by our College Data Analytics Team
With all of the options students have for higher education today, it can be tough to choose which direction to take. College Factual was founded, in part, to help students make the decision as to what would be the best school for them. Our “Most Well Attended Film Major in the Far Western US Region” ranking is part of that endeavor.
Film, Video & Photographic Arts is the 62nd most popular major in the country with 16,778 degrees awarded in 2020-2021. In 2019-2020, film, video and photographic arts graduates who were awarded their degree in 2017-2019, earned an average of $24,170 and had an average of $25,804 in loans still to pay off.
Across the Far Western US region, there were 4,641 film, video and photographic arts graduates with average earnings and debt of $25,418 and $26,897 respectively.
This year’s “Most Well Attended Film Major in the Far Western US Region” ranking analyzed 114 colleges that offered a degree in film, video and photographic arts. The schools that top this list are recognized because they have one of the most popular film, video and photographic arts programs in the United States.
See our ranking methodology to learn more.
Since the program you select can have a significant impact on your future, we’ve developed a number of rankings, including this “Most Well Attended Film Major in the Far Western US Region” list, to help you choose the best school for you.
You can create your own custom comparison that focuses on the factors most important to you using our tool, College Combat. If you’re torn between two schools, you can use it to help you see how they stack up against one another. Bookmark it so you can compare any new schools that might interest you.
The colleges and universities below are the best for far western us region film students.
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Los Angeles Film School. It ranked #1 on our 2023 Most Well Attended Film Major in the Far Western US Region list. LA Film School is located in Hollywood, California and, has a medium-sized student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 352 ’s film degrees to qualified students.
Read more about Film, Video & Photographic Arts at Los Angeles Film School
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of Southern California. It ranked #2 on our 2023 Most Well Attended Film Major in the Far Western US Region list. USC is a large private not-for-profit school situated in Los Angeles, California. It awarded 310 ’s film degrees in 2020-2021.
The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 91%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 1.3%, 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.
Read full report on Film, Video & Photographic Arts at University of Southern California
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend New York Film Academy. It ranked #3 on our 2023 Most Well Attended Film Major in the Far Western US Region list. New York Film Academy is a small school located in Burbank, California that handed out 355 ’s film degrees in 2020-2021.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 3.8%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. With a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 9 to 1, it’s easy to see that the school is committed to helping their undergraduates succeed.
Read full report on Film, Video & Photographic Arts at New York Film Academy
Out of the 114 schools in the Most Well Attended Film Major in the Far Western US Region that were part of this year’s ranking, San Francisco State University landed the #4 spot on the list. San Francisco State University is a large public school situated in San Francisco, California. It awarded 247 ’s film degrees in 2020-2021.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 4.3%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Full San Francisco State University Film, Video & Photographic Arts Report
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of California - Riverside. It ranked #5 on our 2023 Most Well Attended Film Major in the Far Western US Region list. UCR is a public institution located in Riverside, California. The school has a large population, and it awarded 199 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.
With a freshman retention rate of 91%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students. The low undergrad student loan default rate of 2.3% 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%.
Read more about Film, Video & Photographic Arts at University of California - Riverside
Chapman University landed the #6 spot on the 2023 Most Well Attended Film Major in the Far Western US Region ranking. Located in Orange, California, this medium-sized private not-for-profit school handed out 190 diplomas to qualified ’s film students in 2020-2021.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 2.1% 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%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 85%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.
With a ranking of #7, University of California - Santa Barbara did quite well on the 2023 Most Well Attended Film Major in the Far Western US Region list. This large school is located in Santa Barbara, California, and it awarded 184 ’s film degrees in 2020-2021.
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%. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 91%.
University of California - Santa Cruz landed the #8 spot on the 2023 Most Well Attended Film Major in the Far Western US Region ranking. UC Santa Cruz is located in Santa Cruz, California and, has a fairly large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 179 ’s film degrees to qualified students.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 2.9%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. With a freshman retention rate of 85%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students.
Full University of California - Santa Cruz Film, Video & Photographic Arts Report
With a ranking of #9, California State University - Long Beach did quite well on the 2023 Most Well Attended Film Major in the Far Western US Region list. California State University - Long Beach is a large school located in Long Beach, California that handed out 178 ’s film degrees in 2020-2021.
