Rankings by major · 285 schools scored

Best colleges for film

Every school we cover is scored 0–100 for film. The score weighs what graduates earn four years out against the same major nationally (25%), research spending in the field (20%, NSF), how many undergraduate courses the department lists (20%), the student body's test scores (20%) and the size of the program (15%, capped so size alone can't win). 80 and up is a standout program, 65+ strong, 45+ solid.

The top film schools: New York University, University of Southern California, University of Pennsylvania.

Top 100 colleges for film
Rank	School	Score (0–100)	Tier	Graduates per year in the major	Share of the class	Pay vs. national, same major	Acceptance rate
1	New York University New York, NY	100	Standout	426	5.7%	1.33×	9%
2	University of Southern California Los Angeles, CA	97	Standout	178	2.9%	1.33×	10%
3	University of Pennsylvania Philadelphia, PA	96	Standout	22	0.6%	–	5%
4	University of California, Berkeley Berkeley, CA	95	Standout	97	0.9%	1.60×	11%
5	University of California, Davis Davis, CA	94	Standout	72	0.8%	1.31×	44%
6	University of Michigan–Ann Arbor Ann Arbor, MI	93	Standout	91	1%	1.29×	16%
7	Emory University Atlanta, GA	92	Standout	42	1.6%	–	10%
8	Vanderbilt University Nashville, TN	92	Standout	12	0.5%	–	6%
9	Dartmouth College Hanover, NH	91	Standout	16	1.1%	–	6%
10	Chapman University Orange, CA	91	Standout	196	9.4%	1.50×	72%
11	Southern Methodist University Dallas, TX	90	Standout	30	1.4%	–	48%
12	University of California, Irvine Irvine, CA	90	Standout	175	2%	1.16×	29%
13	Tufts University Medford, MA	89	Standout	37	1.8%	1.36×	11%
14	Arizona State University Tempe, AZ	89	Standout	164	1.1%	1.12×	88%
15	Yale University New Haven, CT	88	Standout	16	1%	–	5%
16	Syracuse University Syracuse, NY	88	Standout	56	1.3%	1.22×	46%
17	Brigham Young University Provo, UT	87	Standout	52	0.8%	1.21×	68%
18	Rochester Institute of Technology Rochester, NY	87	Standout	114	4.6%	1.20×	71%
19	University of California, Riverside Riverside, CA	87	Standout	198	3.3%	1.19×	86%
20	University of Washington Seattle, WA	86	Standout	66	0.7%	–	39%
21	Carnegie Mellon University Pittsburgh, PA	86	Standout	4	0.2%	–	11%
22	Stanford University Stanford, CA	85	Standout	8	0.5%	–	4%
23	Loyola Marymount University Los Angeles, CA	85	Standout	94	5.3%	1.39×	45%
24	Rutgers University–New Brunswick Piscataway, NJ	85	Standout	29	0.3%	1.44×	58%
25	University of Maryland, College Park College Park, MD	84	Standout	16	0.2%	1.15×	45%
26	Washington University in St. Louis St. Louis, MO	84	Standout	19	0.8%	–	12%
27	University of California, Los Angeles Los Angeles, CA	83	Standout	24	0.3%	1.15×	9%
28	Colgate University Hamilton, NY	83	Standout	20	2.1%	–	14%
29	The Ohio State University Columbus, OH	83	Standout	46	0.4%	1.14×	51%
30	Rhode Island School of Design Providence, RI	82	Standout	49	9.6%	1.16×	17%
31	University of Georgia Athens, GA	82	Standout	17	0.2%	–	38%
32	Brandeis University Waltham, MA	82	Standout	12	0.9%	–	40%
33	University of California, Santa Cruz Santa Cruz, CA	81	Standout	172	3.6%	1.04×	66%
34	Wesleyan University Middletown, CT	81	Standout	50	4.3%	–	16%
35	Northeastern University Boston, MA	81	Standout	4	0.1%	–	5%
36	University of Utah Salt Lake City, UT	80	Standout	128	2.2%	1.13×	87%
37	University of Miami Coral Gables, FL	80	Standout	52	1.6%	1.18×	19%
38	Purdue University–Main Campus West Lafayette, IN	80	Standout	31	0.4%	1.18×	50%
39	University of California, Santa Barbara Santa Barbara, CA	79	Strong	169	2.4%	1.13×	38%
40	Middlebury College Middlebury, VT	79	Strong	16	1.9%	–	11%
41	Boston College Chestnut Hill, MA	79	Strong	12	0.4%	–	16%
42	Baylor University Waco, TX	78	Strong	38	1%	–	52%
43	Swarthmore College Swarthmore, PA	78	Strong	4	0.7%	–	7%
44	Amherst College Amherst, MA	78	Strong	7	1%	–	9%
45	Tulane University of Louisiana New Orleans, LA	77	Strong	6	0.2%	–	14%
46	University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign Champaign, IL	77	Strong	4	0%	–	42%
47	Wellesley College Wellesley, MA	77	Strong	10	1.3%	–	14%
48	Fordham University New York, NY	77	Strong	48	1.9%	1.24×	59%
49	Hamilton College Clinton, NY	76	Strong	6	0.9%	–	14%
50	The New School New York, NY	76	Strong	96	6%	1.10×	63%
