Best Graphic Designer programs in Oregon, ranked by enrollment
Design or create graphics to meet specific commercial or promotional needs, such as packaging, displays, or logos.
16 schools in Oregon run programs that feed this job, graduating 384 people a year. The job pays a median of $66,040 in Oregon across about 4,140 jobs (BLS OEWS May 2025).
Fields of study in Oregon that lead to this job
Grouped at the 4-digit CIP level. Numbers are graduates per year in this state.
5 programs in Oregon that lead to this job
Ranked by graduates per year in Oregon (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 Oregon page.
| # | Program | Graduates / yr | Share of pipeline | Schools | Grad earnings (1 yr) | Median debt |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Graphic Designmain feeder CIP 50.0409In Oregon → | 175 | 45.6% | 8 | $31,611 | $26,000 |
| 2 | Commercial and Advertising Artmain feeder CIP 50.0402In Oregon → | 61 | 15.9% | 2 | $31,611 | $26,000 |
| 3 | Digital Artsmain feeder CIP 50.0102In Oregon → | 57 | 14.8% | 6 | $24,752 | $25,963 |
| 4 | Design and Visual Communications, Generalmain feeder CIP 50.0401In Oregon → | 57 | 14.8% | 5 | $31,611 | $26,000 |
| 5 | CIP 11.0801In Oregon → | 34 | 8.9% | 3 | $33,504 | $27,000 |
Top 16 schools in Oregon
Ranked by graduates per year into this job. Graduate earnings are reported for 5 of the 16 schools in this state.
| # | School | Graduates / yr | Top feeder program | Grad earnings (1 yr) | Grad rate | Net price | Acceptance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Portland Community College Portland, OR Public · 2 feeder programs | 84 | Commercial and Advertising Art | $26,285 | 18% | — | — |
| 2 | Portland State University Portland, OR Public · 1 feeder programs | 67 | Graphic Design | $35,304 | 53% | — | 91% |
| 3 | Oregon State University Corvallis, OR Public · 2 feeder programs | 47 | Graphic Design | $35,614 | 70% | — | 77% |
| 4 | Klamath Community College Klamath Falls, OR Public · 1 feeder programs | 31 | Web Page, Digital/Multimedia and Information Resources Design | — | 43% | — | — |
| 5 | Rogue Community College Grants Pass, OR Public · 2 feeder programs | 29 | Graphic Design | — | 9% | — | — |
| 6 | Chemeketa Community College Salem, OR Public · 2 feeder programs | 27 | Graphic Design | — | 21% | — | — |
| 7 | Lane Community College Eugene, OR Public · 3 feeder programs | 27 | Commercial and Advertising Art | — | 20% | — | — |
| 8 | Pacific Northwest College of Art Portland, OR Private not-for-profit · 2 feeder programs | 27 | Digital Arts | $13,895 | 29% | $40,553 | 75% |
| 9 | George Fox University Newberg, OR Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 14 | Graphic Design | — | 72% | $26,564 | 94% |
| 10 | Mt Hood Community College Gresham, OR Public · 1 feeder programs | 14 | Graphic Design | — | 24% | — | — |
| 11 | Pacific University Forest Grove, OR Private not-for-profit · 2 feeder programs | 5 | Digital Arts | — | 67% | $30,571 | 90% |
| 12 | Central Oregon Community College Bend, OR Public · 1 feeder programs | 4 | Design and Visual Communications, General | — | 25% | — | — |
| 13 | Linn - Benton Community College Albany, OR Public · 1 feeder programs | 3 | Design and Visual Communications, General | — | 29% | — | — |
| 14 | Linfield University McMinnville, OR Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 2 | Digital Arts | — | 70% | $26,243 | 85% |
| 15 | Western Oregon University Monmouth, OR Public · 1 feeder programs | 2 | Design and Visual Communications, General | $23,583 | 47% | — | 98% |
| 16 | Clackamas Community College Oregon City, OR Public · 1 feeder programs | 1 | Web Page, Digital/Multimedia and Information Resources Design | — | 23% | — | — |
All 16 schools in Oregon
Every school in Oregon 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Portland Community College | Portland | Public | 84 | 2 |
| Portland State University | Portland | Public | 67 | 1 |
| Oregon State University | Corvallis | Public | 47 | 2 |
| Klamath Community College | Klamath Falls | Public | 31 | 1 |
| Rogue Community College | Grants Pass | Public | 29 | 2 |
| Chemeketa Community College | Salem | Public | 27 | 2 |
| Lane Community College | Eugene | Public | 27 | 3 |
| Pacific Northwest College of Art | Portland | Private not-for-profit | 27 | 2 |
| George Fox University | Newberg | Private not-for-profit | 14 | 1 |
| Mt Hood Community College | Gresham | Public | 14 | 1 |
| Pacific University | Forest Grove | Private not-for-profit | 5 | 2 |
| Central Oregon Community College | Bend | Public | 4 | 1 |
| Linn - Benton Community College | Albany | Public | 3 | 1 |
| Linfield University | McMinnville | Private not-for-profit | 2 | 1 |
| Western Oregon University | Monmouth | Public | 2 | 1 |
What graphic designers earn in Oregon
What people already working in this job earn (BLS OEWS May 2025). Not graduate earnings.
U.S. median $62,960. Oregon pays above the national figure.
Concentrated here: Oregon employs more of this job per worker than the U.S. average.
Metro areas in Oregon
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 Oregon
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 Oregon.
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 Graphic Design, which awarded 175 degrees in Oregon in 2024-25, 45.6% 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 5 programs to this occupation. The largest are Design and Applied Arts, Visual and Performing Arts, Computer Software and Media Applications. Together they graduate about 384 people a year in Oregon.
How much do graphic designers earn in Oregon?+
The median is $66,040 a year (BLS OEWS May 2025). That is 4.9% above 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 Oregon?+
16 institutions in Oregon reported graduates from at least one of the 5 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