Cambridge, Massachusetts has 5 accredited schools offering instructional design programs. Cambridge has a population of about 117,794. Median household income is $126,469 (Census ACS 2023, 5-year). About 80.2% of adults 25+ hold a bachelor’s degree or higher. In the Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH metro area, the top-earning instructional design-related role is Education Administrators, Postsecondary at a median $131,130 annually (BLS OEWS, May 2025).
Closest Instructional Design Schools to Cambridge
The accredited institutions listed below are the closest in our directory that offer instructional design programs near Cambridge, ranked by BOC Score and straight-line distance from Cambridge 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 Cambridge.
Advertising never affects these rankings. Read the full methodology.
Graduation rate
98%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry
$101,817
Avg net price
$19,066/yr
TuitionContact school for pricing
Key stats
- Retention rate: 98%
- Programs offered: 174
Source:IPEDS · College Scorecard
Graduation rate
61%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry
$51,173
Avg net price
$31,152/yr
TuitionContact school for pricing
Key stats
- Retention rate: 75%
- Programs offered: 53
Source:IPEDS · College Scorecard
Source: IPEDS / College Scorecard (2023 cohort). Browse all Massachusetts schools on the Massachusetts instructional design page.
Instructional Design Wages Near Cambridge
Cambridge is part of the Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH metro area (BLS area code 14460). Where MSA-level wages are published, the table below shows MSA medians; otherwise it falls back to Massachusetts statewide.
| Occupation |
Median Wage |
Source |
COL-Adjusted (US=100) |
| Instructional Coordinators |
$98,370 |
Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH |
$90,831 |
| Training and Development Specialists |
$83,800 |
Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH |
$77,378 |
| Training and Development Managers |
N/A |
MA statewide |
– |
| Education Teachers, Postsecondary |
$79,980 |
Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH |
$73,850 |
| Educational Instruction and Library Workers, All Other |
$69,340 |
Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH |
$64,026 |
| Education Administrators, Postsecondary |
$131,130 |
Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH |
$121,080 |
| Farm and Home Management Educators |
$66,920 |
MA statewide |
$61,791 |
| Graphic Designers |
$78,270 |
Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH |
$72,271 |
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.
Cambridge at a Glance
| Metric |
Value |
Source |
| Population |
117,794 |
Census ACS 2023 5-yr (B01003) |
| Median household income |
$126,469 |
Census ACS 2023 5-yr (B19013) |
| Adults 25+ with bachelor’s+ |
80.2% |
Census ACS 2023 5-yr (B15003) |
| Regional Price Parity (US=100) |
108.3 (above U.S. average) |
BEA RPP 2024 |
Other Cambridge-Area Cities With Instructional Design Programs
- Somerville, MA – 1.4 mi away (81,322 pop)
- Watertown, MA – 3.0 mi away (35,025 pop)
- Medford, MA – 3.3 mi away (57,213 pop)
- Everett, MA – 3.9 mi away (46,340 pop)
- Boston, MA – 4.3 mi away (4,556,916 pop)
Frequently Asked Questions
How many accredited instructional design schools are near Cambridge, MA?
Our directory has 5 accredited schools offering instructional design programs near Cambridge. The closest is Harvard University in Cambridge, MA (0.1 miles), and the farthest of the schools shown is University of Massachusetts-Boston (6.0 miles). 5 of the highlighted schools are flagged as offering distance education.
What are the highest-paying instructional design roles near Cambridge?
Based on BLS OEWS May 2025 wage data, the top-paying instructional design-related roles near Cambridge are: Education Administrators, Postsecondary ($131,130), Instructional Coordinators ($98,370), Training and Development Specialists ($83,800). These reflect MSA-level medians where published, with Massachusetts statewide fallback for occupations not reported at the metro level.
Should I look at programs in Somerville instead of Cambridge?
Somerville, MA is 1.4 miles from Cambridge and has its own set of local instructional design programs – see the city’s page. For online programs, distance matters less; for hybrid or in-person formats, comparing both can help.
Is Cambridge an affordable place to study instructional design?
Cambridge’s median household income of $126,469 (Census ACS 2023) is one input. Online programs let students stay in Cambridge while attending lower-cost out-of-state schools, and Massachusetts 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.
Learn More About Instructional Design Programs
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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.
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