Carnegie Mellon in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, is a highly respected university in its own right; it was recognized by the "U.S. News and World Report" as the 22nd best research university in the United States. It offers graphics design courses at its College of Fine Arts in the undergraduate, graduate and doctorate levels. Carnegie Mellon states that its design programs focuses on learning by doing; it integrates comprehensive hands-on projects throughout its curriculum and grants more artistic freedom and judgment to the student.
The Rhode Island School of Design in Providence is one of the few notable stand-alone design schools in the United States. RISD is particularly strict with applications -- it accepts only 34 percent of freshman applicants every year. RISD is also particularly unique because of its relationship with Brown University. As a neighboring college, RISD allows students to take Brown classes at no additional cost. Courses such as foreign language or math and science classes all fulfill RISD's liberal arts requirements and are highly encouraged by the school to expand its student's interests. RISD offers both bachelor's and master's programs in arts and fine arts.
One of the oldest art colleges in the United States, the Maryland Institute College of Art in Baltimore is recognized by "ID" magazine in 2007 as one of top 25 design schools in the nation. Another achievement is that MICA has also been listed as a top producer of Fulbright Scholars -- a highly esteemed honor given to individuals -- by The Chronicle of Higher Education from 2007-2010. It is a landmark college and is recognized as such by the community; it often serves as the host for exhibitions by students, faculty and internationally acclaimed artists. MICA offers both bachelor's and master's degrees in fine arts.
The California Institute of the Arts in Valencia, California, has a notable founder in Walt Disney. Disney established CalArts in 1961 by merging two schools together: The Chouinard Art Institute and The Los Angeles Conservatory of Music. Since then, the school has been closely tied with the Walt Disney family, and graphics design graduates have leveraged this relationship to gain entry to the industry. Offering a bachelor's or master's degree in fine arts, CalArts values active production and one-on-one mentoring and emphasizes creating close student-professor relationships.