10-yr median earnings
$31,167
Federal aid recipients only
Private For-Profit · Tacoma, Washington
Northwest College of Art & Design
Northwest College of Art & Design is a private for-profit institution in Tacoma, Washington. as a private for-profit, published Scorecard outcomes are Title-IV-recipient medians — program mix and repayment risk deserve a closer look than a single headline number.
- 47.9%
- 150%-time completion
- $16,418
- Avg net price / yr
- $31,167
- 10-yr median earnings
- 66.0%
- Acceptance rate
The verdict
Northwest College of Art & Design pairs modest former-student earnings with a moderately open admit.
According to the U.S. Department of Education's College Scorecard.
- 23rd pct.
- former-student earnings, US
- 66.0%
- acceptance rate
- 47.9%
- 150%-time completion
- +13%
- earnings, 6→10 yrs
City: Midsize
Carnegie: Special Focus (4yr)
Institution data retrieved July 2026; field-of-study data retrieved March 2026.
How to read this Northwest College of Art & Design profile
Figures above come from IPEDS institution records published through the College Scorecard (retrieved July 2026 for institution fields; March 2026 for field-of-study). Peer groups and cost cohorts follow IPEDS ownership sector, Carnegie class ("Special Focus Four-Year: Arts, Music & Design Schools"), and locale, not an editorial shortlist.
Average net price subtracts grant and scholarship aid from cost of attendance for full-time, first-time undergraduate Title IV recipients. It is a defined cohort average, not a personalized price; income-band fields add context but do not replace the school's current net-price calculator.
Earnings use Treasury-linked records for federally aided former students who were working and not enrolled in the measurement year (completers and noncompleters). IPEDS completion and retention use separate first-time, full-time cohorts, so those denominators are not the earnings cohort. Read cost, completion, and earnings as distinct historical measures, not a causal verdict or individual forecast.
College Value Score
F
College Value Score
32/100
Northwest College of Art & Design
A 6-metric composite of earnings, cost, and completion outcomes benchmarked against every reporting US college, not a ranking of teaching quality, campus life, or fit for any individual student. See the full methodology.
Earnings F
$31,167
10-year median former-student earnings
Net Price C-
$16,418
Average annual cost after grants and aid
Completion Rate F
47.9%
Completion within 150% of normal time
Debt F
$30,750
Median federal debt at graduation
Loan Repayment N/A
N/A
Borrowers repaying loans within 3 years
Retention C-
76.8%
First-year students returning for year two
Each axis is the percentile score shown in the breakdown at left; the shape shows this school's overall profile at a glance.
Avg net price
$16,418
After grants and scholarships
150%-time completion
47.9%
Full-time, first-time cohort
150%-time completion vs portal median (57.1%) 47.9%
Four-year-institution cohort
College ROI Quadrant - Northwest College of Art & Design vs peers
Each dot is a college plotted by 10-year median earnings (x-axis) vs average net price (y-axis), colored by completion within 150% of normal time. Bottom-right = high earnings/lower price; top-left = lower earnings/higher price.
How Northwest College of Art & Design ranks nationally
Where this school's former-student earnings fall within the full national distribution of every US college that reports to the College Scorecard, not just its peer set.
Northwest College of Art & Design: former-student earnings vs. every US college
10-year median earnings, College Scorecard
$31,167 23rd percentile higher than 23% of 5,103 US colleges
Each bar is a $20K-wide band; taller bars hold more US colleges. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count, share, and where it sits relative to this entry.
Source U.S. Department of Education, College Scorecard · Mar–Jul 2026 retrievals
| Metric | Northwest College of Art & Design | National rank | Percentile |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10-yr median earnings | $31,167 | #3935 of 5103 | 23rd |
| Average net price | $16,418 | #2361 of 5020 | 53rd (lower is better) |
| 150%-time completion | 47.9% | #3129 of 4858 | 36th |
| Undergraduate enrollment | 139 | #4031 of 5462 | 26th |
National ranks count every operating US college reporting each metric to the College Scorecard, separate from the earnings histogram above.
Quick Facts
139
Undergraduate enrollment
66.0%
Acceptance rate
-
SAT average
47.9%
150%-time completion
$31,167
10-yr median earnings
76.8%
First-year retention
How Northwest College of Art & Design ranks in Washington
State rank among 87 reporting Washington colleges with College Scorecard data, a separate lens from the national distribution above.
| Metric | Northwest College of Art & Design | State rank | Percentile |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10-yr median earnings | $31,167 | #79 of 87 | 9th |
| Average net price | $16,418 | #48 of 83 | 42nd (lower is better) |
| 150%-time completion | 47.9% | #36 of 78 | 54th |
| Undergraduate enrollment | 139 | #71 of 88 | 19th |
Highest former-student earnings in Washington
| # | School | 10-yr earnings | Net price |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | DigiPen Institute of Technology | $79,878 | $44,446 |
| 2 | Gonzaga University | $78,892 | $35,119 |
| 3 | University of Washington-Seattle Campus | $78,466 | $14,091 |
| 4 | University of Washington-Bothell Campus | $78,466 | $12,319 |
| 5 | University of Washington-Tacoma Campus | $78,466 | $10,163 |
| 6 | Seattle University | $75,272 | $34,662 |
| 7 | University of Puget Sound | $69,594 | $38,394 |
| 8 | City University of Seattle | $69,460 | - |
| 9 | Washington State University | $68,905 | $14,971 |
| 10 | Washington State University-Vancouver | $68,905 | - |
| 11 | Washington State University-Spokane | $68,905 | - |
| 12 | Washington State University-Tri Cities | $68,905 | - |
| 79 | Northwest College of Art & DesignThis school | $31,167 | $16,418 |
Admissions
| Admission Rate | 66.0% |
Costs & Financial Aid
Net price by family income at Northwest College of Art & Design
Average annual net price after grants; Title IV recipient cohort by income bracket
- $0 – $30k
$0 – $30k
$12,977 net price / yr
- $30k – $48k
$30k – $48k
$11,857 net price / yr
- $48k – $75k
$48k – $75k
$17,146 net price / yr
- $110k+
$110k+
$29,101 net price / yr
What this shows Need-based aid pulls net price down at lower brackets at Northwest College of Art & Design - compare the bar for your income band, not the overall average alone.
