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by our College Data Analytics Team
When pursuing a degree in today’s world, students have many different options to choose from. At College Factual, we’re committed to helping you make that decision by providing information such as that found in our “Schools Highly Focused on Acting Major” ranking.
Acting is the 323rd most popular major in the country with 1,686 degrees awarded in 2021-2022.
For this year’s “Schools Highly Focused on Acting Major” ranking, we looked at 121 colleges that offer a degree in acting. The colleges and universities that top this list are recognized because their acting program is one of the largest majors offered at the school.
Check out our ranking methodology for more information.
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 Highly Focused on Acting Major” list to help you make the college decision.
We’ve created a tool called College Combat that lets you create your own customized comparisons based on the factors that matter the most to you. Go ahead and give it a try, or bookmark the link so you can check it out later.
The colleges and universities below are the best for acting students.
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Theatre of Arts. The school came in at #1 for the Schools Highly Focused on Acting Major. TOA is located in Hollywood, California and, has a small student population. In 2021-2022, this school awarded 4 ’s acting degrees to qualified students.
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 121 schools in the Schools Highly Focused on Acting Major that were part of this year’s ranking, American Academy of Dramatic Arts - Los Angeles landed the #3 spot on the list. American Academy of Dramatic Arts - Los Angeles is a small school located in Los Angeles, California that handed out 89 ’s acting degrees in 2021-2022.
With a freshman retention rate of 88%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 3.9%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Full American Academy of Dramatic Arts - Los Angeles Acting Report
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend American Academy of Dramatic Arts - New York. The school came in at #4 for the Schools Highly Focused on Acting Major. American Academy of Dramatic Arts - New York is a small school located in New York, New York that handed out 99 ’s acting degrees in 2021-2022.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 3.9%, 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 Acting at American Academy of Dramatic Arts - New York
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend New York Conservatory for Dramatic Arts. It ranked #5 on our 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Acting Major list. Located in New York, New York, this small private for-profit school awarded 64 diplomas to qualified ’s acting students in 2021-2022.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 0.8% 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 Acting at New York Conservatory for Dramatic Arts
KD Conservatory College of Film and Dramatic Arts ranked #6 on this year’s Schools Highly Focused on Acting Major list. This small school is located in Dallas, Texas, and it awarded 38 ’s acting degrees in 2021-2022.
Since the school has a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 8 to 1, those pursuing a degree will have more opportunities to interact with their professors. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 4.0%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Read full report on Acting at KD Conservatory College of Film and Dramatic Arts
With a ranking of #7, New York Film Academy did quite well on the 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Acting Major list. New York Film Academy is a private for-profit institution located in Burbank, California. The school has a small population, and it awarded 160 ’s degrees in 2021-2022.
Since the school has a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 5 to 1, those pursuing a degree will have more opportunities to interact with their professors. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 0.5%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
With a ranking of #8, Marymount Manhattan College did quite well on the 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Acting Major list. Located in New York, New York, this small private not-for-profit school handed out 38 degrees to qualified ’s acting students in 2021-2022.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 2.0%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. Since the school has a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 9 to 1, those pursuing a degree will have more opportunities to interact with their professors.
California Institute of the Arts did quite well in the 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Acting Major ranking, coming in at #9. CalArts is a small school located in Valencia, California that handed out 28 ’s acting degrees in 2021-2022.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 1.6%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. 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. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 94%.
The Juilliard School ranked #10 on this year’s Schools Highly Focused on Acting Major list. The Juilliard School is a small school located in New York, New York that handed out 18 ’s acting degrees in 2021-2022.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 96%. Since the school has a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 4 to 1, those pursuing a degree will have more opportunities to interact with their professors.
Greensboro College landed the #11 spot on the 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Acting Major ranking. Greensboro College is a private not-for-profit institution located in Greensboro, North Carolina. The school has a small population, and it awarded 10 ’s degrees in 2021-2022.
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.
Oklahoma City University landed the #12 spot on the 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Acting Major ranking. OCU is a small school located in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma that handed out 27 ’s acting degrees in 2021-2022.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 1.3% 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 undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 10 to 1, it’s easy to see that the school is committed to helping their undergraduates succeed.
Visible Music College came in at #13 in this year’s edition of the Schools Highly Focused on Acting Major ranking. Memphis, Tennessee is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out ’s acting degrees to 14 students in 2021-2022.
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 impressive undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 6 to 1 means that students may have more opportunities to work more closely with their professors than they would at other schools.
With a ranking of #14, The University of the Arts did quite well on the 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Acting Major list. The University of the Arts is a small school located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania that handed out 19 ’s acting degrees in 2021-2022.
Since the school has a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 8 to 1, those pursuing a degree will have more opportunities to interact with their professors. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 1.0%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. With a freshman retention rate of 87%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students.
Columbia College Chicago ranked #15 on this year’s Schools Highly Focused on Acting Major list. This medium-sized school is located in Chicago, Illinois, and it awarded 45 ’s acting degrees in 2021-2022.
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%.
With a ranking of #16, University of Evansville did quite well on the 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Acting Major list. Located in Evansville, Indiana, this small private not-for-profit school handed out 14 diplomas to qualified ’s acting students in 2021-2022.
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. The low undergrad student loan default rate of 0.6% 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%.
Baldwin Wallace University came in at #17 in this year’s edition of the Schools Highly Focused on Acting Major ranking. Baldwin Wallace College is a small school located in Berea, Ohio that handed out 23 ’s acting degrees in 2021-2022.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 1.3%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Stephens College did quite well in the 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Acting Major ranking, coming in at #18. Stephens College is located in Columbia, Missouri and, has a small student population. In 2021-2022, this school awarded 2 ’s acting degrees to qualified students.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 0.8% 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%. Since the school has a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 8 to 1, those pursuing a degree will have more opportunities to interact with their professors.
Academy of Art University ranked #19 on this year’s Schools Highly Focused on Acting Major list. Academy of Art University is located in San Francisco, California and, has a medium-sized student population. In 2021-2022, this school awarded 17 ’s acting degrees to qualified students.
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%.
Purchase College came in at #20 in this year’s edition of the Schools Highly Focused on Acting Major ranking. Purchase College is a small school located in Purchase, New York that handed out 12 ’s acting degrees in 2021-2022.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 2.9%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Nebraska Wesleyan University landed the #21 spot on the 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Acting Major ranking. Nebraska Wesleyan University is a small school located in Lincoln, Nebraska that handed out 7 ’s acting degrees in 2021-2022.
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%.
Coker University ranked #22 on this year’s Schools Highly Focused on Acting Major list. Located in Hartsville, South Carolina, this small private not-for-profit school handed out 0 diplomas to qualified ’s acting students in 2021-2022.
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%.
Pace University - New York ranked #23 on this year’s Schools Highly Focused on Acting Major list. This fairly large school is located in New York, New York, and it awarded 48 ’s acting degrees in 2021-2022.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 1.9%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Illinois Wesleyan University did quite well in the 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Acting Major ranking, coming in at #24. Illinois Wesleyan University is a small private not-for-profit school situated in Bloomington, Illinois. It awarded 6 ’s acting degrees in 2021-2022.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 0.8%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 85%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.
Saint Edward’s University came in at #25 in this year’s edition of the Schools Highly Focused on Acting Major ranking. St. Edward’s University is a private not-for-profit institution located in Austin, Texas. The school has a small population, and it awarded 9 ’s degrees in 2021-2022.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 1.6%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Read more about our data sources and methodologies
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