by our College Data Analytics Team
Students have lots of options to chooose from today when trying to decide which college to attend. One of our goals at College Factual is to give you as much information as we can - such as our “Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Film Major in California” ranking - to help you make that decision.
In 2020-2021, 16,778 people earned their degree in film, video and photographic arts, making the major the 62nd most popular in the United States. In 2019-2020, film, video and photographic arts graduates who were awarded their degree in 2017-2019, earned an average of $24,170 and had an average of $25,804 in loans still to pay off.
Across California, there were 4,258 film, video and photographic arts graduates with average earnings and debt of $25,500 and $27,453 respectively. At the bachelor’s degree level specifically, there were 2,667 film, video and photographic arts graduates with average earnings and debt of $39,566 and $21,995 respectively.
For this year’s “Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Film Major in California” ranking, we looked at 42 colleges that offer a degree in film, video and photographic arts. That schools that top this list have a program in film, video and photographic arts in which the largest percentage of students at the school are enrolled.
For more information, check out our ranking methodology.
When choosing the right school for you, it’s important to arm yourself with all the facts you can. To that end, we’ve created a number of major-specific rankings, including this “Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Film Major in California” list to help you make the college decision.
In addition to College Factual’s rankings, you may want to take a look at College Combat, our unique tool that lets you pit your favorite schools head-to-head and compare how they rate on factors that most interest 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.
The following schools top our list of the Best “Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Film Major in California”.
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Columbia College Hollywood. It ranked #1 on our 2023 Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Film Major in California list. Columbia College Hollywood is a private not-for-profit institution located in Tarzana, California. The school has a small population, and it awarded 127 bachelors’s degrees in 2020-2021.
Read more about Film, Video & Photographic Arts at Columbia College Hollywood
Out of the 42 schools in the Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Film Major in California that were part of this year’s ranking, San Francisco Art Institute landed the #2 spot on the list. San Francisco Art Institute is a small school located in San Francisco, California that handed out 18 bachelors’s film degrees in 2020-2021.
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.
Out of the 42 schools in the Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Film Major in California that were part of this year’s ranking, Los Angeles Film School landed the #3 spot on the list. Hollywood, California is the setting for this medium-sized institution of higher learning. The private for-profit school handed out bachelors’s film degrees to 240 students in 2020-2021.
Read more about Film, Video & Photographic Arts at LA Film School
Out of the 42 schools in the Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Film Major in California that were part of this year’s ranking, New York Film Academy landed the #4 spot on the list. Located in Burbank, California, this small private for-profit school awarded 113 diplomas to qualified bachelors’s film students in 2020-2021.
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 impressive undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 9 to 1 means that students may have more opportunities to work more closely with their professors than they would at other schools.
Read full report on Film, Video & Photographic Arts at New York Film Academy
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Woodbury University. The school came in at #5 for the Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Film Major in California. Woodbury University is a small private not-for-profit school situated in Burbank, California. It awarded 42 bachelors’s film degrees in 2020-2021.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 4.4%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. The impressive undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 10 to 1 means that students may have more opportunities to work more closely with their professors than they would at other schools.
California Institute of the Arts landed the #6 spot on the 2023 Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Film Major in California ranking. Valencia, California is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out bachelors’s film degrees to 27 students in 2020-2021.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 4.5% 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%. With a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 5 to 1, it’s easy to see that the school is committed to helping their undergraduates succeed.
Read full report on Film, Video & Photographic Arts at CalArts
Art Center College of Design came in at #7 in this year’s edition of the Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Film Major in California ranking. Art Center College of Design is a small private not-for-profit school situated in Pasadena, California. It awarded 43 bachelors’s film degrees in 2020-2021.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 3.2%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. The impressive undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 8 to 1 means that students may have more opportunities to work more closely with their professors than they would at other schools.
Read more about Film, Video & Photographic Arts at Art Center College of Design
Occidental College landed the #8 spot on the 2023 Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Film Major in California ranking. Oxy is a small private not-for-profit school situated in Los Angeles, California. It awarded 24 bachelors’s film degrees in 2020-2021.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 1.2% 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%. The impressive undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 8 to 1 means that students may have more opportunities to work more closely with their professors than they would at other schools.
Full Occidental College Film, Video & Photographic Arts Report
Academy of Art University did quite well in the 2023 Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Film Major in California ranking, coming in at #9. Academy of Art University is a private for-profit institution located in San Francisco, California. The school has a medium-sized population, and it awarded 83 bachelors’s degrees in 2020-2021.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 5.0% 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 Film, Video & Photographic Arts at Academy of Art University
California College of the Arts came in at #10 in this year’s edition of the Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Film Major in California ranking. San Francisco, California is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out bachelors’s film degrees to 19 students in 2020-2021.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 4.2%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. With a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 8 to 1, it’s easy to see that the school is committed to helping their undergraduates succeed.
