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Best College Rankings

Private nonprofit · Urban campus · verified rankings · federal data

School of the Art Institute of Chicago

Students comparing School of the Art Institute of Chicago on federal cost, completion, and earnings data who will layer in fit, location, and program strength separately.

CompareOfficial site
Chicago, Illinois2,805 undergraduatesMean consensus percentile 76Private nonprofitSmall enrollmentUrban campus

The short answer

School of the Art Institute of Chicago: Washington Monthly ranks it #1492 on Best Colleges for Your Tuition (and Tax) Dollars (2026); Niche ranks it #1364 on Best Colleges (Overall) (2026); Money lists it on Best Value Colleges (2026) — 2 stars. It enrolls 2,805 undergraduates, admits 77.5% of applicants, and posts a 67.0% six-year graduation rate. Out-of-state tuition is $56,420; aid recipients pay $49,790 on average. Median earnings ten years after entry: $40,151.

The six numbers that matter most

Acceptance rate
77.5%

About the dataset median

U.S. Dept. of Education College ScorecardMost recent reported entering class, College Scorecard June 2026 release

Average net price
$49,790

32% below the $72,970 published price

U.S. Dept. of Education College ScorecardAverage for full-time first-time aid recipients, College Scorecard June 2026 release

Median earnings, 10 yrs
$40,151

Below the dataset median of $54,053

U.S. Dept. of Education College ScorecardMedian earnings 10 years after entry, working and not enrolled, College Scorecard June 2026 release

6-year graduation rate
67.0%

Above the dataset median of 56%

U.S. Dept. of Education College ScorecardMost recent six-year cohort, College Scorecard June 2026 release

Median debt at graduation
$27,000

Below the dataset median of $23,250

U.S. Dept. of Education College ScorecardMedian federal loan debt of completers, College Scorecard June 2026 release

SAT middle 50%
Not reportedSchool of the Art Institute of Chicago reports that it neither requires nor recommends admissions test scores, and does not report a score range to the Department of Education.

U.S. Dept. of Education College Scorecard

Where School of ranks, and why the answers differ

Each publisher's position, the list it belongs to, and how many institutions it was drawn from.

SourceListRank
US News2026National universities, liberal arts, regional and specialty listsNot ranked by this source
Forbes2026America's Top CollegesNot ranked by this source
Washington Monthly2026Best Colleges for Your Tuition (and Tax) Dollars#1492of 1,504Tuition & tax value (WM)
WSJ2026Best Colleges in the U.S.Not ranked by this source
Niche2026Best Colleges (Overall)#1364of 2,605Overall (Niche)
Money2026Best Value Colleges2 starsListedBest value (Money)
Princeton Review2026Best Colleges (Overall)Not ranked by this source
QS2026World University RankingsNot ranked by this source

Methodology sensitivity: School of's position moves 47 percentile points depending on which published list you read. That is a wide spread, so which list you consult substantially changes the impression you get. How we compute this

Ranking positions are the editorial property of their publishers and are reproduced here with attribution for comparison and commentary. Follow each source link for its full list and methodology.

About School of

School of the Art Institute of Chicago is a private nonprofit institution in Chicago, Illinois. Federal data show 83.8% first-year retention and a 10:1 student-faculty ratio. Figures on this page come from College Scorecard and IPEDS; publisher rankings shown here are transcribed from named sources and checked in our dataset.

Strengths and honest considerations

Strengths

  • Cost and outcome metrics on this profile come directly from federal collections, not self-reported marketing sheets.
  • Net price $49,790 reflects what aid recipients actually paid in the most recent federal reporting year.

Considerations

  • This school may not appear on every publisher list we track; an empty rankings table means no tracked publisher ranked it, not missing federal data.
  • Compare $72,970 sticker cost against $49,790 net price before ruling a school in or out on price alone.
  • Publishers we have not loaded yet, or lists that omit this school, show as “not ranked by this source” — that is expected.

Who this school genuinely fits

Students comparing School of the Art Institute of Chicago on federal cost, completion, and earnings data who will layer in fit, location, and program strength separately.

What it costs

Published price, then what families actually pay after grants and scholarships.

