2022 Best Value Film Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Great Lakes Region
When pursuing a degree in today’s world, students have many different options to choose from. College Factual has developed its “Best Value Film Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Great Lakes Region” ranking as one item you can use to help make this decision.
In 2019-2020, 17,506 people earned their degree in film, video and photographic arts, making the major the 64th most popular in the United States. In 2017-2018, film, video and photographic arts graduates who were awarded their degree in 2015-2017, earned an average of $22,714 and had an average of $31,549 in loans still to pay off.
Across the Great Lakes region, there were 1,853 film, video and photographic arts graduates with average earnings and debt of $23,124 and $29,674 respectively. At the bachelor’s degree level specifically, there were 1,384 film, video and photographic arts graduates with average earnings and debt of $39,075 and $25,381 respectively.
For this year’s “Best Value Film Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Great Lakes Region” ranking, we looked at 49 colleges that offer a degree in film, video and photographic arts. The schools that top this list are recognized because they have great film, video and photographic arts programs and cost less that schools of similar quality.
When determining these rankings, we looked at things such as overall quality of the film, video and photographic arts program at the school and the cost to attend the school once aid has been awarded. For more information, check out our ranking methodology.
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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 Film Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Great Lakes Region” list, to help you choose the best school for you.
One of our other unique offerings is College Combat. This tool lets you build your own customized comparisons utilizing the factors that are most important 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 Film Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Great Lakes Region
The colleges and universities below are the best for great lakes region bachelor’s degree film students.
Top 25 Best Value Bachelor’s Degree Colleges for Film, Video & Photographic Arts in the Great Lakes Region
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend University of Wisconsin - Whitewater. The school came in at #1 for the Best Value Film Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Great Lakes Region. Located in Whitewater, Wisconsin, this fairly large public school awarded 2 diplomas to qualified bachelors’s film students in 2019-2020.
As a testament to the quality of education offered at UW - Whitewater, the school also landed the #16 spot in our “Best Film, Video & Photographic Arts Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region” ranking. It costs about $15,249 for great lakes region bachelor’s degree film students per year to attend UW - Whitewater.
Read more about Film, Video & Photographic Arts at UW - Whitewater
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Grand Valley State University. The school came in at #2 for the Best Value Film Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Great Lakes Region. Grand Valley State University is located in Allendale, Michigan and, has a large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 67 bachelors’s film degrees to qualified students.
In addition to being on our great lakes region bachelor’s degree film students list, GVSU has also earned the #13 rank in our “Best Film, Video & Photographic Arts Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region” ranking. It costs about $17,646 for Great Lakes Region Bachelor’s Degree Film students per year to attend Grand Valley State University.
The student loan default rate at the school is 3.7%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Western Michigan University. The school came in at #3 for the Best Value Film Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Great Lakes Region. Western Michigan University is a fairly large public school situated in Kalamazoo, Michigan. It awarded 34 bachelors’s film degrees in 2019-2020.
The estimated yearly cost for Western Michigan University is $19,433 for Great Lakes Region Bachelor’s Degree Film students.
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Youngstown State University. It ranked #4 on our 2022 Best Value Film Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Great Lakes Region list. Located in Youngstown, Ohio, this fairly large public school handed out 2 degrees to qualified bachelors’s film students in 2019-2020.
It costs about $11,947 for great lakes region bachelor’s degree film students per year to attend Youngstown State University.
Full Youngstown State University Film, Video & Photographic Arts Report
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Ferris State University. The school came in at #5 for the Best Value Film Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Great Lakes Region. Big Rapids, Michigan is the setting for this fairly large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out bachelors’s film degrees to 1 students in 2019-2020.
The yearly cost to attend Ferris is $12,889 for Great Lakes Region Bachelor’s Degree Film students.
Eastern Michigan University came in at #6 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Film Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Great Lakes Region ranking. Ypsilanti, Michigan is the setting for this fairly large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out bachelors’s film degrees to 32 students in 2019-2020.
The yearly cost to attend Eastern Michigan University is $15,924 for Great Lakes Region Bachelor’s Degree Film students.
