Private nonprofit · Institute

Milwaukee Institute of Art & Design

Milwaukee, Wisconsin · Large city

#3 most selective in Wisconsin
60.5%
Admit rate
$26,541
Avg net price
67%
Graduation rate
$41,174
Median earnings

Milwaukee Institute of Art & Design is a private nonprofit bachelor's-granting institution in Milwaukee, Wisconsin (large city setting), enrolling 837 undergraduates.

Private nonprofitSmall · 837 undergradsLarge cityAccessible · 61% admitCold wintersSnowy

About Milwaukee, Wisconsin

Milwaukee is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. The etymological origin of the name Milwaukee is disputed. Wisconsin academic Virgil J. Vogel has said, "the name [...] Milwaukee is not difficult to explain, yet there are a number of conflicting claims made concerning it." Milwaukee is a popular location for sailing, boating, and kayaking on Lake Michigan, ethnic dining, and cultural festivals. (Wikipedia)

Setting
Large city
Highest degree offered
Bachelor's
Nearest big city
1 mile to Milwaukee, WI
To Great Lakes shore
< 1 mile
Nearest airport
6 miles to General Mitchell (MKE) · major hub

How Milwaukee Institute of Art & Design compares

Selectivity60.5%

More selective than 76% · #3 most selective of 34 in Wisconsin

Graduation rate67%

Higher than 72% · #12 of 33 in Wisconsin

First-year retention80%

Higher than 61%

Earnings, 10 years after entry$41,174

Higher than 16% · #35 of 36 in Wisconsin

Average net price$26,541

Cheaper than 25% · #29 cheapest of 33 in Wisconsin

Median debt at graduation$27,000

Lower than 11%

Student–faculty ratio11 : 1

Lower than 68%

Undergraduate enrollment837

Larger than 32%

Percentiles compare Milwaukee Institute of Art & Design with the nation's 2,196 four-year colleges, among schools reporting each statistic. State ranks count four-year colleges in Wisconsin.

Student body

Undergraduates by gender

837undergrads
  • Women54765%
  • Men29035%

Undergraduates by race / ethnicity

  • White64%
  • Black6.0%
  • Hispanic18%
  • Asian4.7%
  • Other or multiracial7.2%

Graduate gender splits aren't published in this data, so the gender chart covers undergraduates only.

By the numbers

Undergraduate enrollment
837
Student–faculty ratio
11 : 1
Pell Grant recipients
37%
First-generation students
30%
Students over 25
3%
Median family income
$48,419
Avg faculty salary (academic year)
$58,743
Endowment
$4,095,645

Colleges don't publish true class-size data; student–faculty ratio (IPEDS) is the closest public measure of it.

Where students come from

Home state of the 200 first-year students who entered in fall 2023.

  • From Wisconsin56%
  • Other U.S. states44%

A regional draw: about 56% of first-years come from Wisconsin, the rest from elsewhere.

Out-of-state students usually pay a higher tuition rate at public schools — check the cost card above for your bracket. Source: IPEDS residence & migration, fall 2023 entering class.

Admissions

Admission rate
60.5%
Test scores
Considered but not required
SAT range (25th–75th %)
SAT average
SAT reading
SAT math
ACT composite

Cost

In-state tuition
$43,743
Room & board
$10,955
Books & supplies
$1,100
Total cost of attendance
$53,528
Average net price
$26,541

Net price is the total cost minus grants and scholarships — what students actually pay. It varies sharply by family income; see the breakdown below.

Outcomes

Graduated (within 6 years)
67%
Graduated on time (4 years)
58%
First-year retention
80%
Transferred to another college
9%
Median earnings, 6 years after entry
$29,841
Median earnings, 10 years after entry
$41,174
Median debt at graduation
$27,000
Students with federal loans
78%
Paying down their loans (1 year in)
53%

About 9% of students who finish here need more than four years — each extra year adds roughly another year of tuition and living costs.

Graduating on time

By student background (4 years)

All students
58%
Low-income (Pell)
42%
First-generation
44%

When these bars run close together, students from every background tend to finish at similar rates — a sign the school supports the ~30% who are first-gen or low-income.

