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Best Value Film, Video & Photographic Arts Schools in California

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2023 Best Value Film, Video & Photographic Arts Schools in California

Identifying Quality Schools at More Affordable Prices

34 Colleges
$22,590 Avg Tuition & Fees*
$25,500 Avg Salary

Finding the Best Film, Video & Photographic Arts School for You

With 3,916 degrees and certificates handed out in 2020-2021, film, video and photographic arts is the #33 most popular major in California.

With all the programs available today, it can be tough to choose which one is the best for you. As online education oppotunities continue to grow, you're not restricted to just schools in your local area anymore. Even some of the 'big name' schools are offering online courses. Also, there are a number of trade schools with offerings that you might find attractive.

Along with in-depth profiles of schools and the programs they offer, Course Advisor has created the Best Value Film, Video & Photographic Arts Schools in California to help you in your search for the best school for you. This report analyzed 34 schools in California to see which ones offered the best value programs for film students. The goal was to highlight schools with more affordable prices than others offering similar quality experiences.

Our ranking of value is based on the quality of a program as defined in our per sticker price dollar. More specifically, we discount our quality score by the published tuition and fees charged by a school. This gives the cost per unit of quality for each college. The value is determined by how much quality your dollar buys.

In our regional and nationwide rankings, out-of-state tution and fees are used in our calculations. Average in-state tuition and fees are used for our statewide rankings.

2023 Best Value Film, Video & Photographic Arts Schools in California

The following schools top our list of the Best Value Film, Video & Photographic Arts Colleges.

Top 10 Best Film, Video & Photographic Arts Schools

$6,846 Average Tuition & Fees

Our analysis found California State University - Long Beach to be the best value school for film, video and photographic arts students who want to pursue a degree in California. Located in the city of Long Beach, CSULB is a public school with a fairly large student population.

In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at CSULB are $6,846 per year.

Read More…

#2

San Francisco State University

San Francisco, CA
$7,304 Average Tuition & Fees

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend San Francisco State University. It ranked #2 on our 2023 Best Value Film, Video & Photographic Arts Schools in California list. SFSU is a fairly large public school located in the city of San Francisco.

SFSU undergraduate students pay an average of $7,304 in in-state tuition and fees each year. After completing their degree, film graduates from SFSU carry an average student debtload of $18,750. This translates to an average monthly loan payment of $245, based on a 10-year repayment plan.

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$7,392 Average Tuition & Fees

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend California State University - Sacramento. The school came in at #3 on this year’s Best Value Film, Video & Photographic Arts Schools in California list. Sac State is a fairly large public school located in the large city of Sacramento.

The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at Sac State are $7,392 a year. On average, film graduates from Sac State take out $19,413 in student loans while working on their degree.

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$14,226 Average Tuition & Fees

The excellent programs at University of California - Berkeley helped the school earn the #4 place on this year’s ranking of the best film, video and photographic arts schools in California. Located in the medium-sized city of Berkeley, UC Berkeley is a public college with a fairly large student population.

The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at UC Berkeley are $14,226 a year. The average amount in student loans that film majors at UC Berkeley take out is $15,000.

UC Berkeley not only placed well in our value ranking, but it is also #3 on our Best Film, Video & Photographic Arts Schools in California list.

Read full report on Film, Video & Photographic Arts at University of California - Berkeley

#5

Sonoma State University

Rohnert Park, CA
$7,988 Average Tuition & Fees

The excellent programs at Sonoma State University helped the school earn the #5 place on this year’s ranking of the best film, video and photographic arts schools in California. Located in the large suburb of Rohnert Park, SSU is a public school with a medium-sized student population.

The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at SSU are $7,988 a year.

Full Film, Video & Photographic Arts at Sonoma State University Report

$13,775 Average Tuition & Fees

University of California - Irvine landed the #6 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value film, video and photographic arts programs. Located in the city of Irvine, UC Irvine is a public college with a very large student population.

In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at UC Irvine are $13,775 per year. After completing their degree, film graduates from UC Irvine carry an average student debtload of $15,500. The average monthly payment of a loan this size is about $235, assuming that the borrower is on a 10-year repayment plan.

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$13,258 Average Tuition & Fees

University of California - Los Angeles ranked #7 on this year’s Best Value Film, Video & Photographic Arts Schools in California list. Located in the city of Los Angeles, UCLA is a public school with a very large student population.

UCLA undergraduate students pay an average of $13,258 in in-state tuition and fees each year. After completing their degree, film graduates from UCLA carry an average student debtload of $16,810.

UCLA also claimed a spot on our Best Film, Video & Photographic Arts Schools in California list. It’s in the top 10% of all schools in this category.

Read full report on Film, Video & Photographic Arts at University of California - Los Angeles

#8

National University

La Jolla, CA

National University came in at #8 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Film, Video & Photographic Arts Schools in California ranking. National University is a fairly large private not-for-profit school located in the large city of La Jolla.

The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at National University are $13,320 a year.

Read full report on Film, Video & Photographic Arts at National University

$14,417 Average Tuition & Fees

With a ranking of #9, University of California - Santa Barbara did quite well on this year’s best value schools for film, video and photographic arts students. Located in the midsize suburb of Santa Barbara, UCSB is a public college with a fairly large student population.

In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at UCSB are $14,417 per year. While working on their degree, film majors at UCSB accumulate an average of around $17,712 in student debt. Assuming that a graduate chooses a 10-year repayment plan, the average monthly loan payment is $259.

UCSB excels when it comes to quality. It’s ranked in the top 10% of all schools on our Best Film, Video & Photographic Arts Schools in California list.

Full Film, Video & Photographic Arts at University of California - Santa Barbara Report

#10

San Diego State University

San Diego, CA
$8,136 Average Tuition & Fees

San Diego State University landed the #10 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value film, video and photographic arts programs. SDSU is a fairly large public school located in the large city of San Diego.

In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at SDSU are $8,136 per year.

Full Film, Video & Photographic Arts at San Diego State University Report

Best Value Film, Video & Photographic Arts Colleges in the Far Western US Region

Explore all the Best Value Film, Video & Photographic Arts Colleges in the Far Western US Area or other specific states within that region.

State Degrees Awarded
Washington 132
Oregon 167
Nevada 77

One of 10 majors within the area of study, film, video and photographic arts has other similar majors worth exploring.

Related Major Annual Graduates
Fine & Studio Arts 37,413
Design & Applied Arts 36,301
Music 25,910
Drama & Theater Arts 17,341
General Visual & Performing Arts 6,355

Notes and References

*These averages are for the top 25 schools only.

  • 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).

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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