Best Fine Artist programs in Maryland, ranked by enrollment
Create original artwork using any of a wide variety of media and.
23 schools in Maryland run programs that feed this job, graduating 657 people a year. The job pays a median of $66,180 in Maryland across about 80 jobs (BLS OEWS May 2025).
Fields of study in Maryland that lead to this job
Grouped at the 4-digit CIP level. Numbers are graduates per year in this state.
12 programs in Maryland that lead to this job
Ranked by graduates per year in Maryland (IPEDS completions). Graduate earnings and debt are national College Scorecard figures reported at the 4-digit CIP level, so specializations within one field share a figure. Each program also links to its own Maryland page.
| # | Program | Graduates / yr | Share of pipeline | Schools | Grad earnings (1 yr) | Median debt |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Fine/Studio Arts, Generalmain feeder CIP 50.0702In Maryland → | 256 | 39.0% | 8 | $24,447 | $25,294 |
| 2 | Art/Art Studies, Generalmain feeder CIP 50.0701In Maryland → | 163 | 24.8% | 13 | $24,447 | $25,294 |
| 3 | CIP 50.0101In Maryland → | 62 | 9.4% | 6 | $24,752 | $25,963 |
| 4 | Paintingmain feeder CIP 50.0708In Maryland → | 45 | 6.8% | 1 | $24,447 | $25,294 |
| 5 | Intermedia/Multimediamain feeder CIP 50.0706In Maryland → | 42 | 6.4% | 1 | $24,447 | $25,294 |
| 6 | Fine Arts and Art Studies, Othermain feeder CIP 50.0799In Maryland → | 42 | 6.4% | 3 | $24,447 | $25,294 |
| 7 | Sculpturemain feeder CIP 50.0709In Maryland → | 19 | 2.9% | 1 | $24,447 | $25,294 |
| 8 | Printmakingmain feeder CIP 50.0710In Maryland → | 10 | 1.5% | 1 | $24,447 | $25,294 |
| 9 | Ceramic Arts and Ceramicsmain feeder CIP 50.0711In Maryland → | 7 | 1.1% | 2 | $24,447 | $25,294 |
| 10 | CIP 51.2703In Maryland → | 7 | 1.1% | 1 | $47,775 | $25,000 |
| 11 | Drawingmain feeder CIP 50.0705In Maryland → | 3 | 0.5% | 1 | $24,447 | $25,294 |
| 12 | Community/Environmental/Socially-Engaged Artmain feeder CIP 50.1101In Maryland → | 1 | 0.2% | 1 | — | — |
Top 23 schools in Maryland
Ranked by graduates per year into this job. Graduate earnings are reported for 6 of the 23 schools in this state.
| # | School | Graduates / yr | Top feeder program | Grad earnings (1 yr) | Grad rate | Net price | Acceptance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Towson University Towson, MD Public · 2 feeder programs | 133 | Fine/Studio Arts, General | $29,958 | 69% | — | 82% |
| 2 | Maryland Institute College of Art Baltimore, MD Private not-for-profit · 8 feeder programs | 127 | Painting | $21,138 | 72% | $37,659 | 77% |
| 3 | University of Maryland - College Park College Park, MD Public · 1 feeder programs | 79 | Fine/Studio Arts, General | $32,031 | 89% | — | 45% |
| 4 | University of Maryland - Baltimore County Baltimore, MD Public · 4 feeder programs | 63 | Fine Arts and Art Studies, Other | $23,879 | 70% | — | 72% |
| 5 | Montgomery College Rockville, MD Public · 2 feeder programs | 36 | Art/Art Studies, General | — | 32% | — | — |
| 6 | Salisbury University Salisbury, MD Public · 2 feeder programs | 36 | Fine/Studio Arts, General | $20,632 | 68% | — | 87% |
| 7 | Community College of Baltimore County Baltimore, MD Public · 1 feeder programs | 35 | Visual and Performing Arts, General | — | 19% | — | — |
| 8 | St. Mary's College of Maryland St. Mary's City, MD Public · 2 feeder programs | 30 | Fine/Studio Arts, General | — | 70% | — | 69% |
| 9 | Morgan State University Baltimore, MD Public · 1 feeder programs | 18 | Art/Art Studies, General | — | 41% | — | 82% |
| 10 | Bowie State University Bowie, MD Public · 1 feeder programs | 15 | Art/Art Studies, General | — | 38% | — | 72% |
| 11 | Cecil College North East, MD Public · 1 feeder programs | 11 | Fine/Studio Arts, General | — | 37% | — | — |
| 12 | Frostburg State University Frostburg, MD Public · 1 feeder programs | 10 | Fine/Studio Arts, General | $24,649 | 50% | — | 89% |