Read more about Film, Video & Photographic Arts at Eastern Michigan University
Southern Illinois University Carbondale landed the #7 spot on the 2022 Best Value Film Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Great Lakes Region ranking. Southern Illinois University Carbondale is located in Carbondale, Illinois and, has a fairly large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 38 bachelors’s film degrees to qualified students.
The estimated yearly cost for SIUC is $16,945 for Great Lakes Region Bachelor’s Degree Film students.
Full Southern Illinois University Carbondale Film, Video & Photographic Arts Report
With a ranking of #8, Purdue University - Main Campus did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Film Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Great Lakes Region list. West Lafayette, Indiana is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out bachelors’s film degrees to 27 students in 2019-2020.
In addition to being on our great lakes region bachelor’s degree film students list, Purdue has also earned the #4 rank in our “Best Film, Video & Photographic Arts Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for Purdue University - Main Campus is $13,986 for great lakes region bachelor’s degree film students.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 93%. The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 2.2%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
University of Wisconsin - Milwaukee landed the #9 spot on the 2022 Best Value Film Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Great Lakes Region ranking. Located in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, this large public school handed out 77 diplomas to qualified bachelors’s film students in 2019-2020.
As a testament to the quality of education offered at UWM, the school also landed the #25 spot in our “Best Film, Video & Photographic Arts Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for UWM is $17,876 for great lakes region bachelor’s degree film students.
Read more about Film, Video & Photographic Arts at University of Wisconsin - Milwaukee
With a ranking of #10, Bowling Green State University - Main Campus did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Film Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Great Lakes Region list. BGSU is a public institution located in Bowling Green, Ohio. The school has a fairly large population, and it awarded 33 bachelors’s degrees in 2019-2020.
It costs about $18,394 for Great Lakes Region Bachelor’s Degree Film students per year to attend Bowling Green State University - Main Campus.
Full Bowling Green State University - Main Campus Film, Video & Photographic Arts Report
With a ranking of #11, Northern Michigan University did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Film Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Great Lakes Region list. Northern Michigan University is a public institution located in Marquette, Michigan. The school has a medium-sized population, and it awarded 14 bachelors’s degrees in 2019-2020.
The estimated yearly cost for Northern Michigan University is $15,453 for Great Lakes Region Bachelor’s Degree Film students.
Read more about Film, Video & Photographic Arts at Northern Michigan University
Cleveland State University ranked #12 on this year’s Best Value Film Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Great Lakes Region list. Cleveland, Ohio is the setting for this fairly large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out bachelors’s film degrees to 37 students in 2019-2020.
The estimated yearly cost for Cleveland State University is $17,278 for Great Lakes Region Bachelor’s Degree Film students.
Read more about Film, Video & Photographic Arts at Cleveland State University
Huntington University came in at #13 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Film Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Great Lakes Region ranking. This small school is located in Huntington, Indiana, and it awarded 25 bachelors’s film degrees in 2019-2020.
It costs about $22,869 for Great Lakes Region Bachelor’s Degree Film students per year to attend Huntington.
Full Huntington University Film, Video & Photographic Arts Report
Wright State University - Main Campus came in at #14 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Film Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Great Lakes Region ranking. Wright State University - Main Campus is located in Dayton, Ohio and, has a fairly large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 22 bachelors’s film degrees to qualified students.
The yearly cost to attend Wright State University - Main Campus is $16,823 for Great Lakes Region Bachelor’s Degree Film students.
Full Wright State University - Main Campus Film, Video & Photographic Arts Report
University of Toledo did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Film Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Great Lakes Region ranking, coming in at #15. Located in Toledo, Ohio, this fairly large public school awarded 9 diplomas to qualified bachelors’s film students in 2019-2020.
The yearly cost to attend University of Toledo is $17,630 for Great Lakes Region Bachelor’s Degree Film students.
Read full report on Film, Video & Photographic Arts at University of Toledo
University of Cincinnati - Main Campus did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Film Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Great Lakes Region ranking, coming in at #16. University of Cincinnati - Main Campus is located in Cincinnati, Ohio and, has a large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 2 bachelors’s film degrees to qualified students.
