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AlmaSpire

Savannah, GA · Private · 15,243 undergraduates · urban

Savannah College of Art and Design

Less selective

SCAD combines specialized creative majors with a quarter calendar and a distributed urban-campus model spanning Savannah, Atlanta, online study, and Lacoste.

Michael Rivera / CC BY-SA 4.0

Institutional profile

Regionally focused Exceptional in student experience, and steady in academic standing.
Academic Steady Affordability Emerging Career Steady Mobility Emerging Experience Exceptional
Academic standing Steady
Affordability Emerging
Career outcomes Steady
Mobility Emerging
Student experience Exceptional
Admission
83.7% admitted

14,931 applicants in the reported year

Price by income
Varies across five income ranges

Compare recent average annual costs by household income

Completion
69.4%

$45,954 median earnings 10 years after enrollment

What sets SCAD apart

Academic design

Students generally combine foundation studies, general education, and major-specific courses on a quarter system built around sequential creative and professional training.

Admission process

Undergraduate admission does not require a portfolio or audition, although creative work may be submitted for achievement scholarship consideration.

Defining experience

Students can move among Savannah, Atlanta, online courses, and selected Lacoste study while remaining within one university’s creative-degree system.

Can I get in?

83.7% admitted

Undergraduate admission does not require a portfolio or audition, although creative work may be submitted for achievement scholarship consideration.

Recent applicant pool

14,931

About 84 in every 100 applicants were admitted.

Admission rate 83.7%
Entering class

Academic range

SAT middle 50%1050–1280
9001420
ACT middle 50%21–28
1633

Of admitted students, 18% submitted an SAT, and 13% submitted an ACT. Scores were rare in this class, so the SAT and ACT ranges say more about who volunteered one than about who was admitted.

Academic benchmarkLess selective

In the season card

Where your GPA sits in the entering class

The full entering-class GPA distribution for SCAD, in nine bands from 4.0 down, with your own record marked on it.

See where I land

In the season card

What SCAD weighs when it reads a file

See how this college describes the role of grades, testing, essays, recommendations, activities, and demonstrated interest.

  • Course rigor  
  • GPA  
  • Test scores  
  • Essay  
  • Recommendations  
  • Extracurriculars  
  • Demonstrated interest  
See what counts here

What moves the application

The evidence that separates a strong file

01

Clear the academic baseline

Students generally combine foundation studies, general education, and major-specific courses on a quarter system built around sequential creative and professional training.

02

Complete the specialized assessment

Undergraduate admission does not require a portfolio or audition, although creative work may be submitted for achievement scholarship consideration.

03

Plan the process early

SCAD accepts applications throughout the year, but applicants should allow enough time to complete admission, housing, and scholarship steps before their intended quarter.

How to apply

Rounds, route, and required materials

SCAD accepts applications throughout the year, but applicants should allow enough time to complete admission, housing, and scholarship steps before their intended quarter.

Regular Decisionrolling
Fee and waiver$100 application fee

Fee waiver: accepted

Can I afford it?

Compare annual cost by household income.

Start with the average net price for your income range, then set that estimate beside your other realistic options.

Published annual cost$68,691
Average annual cost after aid$49,000
Affordability profileEmerging

In the season card

Average annual cost by household income at SCAD

Compare recent average net prices across five federal income ranges and estimate a 4-year cost for yours.

  • $0–30k 
  • $30–48k 
  • $48–75k 
  • $75–110k 
  • $110k+ 
Open the price by income

Is it worth it?

Completion, debt, and earnings

Read completion, borrowing, field mix, and earnings together. For specialized training, compare those signals with the professional path you intend to follow.

Complete within 8 years69.4%

Degree completion across the reported entering cohort

Return after year one86.6%

First-year students who return for year two

Median federal debtWhat students owe on the way out

And what that comes to against what they earn.

Median earnings$45,954

Reported 10 years after enrollment

Academic portfolio

Largest bachelor’s fields

How many students finish in each field, and median earnings four years after completing the program.

Design and Applied Arts

Recent graduates755
Median earnings$45,923

Admits separately

Graphic Communications

Recent graduates524
Median earnings$43,058

Film/Video and Photographic Arts

Recent graduates361
Median earnings$41,651

Admits separately

Radio, Television, and Digital Communication

Recent graduates353
Median earnings$64,076

Admits separately

Drama/Theatre Arts and Stagecraft

Recent graduates220
Median earnings$35,177

Admits separately

What is campus life like?

SCAD beyond the classroom

In Savannah, classrooms, studios, residences, and reused historic buildings are spread throughout the city rather than concentrated behind one campus boundary.

Training

The academic structure

Students generally combine foundation studies, general education, and major-specific courses on a quarter system built around sequential creative and professional training.

Daily life

The campus rhythm

In Savannah, classrooms, studios, residences, and reused historic buildings are spread throughout the city rather than concentrated behind one campus boundary.

Defining feature

What changes the experience

Students can move among Savannah, Atlanta, online courses, and selected Lacoste study while remaining within one university’s creative-degree system.

15,243 undergraduatesSoutheasturban settingCampus housing available