2023 Best Value Photography Schools in California For Those Making $0-$30k
7
Ranked Colleges
360
Degrees Awarded
$35,500
Avg Net Price*
It’s not easy to decide which college to attend when there so many options available for students. College Factual has developed its “Best Value Photography Schools in California For Those Making $0-$30k” ranking as one item you can use to help make this decision.
In 2020-2021, 2,184 people earned their degree in photography, making the major the 310th most popular in the United States.
Across California, there were 360 photography graduates with average earnings and debt of $0 and $0 respectively.
This year’s “Best Value Photography Schools in California For Those Making $0-$30k” ranking looked at 7 colleges that offer degrees in a bachelor’s in photography. The schools that top this list are recognized because they have great photography programs and cost less that schools of similar quality.
When determining these rankings, we looked at things such as overall quality of the photography program at the school and the cost to attend the school once aid has been awarded. See our ranking methodology to learn more.
One Size Does Not Fit All
Since the program you select can have a significant impact on your future, we’ve developed a number of rankings, including this “Best Value Photography Schools in California For Those Making $0-$30k” list, to help you choose the best school for you.
To further help you make the college decision, we’ve developed a unique tool called College Combat that allows you to compare schools based on the factors that matter the most to you. Test it out when you get a chance! You may also want to bookmark the link and share it with others who are trying to make the college decision.
Best Value Photography Schools in California For Those Making $0-$30k
The colleges and universities below are the best for california photography students whose families make $0-$30k.
Top 7 Best Value Colleges for Photography (Income $0-$30k) in California
Out of the 7 schools in the Best Value Photography Schools in California For Those Making $0-$30k that were part of this year’s ranking, California State University - Sacramento landed the #1 spot on the list. This large school is located in Sacramento, California, and it awarded 20 ’s photography degrees in 2020-2021.
Sac State not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #5 on our “Best Photography Schools in California” list. It costs about $8,163 for california photography students whose families make $0-$30k per year to attend Sac State.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 3.9% 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%.
Read more about Photography at California State University - Sacramento
Out of the 7 schools in the Best Value Photography Schools in California For Those Making $0-$30k that were part of this year’s ranking, Academy of Art University landed the #2 spot on the list. Academy of Art University is a medium-sized school located in San Francisco, California that handed out 93 ’s photography degrees in 2020-2021.
Academy of Art University did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #1 on our “Best Photography Schools in California” list. The estimated yearly cost for Academy of Art University is $33,484 for california photography students whose families make $0-$30k.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 5.0%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Read more about Photography at Academy of Art University
Out of the 7 schools in the Best Value Photography Schools in California For Those Making $0-$30k that were part of this year’s ranking, California College of the Arts landed the #3 spot on the list. California College of the Arts is a small school located in San Francisco, California that handed out 10 ’s photography degrees in 2020-2021.
California College of the Arts not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #4 on our “Best Photography Schools in California” list. It costs about $29,530 for California Photography students whose families make $0-$30k per year to attend California College of the Arts.
Since the school has a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 8 to 1, those pursuing a degree will have more opportunities to interact with their professors. The low undergrad student loan default rate of 4.2% 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%.
Read full report on Photography at California College of the Arts
Out of the 7 schools in the Best Value Photography Schools in California For Those Making $0-$30k that were part of this year’s ranking, California Institute of the Arts landed the #4 spot on the list. CalArts is a small private not-for-profit school situated in Valencia, California. It awarded 25 ’s photography degrees in 2020-2021.
As a testament to the quality of education offered at CalArts, the school also landed the #2 spot in our “Best Photography Schools in California” ranking. It costs about $52,801 for california photography students whose families make $0-$30k per year to attend California Institute of the Arts.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 4.5%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. The undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 5 to 1 is a sign that students will have more opportunities to engage with their professors one-on-one.
Full CalArts Photography Report
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Art Center College of Design. The school came in at #5 for the Best Value Photography Schools in California For Those Making $0-$30k. Art Center College of Design is a private not-for-profit institution located in Pasadena, California. The school has a small population, and it awarded 19 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.
As a testament to the quality of education offered at Art Center College of Design, the school also landed the #3 spot in our “Best Photography Schools in California” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for Art Center College of Design is $40,209 for california photography students whose families make $0-$30k.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 3.2%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. Since the school has a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 8 to 1, those pursuing a degree will have more opportunities to interact with their professors.
Read full report on Photography at Art Center College of Design
San Francisco Art Institute did quite well in the 2023 Best Value Photography Schools in California For Those Making $0-$30k ranking, coming in at #6. San Francisco, California is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out ’s photography degrees to 12 students in 2020-2021.
In addition to being on our california photography students whose families make $0-$30k list, SFAI has also earned the #6 rank in our “Best Photography Schools in California” ranking. It costs about $40,409 for California Photography students whose families make $0-$30k per year to attend SFAI.
Since the school has a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 3 to 1, those pursuing a degree will have more opportunities to interact with their professors.
Read more about Photography at SFAI
New York Film Academy landed the #7 spot on the 2023 Best Value Photography Schools in California For Those Making $0-$30k ranking. New York Film Academy is a private for-profit institution located in Burbank, California. The school has a small population, and it awarded 23 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.
New York Film Academy did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #7 on our “Best Photography Schools in California” list. It costs about $43,567 for California Photography students whose families make $0-$30k per year to attend New York Film Academy.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 3.8%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. The undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 9 to 1 is a sign that students will have more opportunities to engage with their professors one-on-one.
Full New York Film Academy Photography Report
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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
- *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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