[2] The school is one of the largest property owners in San Francisco, with the main campus located on New Montgomery Street in the South of Market district.

[3] In fall 2024, it had 121 full-time teachers, 485 part-time teaching staff, and 6,320 students;[1] it claims to be the largest privately owned art and design school in the United States.

[25][26] In January 2020, the agreement was amended, requiring the Academy of Art University to pay $37.6 million to build affordable housing.

[28] In 2024, AAU sold the Da Vinci Villa, a 153-unit student housing complex in Russian Hill, for $16.5 million.

[20] Academy of Art University received regional accreditation from the Western Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC) in 2007.

[35][36] According to the National Center for Education Statistics, 45% of students who began their studies in fall 2013 completed a four-year degree within 150% of that time (the "6-year graduation rate").

Valentin Pepiot, their third NCAA Nationals individual qualifier, was one of the top finishers from the PacWest in the postseason finale.

For the 2015 indoor and outdoor track and field seasons, they had seven All-American honors and one NCAA individual champion in Jordan Edwards.