Best Colleges in Industrial Design Program

This page introduces the top colleges in Industrial Design program. Rhode Island School of Design is ranked first in Industrial Design program ranking and Art Center College of Design is placed in second. Next describes the Industrial Design program in general.
Industrial design is the use of both applied art and applied science to improve the aesthetics, ergonomics, functionality, and/or usability of a product, and it may also be used to improve the product's marketability and even production. The role of an industrial designer is to create and execute design solution(read more at wiki)s for problems of form, usability, physical ergonomics, marketing, brand development, and sales.


Academic Comparison Between Best Colleges in Industrial Design Program

2 public and 9 private schools are ranked in the top Industrial Design colleges. The average acceptance rate of the schools is 55.70% where Carnegie Mellon University has the tightest acceptance rate of 17% and California College of the Arts has the highest rate of 88%. Total 158,341 students are enrolled into the best Industrial Design schools where Ohio State University-Main Campus has the largest population with 59,837 students and Cranbrook Academy of Art is the smallest school with 141 students. The average graduation rate is 74.00% and the average students to faculty ratio is 11.90:1 at those colleges.
Next table shows the academic information and key facts of the best Industrial Design colleges including acceptance rate, graduation rates, student population, and students to faculty ratio.
Table. Best Colleges in Industrial Design Program
RankName Acceptance RatesGraduation RatesPopulationStudent-Faculty Ratio
1Rhode Island School of Design
Providence, RI
24%91%2,440 9:1 (11.11 %)
2Art Center College of Design
Pasadena, CA
68%68%2,251 9:1 (11.11 %)
3Carnegie Mellon University
Pittsburgh, PA
17%89%13,869 10:1 (10.00 %)
4Cranbrook Academy of Art
Bloomfield Hills, MI
--141 -
5California College of the Arts
San Francisco, CA
88%61%1,927 11:1 (9.09 %)
5Pratt Institute-Main
Brooklyn, NY
51%66%5,035 9:1 (11.11 %)
7Ohio State University-Main Campus
Columbus, OH
52%83%59,837 19:1 (5.26 %)
8Rochester Institute of Technology
Rochester, NY
66%67%16,584 13:1 (7.69 %)
8School of Visual Arts
New York, NY
70%64%4,393 9:1 (11.11 %)
10School of the Art Institute of Chicago
Chicago, IL
59%66%3,648 10:1 (10.00 %)
10University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Champaign, IL
62%85%48,216 20:1 (5.00 %)
Average55.70%74.00%158,341 (Total) 11.90:1 (8.40 %)

Best College In Industrial Design 2019 Tuition Comparison and 2020 Estimated Costs

Next table lists 2018-2019 tuition & fees and compares the costs between the best college in industrial design. The 2018-2019 costs are officially published by IPEDS, U.S. Department of Education. The estimated costs for year 2019-2020 are calculated and estimated based on each school's tuition rates last year.

For the undergraduate programs, the average tuition & fees of the best college in industrial design is $44,481 where Carnegie Mellon University has the most expensive costs with $55,465 and Ohio State University-Main Campus has the lowest amount of tuition with $30,742. The average graduate tuition & fees of the best college in industrial design is $42,971 where California College of the Arts has the highest tuition with $51,700 and University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign has the lowest amount of graduate school tuition with $31,279.
UndergraduateGraduate
Table. Best College In Industrial Design 2019 Undergraduate Tuition Comparison and 2020 Estimation
RankSchool Name 2019 Tuition & Fees2020 Estimated Tuition & Fees
In-StateOut-of-StateIn-StateOut-of-State
1Rhode Island School of Design $50,960$53,577
2Art Center College of Design $43,416$44,871
3Carnegie Mellon University $55,465$57,064
4Cranbrook Academy of Art --
5California College of the Arts $49,138$51,084
5Pratt Institute-Main $51,870$53,769
7Ohio State University-Main Campus $10,726$30,742 $10,862$31,825
8Rochester Institute of Technology $42,345$44,751
8School of Visual Arts $39,900$41,895
10School of the Art Institute of Chicago $49,310$51,275
10University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign $15,094$31,664 $13,175$28,878
Average$12,910$44,481$12,018$45,899
Table. Best College In Industrial Design 2019 Graduate School Tuition Comparison and 2020 Estimation
RankSchool Name 2019 Tuition & Fees2020 Estimated Tuition & Fees
In-StateOut-of-StateIn-StateOut-of-State
1Rhode Island School of Design $50,960$53,577
2Art Center College of Design $45,850$47,387
3Carnegie Mellon University $44,667$45,974
4Cranbrook Academy of Art $37,939$37,828
5California College of the Arts $51,700$53,758
5Pratt Institute-Main $33,984$35,691
7Ohio State University-Main Campus $12,425$34,929 $12,425$35,992
8Rochester Institute of Technology $45,808$47,864
8School of Visual Arts $44,700$46,936
10School of the Art Institute of Chicago $50,870$52,162
10University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign $18,126$31,279 $18,029$30,756
Average$15,276$42,971$15,227$44,357