schools handed out 570 bachelor's degrees in design & applied arts to qualified students.

Jump to one of the following sections: * Our Methodology

• Best Bachelor’s Degree Schools List

Choosing a Great Design & Applied Arts School for Your Bachelor's Degree

The design bachelor's degree program you select can have a big impact on your future. This section explores some of the factors we include in our ranking and how much they vary depending on the school you select. Below we explain some of the most important factors to consider before making your choice:

Overall Quality Is a Must

A school that excels in educating for a particular major and degree level must be a great school overall as well. To make it into this list a school must rank well in our overall Best Colleges ranking. This ranking considered factors such as graduation rates, overall graduate earnings and other educational resources to identify great colleges and universities.

Average Early-Career Salaries

Average early-career salary of those graduating with their bachelor's degree is one indicator we use in our analysis to find the schools that offer the highest-quality education. After all, your bachelor's degree won't mean much if it doesn't help you find a job that will help you earn a living.

Other Factors We Consider

In addition to the above, you should consider some of the following factors:

• Major Focus - How much a school focuses on design & applied arts students vs. other majors.
• Major Demand - The number of design & applied arts students who choose to seek a bachelor's degree at the school.
• Educational Resources - The amount of money and other resources allocated to students while they are pursuing their degree. These resources include such things as number of students per instructor and education expenditures per student.
• Student Debt - How easy is it for design & applied arts to pay back their student loans after receiving their bachelor's degree.
• Accreditation - Whether a school is regionally accredited and/or accredited by a recognized design & applied arts related body.

Our complete ranking methodology documents in more detail how we consider these factors to identify the best schools for design & applied arts students working on their bachelor's degree.

More Ways to Rank Design & Applied Arts Schools

The design school you choose to invest your time and money in matters. To help you make the decision that is right for you, we've developed a number of major-specific rankings, including this list of the Best Design & Applied Arts Bachelor's Degree Schools in Michigan.

To further help you make the college decision, we've developed a unique tool called College Combat that allows you to compare schools based on the factors that matter the most to you. Go ahead and give it a try, or bookmark the link so you can check it out later.

Best Schools for Bachelor’s Students to Study Design & Applied Arts in Michigan

Explore the top ranked colleges and universities for design & applied arts students seeking a a bachelor's degree.

Top Michigan Schools for a Bachelor's in Design

1

Michigan State University
East Lansing, MI

110 Annual Graduates

$36,784 Median Starting Salary

$48,000 Median Student Debt

Every student who is interested in a bachelor's degree in design & applied arts needs to check out Michigan State University. Located in the small city of East Lansing, Michigan State is a public university with a very large student population.

Those design & applied arts students who get their bachelor's degree from Michigan State University receive $4,058 more than the average design student.

More information about a bachelor’s in design & applied arts from Michigan State University

2

College for Creative Studies
Detroit, MI

73 Annual Graduates

$32,665 Median Starting Salary

$49,705 Median Student Debt

It is difficult to beat College for Creative Studies if you want to pursue a bachelor's degree in design & applied arts. Located in the large city of Detroit, CCS is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population.

Soon after graduation, design bachelor's recipients generally earn about $32,665 at the beginning of their careers.

More information about a bachelor’s in design & applied arts from College for Creative Studies

3

Ferris State University
Big Rapids, MI

83 Annual Graduates

$34,045 Median Starting Salary

$23,248 Median Student Debt

It's hard to beat Ferris State University if you wish to pursue a bachelor's degree in design & applied arts. Located in the town of Big Rapids, Ferris is a public university with a moderately-sized student population.

Soon after graduation, design bachelor's recipients usually make an average of $34,045 in the first five years of their career.

More information about a bachelor’s in design & applied arts from Ferris State University

4

Western Michigan University
Kalamazoo, MI

49 Annual Graduates

$39,077 Median Starting Salary

Western Michigan University is one of the best schools in the United States for getting a bachelor's degree in design & applied arts. Located in the city of Kalamazoo, WMU is a public university with a large student population.

Design & Applied Arts bachelor's degree recipients from Western Michigan University receive an earnings boost of around $6,351 over the average income of design & applied arts majors.

More information about a bachelor’s in design & applied arts from Western Michigan University

5

Central Michigan University
Mount Pleasant, MI

56 Annual Graduates

$36,917 Median Starting Salary

$34,650 Median Student Debt

Central Michigan is a fairly large public university located in the distant town of Mount Pleasant.

Bachelor's recipients from the design & applied arts program at Central Michigan University make $4,191 more than the average college grad with the same degree shortly after graduation.

More information about a bachelor’s in design & applied arts from Central Michigan University

6

Eastern Michigan University
Ypsilanti, MI

39 Annual Graduates

$38,443 Median Starting Salary

Eastern Michigan is a fairly large public university located in the suburb of Ypsilanti.

Design & Applied Arts bachelor's degree recipients from Eastern Michigan University get an earnings boost of around $5,717 above the average earnings of design & applied arts majors.

More information about a bachelor’s in design & applied arts from Eastern Michigan University

7

Oakland University
Rochester Hills, MI

69 Annual Graduates

$30,687 Median Starting Salary

$20,640 Median Student Debt

Oakland is a large public university located in the large suburb of Rochester Hills.

Bachelor's graduates who receive their degree from the design program earn around $30,687 in the first couple years of their career.

More information about a bachelor’s in design & applied arts from Oakland University

8

Saginaw Valley State University
University Center, MI

31 Annual Graduates

$27,577 Median Starting Salary

Located in the medium-sized suburb of University Center, Saginaw Valley State University is a public university with a medium-sized student population.

Students who graduate with their bachelor's from the design program report average early career wages of $27,577.

More information about a bachelor’s in design & applied arts from Saginaw Valley State University

Best Design & Applied Arts Colleges in the Great Lakes Region

Explore all the Best Design & Applied Arts Schools in the Great Lakes Area or other specific states within that region.

State	Colleges	Degrees Awarded
Ohio	252	1,074
Illinois	241	768
Indiana	235	289
Wisconsin	213	396

View All Rankings >

Design & Applied Arts Related Rankings by Major

Design & Applied Arts is one of 10 different types of Visual & Performing Arts programs to choose from.

Design Concentrations

Major	Annual Graduates
Graphic Design	240
Interior Design	94
Illustration	74
Game & Interactive Media Design	65
Fashion Design	43
Industrial Design	26
Visual Communications	13
Commercial & Advertising Art	12
Other Design & Applied Arts	3

Majors Similar to Design

Related Major	Annual Graduates
Fine & Studio Arts	560
Music	413
Film, Video & Photographic Arts	330
Drama & Theater Arts	250
Dance	83
General Visual & Performing Arts	37
Arts & Media Management	22
Other Visual Art	13
Crafts, Folk Art & Artisanry	10

Notes and References

• The bars on the spread charts above show the distribution of the schools on this list +/- one standard deviation from the mean.
• The Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) from the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), a branch of the U.S. Department of Education (DOE) serves as the core of the rest of our data about colleges.
• Some other college data, including much of the graduate earnings data, comes from the U.S. Department of Education’s (College Scorecard). More about our data sources and methodologies.