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2023 Best Film, Video & Photographic Arts Master's Degree Schools

71 Colleges
$31,916 Avg Salary

Finding the Best Film, Video & Photographic Arts Master's Degree School for You

In 2020-2021, 1,704 people earned a degree or certificate in film, video and photographic arts, making the major the #106 most popular in the United States.

It's not easy to decide which program to enroll in when you have so many options available. You're no longer limited to schools in your local area, either, since online programs are becoming more prevalent. Or you may find the programs at a trade school to be a better alternative for you.

The Best Film, Video & Photographic Arts Master's Degree Schools ranking is one of many tools that Grad Degree Search has developed to help you make your educational decision. Our analysis looked at 71 schools in the United States to see which master's degree programs offered the best educational experiences for students. Factors related to overall quality of the school, post-graduation earnings, average student debt, and more accumulated were considered when coming up with this list.

View our full ranking methodology.

2023 Best Film, Video & Photographic Arts Master’s Degree Schools in the United States

The colleges and universities below are the best for film majors pursuing a master's degree.

Top 10 Best Film, Video & Photographic Arts Master's Degree Schools

#1

American University

Washington, DC

Our analysis found American University to be the best school for film, video and photographic arts students who want to pursue a master’s degree in the United States. The American University is a fairly large private not-for-profit school located in the large city of Washington.

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

#2

Sacred Heart University

Fairfield, CT

The excellent master’s degree programs at Sacred Heart University helped the school earn the #2 place on this year’s ranking of the best film, video and photographic arts schools in the United States. Sacred Heart is a medium-sized private not-for-profit school located in the suburb of Fairfield.

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You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend American Film Institute Conservatory. The school came in at #3 on this year’s Best Film, Video & Photographic Arts Master’s Degree Schools list. Located in the city of Los Angeles, American Film Institute is a private not-for-profit school with a fairly small student population.

Full Film, Video & Photographic Arts at American Film Institute Conservatory Report

#4

National University

La Jolla, CA

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend National University. The school came in at #4 on this year’s Best Film, Video & Photographic Arts Master’s Degree Schools list. Located in the city of La Jolla, National University is a private not-for-profit school with a fairly large student population.

Full Film, Video & Photographic Arts at National University Report

#5

Northwestern University

Evanston, IL

Out of the 71 schools in the United States that were part of this year’s ranking, Northwestern University landed the # 5 spot on the list. Northwestern is a fairly large private not-for-profit school located in the small city of Evanston.

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

#6

Mount Saint Mary's University

Los Angeles, CA

Mount Saint Mary’s University ranked #6 on this year’s Best Film, Video & Photographic Arts Master’s Degree Schools list. Located in the large city of Los Angeles, MSMU is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population.

Read full report on Film, Video & Photographic Arts at Mount Saint Mary’s University

#7

Academy of Art University

San Francisco, CA

Academy of Art University landed the #7 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best master’s degree film, video and photographic arts programs. Located in the city of San Francisco, Academy of Art University is a private for-profit school with a moderately-sized student population.

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#8

Florida State University

Tallahassee, FL

Florida State University landed the #8 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best master’s degree film, video and photographic arts programs. Located in the midsize city of Tallahassee, Florida State is a public college with a very large student population.

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

Columbia University in the City of New York landed the #9 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best master’s degree film, video and photographic arts programs. Located in the large city of New York, Columbia is a private not-for-profit school with a fairly large student population.

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University of Southern California did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for film, video and photographic arts students to get a master’s degree. It came in at #10 on the list. Located in the city of Los Angeles, USC is a private not-for-profit college with a very large student population.

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Honorable Mentions

Here are some additional great schools for Film, Video & Photographic Arts students that almost earned our Best Film, Video & Photographic Arts Master's Degree Schools award.

Rank College Location
11 Syracuse University Syracuse, NY
11 University of California - Los Angeles Los Angeles, CA
13 Brigham Young University - Provo Provo, UT
14 Loyola Marymount University Los Angeles, CA

Film, Video & Photographic Arts by Region

View the Best Film, Video & Photographic Arts Master's Degree Schools for a specific region near you.

Region
Southeast
New England
Rocky Mountains
Plains States
Middle Atlantic
Far Western US
Southwest
Great Lakes

Film, Video & Photographic Arts is one of 9 different types of programs to choose from.

Related Major Annual Graduates
Music 7,675
Fine & Studio Arts 3,224
Design & Applied Arts 1,979
Drama & Theater Arts 1,699
Arts & Media Management 1,184

Notes and References

*These averages are for the top 25 schools only.

  • Read more about our ranking methodology.
  • 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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