Studio Arts, General: Program Overview, Universities, Careers & Salaries

Q: Which universities have the largest Studio Arts, General programs?

Currently 655 accredited institutions offer Studio Arts, General degrees across the U.S. Programs with the highest enrollment include School of the Art Institute of Chicago (SAIC) (884 graduates), California State University (CSUF), Fullerton (302 graduates), and California State University (CSULB), Long Beach (207 graduates).

Q: Is enrollment in Studio Arts, General growing or declining?

Graduate numbers have increased over the past decade, rising from 11,798 in 2010 to a peak of 12,034 in 2020, before declining slightly to 12,013 in 2023-24. This represents a 2% increase overall from 2010.

Q: What career paths are available with a Studio Arts, General degree?

This degree prepares you for roles such as Art, Drama, and Music Teachers, Postsecondary, Artists and Related Workers, All Other, and Fine Artists, Including Painters, Sculptors, and Illustrators. Related occupations employ approximately 115,260 professionals nationwide.

Program Overview

Designed for emerging visual creators, this program equips students with the technical mastery, conceptual depth, and professional acumen needed to thrive in diverse artistic fields. It emphasizes hands-on development across a broad spectrum of media while cultivating critical thinking, creative problem-solving, and the ability to communicate ideas through visual form.

Drawing and Painting: Foundational and advanced techniques in representational and expressive mark-making using traditional and experimental materials across various surfaces.
Sculpture and 3D Form: Exploration of spatial design, material manipulation, and structural principles through carving, modeling, casting, and assembly across diverse media.
Printmaking: Study of relief, intaglio, lithography, and screen printing processes, including image development, editioning, and surface treatment.
CAD/CAM and Digital Fabrication: Integration of computer-aided design and automated manufacturing tools to create precise, innovative artworks and prototypes.
Ceramics and Glass: Hands-on training in forming, glazing, firing, and finishing techniques for functional and sculptural ceramic and glass works.
Textiles and Fiber Arts: Investigation of weaving, dyeing, embroidery, and mixed-media applications using natural and synthetic fibers.
Photography and Digital Imaging: Mastery of camera operation, lighting, digital editing, and image curation for artistic expression and conceptual storytelling.
Intermedia and Conceptual Art: Development of hybrid practices that merge multiple disciplines, technologies, and ideas into dynamic, interdisciplinary artworks.
Art Theory and Criticism: Engagement with historical and contemporary discourses shaping visual culture, aesthetics, and the role of the artist in society.
Color Theory, Composition, and Perspective: In-depth study of visual harmony, spatial relationships, and formal elements to strengthen artistic decision-making.
Anatomy for Artists: Applied study of human and animal form to enhance accuracy, proportion, and expressiveness in figurative work.
Studio Management and Equipment Maintenance: Practical training in workspace organization, tool care, safety protocols, and sustainable studio practices.
Art Portfolio Development and Marketing: Strategies for curating, presenting, and promoting artistic work to galleries, institutions, and digital audiences.

Studio Arts, General Graduate Trends (2010-2024)

12,013

Total Graduates (2023-2024)

655

Universities & Colleges

Career Pathways

Career & Salary Outlook Schools Offering This Program Related Programs

Studio Arts, General Career Pathways & Salary Outlook

The following table presents salary data for occupations typically aligned with Studio Arts, General degrees, including Art, Drama, and Music Teachers, Postsecondary, Artists and Related Workers, All Other and Fine Artists, Including Painters, Sculptors, and Illustrators. These career paths represent common employment outcomes but are not guaranteed for all graduates. Salary ranges vary by location, employer, experience level, and specific role requirements. Nationally, these occupations employ approximately 115,260 professionals.

National Average Salaries

Occupation	Median Salary	Salary Range	Total Employment	Hourly Rate
Art, Drama, and Music Teachers, Postsecondary 25-1121	$80,190	$47,040 - $194,530	97,890	N/A
Artists and Related Workers, All Other 27-1019	$72,760	$33,720 - $133,180	7,370	$34.98
Fine Artists, Including Painters, Sculptors, and Illustrators 27-1013	$60,560	$26,420 - $140,660	10,000	$29.12

Data Source: Salary and employment data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) program, May 2024 estimates, based on 3 related occupations. Career pathways mapped using CIP-SOC crosswalk from the National Center for Education Statistics.

*Salary Range Explanation: The salary range represents the 10th to 90th percentile, meaning 80% of workers in this occupation earn within this range. This excludes the lowest 10% and highest 10% of earners to provide a more realistic picture of typical compensation.

Important Disclaimer: Salary data represents national averages and varies by location, experience, employer, and market conditions. These statistics are estimates for general guidance and do not guarantee specific employment outcomes for graduates.