As a testament to the quality of education offered at UC, the school also landed the #19 spot in our “Best Film, Video & Photographic Arts Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for UC is $21,843 for Great Lakes Region Bachelor’s Degree Film students.
The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 88%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.
University of Akron Main Campus came in at #17 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Film Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Great Lakes Region ranking. This fairly large school is located in Akron, Ohio, and it awarded 3 bachelors’s film degrees in 2019-2020.
It costs about $17,792 for Great Lakes Region Bachelor’s Degree Film students per year to attend University of Akron Main Campus.
Read full report on Film, Video & Photographic Arts at University of Akron Main Campus
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign came in at #18 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Film Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Great Lakes Region ranking. Champaign, Illinois is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out bachelors’s film degrees to 11 students in 2019-2020.
UIUC not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #2 on our “Best Film, Video & Photographic Arts Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region” list. It costs about $15,880 for great lakes region bachelor’s degree film students per year to attend UIUC.
The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 94%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 2.4%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Oakland University landed the #19 spot on the 2022 Best Value Film Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Great Lakes Region ranking. Located in Rochester Hills, Michigan, this fairly large public school awarded 26 degrees to qualified bachelors’s film students in 2019-2020.
It costs about $11,802 for great lakes region bachelor’s degree film students per year to attend Oakland.
Taylor University ranked #20 on this year’s Best Value Film Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Great Lakes Region list. Taylor University is a small private not-for-profit school situated in Upland, Indiana. It awarded 16 bachelors’s film degrees in 2019-2020.
Taylor U also took the #5 spot in our “Best Film, Video & Photographic Arts Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region” ranking. It costs about $25,888 for Great Lakes Region Bachelor’s Degree Film students per year to attend Taylor U.
The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 89%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 1.9%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Ohio University - Athens Campus landed the #21 spot on the 2022 Best Value Film Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Great Lakes Region ranking. OHIO Athens is a large school located in Athens, Ohio that handed out 3 bachelors’s film degrees in 2019-2020.
The yearly cost to attend Ohio University - Athens Campus is $22,906 for Great Lakes Region Bachelor’s Degree Film students.
Indiana Wesleyan University ranked #22 on this year’s Best Value Film Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Great Lakes Region list. IWU is located in Marion, Indiana and, has a small student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 9 bachelors’s film degrees to qualified students.
The yearly cost to attend Indiana Wesleyan University is $20,946 for Great Lakes Region Bachelor’s Degree Film students.
Read full report on Film, Video & Photographic Arts at Indiana Wesleyan University
With a ranking of #23, Columbia College Chicago did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Film Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Great Lakes Region list. Located in Chicago, Illinois, this medium-sized private not-for-profit school handed out 312 degrees to qualified bachelors’s film students in 2019-2020.
Columbia not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #22 on our “Best Film, Video & Photographic Arts Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region” list. The estimated yearly cost for Columbia is $31,099 for great lakes region bachelor’s degree film students.
Read full report on Film, Video & Photographic Arts at Columbia
Bradley University ranked #24 on this year’s Best Value Film Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Great Lakes Region list. Bradley University is a private not-for-profit institution located in Peoria, Illinois. The school has a medium-sized population, and it awarded 9 bachelors’s degrees in 2019-2020.
As a testament to the quality of education offered at Bradley, the school also landed the #14 spot in our “Best Film, Video & Photographic Arts Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region” ranking. It costs about $25,634 for great lakes region bachelor’s degree film students per year to attend Bradley.
The student loan default rate at the school is 2.5%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. With a freshman retention rate of 86%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students.
Read more about Film, Video & Photographic Arts at Bradley University
Wayne State University did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Film Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Great Lakes Region ranking, coming in at #25. Wayne State University is located in Detroit, Michigan and, has a large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 24 bachelors’s film degrees to qualified students.
It costs about $13,965 for great lakes region bachelor’s degree film students per year to attend Wayne State.
Read full report on Film, Video & Photographic Arts at Wayne State
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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
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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