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2023 Best Visual & Performing Arts Graduate Certificate Schools

106 Colleges
$42,822 Avg Salary

Finding the Best Visual & Performing Arts Graduate Certificate School for You

In 2020-2021, 18,379 people earned a degree or certificate in visual and performing arts, making the major the #11 most popular in the United States.

With all the programs available today, it can be tough to choose which one is the best for you. Along with traditional schools that require in-person attendence, you can attend one of many reputable online schools. Some programs even offer a hybrid experience. Alternatively, you may choose a trade school that prepares you to enter the workforce with knowledge in a specific field.

To help you arm yourself with the information you need to make your decision, Grad Degree Search has developed this Best Visual & Performing Arts Graduate Certificate Schools ranking. This report analyzed 106 schools in the United States to see which ones offered the best graduate certificate programs for students. Factors related to overall quality of the school, post-graduation earnings, average student debt, and more accumulated were considered when coming up with this list.

View our full ranking methodology.

2023 Best Visual & Performing Arts Graduate Certificate Schools in the United States

The following schools top our list of the Best Visual & Performing Arts Graduate Certificate Colleges.

Top 15% Best Visual & Performing Arts Graduate Certificate Schools

Our analysis found The Graduate Center, CUNY to be the best school for visual and performing arts students who want to pursue a graduate certificate in the United States. Located in the large city of New York, The Graduate Center is a public school with a medium-sized student population.

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#2

Messiah University

Mechanicsburg, PA

A rank of #2 on this year’s list means Messiah University is a great place for visual and performing arts students working on their graduate certificate. Located in the suburb of Mechanicsburg, Messiah is a private not-for-profit school with a small student population.

Read full report on Visual & Performing Arts at Messiah University

#3

Michigan State University

East Lansing, MI

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Michigan State University. It ranked #3 on our 2023 Best Visual & Performing Arts Graduate Certificate Schools list. Michigan State is a fairly large public school located in the small city of East Lansing.

Read full report on Visual & Performing Arts at Michigan State University

Out of the 106 schools in the United States that were part of this year’s ranking, American Film Institute Conservatory landed the # 4 spot on the list. American Film Institute is a small private not-for-profit school located in the large city of Los Angeles.

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#5

University of Iowa

Iowa City, IA

A rank of #5 on this year’s list means University of Iowa is a great place for visual and performing arts students working on their graduate certificate. Iowa is a fairly large public school located in the small city of Iowa City.

Read full report on Visual & Performing Arts at University of Iowa

The University of Texas at Austin did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for visual and performing arts students to get a graduate certificate. It came in at #6 on the list. Located in the large city of Austin, UT Austin is a public school with a fairly large student population.

Full Visual & Performing Arts at The University of Texas at Austin Report

#7

Towson University

Towson, MD

Towson University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for visual and performing arts students to get a graduate certificate. It came in at #7 on the list. Towson is a fairly large public school located in the small city of Towson.

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University of Wisconsin - Madison came in at #8 in this year’s edition of the Best Visual & Performing Arts Graduate Certificate Schools ranking. Located in the large city of Madison, UW - Madison is a public college with a fairly large student population.

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Columbia University in the City of New York came in at #9 in this year’s edition of the Best Visual & Performing Arts Graduate Certificate Schools ranking. Columbia is a fairly large private not-for-profit school located in the city of New York.

Read full report on Visual & Performing Arts at Columbia University in the City of New York

#10

American University

Washington, DC

American University landed the #10 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best graduate certificate visual and performing arts programs. Located in the large city of Washington, The American University is a private not-for-profit college with a large student population.

Full Visual & Performing Arts at American University Report

Bloomsburg University of Pennsylvania came in at #11 in this year’s edition of the Best Visual & Performing Arts Graduate Certificate Schools ranking. Bloomsburg is a medium-sized public school located in the small city of Bloomsburg.

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#12

University of Pennsylvania

Philadelphia, PA

University of Pennsylvania ranked #12 on this year’s Best Visual & Performing Arts Graduate Certificate Schools list. Located in the city of Philadelphia, UPenn is a private not-for-profit school with a fairly large student population.

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#13

Texas Christian University

Fort Worth, TX

Texas Christian University ranked #13 on this year’s Best Visual & Performing Arts Graduate Certificate Schools list. TCU is a large private not-for-profit school located in the large city of Fort Worth.

Read full report on Visual & Performing Arts at Texas Christian University

#14

University of Tulsa

Tulsa, OK

University of Tulsa landed the #14 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best graduate certificate visual and performing arts programs. Located in the large city of Tulsa, University of Tulsa is a private not-for-profit school with a small student population.

Read full report on Visual & Performing Arts at University of Tulsa

#15

Texas Tech University

Lubbock, TX

Texas Tech University landed the #15 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best graduate certificate visual and performing arts programs. Located in the large city of Lubbock, Texas Tech is a public school with a fairly large student population.

Read full report on Visual & Performing Arts at Texas Tech University

Additional Noteworthy Schools

Here are some additional great schools for Visual & Performing Arts students that almost earned our Best Visual & Performing Arts Graduate Certificate Schools award.

Rank College Location
16 West Chester University of Pennsylvania West Chester, PA
17 Iowa State University Ames, IA
18 University of Southern California Los Angeles, CA
19 University of Michigan - Ann Arbor Ann Arbor, MI
20 University of Connecticut Storrs, CT
21 The University of Texas at Arlington Arlington, TX

Visual & Performing Arts by Region

View the Best Visual & Performing Arts Graduate Certificate Schools for a specific region near you.

Region
Southeast
New England
Rocky Mountains
Plains States
Middle Atlantic
Far Western US
Southwest
Great Lakes

Visual & Performing Arts Majors to Study

Major Annual Graduates
Music 7,675
Fine & Studio Arts 3,224
Design & Applied Arts 1,979
Film, Video & Photographic Arts 1,704
Drama & Theater Arts 1,699
Arts & Media Management 1,184
General Visual & Performing Arts 390
Dance 257
Other Visual Art 254
Crafts, Folk Art & Artisanry 13

Related Major Annual Graduates
Theology & Religious Vocations 17,287
English Language & Literature 9,566
Foreign Languages & Linguistics 4,163
Philosophy & Religious Studies 3,136
Liberal Arts / Sciences & Humanities 2,680

Notes and References

*These averages are for the top 25 schools only.

  • Read more about our ranking methodology.
  • 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).
  • Credit for the banner image above goes to Bonnielou2013.

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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