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Best Industrial Design Schools Near Wilmington, DE (2026)
Updated September 6, 2026BLS dataCollege ScorecardOn this page
Wilmington, Delaware has 4 accredited schools offering industrial design programs. Wilmington has a population of about 71,124. Median household income is $55,269 (Census ACS 2023, 5-year). About 33.1% of adults 25+ hold a bachelor’s degree or higher. In the Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD metro area, the top-earning industrial design-related role is Architectural and Engineering Managers at a median $171,140 annually (BLS OEWS, May 2025).
Closest Industrial Design Schools to Wilmington
The accredited institutions listed below are the closest in our directory that offer industrial design programs near Wilmington, ranked by BOC Score and straight-line distance from Wilmington city center. The list is rebuilt from federal IPEDS data on every site update.
Wilmington is part of the Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD metro area (BLS area code 37980). Where MSA-level wages are published, the table below shows MSA medians; otherwise it falls back to Delaware statewide.
Occupation
Median Wage
Source
COL-Adjusted (US=100)
Commercial and Industrial Designers
$89,190
Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD
$86,930
Industrial Engineers
$103,370
Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD
$100,750
Graphic Designers
$63,090
Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD
$61,491
Mechanical Drafters
$74,100
Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD
$72,222
Interior Designers
$64,800
Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD
$63,158
Architectural and Engineering Managers
$171,140
Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD
$166,803
Set and Exhibit Designers
$59,670
Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD
$58,158
Mechanical Engineers
$104,410
Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD
$101,764
Source: BLS, May 2025 Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics publishes wage data at the metro (MSA) and state level – not by individual city.
Wilmington at a Glance
Metric
Value
Source
Population
71,124
Census ACS 2023 5-yr (B01003)
Median household income
$55,269
Census ACS 2023 5-yr (B19013)
Adults 25+ with bachelor’s+
33.1%
Census ACS 2023 5-yr (B15003)
Regional Price Parity (US=100)
102.6 (above U.S. average)
BEA RPP 2024
Other Wilmington-Area Cities With Industrial Design Programs
How many accredited industrial design schools are near Wilmington, DE?
Our directory has 4 accredited schools offering industrial design programs near Wilmington. The closest is Maryland Institute College of Art in Baltimore, MD (65.2 miles), and the farthest of the schools shown is New Jersey Institute of Technology (99.6 miles). 4 of the highlighted schools are flagged as offering distance education.
What are the highest-paying industrial design roles near Wilmington?
Based on BLS OEWS May 2025 wage data, the top-paying industrial design-related roles near Wilmington are: Architectural and Engineering Managers ($171,140), Mechanical Engineers ($104,410), Industrial Engineers ($103,370). These reflect MSA-level medians where published, with Delaware statewide fallback for occupations not reported at the metro level.
Should I look at programs in Chester instead of Wilmington?
Chester, PA is 11.3 miles from Wilmington and has its own set of local industrial design programs – see the city’s page. For online programs, distance matters less; for hybrid or in-person formats, comparing both can help.
Is Wilmington an affordable place to study industrial design?
Wilmington’s median household income of $55,269 (Census ACS 2023) is one input. Online programs let students stay in Wilmington while attending lower-cost out-of-state schools, and Delaware public universities often offer reduced in-state online tuition.
How do I verify a program is accredited?
Confirm institutional accreditation via the U.S. Department of Education database (U.S. Dept. of Education database), and check for any program-specific accreditation listed by the school.
Data verified: September 6, 2026.
Salary, employment, and tuition figures on this page are sourced from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (OEWS May 2025; Employment Projections 2025-2035) and the U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard (2023 cohort). The source agency and data year are cited inline with every statistic.