2022 Best Value Cinematography Schools for an Associate in California

Students have lots of options to chooose from today when trying to decide which college to attend. College Factual was founded, in part, to help students make the decision as to what would be the best school for them. Our “Best Value Cinematography Schools for an Associate in California” ranking is part of that endeavor.

In 2019-2020, 8,429 people earned their degree in film and video production, making the major the 113th most popular in the United States.

Across California, there were 2,162 film and video production graduates with average earnings and debt of $0 and $0 respectively. At the associate degree level specifically, there were 324 film and video production graduates with average earnings and debt of $36,451 and $19,634 respectively.

This year’s “Best Value Cinematography Schools for an Associate in California” ranking looked at 4 colleges that offer degrees in a bachelor’s in film and video production. This ranking identifies schools with high-quality film and video production programs that also have a lower cost than schools of similar quality.

When determining these rankings, we looked at things such as overall quality of the film and video production program at the school and the cost to attend the school once aid has been awarded. Check out our ranking methodology for more information.

More Ways to Rank Film & Video Production Schools

Since the program you select can have a significant impact on your future, we’ve developed a number of rankings, including this “Best Value Cinematography Schools for an Associate in California” list, to help you choose the best school for you.

We’ve created a tool called College Combat that lets you create your own customized comparisons based on the factors that matter the most to you. If you’re torn between two schools, you can use it to help you see how they stack up against one another. Bookmark it so you can compare any new schools that might interest you.

Best Value Cinematography Schools for an Associate in California

The following schools top our list of the Best Best Value Cinematography Schools for an Associate in California.

Top 4 Best Value Associate Degree Colleges for Film & Video Production in California

#1

Santa Rosa Junior College

Santa Rosa, California

#3 in overall quality

$5,782 Average Net Price

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Santa Rosa Junior College. The school came in at #1 for the Best Value Cinematography Schools for an Associate in California. Santa Rosa, California is the setting for this fairly large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out associates’s cinematography degrees to 4 students in 2019-2020.

SRJC not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #3 on our “Best Film & Video Production Associate Degree Schools in California” list. The yearly cost to attend SRJC is $5,782 for california associate degree cinematography students.

Read more about Film & Video Production at Santa Rosa Junior College

#2

Academy of Art University

San Francisco, California

#1 in overall quality

$34,145 Average Net Price

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Academy of Art University. The school came in at #2 for the Best Value Cinematography Schools for an Associate in California. This medium-sized school is located in San Francisco, California, and it awarded 10 associates’s cinematography degrees in 2019-2020.

In addition to being on our california associate degree cinematography students list, Academy of Art University has also earned the #1 rank in our “Best Film & Video Production Associate Degree Schools in California” ranking. The yearly cost to attend Academy of Art University is $34,145 for california associate degree cinematography students.

Read more about Film & Video Production at Academy of Art University

#3

FIDM/Fashion Institute of Design & Merchandising - Los Angeles

Los Angeles, California

#2 in overall quality

$41,505 Average Net Price

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend FIDM/Fashion Institute of Design & Merchandising - Los Angeles. It ranked #3 on our 2022 Best Value Cinematography Schools for an Associate in California list. FIDM/Fashion Institute of Design & Merchandising - Los Angeles is a small private for-profit school situated in Los Angeles, California. It awarded 12 associates’s cinematography degrees in 2019-2020.

FIDM Los Angeles not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #2 on our “Best Film & Video Production Associate Degree Schools in California” list. The yearly cost to attend FIDM Los Angeles is $41,505 for California Associate Degree Cinematography students.

Read more about Film & Video Production at FIDM Los Angeles

#4

New York Film Academy

Burbank, California

#5 in overall quality

$45,280 Average Net Price

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend New York Film Academy. It ranked #4 on our 2022 Best Value Cinematography Schools for an Associate in California list. This small school is located in Burbank, California, and it awarded 8 associates’s cinematography degrees in 2019-2020.

New York Film Academy also took the #5 spot in our “Best Film & Video Production Associate Degree Schools in California” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for New York Film Academy is $45,280 for california associate degree cinematography students.

The low student loan default rate of 2.5% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%. Since the school has a student-to-faculty ratio of 9 to 1, those pursuing a degree will have more opportunities to interact with their professors.

Full New York Film Academy Film & Video Production Report

• Best Value Associate Degree Colleges for Film & Video Production in the Far Western US Region
• Best Value Associate Degree Colleges for Film & Video Production

Notes and References

References

• The Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) from the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), a branch of the U.S. Department of Education (DOE) serves as the core of our data about colleges.
• Some other college data, including much of the graduate earnings data, comes from the U.S. Department of Education’s (College Scorecard).
• Information about the national average student loan default rate is from the U.S. Department of Education and refers to data about the 2016 borrower cohort tracking period for which the cohort default rate (CDR) was 10.1%.

Read more about our data sources and methodologies

Footnotes

• *Average salary, average net price, and average tuition and fees are for the top schools only.
• Some schools otherwise deserving of recognition may have been removed from this ranking in the event that new data identified post-publication warranted it, or at the request of the school.

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