Bachelor's · San Francisco, California

Is Design and Applied Arts at Academy of Art University worth it?

Medium confidence Medium confidence: 40–99 graduates behind the earnings figures.

The verdict · all families, in-state, half paid with loans

Graduates typically don't earn back the cost within 20 years, compared with the no-degree baseline.

Earnings 1 year after graduating: $27,363; Treasury AY2020-21, AY2021-22 pooled earnings cohort measured in CY2022, CY2023, inflation adjusted to 2024 dollars
Earnings 4 years after graduating: $41,443; Treasury AY2017-2018, AY2018-2019 pooled earnings cohort measured in CY2022, CY2023, inflation adjusted to 2024 dollars
Typical federal debt at graduation: $31,306; NSLDS pooled AY2022-23, AY2023-24 cohort
Net cost to graduate, all families: $208k (likely $177k – $253k); AcadYr 2024-25, reported in IPEDS DCY2025-26
Earnings bump, year 4: $1k a year vs high-school graduates aged 25–34 in CA; 2023 ACS 5-year pooled, adjusted to 2024 dollars
Payback: Not within 20 years in most scenarios; Bump vs net cost plus loan interest
10-year net return: −$451k (likely −$553k – −$366k); Today's dollars
20-year net return: −$408k (likely −$536k – −$277k); Today's dollars
Odds of finishing (school-wide): 33%; Fall 2019 or AcadYr 2019-20 cohort (differs by institutional calendar), reported in IPEDS DCY2025-26
Borrowers making progress / in default, 2 years in: not reported / ≤ 5%; NSLDS AY2016-17, AY2017-18 pooled cohorts measured in 2018-19, 2019-20