| 13 | McDaniel College Westminster, MD Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 10 | Art/Art Studies, General | — | 63% | $18,988 | 78% |
| 14 | Hood College Frederick, MD Private not-for-profit · 2 feeder programs | 9 | Art/Art Studies, General | — | 57% | $23,244 | 78% |
| 15 | Prince George's Community College Largo, MD Public · 1 feeder programs | 9 | Art/Art Studies, General | — | 18% | — | — |
| 16 | Coppin State University Baltimore, MD Public · 1 feeder programs | 7 | Fine/Studio Arts, General | — | 26% | — | 46% |
| 17 | Johns Hopkins University Baltimore, MD Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 7 | Medical Illustration/Medical Illustrator | — | 94% | $11,888 | 6% |
| 18 | Loyola University Maryland Baltimore, MD Private not-for-profit · 2 feeder programs | 7 | Fine Arts and Art Studies, Other | — | 79% | $26,585 | 75% |
| 19 | Goucher College Baltimore, MD Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 6 | Visual and Performing Arts, General | — | 57% | $22,667 | 78% |
| 20 | Harford Community College Bel Air, MD Public · 1 feeder programs | 4 | Visual and Performing Arts, General | — | 39% | — | — |
| 21 | Mount St. Mary's University Emmitsburg, MD Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 3 | Art/Art Studies, General | — | 65% | $23,136 | 74% |
| 22 | College of Southern Maryland La Plata, MD Public · 1 feeder programs | 1 | Art/Art Studies, General | — | 33% | — | — |
| 23 | Washington College Chestertown, MD Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 1 | Art/Art Studies, General | — | 65% | $24,973 | 57% |
All 23 schools in Maryland
Every school in Maryland with a program that feeds this job, ordered by graduates per year. Earnings are shown for the ranked schools above; open a school profile for the rest.
| School | City | Control | Graduates / yr | Feeder programs |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Towson University | Towson | Public | 133 | 2 |
| Maryland Institute College of Art | Baltimore | Private not-for-profit | 127 | 8 |
| University of Maryland - College Park | College Park | Public | 79 | 1 |
| University of Maryland - Baltimore County | Baltimore | Public | 63 | 4 |
| Montgomery College | Rockville | Public | 36 | 2 |
| Salisbury University | Salisbury | Public | 36 | 2 |
| Community College of Baltimore County | Baltimore | Public | 35 | 1 |
| St. Mary's College of Maryland | St. Mary's City | Public | 30 | 2 |
| Morgan State University | Baltimore | Public | 18 | 1 |
| Bowie State University | Bowie | Public | 15 | 1 |
| Cecil College | North East | Public | 11 | 1 |
| Frostburg State University | Frostburg | Public | 10 | 1 |
| McDaniel College | Westminster | Private not-for-profit | 10 | 1 |
| Hood College | Frederick | Private not-for-profit | 9 | 2 |
| Prince George's Community College | Largo | Public | 9 | 1 |
What fine artists, including painters, sculptors, and illustrators earn in Maryland
What people already working in this job earn (BLS OEWS May 2025). Not graduate earnings.
U.S. median $55,490. Maryland pays above the national figure.
1.00× means the state has its expected share of these jobs.
Metro areas in Maryland
Job outlook
Bureau of Labor Statistics Employment Projections, 2024 to 2034.
Growth and openings are national. The Bureau of Labor Statistics does not publish employment projections at state level, so these figures describe the occupation across the whole U.S., not this state alone.
How to get in
The full skills, tools, and day-to-day breakdown lives on the national Fine Artists, Including Painters, Sculptors, and Illustrators page.
How to become a Fine Artist
Job zone 3 of 5 · SVP 6.0 to < 7.0- Typical entry education
- Bachelor's degree
- On-the-job training
- Long-term on-the-job training
Most occupations in this zone require training in vocational schools, related on-the-job experience, or an associate's degree.
