2026 Best Photography Schools in Illinois
Photography programs are offered at a focused set of schools across the country. The schools below stand out for the quality of their photography programs.
To produce this 2026 ranking, College Factual evaluated 8 schools to find the best for photography students.
What’s on this page:
Best Schools for Photography in Illinois
Below are the schools that deliver the strongest overall photography education in Illinois.
Top Schools in Photography
Our analysis ranked Columbia College Chicago the best school in the country for a degree in photography. This moderately-sized private not-for-profit university is located in the city of Chicago. The six-year graduation rate is 52%. Columbia College Chicago awarded about 64 photography degrees in the most recent data year. Soon after graduation, photography degree recipients from Columbia College Chicago generally make around $29,694. Students borrow a median of $26,000 to complete this degree.
Read more about the photography program at Columbia College Chicago
More Photography Rankings
View All Photography Rankings >
Notes and References
The ranking above is published by College Factual (MF_RANKING_2025), 2026 edition. The methodology weighs graduation rate, post-graduation earnings, cost, and program quality, drawn primarily from the U.S. Department of Education (IPEDS and College Scorecard).
Ranking method: College Major Top Ranked · 8 schools evaluated.
- 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).
More about our data sources and methodologies.
