2022 Best Value Master’s Degree Colleges for Photography (Income $48-$75k) in California

When it comes to choosing a college, students have a lot of options - but not all of them are good. Our mission at College Factual is to arm you with as much information as we can to help you make that decision. Our “Best Value Photography Schools for a Master’s in California For Those Making $48-$75k” ranking is one tool we have developed to help in this regard.

Photography is the 291st most popular major in the country with 2,438 degrees awarded in 2019-2020.

Across California, there were 461 photography graduates with average earnings and debt of $0 and $0 respectively. At the master’s degree level specifically, there were 73 photography graduates with average earnings and debt of $60,281 and $50,119 respectively.

This year’s “Best Value Photography Schools for a Master’s in California For Those Making $48-$75k” ranking looked at 4 colleges that offer degrees in a bachelor’s in photography. This ranking identifies schools with high-quality photography programs that also have a lower cost than schools of similar quality.

To come up with these rankings, we looked at factors such as the cost to attend the school after aid is awarded and overall quality of the photography program at the school. For more information, check out our ranking methodology.

More Ways to Rank Photography Schools

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 “Best Value Photography Schools for a Master’s in California For Those Making $48-$75k” list to help you make the college decision.

You can create your own custom comparison that focuses on the factors most important to you using our tool, College Combat. Test it out by comparing your favorite schools against others you are considering, or bookmark the tool so you can experiment with it later.

Best Value Photography Schools for a Master’s in California For Those Making $48-$75k

The following schools top our list of the Best Best Value Photography Schools for a Master’s in California For Those Making $48-$75k.

Top 4 Best Value Master’s Degree Colleges for Photography (Income $48-$75k) in California

#1

Academy of Art University

San Francisco, California

#1 in overall quality

$27,688 Avg Grad Tuition & Fees

Out of the 4 schools in the Best Value Photography Schools for a Master’s in California For Those Making $48-$75k that were part of this year’s ranking, Academy of Art University landed the #1 spot on the list. This medium-sized school is located in San Francisco, California, and it awarded 56 masters’s photography degrees in 2019-2020.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at Academy of Art University, the school also landed the #1 spot in our “Best Photography Master’s Degree Schools in California” ranking. Average graduate tuition and fees at Academy of Art University are $27,688, but some majors have different tuition rates.

Read more about Photography at Academy of Art University

#2

Mount Saint Mary's University

Los Angeles, California

$12,612 Avg Grad Tuition & Fees

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Mount Saint Mary’s University. The school came in at #2 for the Best Value Photography Schools for a Master’s in California For Those Making $48-$75k. MSMU is a private not-for-profit institution located in Los Angeles, California. The school has a small population, and it awarded 2 masters’s degrees in 2019-2020.

In addition to being on our california master’s degree photography students whose families make $48-$75k list, MSMU has also earned the #0 rank in our “Best Photography Master’s Degree Schools in California” ranking. Average graduate tuition and fees at Mount Saint Mary’s University are $12,612, but some majors have different tuition rates.

Read full report on Photography at Mount Saint Mary’s University

#3

California Institute of the Arts

Valencia, California

#2 in overall quality

$53,466 Avg Grad Tuition & Fees

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend California Institute of the Arts. The school came in at #3 for the Best Value Photography Schools for a Master’s in California For Those Making $48-$75k. CalArts is located in Valencia, California and, has a small student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 8 masters’s photography degrees to qualified students.

CalArts also took the #2 spot in our “Best Photography Master’s Degree Schools in California” ranking. Average graduate tuition and fees at CalArts are $53,466, but you may pay more or less depending on your major.

Read full report on Photography at CalArts

#4

New York Film Academy

Burbank, California

#3 in overall quality

$35,457 Avg Grad Tuition & Fees

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend New York Film Academy. It ranked #4 on our 2022 Best Value Photography Schools for a Master’s in California For Those Making $48-$75k list. New York Film Academy is a small school located in Burbank, California that handed out 7 masters’s photography degrees in 2019-2020.

In addition to being on our california master’s degree photography students whose families make $48-$75k list, New York Film Academy has also earned the #3 rank in our “Best Photography Master’s Degree Schools in California” ranking. Average graduate tuition and fees at New York Film Academy are $35,457, but some majors have different tuition rates.

Full New York Film Academy Photography Report

• Best Value Master’s Degree Colleges for Photography (Income $48-$75k) in the Far Western US Region
• Best Value Master’s Degree Colleges for Photography (Income $48-$75k)

Notes and References

References

• 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 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).
• Information about the national average student loan default rate is from the U.S. Department of Education and refers to data about the 2016 borrower cohort tracking period for which the cohort default rate (CDR) was 10.1%.

Read more about our data sources and methodologies

Footnotes

• *Average salary, average net price, and average tuition and fees are for the top schools only.
• Some schools otherwise deserving of recognition may have been removed from this ranking in the event that new data identified post-publication warranted it, or at the request of the school.

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