51	Lafayette College Easton, PA	76	Strong	14	1.6%	–	31%
52	American University Washington, DC	75	Strong	49	2.5%	1.19×	62%
53	Florida State University Tallahassee, FL	75	Strong	28	0.3%	1.04×	24%
54	Occidental College Los Angeles, CA	75	Strong	22	3.9%	–	45%
55	University of Chicago Chicago, IL	74	Strong	18	0.8%	–	4%
56	Trinity College Hartford, CT	74	Strong	6	0.9%	–	30%
57	Binghamton University–SUNY Binghamton, NY	74	Strong	18	0.5%	1.05×	37%
58	University of Minnesota–Twin Cities Minneapolis, MN	74	Strong	32	0.4%	1.08×	80%
59	CUNY–Hunter College New York, NY	73	Strong	53	1.5%	1.05×	54%
60	San Francisco State University San Francisco, CA	73	Strong	210	3.6%	1.07×	96%
61	Boston University Boston, MA	73	Strong	2	0%	–	13%
62	University of Oregon Eugene, OR	72	Strong	80	1.7%	1.14×	88%
63	The Pennsylvania State University–University Park University Park, PA	72	Strong	75	0.7%	0.99×	61%
64	Rutgers University–Newark Newark, NJ	72	Strong	10	0.5%	1.44×	71%
65	University of Missouri Columbia, MO	72	Strong	28	0.5%	1.11×	78%
66	George Mason University Fairfax, VA	71	Strong	39	0.6%	1.13×	87%
67	Indiana University–Bloomington Bloomington, IN	71	Strong	2	0%	–	78%
68	Barnard College New York, NY	71	Strong	18	2%	–	9%
69	Fairfield University Fairfield, CT	70	Strong	8	0.6%	–	33%
70	Louisiana State University and Agricultural & Mechanical College Baton Rouge, LA	70	Strong	25	0.5%	–	73%
71	Pepperdine University Malibu, CA	70	Strong	8	1%	–	63%
72	Kenyon College Gambier, OH	69	Strong	12	2%	–	31%
73	University of Richmond Richmond, VA	69	Strong	2	0.3%	–	22%
74	CUNY Brooklyn College Brooklyn, NY	69	Strong	105	3.6%	1.00×	55%
75	University of Arizona Tucson, AZ	69	Strong	58	0.7%	1.00×	86%
76	Franklin & Marshall College Lancaster, PA	68	Strong	8	1.2%	–	28%
77	Seattle University Seattle, WA	68	Strong	15	1.2%	1.41×	77%
78	California State University, Long Beach Long Beach, CA	68	Strong	208	2.3%	–	45%
79	CUNY Queens College Queens, NY	67	Strong	24	0.7%	–	69%
80	University of Iowa Iowa City, IA	67	Strong	56	1%	1.08×	80%
81	Gettysburg College Gettysburg, PA	67	Strong	8	1%	–	40%
82	Haverford College Haverford, PA	67	Strong	2	0.4%	–	12%
83	Miami University–Oxford Oxford, OH	66	Strong	8	0.2%	–	75%
84	Smith College Northampton, MA	66	Strong	14	1.8%	–	21%
85	University of Rochester Rochester, NY	66	Strong	10	0.5%	–	42%
86	Emerson College Boston, MA	65	Strong	328	38.5%	1.13×	43%
87	Colorado College Colorado Springs, CO	65	Strong	12	2.2%	–	18%
88	Claremont McKenna College Claremont, CA	65	Strong	6	1.2%	–	9%
89	DePaul University Chicago, IL	65	Strong	208	6.6%	1.06×	76%
90	Marquette University Milwaukee, WI	64	Solid	37	1.5%	–	87%
91	Drexel University Philadelphia, PA	64	Solid	62	1.6%	0.97×	70%
92	Denison University Granville, OH	64	Solid	14	2.1%	–	17%
93	University of Denver Denver, CO	63	Solid	14	0.9%	–	85%
94	Michigan State University East Lansing, MI	63	Solid	14	0.1%	–	85%
95	University of Central Florida Orlando, FL	63	Solid	190	1.3%	0.93×	43%
96	Montclair State University Montclair, NJ	63	Solid	72	1.9%	1.15×	89%
97	Carleton College Northfield, MN	62	Solid	16	2.9%	–	20%
98	Oberlin College Oberlin, OH	62	Solid	18	1.9%	–	34%
99	University of South Carolina Columbia, SC	62	Solid	94	1.3%	0.93×	60%
100	Montana State University Bozeman, MT	61	Solid	61	2.3%	1.02×	73%

185 more schools are on the full film ranking.

How this ranking works

Updated October 18, 2026. Sources: early-career pay for graduates of each program, by field of study (College Scorecard), graduates per year in the major (IPEDS), undergraduate courses listed in each department's current catalog, and the student body's test scores. Inputs that are missing for a school are dropped and the rest reweighted; programs with fewer than five graduates a year are capped at 30. Scores are relative to the other schools covered, from 0 to 100.

To cite: prefrosh.ai, "Best colleges for film," updated October 18, 2026, https://prefrosh.ai/majors/film. For a specific student's chances at these schools, use Chance me, which reads odds from the student's own high school's admissions chart.

See your odds of getting in · All rankings by major · Overall ranking

Best colleges for film

How this ranking works

Rankings for other majors