Studio Arts, General Salary Map by State

Geographic location significantly impacts earning potential for these careers. Average salaries range from $41,790 in Kansas to $107,953 in California—a 158% difference. The highest-paying states include California, Hawaii, and Rhode Island. Nationwide, these occupations employ over 115,260 professionals across all states. Explore the interactive map below to compare regional compensation and identify optimal markets for your career goals.

Average Salary Range:

Top Universities for Studio Arts, General by Graduate Enrollment

Below are the top 100 institutions offering Studio Arts, General programs for the 2023-2024 academic year (the most recent data reported as of 2025), ranked by the number of graduates. The highest graduate enrollment in Studio Arts, General is found at School of the Art Institute of Chicago (SAIC) (884 graduates), California State University (CSUF), Fullerton (302 graduates), California State University (CSULB), Long Beach (207 graduates), San Jose State University (SJSU) (167 graduates), and University of North Texas (UNT) (161 graduates). Combined, these colleges produced 7,176 graduates across all degree levels. Program availability varies by award level, including Associate, Bachelor's, Master's, and Doctoral degrees at participating universities and schools.

College Name	Award Levels	Graduates	Location	Control	Website
School of the Art Institute of Chicago (SAIC)	Bachelor's Postbac Cert. Master's	884	Chicago, Illinois	Private	saic.edu
California State University (CSUF)	Bachelor's Master's	302	Fullerton, California	Public	fullerton.edu
California State University (CSULB)	Bachelor's Master's	207	Long Beach, California	Public	csulb.edu
San Jose State University (SJSU)	Bachelor's Master's	167	San Jose, California	Public	sjsu.edu
University of North Texas (UNT)	Bachelor's Master's	161	Denton, Texas	Public	unt.edu
Bard College	Bachelor's Master's	155	Annandale-On-Hudson, New York	Private	bard.edu
Louisiana State University and Agricultural & Mechanical College (LSU)	Bachelor's Master's	148	Baton Rouge, Louisiana	Public	lsu.edu
Colorado State University (CSU)	Bachelor's Master's	122	Fort Collins, Colorado	Public	colostate.edu
California State University (CSUEB)	Bachelor's	121	Hayward, California	Public	csueastbay.edu
The New School	Bachelor's Master's	106	New York, New York	Private	newschool.edu
CUNY City College (CCNY)	Bachelor's Master's	103	New York, New York	Public	ccny.cuny.edu
East Carolina University (ECU)	Bachelor's Master's	99	Greenville, North Carolina	Public	ecu.edu
The University of Texas	Bachelor's Master's	98	Arlington, Texas	Public	uta.edu
University of Arizona	Bachelor's Master's	96	Tucson, Arizona	Public	arizona.edu
Pennsylvania Western University (PennWest)	Bachelor's Master's Other Award	96	California, Pennsylvania	Public	pennwest.edu
Florida State University (FSU)	Bachelor's Master's	94	Tallahassee, Florida	Public	fsu.edu
Indiana University (IU Indianapolis)	Bachelor's	91	Indianapolis, Indiana	Public	indianapolis.iu.edu
CUNY Hunter College	Bachelor's Master's	90	New York, New York	Public	hunter.cuny.edu
The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV)	Bachelor's Master's	90	Edinburg, Texas	Public	utrgv.edu
Fashion Institute of Technology (FIT)	Associate's Bachelor's	89	New York, New York	Public	fitnyc.edu
University of Colorado Denver/Anschutz Medical Campus	Bachelor's	82	Denver, Colorado	Public	ucdenver.edu
University of California (UCB)	Bachelor's Master's	81	Berkeley, California	Public	berkeley.edu
University of Florida (UF)	Bachelor's Master's Residency Other Award	81	Gainesville, Florida	Public	ufl.edu
University of Maryland (UMCP)	Bachelor's Master's	81	College Park, Maryland	Public	umd.edu
School of Visual Arts (SVA)	Bachelor's Master's	81	New York, New York	Private	sva.edu
CUNY LaGuardia Community College	Associate's	80	Long Island City, New York	Public	lagcc.cuny.edu
University of California (UCSB)	Bachelor's Master's	77	Santa Barbara, California	Public	ucsb.edu
University of North Georgia (UNG)	Bachelor's	77	Dahlonega, Georgia	Public	ung.edu
CUNY Brooklyn College	Bachelor's Master's	74	Brooklyn, New York	Public	brooklyn.cuny.edu
The Cooper Union for the Advancement of Science and Art	Bachelor's	73	New York, New York	Private	cooper.edu
Towson University (TU)	Bachelor's Master's	72	Towson, Maryland	Public	towson.edu
The University of Texas	Bachelor's Master's	72	Austin, Texas	Public	utexas.edu
University of Cincinnati (UC)	Bachelor's Master's	70	Cincinnati, Ohio	Public	uc.edu
University of Colorado Boulder (CU)	Bachelor's Master's	68	Boulder, Colorado	Public	colorado.edu
Texas State University (TXST)	Bachelor's	68	San Marcos, Texas	Public	txst.edu
New York University (NYU)	Bachelor's Master's	67	New York, New York	Private	nyu.edu
University of North Carolina at Greensboro (UNCG)	Bachelor's Master's	63	Greensboro, North Carolina	Public	uncg.edu
California Polytechnic State University (Cal Poly)	Bachelor's	62	San Luis Obispo, California	Public	calpoly.edu
University of Wisconsin-Madison	Other Award	62	Madison, Wisconsin	Public	wisc.edu
Northern Illinois University (NIU)	Bachelor's Master's	61	Dekalb, Illinois	Public	niu.edu
Grand Valley State University (GVSU)	Bachelor's	61	Allendale, Michigan	Public	gvsu.edu
