Best Drama/Theatre Arts and Stagecraft Degrees in the US by ROI
Top colleges ranked by estimated 20-year net return on investment across all active states. Data from the U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard.
Programs Analyzed
39
Colleges with salary data
Average 20-Yr Net ROI
-$200,109
Across all programs
Average Annual Cost
$47,686
Cost of attendance
| # | College | State | 20-Yr Net ROI | Median Salary | Annual Cost | Avg Debt | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |
University of North Carolina School of the Arts
Grad rate: 80.6% |
NC | +$166,534 | $52,882 | $25,553 | N/A | Full ROI → |
| 2 |
Florida State University
Grad rate: 83.9% |
FL | +$31,014 | $45,919 | $23,683 | N/A | Full ROI → |
| 3 |
Yale University
Grad rate: 97.0% |
CT | +$24,180 | $51,721 | $85,120 | N/A | Full ROI → |
| 4 |
The University of Texas at Austin
Grad rate: 87.7% |
TX | +$23,116 | $46,140 | $29,842 | N/A | Full ROI → |
| 5 |
Carnegie Mellon University
Grad rate: 92.0% |
PA | +$17,972 | $50,950 | $80,514 | N/A | Full ROI → |
| 6 |
The University of Alabama
Grad rate: 73.2% |
AL | -$7,668 | $44,819 | $32,024 | N/A | Full ROI → |
| 7 |
New York University
Grad rate: 87.8% |
NY | -$26,322 | $48,596 | $79,121 | N/A | Full ROI → |
| 8 |
University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign
Grad rate: 84.8% |
IL | -$55,788 | $42,424 | $32,134 | N/A | Full ROI → |
| 9 |
University of Iowa
Grad rate: 73.4% |
IA | -$71,466 | $41,115 | $26,883 | N/A | Full ROI → |
| 10 |
University of Missouri-Kansas City
Grad rate: 56.0% |
MO | -$96,070 | $39,661 | $24,645 | N/A | Full ROI → |
| 11 |
California State University-Fullerton
Grad rate: 69.3% |
CA | -$105,894 | $38,382 | $16,767 | N/A | Full ROI → |
| 12 |
Virginia Commonwealth University
Grad rate: 64.9% |
VA | -$108,972 | $39,986 | $34,346 | N/A | Full ROI → |
| 13 |
University of Houston
Grad rate: 64.0% |
TX | -$124,512 | $38,280 | $25,056 | N/A | Full ROI → |
| 14 |
Wayne State University
Grad rate: 58.3% |
MI | -$125,148 | $38,422 | $26,794 | N/A | Full ROI → |
| 15 |
University of North Carolina at Greensboro
Grad rate: 57.9% |
NC | -$125,536 | $37,686 | $19,628 | N/A | Full ROI → |
| 16 |
CUNY Brooklyn College
Grad rate: 55.8% |
NY | -$129,486 | $36,883 | $13,573 | N/A | Full ROI → |
| 17 |
Northern Illinois University
Grad rate: 51.3% |
IL | -$148,008 | $37,321 | $27,214 | N/A | Full ROI → |
| 18 |
University of California-San Diego
Grad rate: 87.7% |
CA | -$160,210 | $37,622 | $36,325 | N/A | Full ROI → |
| 19 |
Savannah College of Art and Design
Grad rate: 71.5% |
GA | -$162,260 | $39,854 | $59,670 | N/A | Full ROI → |
| 20 |
California State University-Northridge
Grad rate: 56.1% |
CA | -$179,794 | $35,042 | $20,317 | N/A | Full ROI → |
| 21 |
University of California-Santa Cruz
Grad rate: 75.7% |
CA | -$183,758 | $36,677 | $38,649 | N/A | Full ROI → |
| 22 |
Ohio University-Main Campus
Grad rate: 65.7% |
OH | -$185,918 | $35,557 | $28,529 | N/A | Full ROI → |
| 23 |
University of Arkansas
Grad rate: 69.6% |
AR | -$242,382 | $32,497 | $26,161 | N/A | Full ROI → |
| 24 |
Mary Baldwin University
Grad rate: 48.5% |
VA | -$242,790 | $34,304 | $44,435 | N/A | Full ROI → |
| 25 |
California Institute of the Arts
Grad rate: 64.0% |
CA | -$262,150 | $36,735 | $78,425 | N/A | Full ROI → |
| 26 |
University of Nevada-Las Vegas
Grad rate: 48.7% |
NV | -$270,680 | $30,410 | $19,440 | N/A | Full ROI → |
| 27 |
Columbia University in the City of New York
Grad rate: 95.1% |
NY | -$272,564 | $36,976 | $86,042 | N/A | Full ROI → |
| 28 |
University of New Orleans
Grad rate: 40.5% |
LA | -$283,030 | $30,109 | $22,605 | N/A | Full ROI → |
| 29 |
George Washington University
Grad rate: 85.0% |
DC | -$289,594 | $35,593 | $80,727 | N/A | Full ROI → |
| 30 |
Loyola Marymount University
Grad rate: 80.6% |
CA | -$301,234 | $34,525 | $75,867 | N/A | Full ROI → |
| 31 |
Brown University
Grad rate: 95.5% |
RI | -$348,492 | $33,074 | $84,986 | N/A | Full ROI → |
| 32 |
University of Southern California
Grad rate: 92.2% |
CA | -$383,496 | $31,293 | $84,678 | N/A | Full ROI → |
| 33 |
University of Washington-Seattle Campus
Grad rate: 84.0% |
WA | -$398,584 | $25,099 | $30,282 | N/A | Full ROI → |
| 34 |
DePaul University
Grad rate: 69.7% |
IL | -$415,054 | $27,194 | $59,467 | N/A | Full ROI → |
| 35 |
Pace University
Grad rate: 61.4% |
NY | -$415,784 | $28,020 | $68,092 | N/A | Full ROI → |
| 36 |
The New School
Grad rate: 70.2% |
NY | -$450,034 | $27,774 | $82,757 | N/A | Full ROI → |
| 37 |
Sarah Lawrence College
Grad rate: 70.8% |
NY | -$464,480 | $26,708 | $79,320 | N/A | Full ROI → |
| 38 |
New York Film Academy
Grad rate: 69.4% |
CA | -$469,382 | $24,760 | $62,291 | N/A | Full ROI → |
| 39 |
Northwestern University
Grad rate: 96.2% |
IL | -$560,548 | $22,753 | $87,804 | N/A | Full ROI → |
How ROI is calculated
20-Year Net ROI = Gross Earnings (salary × 20) − Total Degree Cost − Debt Payoff (×1.35) − Baseline Opportunity Cost ($42,000 × 20). Data from the U.S. College Scorecard.
Find Best Drama/Theatre Arts and Stagecraft Degrees by State
Browse Drama/Theatre Arts and Stagecraft programs ranked by 20-year ROI in every state that offers this degree.