Tuition & Net Price
| In-State Tuition | $18,100 |
| Out-of-State Tuition | $18,100 |
| Average Net Price | $16,418 |
50.7%
Pell Grant Rate
48.0%
Federal Loan Rate
$30,750
Median Debt
$326/mo
Monthly Payment
Northwest College of Art & Design costs less today than it did in 2013
Average net price fell from $25,277 to $20,185 (-20.1%) between 2013 and 2023, before any inflation adjustment, which makes the real-terms fall larger still. Most colleges moved the other way: the median change across the 4,315 schools measured over the same span was +14.6%.
11 reported years. Nominal dollars, not adjusted for inflation.
2013 · $25,2772023 · $20,185
Over the same years, enrollment went +60.6% (94 → 151 students).
Source: U.S. Department of Education, College Scorecard, per-year fields (2013–2023). Net price is the average cost after grant and scholarship aid for federally-aided undergraduates.
Student Demographics
Race & ethnicity
Student body at a glance
63.5%
Female
Outcomes
76.8%
Retention Rate
$27,505
Median Earnings (6yr)
46.3%
Earning Over $25K
Outcomes & debt snapshot
| Measure | Cohort / horizon | Value |
|---|---|---|
| Completion within 150% of normal time | First-time, full-time | 47.9% |
| First-year retention | First-time, full-time freshmen | 76.8% |
| Median earnings | 6 years after entry | $27,505 |
| Median earnings | 10 years after entry | $31,167 |
| Share earning over $25,000 | Working, not enrolled | 46.3% |
| Median federal student debt | At completion | $30,750 |
| Estimated monthly payment | Standard 10-year plan | $326/mo |
Programs & Earnings
| Program | Credential | Completers | Median Earnings | Median Debt |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Design and Applied Arts | Bachelor's | 19 | $35,885 | $30,734 |
Explore Data-Matched Colleges
Scorecard-derived matches among reporting colleges — not school marketing or paid placement lists.
Similar Enrollment and Sector
Other Private For-Profit institutions closest in reported enrollment, preferring the same Carnegie classification.
Similar Reported Net Price
Other Private For-Profit institutions with the nearest reported average net price.
Similar 2013–2023 Net-Price Trend
Same-sector institutions with the same direction and nearest fitted annual change; only series with R² of at least 0.40 qualify.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the acceptance rate at Northwest College of Art & Design? ▼
Northwest College of Art & Design is a private for-profit institution in Tacoma, Washington. The acceptance rate is 66.0%. Undergraduate enrollment is 139 students.
How much do Northwest College of Art & Design former students earn? ▼
Federally aided former students at Northwest College of Art & Design who were working and not enrolled had median earnings of $31,167 ten years after entry; the cohort is not limited to graduates. Six years after entry, the corresponding median is $27,505.
How much does Northwest College of Art & Design cost? ▼
The average net price at Northwest College of Art & Design is $16,418. In-state tuition is $18,100 and out-of-state tuition is $18,100. Median student debt at graduation is $30,750.
What is the graduation rate at Northwest College of Art & Design? ▼
Northwest College of Art & Design has a 47.9% completion rate within 150% of normal time at a four-year institution (typically six years for a bachelor’s program). The first-year retention rate is 76.8%.
Is Northwest College of Art & Design worth the student debt? ▼
The median student debt at Northwest College of Art & Design is $30,750, while former students earn a median of $31,167 ten years after enrollment. That debt represents about 99% of those annual earnings. Estimated monthly loan payment is $326.
Sources & methodology
Private for-profit profiles foreground Scorecard debt, repayment, and program-level earnings where reported. Marketing claims from the school are not inputs to this page.
Every figure is the Mar–Jul 2026 federal retrieval. For-profit program mixes can shift year to year — treat institution medians as a starting map, then check Field-of-Study rows below. Read the full methodology for how the data is sourced, computed, and verified.
- College Scorecard, U.S. Department of Education - former-student earnings, cost & completion (collegescorecard.ed.gov).
- IPEDS, National Center for Education Statistics - enrollment, admissions, Carnegie class & demographics (nces.ed.gov/ipeds).
- U.S. Treasury / IRS earnings linkage - median earnings 6 & 10 years after enrollment for federal-aid recipients (irs.gov).
- College Scorecard, Field of Study - program-level (credential) earnings & debt (collegescorecard.ed.gov).
- Federal Student Aid (Title IV / NSLDS) - U.S. Department of Education - net price, student debt & aid-recipient repayment outcomes (studentaid.gov).
Where to go next from Northwest College of Art & Design
- Compare Northwest College of Art & Design against schools with similar outcomes at a lower average net price.Find similar schools that cost less
- Browse every reporting college in Washington side by side.Browse Washington
- See how fields of study differ on former-student earnings and debt.Explore programs
For-profit Scorecard figures are Title-IV cohort history — verify current program costs, accreditation, and repayment outcomes with the school and official aid tools.
Every figure on PlainCollege is rendered directly from the U.S. Department of Education's College Scorecard data, no number is typed in by an editor. Private for-profit profiles compile Scorecard debt/earnings and IPEDS operating fields from federal files — no editor-typed figures. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error on this page. Review the public data changelog. Data current as of Mar–Jul 2026 retrievals.