University at Buffalo (UB)	Bachelor's Master's	60	Buffalo, New York	Public	buffalo.edu
University of Louisville (UofL)	Bachelor's Master's	57	Louisville, Kentucky	Public	louisville.edu
University of California (UCD)	Bachelor's	55	Davis, California	Public	ucdavis.edu
Alfred University	Bachelor's	55	Alfred, New York	Private	alfred.edu
University of North Carolina at Charlotte	Bachelor's	55	Charlotte, North Carolina	Public	charlotte.edu
Bowling Green State University (BGSU)	Bachelor's	51	Bowling Green, Ohio	Public	bgsu.edu
Kent State University	Bachelor's Master's	51	Kent, Ohio	Public	kent.edu
University of South Carolina (USC)	Bachelor's Master's	51	Columbia, South Carolina	Public	sc.edu
University of Houston (UHCL)	Bachelor's	51	Houston, Texas	Public	uhcl.edu
University of California (UCSD)	Bachelor's	50	La Jolla, California	Public	ucsd.edu
Milwaukee Institute of Art & Design (MIAD)	Bachelor's	50	Milwaukee, Wisconsin	Private	miad.edu
University of Connecticut (UConn)	Bachelor's Master's	49	Storrs, Connecticut	Public	uconn.edu
Western Kentucky University (WKU)	Bachelor's	49	Bowling Green, Kentucky	Public	wku.edu
University of Nebraska (UNO)	Bachelor's	49	Omaha, Nebraska	Public	unomaha.edu
CUNY Queens College	Bachelor's Master's	48	Queens, New York	Public	qc.cuny.edu
University of South Florida (USF)	Bachelor's Master's	46	Tampa, Florida	Public	usf.edu
Portland State University (PSU)	Bachelor's Master's	46	Portland, Oregon	Public	pdx.edu
The University of Tennessee	Bachelor's Master's	46	Knoxville, Tennessee	Public	utk.edu
Loyola Marymount University (LMU)	Bachelor's	44	Los Angeles, California	Private	lmu.edu
Bridgewater State University (BSU)	Bachelor's	42	Bridgewater, Massachusetts	Public	bridgew.edu
Indiana University (IUB)	Bachelor's Master's	41	Bloomington, Indiana	Public	indiana.edu
California Institute of the Arts (CalArts)	Bachelor's Master's	40	Valencia, California	Private	calarts.edu
University of West Florida (UWF)	Bachelor's	40	Pensacola, Florida	Public	uwf.edu
Stockton University	Bachelor's	40	Galloway, New Jersey	Public	stockton.edu
Pratt Institute	Bachelor's Master's	40	Brooklyn, New York	Private	pratt.edu
University of Northern Colorado (UNCO)	Bachelor's	39	Greeley, Colorado	Public	unco.edu
Southern Illinois University	Bachelor's Master's	39	Carbondale, Illinois	Public	siu.edu
Hudson County Community College (HCCC)	Associate's	38	Jersey City, New Jersey	Public	hccc.edu
University of Illinois Chicago (UIC)	Bachelor's Master's	37	Chicago, Illinois	Public	uic.edu
Northern Kentucky University (NKU)	Bachelor's	37	Highland Heights, Kentucky	Public	nku.edu
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill	Bachelor's Master's	37	Chapel Hill, North Carolina	Public	unc.edu
University of North Carolina Wilmington (UNCW)	Bachelor's	37	Wilmington, North Carolina	Public	uncw.edu
Tennessee Technological University (TTU)	Bachelor's	36	Cookeville, Tennessee	Public	tntech.edu
Central Washington University (CWU)	Bachelor's Master's	36	Ellensburg, Washington	Public	cwu.edu
Ohio University (OHIO)	Bachelor's	35	Athens, Ohio	Public	ohio.edu
University of Pennsylvania (Penn)	Bachelor's Master's	35	Philadelphia, Pennsylvania	Private	upenn.edu
Brigham Young University (BYU)	Bachelor's Master's	35	Provo, Utah	Private	byu.edu
University of Massachusetts	Bachelor's Master's	34	Amherst, Massachusetts	Public	umass.edu
Stony Brook University (SBU)	Bachelor's Master's	34	Stony Brook, New York	Public	stonybrook.edu
Syracuse University	Bachelor's Master's	34	Syracuse, New York	Private	syracuse.edu
Otis College of Art and Design	Bachelor's Master's	33	Los Angeles, California	Private	otis.edu
University of North Florida (UNF)	Bachelor's	33	Jacksonville, Florida	Public	unf.edu
Western Carolina University (WCU)	Bachelor's	33	Cullowhee, North Carolina	Public	wcu.edu
Kennesaw State University (KSU)	Master's	33	Kennesaw, Georgia	Public	kennesaw.edu
Columbia College Chicago (CCC)	Bachelor's Master's	32	Chicago, Illinois	Private	colum.edu
Fort Hays State University (FHSU)	Bachelor's Master's	32	Hays, Kansas	Public	fhsu.edu
Lesley University	Bachelor's Master's	32	Cambridge, Massachusetts	Private	lesley.edu
Appalachian State University (App State)	Bachelor's	32	Boone, North Carolina	Public	appstate.edu
Delaware County Community College (DCCC)	Certificate (1-2 yrs) Certificate (≥2 yrs) Associate's	32	Media, Pennsylvania	Public	dccc.edu
The University of Alabama (UA)	Bachelor's Master's	31	Tuscaloosa, Alabama	Public	ua.edu
San Francisco State University (SFSU)	Bachelor's Master's	31	San Francisco, California	Public	sfsu.edu
Eastern Kentucky University (EKU)	Bachelor's	31	Richmond, Kentucky	Public	eku.edu
The University of Texas (UTEP)	Bachelor's	31	El Paso, Texas	Public	utep.edu
Art Center College of Design (ArtCenter)	Bachelor's Master's	30	Pasadena, California	Private	artcenter.edu
Salisbury University (SU)	Bachelor's	30	Salisbury, Maryland	Public	salisbury.edu
University of Missouri-St Louis (UMSL)	Bachelor's	30	Saint Louis, Missouri	Public	umsl.edu
Baylor University	Bachelor's	30	Waco, Texas	Private	baylor.edu
Sam Houston State University (SHSU)	Bachelor's Master's	30	Huntsville, Texas	Public	shsu.edu
Wesleyan University	Bachelor's	29	Middletown, Connecticut	Private	wesleyan.edu

