Design Degrees (2026 stats)
TL;DR
Design maps to BLS occupations averaging about N/A, with roughly 49,930 workers nationwide in those roles. Median program completion runs near 56%; median in-state published tuition is about $11,061.
Key Statistics
Design: what the data shows
Common questions about design degrees, answered from IPEDS, College Scorecard, BLS OEWS, and O*NET in this repository—not program marketing copy.
What is a design degree?
A Design program is classified under NCES CIP 12.0404 in the Cosmetology and Related Personal Grooming Services field family (12.04).
A program that prepares individuals to permanently remove hair from the human scalp, face, and body using specialized charged solid needle probes, and to function as licensed electrologists and electrolysis technicians. Includes instruction in direct current electrolysis, alternating current/high frequency thermolysis, blend/dual modality treatments, equipment theory and operation, safety and sanitation, client evaluation and care, laws and regulations, and business practices.
IPEDS counted 351 completions for this CIP in the survey year in our extract.
Types of design degrees and related programs
Other NCES program codes in the 12.04 family with pages on EDsmart Data:
- Aesthetician/Esthetician and Skin Care Specialist (CIP 12.0409)
- Barbering/Barber (CIP 12.0402)
- Cosmetology & Personal Grooming Services (CIP 12.0401)
- Cosmetology, Barber/Styling, and Nail Instructor (CIP 12.0413)
- Facial Treatment Specialist/Facialist (CIP 12.0408)
- Hair Styling/Stylist and Hair Design (CIP 12.0407)
- Make-Up Artist/Specialist (CIP 12.0406)
- Master Aesthetician/Esthetician (CIP 12.0414)
- Nail Technician/Specialist and Manicurist (CIP 12.0410)
- Permanent Cosmetics/Makeup and Tattooing (CIP 12.0411)
- Salon/Beauty Salon Management/Manager (CIP 12.0412)
How long does it take to get a design degree?
Award levels reported to IPEDS for CIP 12.0404 in our file:
- 19 Bachelor's (100.0% of IPEDS total)—typically four years
Time to completion depends on enrollment intensity and transfer credits; figures above describe credential type, not calendar time for every student.
What do you learn in design?
O*NET skill ratings for occupations mapped to this major emphasize Active Listening, Speaking, Social Perceptiveness, Service Orientation, Critical Thinking, Time Management, and related competencies. See the Skills section for the full list in our extract.
What degree do you need?
For Floral Designers (top mapped occupation), O*NET incumbent surveys in our career profile report these education credentials most often: Some college (29%), High School or Equivalent (27%), Bachelors Degree (22%). Bachelor's awards account for a majority of IPEDS completions for CIP 12.0404, but occupation data show multiple pathways.
O*NET education distributions describe incumbent workers, not minimum legal or employer requirements.
What jobs can you get with a design degree?
Our degree→occupation mapping links Design to the BLS roles below. Employment is U.S. OEWS; median wage is national May 2024 where published in our extract.
| Occupation | U.S. employment | Median annual wage |
|---|---|---|
| Floral Designers | 40,160 | $36,120 |
| Artists and Related Workers, All Other | 7,370 | $72,760 |
| Set and Exhibit Designers | 10,850 | $66,280 |
| Fashion Designers | 20,910 | $80,690 |
| Graphic Designers | 214,260 | $61,300 |
| Interior Designers | 69,580 | $63,490 |
See Careers & Jobs for mean wages and industry context.
Is a design degree worth it?
Among schools reporting in our Scorecard extract, median published in-state tuition is $11,061 and median net price is $20,071.
We do not score "worth" on opinion—compare debt, earnings, wages for mapped occupations, and completion data above against your cost and career target.
Institutions
Information about the types of higher education institutions that grant degrees in Design and the types of students that study this field.
Tuition Costs for Common Institutions
$11,061 Median In-State Public
$56,072 Median Out of State Private
Tuition costs for Design majors are, on average, $11,061 for in-state public colleges, and $56,072 for out of state private colleges.
Tuition costs comparison for Design programs.
