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Best Industrial Design Schools Near New Orleans, LA (2026)
Updated September 5, 2026BLS dataCollege ScorecardOn this page
New Orleans, Louisiana is home to about 376,035 residents. Median household income is $55,339 (Census ACS 2023, 5-year). About 42.0% of adults 25+ hold a bachelor’s degree or higher. In the New Orleans-Metairie, LA metro area, the top-earning industrial design-related role is Architectural and Engineering Managers at a median $165,620 annually (BLS OEWS, May 2025).
Closest Industrial Design Schools to New Orleans
The accredited institutions listed below are the closest in our directory that offer industrial design programs near New Orleans, ranked by BOC Score and straight-line distance from New Orleans city center. The list is rebuilt from federal IPEDS data on every site update.
How We Rank Schools
Every school list on this site is ordered by the BOC Score, computed from the most
recent school-level data published by the U.S. Department of Education (College Scorecard and IPEDS).
To qualify, a school must be currently operating and accredited by an agency recognized by the
U.S. Department of Education. Each eligible school is then scored on five measures, percentile-ranked
against schools at the same credential level:
BOCSCORE
Graduation rate 30%
Median earnings, 10 years after entry 25%
Average net price (lower is better) 20%
Retention rate 15%
Fully online availability 10%
Schools without enough outcome data appear after ranked schools, without a score.
On this page, schools are ordered by distance from New Orleans.
Advertising never affects these rankings. Read the full methodology.
BOC
Ranked by BOC Score — U.S. Dept. of Education outcome data. Advertising never affects rankings.
New Orleans is part of the New Orleans-Metairie, LA metro area (BLS area code 35380). Where MSA-level wages are published, the table below shows MSA medians; otherwise it falls back to Louisiana statewide.
Occupation
Median Wage
Source
COL-Adjusted (US=100)
Commercial and Industrial Designers
$98,260
New Orleans-Metairie, LA
$106,112
Industrial Engineers
$127,340
New Orleans-Metairie, LA
$137,516
Graphic Designers
$51,710
New Orleans-Metairie, LA
$55,842
Mechanical Drafters
$79,130
New Orleans-Metairie, LA
$85,454
Interior Designers
$60,810
New Orleans-Metairie, LA
$65,670
Architectural and Engineering Managers
$165,620
New Orleans-Metairie, LA
$178,855
Set and Exhibit Designers
N/A
LA statewide
–
Mechanical Engineers
$117,990
New Orleans-Metairie, LA
$127,419
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.
New Orleans at a Glance
Metric
Value
Source
Population
376,035
Census ACS 2023 5-yr (B01003)
Median household income
$55,339
Census ACS 2023 5-yr (B19013)
Adults 25+ with bachelor’s+
42.0%
Census ACS 2023 5-yr (B15003)
Regional Price Parity (US=100)
92.6 (below U.S. average)
BEA RPP 2024
Other New Orleans-Area Cities With Industrial Design Programs
What are the highest-paying industrial design roles near New Orleans?
Based on BLS OEWS May 2025 wage data, the top-paying industrial design-related roles near New Orleans are: Architectural and Engineering Managers ($165,620), Industrial Engineers ($127,340), Mechanical Engineers ($117,990). These reflect MSA-level medians where published, with Louisiana statewide fallback for occupations not reported at the metro level.
Should I look at programs in Slidell instead of New Orleans?
Slidell, LA is 17.5 miles from New Orleans 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 New Orleans an affordable place to study industrial design?
New Orleans’s median household income of $55,339 (Census ACS 2023) is one input. Online programs let students stay in New Orleans while attending lower-cost out-of-state schools, and Louisiana 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 5, 2026.
Salary, employment, and tuition figures on this page are sourced from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (OEWS May 2025; Employment Projections 2024–2034) and the U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard (2023 cohort). The source agency and data year are cited inline with every statistic.
