by our College Data Analytics Team
Students have lots of options to chooose from today when trying to decide which college to attend. College Factual has developed its “Most Well Attended Film Major in Illinois for a Bachelor’s” ranking as one item you can use to help make this 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 Illinois, there were 538 film, video and photographic arts graduates with average earnings and debt of $22,157 and $28,321 respectively. At the bachelor’s degree level specifically, there were 468 film, video and photographic arts graduates with average earnings and debt of $40,117 and $25,584 respectively.
For this year’s “Most Well Attended Film Major in Illinois for a Bachelor’s” ranking, we looked at 9 colleges that offer a degree in film, video and photographic arts. The schools that top this list are recognized because they have one of the most popular film, video and photographic arts programs in the United States.
Check out our ranking methodology for more information.
The film school you choose to invest your time and money in matters. To help you make the decision that is right for you, we’ve developed a number of major-specific rankings, including this list of “Most Well Attended Film Major in Illinois for a Bachelor’s”.
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. When you have some time, check it out - you may want to bookmark the link so you don’t forget it.
The colleges and universities below are the best for illinois bachelor’s degree film students.
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Columbia College Chicago. The school came in at #1 for the Most Well Attended Film Major in Illinois for a Bachelor’s. This medium-sized school is located in Chicago, Illinois, and it awarded 221 bachelors’s film degrees in 2020-2021.
Full Columbia College Chicago Film, Video & Photographic Arts Report
Out of the 9 schools in the Most Well Attended Film Major in Illinois for a Bachelor’s that were part of this year’s ranking, DePaul University landed the #2 spot on the list. DePaul University is a private not-for-profit institution located in Chicago, Illinois. The school has a large population, and it awarded 191 bachelors’s degrees in 2020-2021.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 3.7% 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%.
Full DePaul University Film, Video & Photographic Arts Report
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Southern Illinois University Carbondale. The school came in at #3 for the Most Well Attended Film Major in Illinois for a Bachelor’s. Carbondale, Illinois is the setting for this fairly large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out bachelors’s film degrees to 30 students in 2020-2021.
Full Southern Illinois University Carbondale Film, Video & Photographic Arts Report
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend University of Chicago. The school came in at #4 for the Most Well Attended Film Major in Illinois for a Bachelor’s. University of Chicago is a private not-for-profit institution located in Chicago, Illinois. The school has a fairly large population, and it awarded 16 bachelors’s degrees in 2020-2021.
The impressive undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 5 to 1 means that students may have more opportunities to work more closely with their professors than they would at other schools. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 100%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 1.0%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Read full report on Film, Video & Photographic Arts at UChicago
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. The school came in at #5 for the Most Well Attended Film Major in Illinois for a Bachelor’s. This large school is located in Champaign, Illinois, and it awarded 8 bachelors’s film degrees in 2020-2021.
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 low undergrad student loan default rate of 2.3% 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 ranking of #6, American Academy of Art did quite well on the 2023 Most Well Attended Film Major in Illinois for a Bachelor’s list. Chicago, Illinois is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. The private for-profit school handed out bachelors’s film degrees to 1 students in 2020-2021.
The undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 7 to 1 is a sign that students will have more opportunities to engage with their professors one-on-one.
Read more about Film, Video & Photographic Arts at The Academy
With a ranking of #6, Bradley University did quite well on the 2023 Most Well Attended Film Major in Illinois for a Bachelor’s list. Bradley University is a private not-for-profit institution located in Peoria, Illinois. The school has a medium-sized population, and it awarded 1 bachelors’s degrees in 2020-2021.
The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 86%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The low undergrad student loan default rate of 2.5% 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%.
Read more about Film, Video & Photographic Arts at Bradley University
Dominican University landed the #8 spot on the 2023 Most Well Attended Film Major in Illinois for a Bachelor’s ranking. Dominican University is a private not-for-profit institution located in River Forest, Illinois. The school has a small population, and it awarded 0 bachelors’s 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%. Since the school has a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 10 to 1, those pursuing a degree will have more opportunities to interact with their professors.
Read full report on Film, Video & Photographic Arts at Dominican University
Judson University did quite well in the 2023 Most Well Attended Film Major in Illinois for a Bachelor’s ranking, coming in at #8. Judson University is located in Elgin, Illinois and, has a small student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 0 bachelors’s film degrees to qualified students.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 4.3% 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 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.
Read more about Film, Video & Photographic Arts at Judson University
Read more about our data sources and methodologies
