Majors

Best Colleges for Film and Photography, by Earnings

337 of the colleges we track award a bachelor's degree in Film and Photography, about 11,120 degrees a year. Across the 129 that report earnings, graduates make a median of $45,423 four years after finishing.

Rank	College	State	Median earnings, 4 years out	Degrees a year	Acceptance rate
1	University of California-Berkeley	CA	$70,963	112	11%
2	Chapman University	CA	$66,494	180	65.4%
3	Rutgers University-New Brunswick	NJ	$63,679	26	58.1%
4	Rutgers University-Newark	NJ	$63,679	10	71.4%
5	Seattle University	WA	$62,385	12	76.9%
6	Loyola Marymount University	CA	$61,500	117	45.1%
7	Tufts University	MA	$59,960	44	11.5%
8	New York University	NY	$58,720	446	7.7%
9	University of Southern California	CA	$58,623	178	9.8%
10	University of California-Davis	CA	$57,999	76	41.8%
11	University of Michigan	MI	$57,059	96	15.6%
12	Marymount Manhattan College	NY	$55,285	30	82.6%
13	Fordham University	NY	$54,738	44	59.3%
14	Syracuse University	NY	$54,115	60	45.9%
15	Wheaton College (Massachusetts)	MA	$54,106	17	67.7%
16	Brigham Young University	UT	$53,695	49	67.8%
17	Rochester Institute of Technology	NY	$52,970	116	66.9%
18	University of California-Riverside	CA	$52,699	190	76.4%
19	American University	DC	$52,661	45	62%
20	Pace University	NY	$52,368	77	75.9%
21	Purdue University	IN	$52,105	26	49.9%
22	Quinnipiac University	CT	$52,094	47	72.2%
23	University of Miami	FL	$52,032	45	18.9%
24	University of California-Irvine	CA	$51,423	175	28.6%
25	College of Staten Island CUNY	NY	$51,363	19	92.3%
26	Rhode Island School of Design	RI	$51,278	44	18.7%
27	Massachusetts College of Art and Design	MA	$51,139	91	76.3%
28	University of California-Los Angeles	CA	$50,904	22	9%
29	Southern New Hampshire University	NH	$50,871	130	99.5%
30	Montclair State University	NJ	$50,790	96	87.9%
31	University of Maryland	MD	$50,713	19	44.8%
32	Ohio State University	OH	$50,565	45	60.6%
33	University of Oregon	OR	$50,499	85	88.3%
34	Taylor University	IN	$50,403	31	73.5%
35	Woodbury University	CA	$50,387	14	81.7%
36	George Mason University	VA	$50,086	36	87.5%
37	University of Massachusetts-Dartmouth	MA	$50,008	9	90.6%
38	George Fox University	OR	$50,003	14	93.5%
39	Emerson College	MA	$49,951	298	51.3%
40	Art Center College of Design	CA	$49,933	41	74.5%
41	University of California-Santa Barbara	CA	$49,893	174	33%
42	University of Utah	UT	$49,841	137	86%
43	Arizona State University	AZ	$49,759	165	89.9%
44	Eastern Michigan University	MI	$49,388	5	79.6%
45	University of Missouri	MO	$49,192	25	78.5%
46	Northern Arizona University	AZ	$48,800	19	89.6%
47	The New School	NY	$48,557	84	63.5%
48	University of Toledo	OH	$48,250	7	92%
49	University of Iowa	IA	$47,892	60	83.6%
50	University of Minnesota	MN	$47,707	32	79.8%
51	San Francisco State University	CA	$47,149	195	96.4%
52	Mount Saint Mary's University	CA	$47,091	4	73.1%
53	DePaul University	IL	$46,969	239	75.9%
54	Pratt Institute-Main	NY	$46,874	70	73.3%
55	DeSales University	PA	$46,847	18	77.1%
56	CUNY City College	NY	$46,801	21	60%
57	Binghamton University	NY	$46,579	17	38.6%
58	CUNY Hunter College	NY	$46,545	54	53.8%
59	California State Polytechnic University-Humboldt	CA	$46,245	20	98.2%
60	Florida State University	FL	$46,180	27	24.2%
61	Huntington University	IN	$46,073	26	75.6%
62	Fairleigh Dickinson University-Florham Campus	NJ	$45,958	43	95.2%
63	University of California-Santa Cruz	CA	$45,815	173	65.8%
64	Lesley University	MA	$45,508	15	96.9%
65	Keene State College	NH	$45,423	28	90.3%
66	Western Michigan University	MI	$45,391	28	84.6%
67	Montana State University	MT	$45,300	65	82.1%
68	Central Washington University	WA	$45,152	26	90.6%
69	University of Rhode Island	RI	$44,983	63	72.2%
70	Ithaca College	NY	$44,829	112	69%
71	University of Hartford	CT	$44,550	24	95.8%
72	University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee	WI	$44,232	101	90.7%
73	University of Arizona	AZ	$44,145	58	86.1%
74	CUNY Brooklyn College	NY	$44,032	106	58.4%
75	Pennsylvania State University	PA	$43,919	82	60.6%
76	Columbus College of Art & Design	OH	$43,661	15	67.7%
77	Grand Canyon University	AZ	$43,469	67	78.9%
78	University at Buffalo	NY	$43,285	60	74.2%
79	SUNY at Purchase College	NY	$43,265	47	74.1%
80	Maryland Institute College of Art	MD	$43,227	7	76.8%
81	Oakland University	MI	$43,186	27	87.8%
82	Liberty University	VA	$43,025	52	99%
83	Drexel University	PA	$42,980	69	79.4%
84	Vassar College	NY	$42,956	25	18.6%
85	Temple University	PA	$42,526	133	80.4%
86	Georgia State University	GA	$42,457	266	55.4%
87	California State University-Sacramento	CA	$42,392	88	94%
88	University of Nevada-Las Vegas	NV	$42,317	75	96.2%
89	The University of Tampa	FL	$42,090	26	40.3%
90	Belmont University	TN	$42,033	52	95.3%
91	Point Park University	PA	$41,751	49	96.9%
92	Savannah College of Art and Design	GA	$41,651	361	83%
93	Portland State University	OR	$41,639	47	90.9%
94	University of Central Florida	FL	$41,255	187	40.1%
95	Columbia College Chicago	IL	$41,200	162	89.5%
96	University of Kansas	KS	$41,191	69	93.5%
97	Ringling College of Art and Design	FL	$41,024	24	69.7%
98	University of North Carolina School of the Arts	NC	$41,000	75	30%
99	University of South Carolina	SC	$40,962	88	60.2%
100	Southern Illinois University-Carbondale	IL	$40,592	20	86.9%

