Best Graphic Designer programs in North Carolina, ranked by enrollment
Design or create graphics to meet specific commercial or promotional needs, such as packaging, displays, or logos.
36 schools in North Carolina run programs that feed this job, graduating 1,082 people a year. The job pays a median of $58,450 in North Carolina across about 5,660 jobs (BLS OEWS May 2025).
Fields of study in North Carolina that lead to this job
Grouped at the 4-digit CIP level. Numbers are graduates per year in this state.
7 programs in North Carolina that lead to this job
Ranked by graduates per year in North Carolina (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 North Carolina page.
| # | Program | Graduates / yr | Share of pipeline | Schools | Grad earnings (1 yr) | Median debt |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Commercial and Advertising Artmain feeder CIP 50.0402In North Carolina → | 467 | 43.2% | 17 | $31,611 | $26,000 |
| 2 | Graphic Designmain feeder CIP 50.0409In North Carolina → | 429 | 39.6% | 24 | $31,611 | $26,000 |
| 3 | CIP 11.0803In North Carolina → | 55 | 5.1% | 2 | $33,504 | $27,000 |
| 4 | Industrial and Product Designmain feeder CIP 50.0404In North Carolina → | 51 | 4.7% | 2 | $31,611 | $26,000 |
| 5 | Digital Artsmain feeder CIP 50.0102In North Carolina → | 41 | 3.8% | 2 | $24,752 | $25,963 |
| 6 | Design and Visual Communications, Generalmain feeder CIP 50.0401In North Carolina → | 35 | 3.2% | 1 | $31,611 | $26,000 |
| 7 | CIP 11.0801In North Carolina → | 4 | 0.4% | 1 | $33,504 | $27,000 |
Top 25 schools in North Carolina
Ranked by graduates per year into this job. Graduate earnings are reported for 9 of the 36 schools in this state.
| # | School | Graduates / yr | Top feeder program | Grad earnings (1 yr) | Grad rate | Net price | Acceptance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Wake Technical Community College Raleigh, NC Public · 2 feeder programs | 257 | Commercial and Advertising Art | $32,153 | 33% | — | — |
| 2 | Central Piedmont Community College Charlotte, NC Public · 2 feeder programs | 97 | Commercial and Advertising Art | $30,979 | 31% | — | — |
| 3 | North Carolina State University at Raleigh Raleigh, NC Public · 3 feeder programs | 86 | Design and Visual Communications, General | $44,930 | 85% | — | 42% |
| 4 | Alamance Community College Graham, NC Public · 2 feeder programs | 75 | Commercial and Advertising Art | — | 39% | — | — |
| 5 | Mitchell Community College Statesville, NC Public · 1 feeder programs | 68 | Commercial and Advertising Art | — | 28% | — | — |
| 6 | Appalachian State University Boone, NC Public · 2 feeder programs | 63 | Graphic Design | $34,722 | 75% | — | 90% |
| 7 | Fayetteville Technical Community College Fayetteville, NC Public · 2 feeder programs | 49 | Graphic Design | — | 24% | — | — |
| 8 | Wilkes Community College Wilkesboro, NC Public · 2 feeder programs | 43 | Graphic Design | — | 55% | — | — |
| 9 | North Carolina A & T State University Greensboro, NC Public · 2 feeder programs | 41 | Computer Graphics | — | 57% | — | 50% |
| 10 | University of North Carolina at Charlotte Charlotte, NC Public · 1 feeder programs | 40 | Graphic Design | — | 69% | — | 80% |
| 11 | University of North Carolina Asheville Asheville, NC Public · 1 feeder programs | 33 | Digital Arts | $23,023 | 54% | — | 92% |
| 12 | Guilford Technical Community College Jamestown, NC Public · 2 feeder programs | 27 | Graphic Design | $24,827 | 31% | — | — |
| 13 | Pitt Community College Winterville, NC Public · 1 feeder programs | 20 | Graphic Design | — | 35% | — | — |
| 14 | Elizabeth City State University Elizabeth City, NC Public · 2 feeder programs | 19 | Graphic Design | — | 44% | — | 64% |
| 15 | High Point University High Point, NC Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 17 | Graphic Design | — | 74% | $37,072 | 75% |
| 16 | University of North Carolina Wilmington Wilmington, NC Public · 1 feeder programs | 16 | Computer Graphics | — | 71% | — | 64% |
| 17 | Catawba Valley Community College Hickory, NC Public · 1 feeder programs | 15 | Commercial and Advertising Art | — | 35% | — | — |
| 18 | Lenoir Community College Kinston, NC Public · 2 feeder programs | 13 | Graphic Design | — | 36% | — | — |
| 19 | Southwestern Community College Sylva, NC Public · 1 feeder programs | 11 | Commercial and Advertising Art | — | 53% | — | — |
| 20 | James Sprunt Community College Kenansville, NC Public · 1 feeder programs | 10 | Commercial and Advertising Art | — | 48% | — | — |
| 21 | Methodist University Fayetteville, NC Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 9 | Graphic Design | — | 44% | $24,551 | 75% |
| 22 | Randolph Community College Asheboro, NC Public · 2 feeder programs | 9 | Graphic Design | — | 58% | — | — |
| 23 | Forsyth Technical Community College Winston-Salem, NC Public · 1 feeder programs | 8 | Graphic Design | $29,715 | 34% | — | — |