Institutions awarding the most Design degrees
| # | Institution | State | Completions |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Celebrity School of Beauty | FL | 83 |
| 2 | Hollywood Institute of Beauty Careers-Casselberry | FL | 55 |
| 3 | Hollywood Institute of Beauty Careers | FL | 46 |
| 4 | Berkowits School of Electrolysis | NY | 45 |
| 5 | Hollywood Institute of Beauty Careers-West Palm Beach | FL | 44 |
| 6 | EINE Inc | MA | 28 |
| 7 | Parisian Spa Institute | FL | 15 |
| 8 | Cameo College of Essential Beauty | UT | 14 |
| 9 | Bellasa Professional Institute | FL | 9 |
| 10 | Boca Beauty Academy | FL | 8 |
IPEDS Completions (c2024_a), all award levels for this CIP in our extract.
Degrees Awarded Over Time
351 Total Degrees Awarded in 2023
This chart shows the number of degrees awarded in Design from 2015 to 2023.
Historical trend of degrees awarded in Design.
Top 5 Schools by Enrollment
| # | School | State | Enrollment |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Arizona State University Campus Immersion | AZ | 64,398 |
| 2 | Texas A&M University-College Station | TX | 59,099 |
| 3 | The University of Texas at Austin | TX | 42,100 |
| 4 | Michigan State University | MI | 40,243 |
| 5 | University of Houston | TX | 37,175 |
Schools with the largest enrollment offering Design programs.
Top 5 Most Affordable Tuition
| # | School | State | Tuition |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Cosumnes River College | CA | $1,288 |
| 2 | Central New Mexico Community College | NM | $1,934 |
| 3 | Lee College | TX | $2,166 |
| 4 | Florida Atlantic University | FL | $4,879 |
| 5 | Portland Community College | OR | $5,040 |
Schools with the lowest tuition costs for Design programs.
Top 5 Lowest Net Price
| # | School | State | Net Price |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Central New Mexico Community College | NM | $3,454 |
| 2 | Cosumnes River College | CA | $4,648 |
| 3 | Tennessee College of Applied Technology-Henry/Carroll | TN | $6,503 |
| 4 | University of Puerto Rico-Rio Piedras | PR | $6,507 |
| 5 | Lee College | TX | $7,519 |
Schools with the lowest average net price for Design programs.
Graduation Rates
56.18% Median Graduation Rate (150% of normal time)
54.85% Average Graduation Rate
247 Institutions Reporting
37.54% - 69.55% Interquartile Range
Graduation/completion rates for Design programs across institutions.
Related specializations
Other NCES program codes in the 12.04 CIP family with dedicated pages on EDsmart Data.
- Aesthetician/Esthetician and Skin Care Specialist CIP 12.0409
- Barbering/Barber CIP 12.0402
- Cosmetology & Personal Grooming Services CIP 12.0401
- Cosmetology, Barber/Styling, and Nail Instructor CIP 12.0413
- Facial Treatment Specialist/Facialist CIP 12.0408
- Hair Styling/Stylist and Hair Design CIP 12.0407
- Make-Up Artist/Specialist CIP 12.0406
- Master Aesthetician/Esthetician CIP 12.0414
- Nail Technician/Specialist and Manicurist CIP 12.0410
- Permanent Cosmetics/Makeup and Tattooing CIP 12.0411
- Salon/Beauty Salon Management/Manager CIP 12.0412
Degree Levels (IPEDS)
Completions reported to IPEDS for CIP 12.0404 in the survey year used in our extract (19 total across levels below).
- 19 Bachelor's (100.0% of IPEDS total)
Source: IPEDS Completions (c2024_a), summed by award level for this CIP.
Careers & Jobs
Occupations linked to this major in our degree→career mapping, with wages and employment from processed BLS career profiles in this repo.
Across these BLS occupations, employment-weighted mean pay is about N/A. Figures are national OEWS estimates for the occupation—not earnings of Design graduates alone.
