More selective than 93% of Missouri colleges we cover.
College Scorecard, Fall 2024 entering class
Average after grants for all families receiving federal aid. Pick your income above.
Sticker price $57,410. College Scorecard.
Higher than 67% of Missouri colleges we cover and 59% of colleges nationwide. U.S. median 54%.
Within 6 years · College Scorecard
Higher than 10% of Missouri colleges we cover and 7% of colleges nationwide. U.S. median $53,263.
Median, 10 years after starting · College Scorecard
Kansas City Art Institute acceptance rate & admissions
Of 1,097 applicants, Kansas City Art Institute admitted 662 and 240 enrolled (IPEDS, Fall 2023 entering class).
IPEDS Admissions, Fall 2023 entering class
Test scores: College Scorecard, Fall 2024. Other figures: College Scorecard; IPEDS
Kansas City Art Institute tuition, cost & net price
What families actually pay per year, by income
Average net price after grants and scholarships for students who receive federal aid. Tap your income band.
College Scorecard, latest reported year (federal aid recipients)
Sticker price (before aid)
IPEDS 2023-24 cost items; total from College Scorecard
College Scorecard; Urban Institute Education Data Portal
What Kansas City Art Institute costs to finish, and how fast it pays back
Graduates of Kansas City Art Institute took 4.2 years on average to finish, so the yearly price adds up to the total below. Payback compares former students' earnings with what high school graduates earn in Missouri. The figures follow your residency and income choices above.
| Family income | Net price / yr | Cost to finish | Years to pay back |
|---|---|---|---|
| $0–30k | $26,293 | $110,956 | more than 20 years |
| $30–48k | $25,105 | $105,943 | more than 20 years |
| $48–75k | $27,663 | $116,738 | more than 20 years |
| $75–110k | $29,943 | $126,359 | more than 20 years |
| $110k+ | $30,840 | $130,145 | more than 20 years |
Cost to finish = yearly price × 4.2 years, the average time graduates took (53% finished in 4 years; students who entered fall 2017, IPEDS). Years to pay back = cost to finish ÷ the earnings gain: median earnings of former students 10 years after starting ($37,032) minus $35,438 for high school graduates ages 25-34 in MO (Census ACS 2020-2024), a gain of $1,594 a year. Before taxes, loan interest and earnings given up while in school. Method
College Scorecard (net price, earnings); IPEDS Graduation Rates (time to finish); U.S. Census Bureau ACS (high school earnings). Calculated by EducationGuide.
Kansas City Art Institute majors, earnings & careers
Kansas City Art Institute offers 5 bachelor's majors across 3 areas. Earnings below are for this school's graduates of each major, four years after finishing.
- Arts & Design · 3
- Communications & Media · 1
- Humanities & Languages · 1
Highest-earning majors at Kansas City Art Institute
| Major | Earnings, 4 yrs | Median debt |
|---|---|---|
| Graphic / Interior / Fashion Design | $43,070 | $27,000 |
| Studio Art | $37,718 | $27,000 |
| Film and Photography | $34,253 | $27,000 |
| Graphic Communications | $30,798 | $27,000 |
Quick list of all 5 majors
- Film and Photography$34,253
- Graphic / Interior / Fashion Design$43,070
- Graphic Communications$30,798
- Studio Art$37,718
- Writing—
— means too few graduates to report earnings.
College Scorecard field of study, latest release
All majors by area with earnings 1 and 4 years out, and debt →Graphic / Interior / Fashion Design → Graphic designer
Median annual wage for all workers in this job, not only new graduates. U.S. jobs projected to shrink 1.7% from 2025 to 2035.
BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025; Employment Projections 2025-35
Living in Kansas City
Overall prices in the Kansas City, MO-KS area.
BEA Regional Price Parities, 2024
2 bedrooms $1,546. Housing costs 13% below the U.S. average.
HUD Fair Market Rent, FY2027
January and July average highs. 38 inches of rain a year, 11 inches of snow.
NOAA Climate Normals 1991-2020
Highest: tornado (very high); river flooding (relatively high); heat wave (relatively high); winter weather (relatively high).