Showing the top 100 of 129 colleges that report earnings. 208 more colleges award this degree but have no earnings figure, usually because the program is small.

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Frequently asked questions

Which college has the highest-paid Film and Photography graduates?

University of California-Berkeley ($70,963), Chapman University ($66,494), Rutgers University-New Brunswick ($63,679), Rutgers University-Newark ($63,679), Seattle University ($62,385) report the highest median earnings four years after graduation.

How much do Film and Photography majors make?

The median across 129 colleges is $45,423 four years after graduation. By college it runs from $21,459 to $70,963.

Which colleges have the biggest Film and Photography programs?

By bachelor's degrees awarded in a year: New York University (446), Savannah College of Art and Design (361), Emerson College (298), Georgia State University (266), DePaul University (239).

Does a higher-earning program mean a better program?

Not on its own. Earnings reflect where graduates live, what jobs they take, and who enrolled in the first place, as well as the teaching. The figures cover only graduates who received federal financial aid, and small programs are left out, so a college missing from this list may still have a strong department.

Source: College Scorecard, Most Recent Data by Field of Study (U.S. Department of Education), 2026-06-10 release, federal program category "Film/Video and Photographic Arts". Earnings are medians for graduates who received federal financial aid, working and not enrolled, four years after a bachelor's degree.