| 24 | McDowell Technical Community College Marion, NC Public · 1 feeder programs | 7 | Commercial and Advertising Art | — | 48% | — | — |
| 25 | Meredith College Raleigh, NC Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 7 | Graphic Design | $36,357 | 70% | $19,552 | 74% |
All 36 schools in North Carolina
Every school in North Carolina 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wake Technical Community College | Raleigh | Public | 257 | 2 |
| Central Piedmont Community College | Charlotte | Public | 97 | 2 |
| North Carolina State University at Raleigh | Raleigh | Public | 86 | 3 |
| Alamance Community College | Graham | Public | 75 | 2 |
| Mitchell Community College | Statesville | Public | 68 | 1 |
| Appalachian State University | Boone | Public | 63 | 2 |
| Fayetteville Technical Community College | Fayetteville | Public | 49 | 2 |
| Wilkes Community College | Wilkesboro | Public | 43 | 2 |
| North Carolina A & T State University | Greensboro | Public | 41 | 2 |
| University of North Carolina at Charlotte | Charlotte | Public | 40 | 1 |
| University of North Carolina Asheville | Asheville | Public | 33 | 1 |
| Guilford Technical Community College | Jamestown | Public | 27 | 2 |
| Pitt Community College | Winterville | Public | 20 | 1 |
| Elizabeth City State University | Elizabeth City | Public | 19 | 2 |
| High Point University | High Point | Private not-for-profit | 17 | 1 |
What graphic designers earn in North Carolina
What people already working in this job earn (BLS OEWS May 2025). Not graduate earnings.
U.S. median $62,960. North Carolina pays below the national figure.
1.00× means the state has its expected share of these jobs.
Metro areas in North Carolina
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 Graphic Designers page.
How to become a Graphic Designer
Job zone 4 of 5 · SVP 7.0 to < 8.0- Typical entry education
- Bachelor's degree
Most of these occupations require a four-year bachelor's degree, but some do not.
A considerable amount of work-related skill, knowledge, or experience is needed for these occupations. For example, an accountant must complete four years of college and work for several years in accounting to be considered qualified.
Employees in these occupations usually need several years of work-related experience, on-the-job training, and/or vocational training.
Top skills
The same job in other states
Where else this occupation employs the most people, and what it pays there.
Related careers in North Carolina
Every major mapped to this job
The official federal mapping behind the rankings above.
All 7 majors mapped to Graphic Designers7 of them graduated someone in the latest IPEDS year. NCES CIP 2020 → SOC 2018 crosswalk.+
- 11.0801Web Page, Digital/Multimedia and Information Resources Design
- 11.0803Computer Graphics
- 50.0102Digital Arts
- 50.0401Design and Visual Communications, General
- 50.0402Commercial and Advertising Art
- 50.0404Industrial and Product Design
- 50.0409Graphic Design
Common questions
Answers for people weighing graphic designers programs in North Carolina.
What degree do you need to become a Graphic Designer?+
Bachelor's degree is the typical entry-level education BLS reports for this occupation. The most common program people actually graduate from is Commercial and Advertising Art, which awarded 467 degrees in North Carolina in 2024-25, 43.2% of everyone graduating from a program that feeds this career.
Which college majors lead to becoming a Graphic Designer?+
The NCES CIP-to-SOC crosswalk maps 7 programs to this occupation. The largest are Design and Applied Arts, Computer Software and Media Applications, Visual and Performing Arts. Together they graduate about 1,082 people a year in North Carolina.
How much do graphic designers earn in North Carolina?+
The median is $58,450 a year (BLS OEWS May 2025). That is 7.2% below the U.S. median of $62,960. 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 graphic designers growing?+
BLS projects a +2.1% change in employment between 2024 and 2034, about as fast as average, with roughly 20,000 openings a year nationally once retirements and job changes are counted.
How many schools offer programs for this career in North Carolina?+
36 institutions in North Carolina reported graduates from at least one of the 7 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 graphic designers work under?+
Employers advertise this work under many names. O*NET records Artist, Designer, Graphic Artist, Graphic Designer among the most commonly reported, all mapping to SOC 27-1024.
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
Explore every U.S. college in one conversation
Clema turns plain-language questions into sourced answers across every U.S. institution — earnings, aid, acceptance, graduation, safety, and athletics from IPEDS, College Scorecard, and 10+ federal datasets, built in.
Free for teams up to 3 · No credit card