FEMA National Risk Index, Jackson County
Campus & students
IPEDS fall enrollment; Carnegie Classification; EADA via Urban Institute
Jackson County at a glance
U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-year 2024
Compare Kansas City Art Institute with similar schools
Similar private colleges in Missouri by selectivity, graduation rate and size. Tap “Why?” to see where the price difference comes from.
| School | Acceptance | You'd pay | Graduation | Earnings, 10 yrs | Price gap |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kansas City Art Institute | 55% | $27,650 | 58% | $37,032 | This school |
| Central Methodist University-College of Liberal Arts and Sciences | 57% | $22,766 | 51% | $48,991 | |
| Drury University | 58% | $20,831 | 62% | $40,694 | |
| Barnes-Jewish College Goldfarb School of Nursing | — | — | — | $84,393 | |
| Ranken Technical College | — | $18,795 | 53% | $55,955 |
College Scorecard, latest reported year. “You'd pay” follows your residency and income choices above.
Why the price is different
Kansas City Art Institute would cost you $4,884 more per year than Central Methodist University-College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, on average.
- Higher sticker price at Kansas City Art Institute, mostly from higher tuition & fees (+$16,290).
- Kansas City Art Institute gives aided families $8,891 more in grants, on average.
| Per year, Missouri resident | Kansas City Art Institute | Central Methodist University-College of Liberal Arts and Sciences | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tuition & fees | $44,550 | $28,260 | +$16,290 |
| Books & supplies | $800 | $1,000 | −$200 |
| Housing & meals | $12,900 | $8,910 | +$3,990 |
| Personal & travel | $2,050 | $7,350 | −$5,300 |
| Living-at-home adjustment | −$2,890 | −$1,885 | −$1,005 |
| Sticker price | $57,410 | $43,635 | +$13,775 |
| Average grants | −$29,760 | −$20,869 | −$8,891 |
| You pay | $27,650 | $22,766 | +$4,884 |
“+” means Kansas City Art Institute costs more; “−” means it costs less. Grants are the sticker price minus the net price. Cost items: IPEDS, on-campus budget. Sticker and net price: College Scorecard, latest reported year; the adjustment reconciles the two. Net price is an average for first-time, full-time students receiving federal aid, not a quote.
Common questions about Kansas City Art Institute
What is the Kansas City Art Institute acceptance rate?
Kansas City Art Institute accepts 55% of applicants (College Scorecard). In the latest IPEDS admissions year, 662 of 1,097 applicants were admitted.
How much does Kansas City Art Institute cost per year?
The sticker price (cost of attendance) is $57,410 a year. After grants and scholarships, students receiving federal aid pay $27,650 a year on average; families earning $0–30k pay $26,293 and families earning $110k+ pay $30,840.
How much do Kansas City Art Institute graduates earn?
Former Kansas City Art Institute students earn a median $37,032 ten years after starting college, compared with a U.S. median of $53,263 across the colleges we cover.
What is the Kansas City Art Institute graduation rate?
58% of first-time, full-time students graduate within six years, and 78% return for their second year.
How long does a Kansas City Art Institute degree take to pay off?
For a family earning $48–75k, finishing at Kansas City Art Institute costs about $116,738 after grants ($27,663 a year for 4.2 years, the average time graduates took). Former students earn a median $37,032 ten years after starting, $1,594 more than high school graduates in Missouri ($35,438), so repaying the cost would take more than 20 years of that gain, before taxes and interest (EducationGuide calculation).
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Sources on this page: U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard and IPEDS; U.S. Census Bureau (ACS); Bureau of Labor Statistics (OEWS, Employment Projections); Bureau of Economic Analysis; HUD; NOAA; FEMA; Urban Institute Education Data Portal (ODC-By); Wikidata. “Colleges we cover” means colleges awarding bachelor's degrees to at least 100 undergraduates. Averages are not quotes; confirm costs with the school. How we score
Data: download this school's data (JSON) · Markdown · all datasets
Cite this: “Kansas City Art Institute: cost, admissions and outcomes,” EducationGuide.com, https://educationguide.com/colleges/kansas-city-art-institute (College Scorecard and IPEDS data).