Related occupations (BLS OEWS)
| Occupation | Mean annual wage | U.S. employment |
|---|---|---|
| Floral Designers | $49,284 | 40,160 |
| Artists and Related Workers, All Other | $89,549 | 7,370 |
| Set and Exhibit Designers | $105,707 | 10,850 |
| Fashion Designers | — | 20,910 |
| Graphic Designers | $94,254 | 214,260 |
| Interior Designers | $87,978 | 69,580 |
Open each occupation for full career profile charts and industry breakdowns on EDsmart Data.
Employment
Wages and industry mix below use BLS OEWS data for occupations linked to this major in our mapping—not a graduate earnings survey.
Yearly Income for Common Jobs
$N/A Average Wage in Workforce
The average salary for Design majors is $N/A.
Average annual salaries of the most common occupations for Design majors.
Occupations by Share
49,930 2023 Workforce
The number of Design graduates in the workforce has been growing.
Various jobs filled by those with a major in Design by share of the total number of graduates.
Diversity
Demographic information for those who earn a degree in Design in the United States.
Workforce Age
N/A Average Age in 2023
This chart shows distribution of ages for employees with a degree in Design.
Age distribution for Design degree holders in the workforce.
Gender Distribution
351 Total Degrees Awarded
7 Male (1.99%)
344 Female (98.01%)
Gender distribution of Design degree recipients.
Race and Ethnicity Distribution
145 Hispanic or Latino (41.31%)
122 White (34.76%)
63 Black or African American (17.95%)
4 Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander (1.14%)
3 Asian (0.85%)
Racial and ethnic distribution of Design degree recipients.
Degrees Awarded
The most common degree types awarded to students graduating in Design are Bachelors Degree, Masters Degree, and Associates Degree.
Distribution of degree types awarded in Design.
Skills
Data on the critical and distinctive skills necessary for those working in the Design field from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Required Skills
Design majors need many skills, but most especially Critical Thinking, Active Listening, and Reading Comprehension.
Rating of how necessary various skills are for Design majors.
Skills Bar Chart
This bar chart shows the same information as the radar chart, displaying the importance of each skill.
Skill importance ratings for Design majors.
About
A program that prepares individuals to permanently remove hair from the human scalp, face, and body using specialized charged solid needle probes, and to function as licensed electrologists and electrolysis technicians. Includes instruction in direct current electrolysis, alternating current/high frequency thermolysis, blend/dual modality treatments, equipment theory and operation, safety and sanitation, client evaluation and care, laws and regulations, and business practices.
In 2023, 351 degrees were awarded across all undergraduate and graduate programs in Design.
CIP Code
12.0404 - Design
What the data shows
Women earned 98.0% of 351 Design completions in the IPEDS file used here.
Mapped BLS occupations show employment-weighted mean pay of about N/A. The largest mapped role by headcount is Floral Designers (40,160 U.S. jobs in OEWS).
Published tuition medians in College Scorecard land at $11,061 in-state at public colleges and $56,072 at private institutions for programs in this field.
Data Sources
This page uses data from the following sources:
- College Scorecard - U.S. Department of Education
- Institutional characteristics, costs, completion rates, and earnings data
- Data years: 2015-2024
- Source: collegescorecard.ed.gov
- Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS)
- Employment and wage data by occupation
- Latest data: May 2024
- Source: bls.gov/oes
- O*NET Online - U.S. Department of Labor
- Occupational skills, knowledge, abilities, and work activities
- Database version: 28.0 (August 2023)
- Source: onetcenter.org
- IPEDS (Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System) - National Center for Education Statistics
- Institutional data, completions, enrollment, and financial aid
- Data years: 2015-2024
- Source: nces.ed.gov/ipeds
- Census Bureau American Community Survey (ACS)
- Demographic and workforce data
- Latest data: 2023 ACS 5-Year Estimates
- Source: census.gov/acs
Data Processing: All data has been processed, cleaned, and aggregated for presentation. Where specific data points are unavailable, estimates are based on available data and clearly marked.
Last Updated: Data reflects the most recent available information as of January 2025.
Methodology
Data for this profile is sourced from the U.S. Department of Education's College Scorecard dataset, IPEDS completion data, and Bureau of Labor Statistics employment data.
All financial figures are adjusted for inflation and represent the most recent available data. Employment and wage data are from the most recent Census Bureau ACS PUMS estimates.