Best Schools for Arts under $20K

8 schools match. Top 8 ranked by size, tuition fit, and freshness of our data.

We track 8 schools offering Arts programs across our active markets. Annual tuition ranges from $8K/yr to $18.9K/yr, with a median of $15.8K/yr across schools that publish a number. 8 of these schools accept Florida Step Up / FES scholarships — roughly 100% of the list — so families using state-funded scholarships have real choice here.

Admissions processes vary by school. AdmitCompass surfaces the deadlines, test requirements, and tuition for each campus on its detail page, so families can build a balanced reach / target / safety list. Every school is re-verified through direct outreach to admissions teams; data is refreshed on a 180-day cadence and timestamped on each profile.

See also: Scholarship-friendly, Tuition-Free.

  1. 1

    Northside Christian School

    St. Petersburg, Pinellas County · Grades PK-12

    Tuition
    $18.8K/yr
    Type
    private
    • ~900 students
  2. 2

    Calvary Christian High School

    Clearwater, Pinellas County · Grades 9-12

    Tuition
    $18.9K/yr
    Type
    private
    • ~900 students
  3. 3

    Tampa Catholic High School

    Tampa, Hillsborough County · Grades 9-12

    Tuition
    $16.9K/yr
    Type
    private
    • ~800 students
  4. 4

    Saint Petersburg Catholic High School

    Saint Petersburg, Pinellas County · Grades 09-12

    Tuition
    $16K/yr
    Type
    private
    • ~500 students
  5. 5

    Country Day School

    Largo, Pinellas County · Grades PK-08

    Tuition
    $15.5K/yr
    Type
    private
    • ~250 students
  6. 6

    Grace Christian School

    Valrico, Hillsborough County · Grades PK-12

    Tuition
    $9.4K/yr
    Type
    private
    • ~700 students
  7. 7

    Foundation Christian Academy

    Valrico, Hillsborough County · Grades PK-12

    Tuition
    $9.6K/yr
    Type
    private
    • ~550 students
  8. 8

    Classical Christian School For The Arts Inc.

    Pinellas Park, Pinellas County · Grades KG-12

    Tuition
    $8K/yr
    Type
    private
    • ~250 students
How we rank these schools

Built relationships, not scrapers. AdmitCompass ranks schools using a composite score that blends four signals: enrollment size (a proxy for stability and program breadth), tuition reasonableness within the local market, freshness of our most recent verification, and a small bonus for schools with full admissions detail published on their profile.

Public data comes from the Florida Department of Education (FLDOE), the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), and each school's own admissions pages. The information that actually matters to most families — acceptance rates, deadlines, what a director cares about — comes from direct interviews with school directors and admissions coaches across our active markets.

We do not publish scoring weights or per-axis thresholds. That keeps the moat intact: the rankings reflect actual conversations with people inside schools, not a formula anyone with a crawler could clone. Every profile is re-verified on a 180-day cadence, and the "last updated" date is timestamped on every school page.

Read the full methodology.

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Frequently asked questions

What's the average tuition for schools?
Across the 8 schools on this list, annual tuition ranges from $8K/yr to $18.9K/yr, with a median of $15.8K/yr. Many schools offer financial aid, sibling discounts, or accept Florida Step Up / FES scholarships — check each school's detail page for current aid policy.
How competitive is admission?
Admissions selectivity ranges from open-enrollment (most charters and parish schools) to highly selective (top independent K-12 programs). Each school's profile page lists deadlines, test requirements, and any published acceptance rate.
Do these schools accept Step Up / FES scholarships?
8 of the 8 schools on this page accept Florida's Step Up For Students / FES-EO / FES-UA scholarships. That covers most or all of tuition for income-eligible families. Each school's detail page lists the specific scholarship programs accepted.
What's the smallest and largest school on this list?
Classical Christian School For The Arts Inc. is the smallest with 232 students; Northside Christian School is the largest at 900. Smaller schools tend to offer more direct teacher contact and tighter community; larger schools usually have more elective and extracurricular breadth.
How many schools offer Arts programs?
8 schools on this page have documented Arts programs. Program depth varies — some schools embed it across the curriculum, others offer dedicated tracks or after-school options. Visit each school's profile for specifics.
Is this list updated?
Yes. We re-verify school data on a 180-day cadence through direct contact with admissions teams, plus cross-checks against FLDOE, NCES, and published school sources. Each school profile shows the date of its most recent verification.

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