Previous work-related skill, knowledge, or experience is required for these occupations. For example, an electrician must have completed three or four years of apprenticeship or several years of vocational training, and often must have passed a licensing exam, in order to perform the job.
Employees in these occupations usually need one or two years of training involving both on-the-job experience and informal training with experienced workers. A recognized apprenticeship program may be associated with these occupations.
Top skills
The same job in other states
Where else this occupation employs the most people, and what it pays there.
Related careers in Maryland
Every major mapped to this job
The official federal mapping behind the rankings above.
All 12 majors mapped to Fine Artists, Including Painters, Sculptors, and Illustrators12 of them graduated someone in the latest IPEDS year. NCES CIP 2020 → SOC 2018 crosswalk.+
- 50.0101Visual and Performing Arts, General
- 50.0701Art/Art Studies, General
- 50.0702Fine/Studio Arts, General
- 50.0705Drawing
- 50.0706Intermedia/Multimedia
- 50.0708Painting
- 50.0709Sculpture
- 50.0710Printmaking
- 50.0711Ceramic Arts and Ceramics
- 50.0799Fine Arts and Art Studies, Other
- 50.1101Community/Environmental/Socially-Engaged Art
- 51.2703Medical Illustration/Medical Illustrator
Common questions
Answers for people weighing fine artists, including painters, sculptors, and illustrators programs in Maryland.
What degree do you need to become a Fine Artist?+
Bachelor's degree is the typical entry-level education BLS reports for this occupation. The most common program people actually graduate from is Fine/Studio Arts, General, which awarded 256 degrees in Maryland in 2024-25, 39.0% of everyone graduating from a program that feeds this career.
Which college majors lead to becoming a Fine Artist?+
The NCES CIP-to-SOC crosswalk maps 12 programs to this occupation. The largest are Fine and Studio Arts, Visual and Performing Arts, Medical Illustration and Informatics, Community/Environmental/Socially-Engaged Art. Together they graduate about 657 people a year in Maryland.
How much do fine artists, including painters, sculptors, and illustrators earn in Maryland?+
The median is $66,180 a year (BLS OEWS May 2025). That is 19.3% above the U.S. median of $55,490. This is pay for people already working in the occupation, not the same thing as graduate earnings one year after finishing a degree.
Is demand for fine artists, including painters, sculptors, and illustrators growing?+
BLS projects a -1.2% change in employment between 2024 and 2034, decline, with roughly 2,200 openings a year nationally once retirements and job changes are counted.
How many schools offer programs for this career in Maryland?+
23 institutions in Maryland reported graduates from at least one of the 12 programs that feed this occupation in IPEDS 2024-25. Rankings on this page use graduates per year, because the federal data publishes no enrollment count by program.
What other job titles do fine artists, including painters, sculptors, and illustrators work under?+
Employers advertise this work under many names. O*NET records Artist, Painter, Sculptor, Fine Artist among the most commonly reported, all mapping to SOC 27-1013.
About the data on this page
Rankings use IPEDS completions 2024–25, degrees awarded per year. That is the closest federal measure of how many people a program puts into a career, because no federal dataset publishes enrollment by program. Wages and employment come from BLS OEWS May 2025, growth and openings from BLS Employment Projections 2024-34, and which majors lead to which jobs from the NCES CIP 2020 to SOC 2018 crosswalk. Occupation descriptions, tasks, skills and tools are O*NET 30.3 (CC BY 4.0, U.S. Department of Labor/ETA).
BLS Occupational Employment & Wage Statistics
May 2025Wages, employment counts, location quotients and metro breakdowns.
BLS Employment Projections
2024–34Projected growth, annual openings and typical entry-level education.
IPEDS Completions
2024-25 (provisional)Graduates per year by program and institution — the ranking metric.
College Scorecard, Field of Study
2020-21 cohortsMedian graduate earnings one year after completion, and median debt.
Census Post-Secondary Employment Outcomes
latest availableGraduate earnings 1/5/10 years out, where the state participates.
NCES CIP 2020 and the CIP-to-SOC 2018 crosswalk
CIP 2020 / SOC 2018Which college programs officially lead to this occupation.
O*NET Database 30.3
30.3Tasks, skills, knowledge, tools, job zone and alternate job titles.
Official source →CC BY 4.0, U.S. Department of Labor / ETA
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