Bachelor's · Los Angeles, California
Is Design and Applied Arts at Otis College of Art and Design worth it?
High confidence High confidence: 100+ graduates behind the earnings figures.
The verdict · all families, in-state, half paid with loans
Pays back slowly: graduates typically recover the cost in about 14.6 years.
- Earnings 1 year after graduating
- $41,445
- Treasury AY2020-21, AY2021-22 pooled earnings cohort measured in CY2022, CY2023, inflation adjusted to 2024 dollars
- Earnings 4 years after graduating
- $60,034
- Treasury AY2017-2018, AY2018-2019 pooled earnings cohort measured in CY2022, CY2023, inflation adjusted to 2024 dollars
- Typical federal debt at graduation
- $27,000
- NSLDS pooled AY2022-23, AY2023-24 cohort
- Net cost to graduate, all families
- $216k (likely $216k – $286k)
- AcadYr 2024-25, reported in IPEDS DCY2025-26
- Earnings bump, year 4
- $20k a year vs high-school graduates aged 25–34 in CA
- 2023 ACS 5-year pooled, adjusted to 2024 dollars
- Payback
- 14.6 years (likely 11.5–20+)
- Bump vs net cost plus loan interest
- 10-year net return
- −$271k (likely −$396k – −$205k)
- Today's dollars
- 20-year net return
- −$36k (likely −$180k – $130k)
- Today's dollars
- Odds of finishing (school-wide)
- 58%
- Fall 2019 or AcadYr 2019-20 cohort (differs by institutional calendar), reported in IPEDS DCY2025-26
- Borrowers making progress / in default, 2 years in
- not reported / ≤ 10%
- NSLDS AY2016-17, AY2017-18 pooled cohorts measured in 2018-19, 2019-20
Change income, residency or loans Compare Design and Applied Arts at other schools
🎨 Getting ready in high school
Students heading toward art, design & performance majors like this one often take these classes. Every school offers a different mix, so check with your counselor.
AP classes
- AP 2-D Art and Design
- AP Drawing
- AP Art History
- AP Music Theory
IB Higher Level
- Visual Arts HL
- Music HL or Theatre HL or Film HL
Build my roadmap 🗺️ Middle school to career, plus high schools near you that offer these classes.
Other majors at Otis College of Art and Design
Design and Applied Arts at other schools in California
- University of Southern California$89,022
- Northeastern University Oakland$87,336
- Chapman University$78,121
- Art Center College of Design$76,093
- University of Redlands$75,374
- Laguna College of Art and Design$68,934
- Interior Designers Institute$67,473
- California State University-Long Beach$66,435
- University of California-Santa Cruz$66,333
- University of California-Los Angeles$66,259