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Art Center College of Design
Art Center College of Design says yes to 74.5% of applicants. Focus less on getting in and more on what's below — starting with the $71,958 median earnings.
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Art Center College of Design sits in Pasadena proper — a private campus woven into the city rather than walled off from it. International students are a visible presence here — 44.1% of undergraduates come from outside the U.S.
Its highest-earning path is Engineering-Related Fields, where graduates median $92,293 four years out. 21.6% of undergraduates carry Pell grants — a plain read on who the campus actually serves. Most of its 2,017 undergraduates commute — campus empties by evening — yet 85.9% of first-years return, which says something about what daytime here is worth.
Art Center College of Design won't look at test scores — here the GPA calculator is the tool that matters. Bring your saved semester numbers and see what they average.
Admissions
In the Fall 2023 cycle, Art Center College of Design received 1,339 applications and admitted 1,004 (75%), with 322 enrolling.
Leave the SAT prep out of this one — test scores are disregarded entirely. Art Center College of Design's 74.5% admission rate turned on grades and application strength.
How Art Center College of Design compares
| Art Center College of Design | California median | National median | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Acceptance rate | 74.5% | 75.7% | 77.2% |
| Tuition (in-state) | $54,170 | $23,000 | $19,591 |
| Median earnings (10 yr) | $71,958 | $64,778 | $53,781 |
Earnings data favors Art Center College of Design: $71,958 median at year ten, versus $64,778 across California institutions.
Cost, size & completion
Tuition runs $54,170 regardless of where you're from. At Art Center College of Design, that sticker is a starting point for aid talks — not what the median family pays.
At 2,017 undergrads, Art Center College of Design is a mid-sized campus by U.S. standards.
79.2% of Art Center College of Design students finish a bachelor's within six years — 24.3 points above the national 54.9% — and the single best predictor that the $54,170 price above buys a degree, not just enrollment.
Top majors by earnings at Art Center College of Design
| Bachelor's program | Median earnings, 4 yrs after completion |
|---|---|
| Engineering-Related Fields | $92,293 |
| Mechanical Engineering Related Technologies/Technicians | $90,188 |
| Architectural Sciences and Technology | $77,401 |
| Design and Applied Arts | $76,093 |
| Film/Video and Photographic Arts | $49,933 |
| Fine and Studio Arts | $33,073 |
Median earnings for these 6 Art Center College of Design programs come from a different federal cohort than the campus-wide $71,958 above — compare rows to each other, not to that 10-year figure. 2 additional Art Center College of Design programs have earnings withheld under federal privacy rules.
Frequently asked questions
What GPA and test scores do you need for Art Center College of Design?
Art Center College of Design doesn't look at test scores; its 74.5% admission rate turned on transcripts, coursework rigor and the application itself.
What is Art Center College of Design's acceptance rate?
75% in the Fall 2023 cycle — 1,004 admitted from 1,339 applicants.
How much does Art Center College of Design cost?
At Art Center College of Design, published tuition is $54,170 — net price after aid usually comes in lower. That number is Art Center College of Design's ceiling, not a quote.
What do Art Center College of Design graduates earn?
Federal data puts median earnings at $71,958 ten years after enrolling. The table above breaks this down by major.
Similar colleges in California
- Biola University — 74.4% admitted
- California Baptist University — 84.9% admitted
- California Lutheran University — 75.7% admitted
- California State Polytechnic University-Pomona — 75.2% admitted
Run your own numbers
Data: U.S. Dept. of Education College Scorecard (Jun 2026), IPEDS ADM2023/HD2024. Retrieved 2026-09-01. Figures reflect the latest federal cohorts, which lag the current admissions cycle.