California College of the Arts
About
California College of the Arts (CCA) is highly regarded for its interdisciplinary approach to art and design education, boasting top-tier, nationally ranked programs in industrial design, architecture, animation, and interaction design. The student experience is defined by a collaborative, maker-centric culture on a newly unified San Francisco campus that fosters a tight-knit, diverse community of socially conscious creators. What truly sets CCA apart is its deep integration with the Bay Area's innovation economy, which provides students with unparalleled networking opportunities and direct career pipelines to world-class creative and tech giants like Pixar, Apple, and Google.
Wikipedia:The California College of the Arts (CCA) is a private art school in San Francisco, California. It was founded in Berkeley, California in 1907 and moved to a historic estate in Oakland, California in 1922. In 1996, it opened a second campus in San Francisco; in 2022, the Oakland campus was closed and merged into the San Francisco campus. CCA enrolls approximately 1,239 undergraduates and 380 graduate students. In January 2026, CCA president David Howse announced the college will be closing at the end of the 2026–2027 academic year, with Vanderbilt University taking over the campus.
Location
Cost
Admissions
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Essay Requirements
California College of the Arts accepts the Common Application. All Common App schools require the personal statement essay. Some schools also require supplemental essays — check the school's page on Common App for current prompts and word limits.
See the current Common App essay prompts for the personal statement options.
Outcomes
Student Body
Programs & Earnings
Institutional
Wondering if California College of the Arts is the right fit for you?
Scout builds a personalized college list — reach, match, and safety schools — tailored to your profile, grades, and goals. Get financial aid estimates, scholarship guidance, and deep dives on every school.