The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 89%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 2.4%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
With a ranking of #10, Academy of Art University did quite well on the 2023 Most Well Attended Film Major in the Far Western US Region list. San Francisco, California is the setting for this medium-sized institution of higher learning. The private for-profit school handed out ’s film degrees to 172 students in 2020-2021.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 5.0%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Full Academy of Art University Film, Video & Photographic Arts Report
University of California - Irvine did quite well in the 2023 Most Well Attended Film Major in the Far Western US Region ranking, coming in at #11. UC Irvine is a large school located in Irvine, California that handed out 167 ’s film degrees in 2020-2021.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 94%. The low undergrad student loan default rate of 1.4% 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 Film, Video & Photographic Arts at UC Irvine
Columbia College Hollywood ranked #12 on this year’s Most Well Attended Film Major in the Far Western US Region list. Located in Tarzana, California, this small private not-for-profit school awarded 135 degrees to qualified ’s film students in 2020-2021.
Full Columbia College Hollywood Film, Video & Photographic Arts Report
University of California - Los Angeles ranked #13 on this year’s Most Well Attended Film Major in the Far Western US Region list. Located in Los Angeles, California, this large public school handed out 127 diplomas to qualified ’s film students in 2020-2021.
The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 96%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. 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 full report on Film, Video & Photographic Arts at University of California - Los Angeles
Loyola Marymount University ranked #14 on this year’s Most Well Attended Film Major in the Far Western US Region list. Located in Los Angeles, California, this fairly large private not-for-profit school awarded 104 diplomas to qualified ’s film students in 2020-2021.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 1.8% 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 10 to 1, those pursuing a degree will have more opportunities to interact with their professors.
Read more about Film, Video & Photographic Arts at Loyola Marymount
University of California - Davis ranked #15 on this year’s Most Well Attended Film Major in the Far Western US Region list. Located in Davis, California, this large public school handed out 93 degrees to qualified ’s film students in 2020-2021.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 93%. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 1.5%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
University of California - Berkeley came in at #16 in this year’s edition of the Most Well Attended Film Major in the Far Western US Region ranking. University of California - Berkeley is a large school located in Berkeley, California that handed out 79 ’s film degrees in 2020-2021.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 1.8%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. With a freshman retention rate of 96%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students.
Read more about Film, Video & Photographic Arts at UC Berkeley
University of Nevada - Las Vegas landed the #17 spot on the 2023 Most Well Attended Film Major in the Far Western US Region ranking. This large school is located in Las Vegas, Nevada, and it awarded 74 ’s film degrees in 2020-2021.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 4.9%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Read full report on Film, Video & Photographic Arts at University of Nevada - Las Vegas
California State University - Sacramento did quite well in the 2023 Most Well Attended Film Major in the Far Western US Region ranking, coming in at #18. California State University - Sacramento is a public institution located in Sacramento, California. The school has a large population, and it awarded 73 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.
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%.
Read more about Film, Video & Photographic Arts at California State University - Sacramento
American Film Institute Conservatory did quite well in the 2023 Most Well Attended Film Major in the Far Western US Region ranking, coming in at #18. American Film Institute is a private not-for-profit institution located in Los Angeles, California. The school has a small population, and it awarded 82 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.
The impressive undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 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 Film, Video & Photographic Arts at American Film Institute
With a ranking of #20, University of Oregon did quite well on the 2023 Most Well Attended Film Major in the Far Western US Region list. Located in Eugene, Oregon, this large public school handed out 74 diplomas to qualified ’s film students in 2020-2021.
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%.
Read full report on Film, Video & Photographic Arts at University of Oregon
With a ranking of #21, California Institute of the Arts did quite well on the 2023 Most Well Attended Film Major in the Far Western US Region list. California Institute of the Arts is located in Valencia, California and, has a small student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 63 ’s film degrees to qualified students.
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 school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 4.5%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Full California Institute of the Arts Film, Video & Photographic Arts Report
With a ranking of #22, Art Center College of Design did quite well on the 2023 Most Well Attended Film Major in the Far Western US Region list. This small school is located in Pasadena, California, and it awarded 60 ’s film degrees in 2020-2021.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 3.2%, 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 full report on Film, Video & Photographic Arts at Art Center College of Design
Santa Monica College came in at #23 in this year’s edition of the Most Well Attended Film Major in the Far Western US Region ranking. SMC is a large public school situated in Santa Monica, California. It awarded 74 ’s film degrees in 2020-2021.
The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 100%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.
Portland State University did quite well in the 2023 Most Well Attended Film Major in the Far Western US Region ranking, coming in at #24. Portland State University is a large school located in Portland, Oregon that handed out 56 ’s film degrees in 2020-2021.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 4.7%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Full Portland State University Film, Video & Photographic Arts Report
Biola University did quite well in the 2023 Most Well Attended Film Major in the Far Western US Region ranking, coming in at #24. Biola University is a medium-sized private not-for-profit school situated in La Mirada, California. It awarded 56 ’s film degrees in 2020-2021.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 2.7%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Read full report on Film, Video & Photographic Arts at Biola
Read more about our data sources and methodologies