Film, Video & Photographic Arts is above average in terms of popularity with it being the #62 most popular degree program in the country. So, you have a fair amount of options to choose from when looking for a school.
For its 2025 ranking, College Factual looked at 215 schools in the United States to determine which ones were the best for film, video & photographic arts students pursuing a degree. Combined, these schools handed out 17,626 degrees in film, video & photographic arts to qualified students.
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Learn to create a striking portfolio and hone the skills you need to succeed in the world of professional photography with this online digital photography degree from Southern New Hampshire University.
Choosing a Great Film, Video & Photographic Arts School
The film program you select can have a big impact on your future. That's why we developed our collection of Best Schools for Film, Video & Photographic Arts rankings. In order to come up with a best overall ranking for film, video & photographic arts schools, we combine our degree-level rankings, weighting them by the number of degrees awarded at each level.
In order to find the schools that are the best fit for you, you may want to filter to one of the degree levels below.
Film, Video & Photographic Arts Rankings by Degree Level
Since picking the right college can be one of the most important decisions of your life, we've developed the Best Film, Video & Photographic Arts Schools ranking, along with many other major-related rankings, to help you make that decision.
More interested in schools in a specific area of the country? Filter this list by region or state.
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.
Go ahead and give it a try, or bookmark the link so you can check it out later.
Take the first step toward a career of visual expression and doing what you love with this online associate degree from Southern New Hampshire University.
Learn to create a striking portfolio and hone the skills you need to succeed in the world of professional photography with this online digital photography degree from Southern New Hampshire University.
Best Schools for Film, Video & Photographic Arts in the United States
Although we recommend filtering by degree level first, you can view the list below to see which schools give the educational experience for the film degree levels they offer. Only those schools that rank in the top 20% of all the schools we analyze get awarded with a place on this list.
University of Southern California is one of the best schools in the country for getting a degree in film, video & photographic arts. Located in the city of Los Angeles, USC is a private not-for-profit university with a very large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #13 out of 2,152 schools nationwide means USC is a great university overall.
There were approximately 317 film, video & photographic arts students who graduated with this degree at USC in the most recent year we have data available. Degree recipients from the film, video & photographic arts major at University of Southern California earn $5,061 above the typical college graduate with the same degree when they enter the workforce.
It is hard to beat New York University if you want to pursue a degree in film, video & photographic arts. NYU is a fairly large private not-for-profit university located in the large city of New York. A Best Colleges rank of #16 out of 2,152 colleges nationwide means NYU is a great university overall.
There were approximately 465 film, video & photographic arts students who graduated with this degree at NYU in the most recent data year. Students who graduate with their degree from the film program report average early career earnings of $22,591.
Take the first step toward a career of visual expression and doing what you love with this online associate degree from Southern New Hampshire University.
Chapman University is one of the best schools in the United States for getting a degree in film, video & photographic arts. Located in the city of Orange, Chapman is a private not-for-profit university with a medium-sized student population. This university ranks 24th out of 161 schools for overall quality in the state of California.
There were roughly 306 film, video & photographic arts students who graduated with this degree at Chapman in the most recent data year. Degree recipients from the film, video & photographic arts degree program at Chapman University earn $8,016 above the average college grad in this field shortly after graduation.
University of Michigan - Ann Arbor is a wonderful option for students interested in a degree in film, video & photographic arts. Located in the medium-sized city of Ann Arbor, U-M is a public university with a very large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #22 out of 2,152 colleges nationwide means U-M is a great university overall.
There were about 88 film, video & photographic arts students who graduated with this degree at U-M in the most recent data year. Students who graduate with their degree from the film program report average early career wages of $25,565.
WUSTL is a large private not-for-profit university located in the large suburb of Saint Louis. A Best Colleges rank of #21 out of 2,152 colleges nationwide means WUSTL is a great university overall.
There were about 16 film, video & photographic arts students who graduated with this degree at WUSTL in the most recent year we have data available.
UCSB is a very large public university located in the medium-sized suburb of Santa Barbara. A Best Colleges rank of #47 out of 2,152 schools nationwide means UCSB is a great university overall.
There were about 166 film, video & photographic arts students who graduated with this degree at UCSB in the most recent year we have data available. Those film, video & photographic arts students who get their degree from University of California - Santa Barbara earn $2,626 more than the standard film graduate.
Located in the suburb of Ithaca, Ithaca is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population. This college ranks 23rd out of 136 colleges for overall quality in the state of New York.
There were approximately 108 film, video & photographic arts students who graduated with this degree at Ithaca in the most recent year we have data available. Students who graduate with their degree from the film program state that they receive average early career income of $23,782.
Learn to create a striking portfolio and hone the skills you need to succeed in the world of professional photography with this online digital photography degree from Southern New Hampshire University.
Located in the city of Savannah, SCAD is a private not-for-profit college with a large student population.
There were about 443 film, video & photographic arts students who graduated with this degree at SCAD in the most recent year we have data available. Students who graduate with their degree from the film program report average early career earnings of $26,679.
Temple is a very large public university located in the large city of Philadelphia. This university ranks 8th out of 103 colleges for overall quality in the state of Pennsylvania.
There were about 180 film, video & photographic arts students who graduated with this degree at Temple in the most recent year we have data available. Students who receive their degree from the film program earn about $24,345 in their early career salary.
UW Seattle is a very large public university located in the city of Seattle. A Best Colleges rank of #44 out of 2,152 schools nationwide means UW Seattle is a great university overall.
There were approximately 68 film, video & photographic arts students who graduated with this degree at UW Seattle in the most recent year we have data available. Film, Video & Photographic Arts degree recipients from University of Washington - Seattle Campus receive an earnings boost of approximately $2,579 above the typical income of film, video & photographic arts majors.
