BestOnlineCollege.org is an advertising-supported website. Many of the school and program listings that appear on this site are from partners who compensate us, and this compensation may affect how, where, and in what order listings appear (such as featured placements). This compensation does not influence our editorial content, evaluations, or rankings, which are determined independently using publicly available data. We do not review or feature every school or program available in the marketplace. Our goal is to provide accurate, unbiased information so you can make informed decisions. Read our full Advertiser Disclosure.
Best Industrial Design Schools Near South Portland, ME (2026)
Updated September 5, 2026BLS dataCollege ScorecardOn this page
South Portland, Maine has 3 accredited schools offering industrial design programs. South Portland has a population of about 26,780. Median household income is $84,563 (Census ACS 2023, 5-year). About 49.3% of adults 25+ hold a bachelor’s degree or higher. In the Portland-South Portland, ME metro area, the top-earning industrial design-related role is Architectural and Engineering Managers at a median $164,530 annually (BLS OEWS, May 2025).
Closest Industrial Design Schools to South Portland
The accredited institutions listed below are the closest in our directory that offer industrial design programs near South Portland, ranked by BOC Score and straight-line distance from South Portland city center. The list is rebuilt from federal IPEDS data on every site update.
South Portland is part of the Portland-South Portland, ME metro area (BLS area code 38860). Where MSA-level wages are published, the table below shows MSA medians; otherwise it falls back to Maine statewide.
Occupation
Median Wage
Source
COL-Adjusted (US=100)
Commercial and Industrial Designers
$74,480
Portland-South Portland, ME
$73,091
Industrial Engineers
$101,030
Portland-South Portland, ME
$99,146
Graphic Designers
$67,650
Portland-South Portland, ME
$66,389
Mechanical Drafters
$76,360
Portland-South Portland, ME
$74,936
Interior Designers
$66,260
Portland-South Portland, ME
$65,025
Architectural and Engineering Managers
$164,530
Portland-South Portland, ME
$161,462
Set and Exhibit Designers
N/A
ME statewide
–
Mechanical Engineers
$107,060
Portland-South Portland, ME
$105,064
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.
South Portland at a Glance
Metric
Value
Source
Population
26,780
Census ACS 2023 5-yr (B01003)
Median household income
$84,563
Census ACS 2023 5-yr (B19013)
Adults 25+ with bachelor’s+
49.3%
Census ACS 2023 5-yr (B15003)
Regional Price Parity (US=100)
101.9 (above U.S. average)
BEA RPP 2024
Other South Portland-Area Cities With Industrial Design Programs
How many accredited industrial design schools are near South Portland, ME?
Our directory has 3 accredited schools offering industrial design programs near South Portland. The closest is NHTI-Concord’s Community College in Concord, NH (68.4 miles), and the farthest of the schools shown is Massachusetts College of Art and Design (98.3 miles). 3 of the highlighted schools are flagged as offering distance education.
What are the highest-paying industrial design roles near South Portland?
Based on BLS OEWS May 2025 wage data, the top-paying industrial design-related roles near South Portland are: Architectural and Engineering Managers ($164,530), Mechanical Engineers ($107,060), Industrial Engineers ($101,030). These reflect MSA-level medians where published, with Maine statewide fallback for occupations not reported at the metro level.
Should I look at programs in Portland instead of South Portland?
Portland, ME is 3.3 miles from South Portland 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 South Portland an affordable place to study industrial design?
South Portland’s median household income of $84,563 (Census ACS 2023) is one input. Online programs let students stay in South Portland while attending lower-cost out-of-state schools, and Maine 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.