Tuition & fees
$56,420

U.S. Dept. of Education College ScorecardMost recent reported academic year, College Scorecard June 2026 release

Undergraduates on Pell grants
18.7%

U.S. Dept. of Education College ScorecardShare of undergraduates, College Scorecard June 2026 release

Room & board
$16,550

U.S. Dept. of Education College ScorecardMost recent reported academic year, College Scorecard June 2026 release

Published cost of attendance comes to roughly $72,970 a year, but the average family pays $49,790 — a 32% difference. 18.7% of undergraduates receive Pell grants, the federal marker of low family income.

Net price varies enormously by income band, so run School of's net price calculator for your own household before drawing conclusions. Why net price is the only cost number that matters.

Programs and academics

Most popular majors

  1. 1Business
  2. 2Biology
  3. 3Psychology
  4. 4Computer Science
  5. 5Economics

Standout programs

    Student-faculty ratio
    10:1

    IPEDS / National Center for Education StatisticsIPEDS 2023 fall enrollment

    First-year retention
    83.8%

    U.S. Dept. of Education College ScorecardMost recent first-year cohort, College Scorecard June 2026 release

    Undergraduate enrollment
    2,805

    U.S. Dept. of Education College ScorecardMost recent reported year, College Scorecard June 2026 release

    School of: questions families ask

    Out-of-state tuition is $56,420 and on-campus room and board is $16,550, for a published total of $72,970 before aid. The average net price for first-time full-time students receiving aid is $49,790.

    The most recent federal admissions rate reported to the Department of Education is 77.5%. Test policy as reported in IPEDS: see the admissions section on this page for the institution's own category.

    Similar colleges

    Matched on institutional character, overlapping majors and comparable cross-source standing.

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    Verified publisher rankings · federal data

    Cleveland Institute of Art: Washington Monthly ranks it #1372 on Best Colleges for Your Tuition (and Tax) Dollars (2026); Niche ranks it #1397 on Best Colleges (Overall) (2026); Money lists it on Best Value Colleges (2026) — 3 stars. It enrolls 539 undergraduates, admits 61.4% of applicants, and posts a 57.7% six-year graduation rate. Out-of-state tuition is $49,400; aid recipients pay $29,208 on average. Median earnings ten years after entry: $42,509.

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    California College of the Arts

    San Francisco, CAPrivate nonprofit

    Verified publisher rankings · federal data

    California College of the Arts: Washington Monthly ranks it #1442 on Best Colleges for Your Tuition (and Tax) Dollars (2026); Niche ranks it #1434 on Best Colleges (Overall) (2026); Money lists it on Best Value Colleges (2026) — 2 stars. It enrolls 990 undergraduates, admits 91.1% of applicants, and posts a 61.2% six-year graduation rate. Out-of-state tuition is $60,226; aid recipients pay $53,909 on average. Median earnings ten years after entry: $49,414.

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    91.1%
    Average net price
    $53,909
    Median earnings (10 yr)
    $49,414
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    Washington Monthly · Tuition & tax value (WM)#1442 of 1,504Niche · Overall (Niche)#1434 of 2,605Money · Best value (Money)Listed · 2 stars

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    Oakwood University

    Huntsville, ALPrivate nonprofit

    Verified publisher rankings · federal data

    Oakwood University: U.S. News ranks it #182 on National Liberal Arts Colleges (2026); Washington Monthly ranks it #1407 on Best Colleges for Your Tuition (and Tax) Dollars (2026); Niche ranks it #1276 on Best Colleges (Overall) (2026); Money lists it on Best Value Colleges (2026) — 2 stars. It enrolls 1,153 undergraduates, admits 45.2% of applicants, and posts a 44.6% six-year graduation rate. Out-of-state tuition is $22,512; aid recipients pay $25,669 on average. Median earnings ten years after entry: $42,488.

    Acceptance rate
    45.2%
    Average net price
    $25,669
    Median earnings (10 yr)
    $42,488
    6-yr graduation rate
    44.6%
    US News · Liberal arts colleges#182 of 210Washington Monthly · Tuition & tax value (WM)#1407 of 1,504Niche · Overall (Niche)#1276 of 2,605+1 more on profile

    1,153 undergraduates · mean consensus percentile 76 (across ranked lists; lower is better)

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