Emerson is a medium-sized private not-for-profit college located in the city of Boston. This college ranks 16th out of 63 schools for overall quality in the state of Massachusetts.
There were approximately 359 film, video & photographic arts students who graduated with this degree at Emerson in the most recent data year. Students who graduate with their degree from the film program report average early career earnings of $27,032.
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Located in the city of Washington, The American University is a private not-for-profit university with a large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #61 out of 2,152 schools nationwide means The American University is a great university overall.
There were approximately 97 film, video & photographic arts students who graduated with this degree at The American University in the most recent year we have data available. Degree recipients from the film, video & photographic arts major at American University get $12,848 more than the standard college graduate with the same degree shortly after graduation.
Columbia is a moderately-sized private not-for-profit college located in the large city of Chicago. This college ranks 9th out of 85 colleges for overall quality in the state of Illinois.
There were roughly 198 film, video & photographic arts students who graduated with this degree at Columbia in the most recent year we have data available. Soon after graduating, film degree recipients typically earn an average of $24,415 in their early careers.
UPenn is a very large private not-for-profit university located in the large city of Philadelphia. A Best Colleges rank of #2 out of 2,152 colleges nationwide means UPenn is a great university overall.
There were approximately 20 film, video & photographic arts students who graduated with this degree at UPenn in the most recent data year.
UCLA is a fairly large public university located in the city of Los Angeles. A Best Colleges rank of #28 out of 2,152 schools nationwide means UCLA is a great university overall.
There were approximately 121 film, video & photographic arts students who graduated with this degree at UCLA in the most recent data year. Degree recipients from the film, video & photographic arts degree program at University of California - Los Angeles earn $11,465 more than the typical college grad with the same degree when they enter the workforce.
Located in the city of Nashville, Vanderbilt is a private not-for-profit university with a fairly large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #18 out of 2,152 schools nationwide means Vanderbilt is a great university overall.
There were about 11 film, video & photographic arts students who graduated with this degree at Vanderbilt in the most recent data year.
Located in the city of Evanston, Northwestern is a private not-for-profit university with a fairly large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #5 out of 2,152 schools nationwide means Northwestern is a great university overall.
There were approximately 14 film, video & photographic arts students who graduated with this degree at Northwestern in the most recent data year.
Located in the city of San Francisco, SFSU is a public university with a fairly large student population. This university ranks 30th out of 161 colleges for overall quality in the state of California.
There were about 257 film, video & photographic arts students who graduated with this degree at SFSU in the most recent year we have data available. Graduates who receive their degree from the film program make an average of $18,654 for their early career.
Located in the midsize city of Syracuse, Syracuse is a private not-for-profit university with a very large student population. This university ranks 5th out of 136 schools for overall quality in the state of New York.
There were roughly 64 film, video & photographic arts students who graduated with this degree at Syracuse in the most recent year we have data available. Soon after graduating, film degree recipients generally earn around $26,331 in their early careers.
Located in the large suburb of Rochester, RIT is a private not-for-profit school with a fairly large student population. This school ranks 13th out of 136 schools for overall quality in the state of New York.
There were about 137 film, video & photographic arts students who graduated with this degree at RIT in the most recent data year. Degree recipients from the film, video & photographic arts program at Rochester Institute of Technology make $2,876 above the average college graduate in this field when they enter the workforce.
Emory is a fairly large private not-for-profit university located in the city of Atlanta. A Best Colleges rank of #31 out of 2,152 schools nationwide means Emory is a great university overall.
There were roughly 40 film, video & photographic arts students who graduated with this degree at Emory in the most recent year we have data available.
Located in the small city of Santa Cruz, UC Santa Cruz is a public university with a large student population. This university ranks 13th out of 161 colleges for overall quality in the state of California.
There were about 188 film, video & photographic arts students who graduated with this degree at UC Santa Cruz in the most recent year we have data available. After graduation, film degree recipients generally make around $23,614 in the first five years of their career.
Located in the medium-sized city of Columbia, UofSC is a public university with a fairly large student population. This university ranks 1st out of 45 colleges for overall quality in the state of South Carolina.
There were approximately 105 film, video & photographic arts students who graduated with this degree at UofSC in the most recent data year. Graduates who receive their degree from the film program make an average of $23,686 in their early career salary.
UCR is a fairly large public university located in the city of Riverside. This university ranks 28th out of 161 schools for overall quality in the state of California.
There were roughly 206 film, video & photographic arts students who graduated with this degree at UCR in the most recent year we have data available. Soon after graduation, film degree recipients usually earn an average of $24,840 in their early careers.
Located in the medium-sized city of Tempe, ASU - Tempe is a public university with a very large student population. This university ranks 2nd out of 26 schools for overall quality in the state of Arizona.
There were about 166 film, video & photographic arts students who graduated with this degree at ASU - Tempe in the most recent year we have data available. Film, Video & Photographic Arts degree recipients from Arizona State University - Tempe receive an earnings boost of approximately $5,166 above the average income of film, video & photographic arts graduates.
These are some additional schools worth mentioning that are also great but just didn't quite make the cut to earn our top Best Film, Video & Photographic Arts Schools award.
The bars on the spread charts above show the distribution of the schools on this list +/- one standard deviation from the mean.
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 the rest 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).
The film program you select can have a big impact on your future. That's why we developed our collection of Best Schools for Film, Video & Photographic Arts rankings. In order to come up with a best overall ranking for film, video & photographic arts schools, we combine our degree-level rankings, weighting them by the number of degrees awarded at each level.