Campus life & athletics

On-campus housing
Yes
Dorm capacity
450
Dorm capacity vs undergrads
54%
Application fee
Free

Housing and fees: IPEDS 2023–24. Athletics rosters: Equity in Athletics data, 2024–25. Dorm capacity can include graduate and family housing, so the share of undergrads can top 100%.

Campus safety

Safety grade
B
Reported offenses per 1,000 students
0.8 / year
Violent offenses (2022–2024)
0
Property offenses (2022–2024)
2

On-campus criminal offenses reported under the Clery Act, 2022–2024, across 1 campus (838 students). Counts reflect reports, not convictions — schools with strong reporting cultures often show more, so a higher count doesn't simply mean a more dangerous campus.

Reported offenses in an average year

The same 2022–2024 Clery Act reports, divided down to one year.

0.7reported offenses a year
0 violent a year0.7 property a year

By offense type, per year

Burglary
0.3
Motor vehicle theft
0.3

Averages, not a forecast — a single year can run well above or below this. Bars are scaled against this campus's most-reported offense, so they compare types here rather than against other schools.

What you'll actually pay, by family income

Average net price (total cost minus grants and scholarships) paid by aided students in each family-income band.

< $30k
$21,419
$30–48k
$22,531
$48–75k
$22,440
$75–110k
$26,746
$110k+
$32,540

College Scorecard / IPEDS, most recent year. Family income is total household income; net price covers tuition, fees, room, board and supplies after grant aid, for students receiving federal aid.

Four-year (or more) true cost

Net price for your family's income, projected across the time it actually takes students here to graduate.

Est. total to a degree
$94,235

$22,440/year × about 4.2 years — most students here don't finish in exactly four, and each extra term adds cost. A planning estimate from net-price and graduation-timing data, not a bill.

Does the school pay you to attend?

Grant aid from the school's own funds — the discount off sticker, on top of any federal or state help.

100%
of first-years get a grant from the school
$21,345
average award, among those who get one

Milwaukee Institute of Art & Design discounts heavily: 100% of freshmen are awarded a grant straight from the school, averaging $21,345. For many families the real price lands well below sticker.

Blends need-based and merit aid — IPEDS doesn't split the two, so a high number can mean generous merit scholarships, deep need-based aid, or both. Figures cover 221 full-time first-year undergraduates, 2022–23. Source: IPEDS Student Financial Aid.

Is it worth it?

A rough return-on-investment read from what graduates earn versus what they borrow.

Median earnings (10 years)
$41,174
Typical debt at graduation
$27,000
Debt vs. one year's pay
66%
Out-earn a HS grad
47%

Typical debt would take roughly 6.6 years to repay at about a tenth of median earnings.

Weigh it value

The payoff is less clear-cut here — weigh the debt against the earnings and your intended field before borrowing heavily.

Earnings are the College Scorecard median for former students (working, not enrolled) 10 years after entry — not a guarantee, and they vary a lot by major. Debt is the median federal loan balance at graduation.

The pay gap here

Median earnings 10 years after entry, split by gender.

Women
$37,927
Men
$47,255

Men out-earn women by $9,328 (25%) a decade out.

Federal figures for former students working and not enrolled, 10 years after they first entered. A gap this wide usually reflects which majors men and women here tend to choose — not different pay for the same job.

Campus climate

Summer high
85°F
Winter low
15°F
Annual rain
39.4″
Annual snow
52.3″

Average temperature

HighLow
10°50°90°JFMAMJJASOND

Average precipitation (inches)

0.02.55.0JFMAMJJASOND

NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals, West Allis, WI US station (4.8 mi from campus).

Median earnings of this school's own graduates 1 and 5 years after finishing each program, and median federal-loan debt at completion (College Scorecard). Small programs are privacy-suppressed (—). Click a major to compare colleges nationally.

Colleges similar to Milwaukee Institute of Art & Design

Schools with a comparable profile — size, selectivity, cost, and graduate outcomes. Compare Milwaukee Institute of Art & Design side by side →

Colleges near Milwaukee Institute of Art & Design

Source: US Department of Education College Scorecard (most recent cohorts), IPEDS institutional characteristics, Equity in Athletics (EADA) data, Clery Act Campus Safety and Security data, and NOAA US Climate Normals. Distances are straight-line from campus coordinates. Percentiles compare schools of the same level (four-year vs. two-year) that report each statistic.