Frequently Asked Questions

Find answers to the most common questions about Studio Arts, General programs

How much can I earn with a Studio Arts, General degree?

Salaries for Studio Arts, General graduates vary by role and location. Art, Drama, and Music Teachers, Postsecondary earn a median of $80,190 annually, while Artists and Related Workers, All Other earn around $72,760. Geographic location significantly impacts earnings—professionals in California average $107,953 compared to $41,790 in Kansas. Approximately 115,260 professionals work in related occupations nationwide.

Salary data from U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics OEWS program, May 2024. Earnings vary by experience, employer, and market conditions.

Which universities have the largest Studio Arts, General programs?

Currently 655 accredited institutions offer Studio Arts, General degrees across the U.S. Programs with the highest enrollment include School of the Art Institute of Chicago (SAIC) (884 graduates), California State University (CSUF), Fullerton (302 graduates), and California State University (CSULB), Long Beach (207 graduates).

Program size doesn't necessarily indicate quality—consider factors like faculty expertise, production opportunities, location, and available degree levels when choosing a school.

Data based on IPEDS program completions for 2023-2024 academic year. Numbers reflect programs where students graduated.

Is enrollment in Studio Arts, General growing or declining?

Graduate numbers have increased over the past decade, rising from 11,798 in 2010 to a peak of 12,034 in 2020, before declining slightly to 12,013 in 2023-24. This represents a 2% increase overall from 2010.

The field remains specialized with steady interest, though opportunities are most concentrated in major metropolitan areas with active arts scenes like New York, California, and Illinois.

Graduate enrollment data from IPEDS, 2010-2024 academic years. Trends reflect reported completions at participating institutions.

What career paths are available with a Studio Arts, General degree?

This degree prepares you for roles such as Art, Drama, and Music Teachers, Postsecondary, Artists and Related Workers, All Other, and Fine Artists, Including Painters, Sculptors, and Illustrators. Related occupations employ approximately 115,260 professionals nationwide.

Skills in project management, creative leadership, and collaboration also transfer to event planning, arts administration, marketing, and corporate training roles. Many professionals work freelance or on a project basis across theatre, film, and live events.

Career pathways mapped using CIP-SOC crosswalk from the National Center for Education Statistics. Employment data from BLS OEWS May 2024.

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