Full California College of the Arts Film, Video & Photographic Arts Report
Biola University ranked #11 on this year’s Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Film Major in California list. Located in La Mirada, California, this medium-sized private not-for-profit school handed out 56 degrees to qualified bachelors’s film students in 2020-2021.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 2.7%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Read full report on Film, Video & Photographic Arts at Biola University
Chapman University landed the #12 spot on the 2023 Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Film Major in California ranking. Chapman is located in Orange, California and, has a medium-sized student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 111 bachelors’s film degrees to qualified students.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 85%. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 2.1%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Read more about Film, Video & Photographic Arts at Chapman University
With a ranking of #13, San Francisco State University did quite well on the 2023 Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Film Major in California list. SFSU is a public institution located in San Francisco, California. The school has a large population, and it awarded 238 bachelors’s degrees in 2020-2021.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 4.3%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Read full report on Film, Video & Photographic Arts at San Francisco State University
University of California - Santa Cruz landed the #14 spot on the 2023 Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Film Major in California ranking. University of California - Santa Cruz is located in Santa Cruz, California and, has a fairly large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 177 bachelors’s film degrees to qualified students.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 2.9%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 85%.
Read full report on Film, Video & Photographic Arts at UC Santa Cruz
University of California - Riverside did quite well in the 2023 Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Film Major in California ranking, coming in at #15. UCR is a large public school situated in Riverside, California. It awarded 199 bachelors’s film degrees in 2020-2021.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 2.3%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 91%.
Read full report on Film, Video & Photographic Arts at University of California - Riverside
Loyola Marymount University did quite well in the 2023 Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Film Major in California ranking, coming in at #16. Loyola Marymount is a fairly large private not-for-profit school situated in Los Angeles, California. It awarded 69 bachelors’s film degrees in 2020-2021.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 1.8%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. The impressive undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 10 to 1 means that students may have more opportunities to work more closely with their professors than they would at other schools.
Read more about Film, Video & Photographic Arts at Loyola Marymount
With a ranking of #17, University of California - Santa Barbara did quite well on the 2023 Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Film Major in California list. UCSB is a large public school situated in Santa Barbara, California. It awarded 182 bachelors’s film degrees in 2020-2021.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 1.8%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 91%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.
SAE Expression College came in at #18 in this year’s edition of the Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Film Major in California ranking. Located in Emeryville, California, this small private for-profit school awarded 2 degrees to qualified bachelors’s film students in 2020-2021.
Full SAE Expression College Film, Video & Photographic Arts Report
Mount Saint Mary’s University ranked #19 on this year’s Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Film Major in California list. Los Angeles, California is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out bachelors’s film degrees to 14 students in 2020-2021.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 3.3%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. The undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 10 to 1 is a sign that students will have more opportunities to engage with their professors one-on-one.
California State University - Long Beach came in at #20 in this year’s edition of the Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Film Major in California ranking. This large school is located in Long Beach, California, and it awarded 178 bachelors’s film degrees in 2020-2021.
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 low undergrad student loan default rate of 2.4% 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 Film, Video & Photographic Arts at CSULB
University of California - Irvine did quite well in the 2023 Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Film Major in California ranking, coming in at #21. University of California - Irvine is a large school located in Irvine, California that handed out 167 bachelors’s film degrees in 2020-2021.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 1.4% 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%. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 94%.
Read more about Film, Video & Photographic Arts at University of California - Irvine
Humboldt State University came in at #22 in this year’s edition of the Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Film Major in California ranking. Located in Arcata, California, this medium-sized public school awarded 21 degrees to qualified bachelors’s film students in 2020-2021.
Full Humboldt State University Film, Video & Photographic Arts Report
University of Southern California landed the #23 spot on the 2023 Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Film Major in California ranking. USC is a private not-for-profit institution located in Los Angeles, California. The school has a large population, and it awarded 158 bachelors’s degrees in 2020-2021.
With a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 9 to 1, it’s easy to see that the school is committed to helping their undergraduates succeed. With a freshman retention rate of 91%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 1.3%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Read more about Film, Video & Photographic Arts at University of Southern California
With a ranking of #24, La Sierra University did quite well on the 2023 Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Film Major in California list. This small school is located in Riverside, California, and it awarded 4 bachelors’s film degrees in 2020-2021.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 3.5%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Read more about Film, Video & Photographic Arts at La Sierra
California Baptist University came in at #25 in this year’s edition of the Schools for a Bachelor’s Highly Focused on Film Major in California ranking. California Baptist University is located in Riverside, California and, has a fairly large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 28 bachelors’s film degrees to qualified students.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 3.1%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Full California Baptist University Film, Video & Photographic Arts Report
Read more about our data sources and methodologies
