Design and Applied Arts graduates from Northwest College of Art & Design earn $35,885 median salary — below the national average for this program. Median debt: $30,734.
Design and Applied Arts at Northwest College of Art & Design
Tacoma, Washington • Bachelor's
What the IPEDS & College Scorecard Data Shows for Design and Applied Arts at Northwest College of Art & Design
This page combines two federal data products: IPEDS institutional characteristics for Northwest College of Art & Design and the College Scorecard field-of-study (FOS) file for Design and Applied Arts at the bachelor's credential level. The FOS file is keyed by CIP (Classification of Instructional Programs) code, which means earnings and debt figures here reflect only graduates of this specific program — not the school as a whole. IPEDS reports 19 completers in the most recent cohort for this program at Northwest College of Art & Design, the denominator behind the median earnings figure.
Median graduate earnings of $35,885 represent Treasury-verified wages approximately one year after program completion, drawn from Social Security Administration records linked to federal financial aid applicants. Compared to the national mean of $49,451 across all institutions offering Design and Applied Arts, graduates here earn below the national average for this program. Across all programs at Northwest College of Art & Design, the mean median-earnings figure is $35,885, providing internal context for whether this specific field out-earns other options at the same institution.
Debt signals complete the ROI picture. The median cumulative federal loan debt for Design and Applied Arts graduates at Northwest College of Art & Design is $30,734, which translates to roughly $256 per month on a standard 10-year repayment plan. The debt-to-earnings ratio of 0.86 is under the 1.0 threshold the College Scorecard uses to flag favorable gainful-employment outcomes — earnings in year one already exceed cumulative borrowing. Program-level debt and earnings come from the Department of Education’s College Scorecard FOS release, updated annually.
Earnings Comparison
Program Details
Debt & ROI
Design and Applied Arts at Other Schools
| School | Median Earnings | Median Debt |
|---|---|---|
| Carnegie Mellon University | $138,588 | $24,500 |
| Lawrence Technological University | $99,444 | — |
| Georgia Institute of Technology-Main Campus | $95,697 | $26,354 |
| University of Washington-Seattle Campus | $89,193 | $12,250 |
| University of Southern California | $89,022 | $18,000 |
| Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute | $87,358 | $25,000 |
| Northeastern University | $87,336 | $25,500 |
| University of Notre Dame | $83,414 | $19,250 |
| Chapman University | $78,121 | $23,823 |
| Art Center College of Design | $76,093 | $31,000 |
Other Programs at Northwest College of Art & Design
| Program | Median Earnings | Median Debt |
|---|---|---|
| Design and Applied Arts (current) | $35,885 | $30,734 |
Other Schools with Design and Applied Arts
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About the Data
Data from the U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard Field of Study file. Earnings are median earnings for graduates after completion, drawn from U.S. Treasury tax records linked to federal financial aid applicants. Institutional characteristics come from IPEDS. Debt figures represent the median cumulative federal loan debt at graduation.
Debt-to-earnings ratio compares cumulative debt to annual earnings. A ratio below 1.0 indicates that annual earnings exceed total debt, generally considered favorable. Estimated monthly payments assume a standard 10-year repayment plan.
Read our methodology — how this data is sourced, computed, and verified.