Abilene Christian University Design and Applied Arts (Bachelor's): Tuition, Graduate Salary, and Debt
- Bachelor's in Design and Applied Arts
- Private nonprofit university
- Abilene, TX
- About 14 graduates a year
College Scorecard June 2026 release ยท BLS wages May 2025
The short answer
Abilene Christian University design and applied arts graduates earn about what design and applied arts graduates earn nationally, $38,553 in their first year. Where this program stands out is debt. The typical graduate leaves with $21,875 in federal loans, less than at 82% of design and applied arts programs in the country. Strong value, but not one of the highest-paying design and applied arts degrees in Texas.
How it compares
Each figure is the median for graduates of the program. The Texas and national columns are the medians across all design and applied arts bachelor's programs that report the figure.
Debt and first-year pay at every Texas design and applied arts program
Programs in the upper left give graduates higher pay for less debt. Dashed lines mark the Texas medians.
Hover over or tap a dot to see the school. Only programs that report both earnings and debt are shown.
Paying back the loans
On a standard 10-year plan, the median debt means a payment of about $232 a month, or 7.2% of a graduate's typical monthly pay in the first year.
Where graduates work, and what the pay is worth
77% of graduates (20 of 26) were working in Texas one year after graduating. Prices in the Abilene area are about 10% below the national average, so a $38,553 salary here buys what about $42,664 buys in a typical US city.
Careers this field leads to
These are the jobs that the federal crosswalk from fields of study to occupations links to design and applied arts, largest first. Pay is the median across all experience levels.
Graphic Designers
$60,150Median pay in Texas. 13,670 people work in this job in Texas. Nationally, jobs are projected to shrink 2% from 2025 to 2035, with about 16,000 openings a year. Typical education to start: bachelor's degree.
Web and Digital Interface Designers
$102,650Median pay in Texas. 5,910 people work in this job in Texas. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 6% from 2025 to 2035, with about 8,300 openings a year. Typical education to start: bachelor's degree.
Interior Designers
$65,160Median pay in Texas. 6,450 people work in this job in Texas. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 3% from 2025 to 2035, with about 7,700 openings a year. Typical education to start: bachelor's degree.
Art Directors
$88,270Median pay in Texas. 2,480 people work in this job in Texas. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 4% from 2025 to 2035, with about 12,200 openings a year. Typical education to start: bachelor's degree, plus 5 years or more of related work experience.
About Abilene Christian University
Design and Applied Arts ranks 8th of 11 bachelor's programs at Abilene Christian University by first-year earnings. The top three are Nursing ($72,481), Accounting ($60,619), and Finance ($53,590).
Common questions
The median graduate earns $38,553 one year after graduating. The median across design and applied arts bachelor's programs in Texas is $38,553.
The median federal loan balance is $21,875, which ranks 2nd lowest of 10 design and applied arts bachelor's programs in Texas. That works out to about $232 a month over 10 years.
On the numbers, yes for most students. Debt equals 57% of first-year earnings, against a national median of 77%. If the highest possible early salary is the main goal, several Texas programs report higher pay, usually with more debt.
Most do. 77% (20 of 26) were working in Texas one year after graduating.
About this data
- Earnings and debt only include students who received federal financial aid (grants or loans).
- Earnings only count graduates who were working and not enrolled in more school. Graduates who went straight to further study are not included.
- Debt only includes federal loans. Private loans and credit cards are not counted.
- Some schools with several campuses report one combined figure for all of them. We count each of those schools once, and leave them out of Texas comparisons when their main campus is in another state.
- Scorecard figures describe graduating classes from several years ago. BLS wages are from May 2025.
- School-level numbers like tuition, admission rate, and graduation rate are for the whole school, not the design and applied arts program.
Sources
- U.S. Department of Education, College Scorecard, field of study and institution files, June 2026 release
- Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025
- Bureau of Labor Statistics, Employment Projections 2025 to 2035
- Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities, 2024
- NCES, CIP 2020 to SOC 2018 crosswalk, and IPEDS institution directory, 2024