Film/Video and Photographic Arts at University of Kansas

University of Kansas graduates in Film/Video and Photographic Arts earn about $28,000 in their first year—which puts them ahead of three-quarters of similar programs nationally. That's noteworthy in a field where the national median sits below $25,200, and many graduates struggle to break $20,000. The debt load of $24,750 is almost exactly average for this major, creating a manageable debt-to-earnings ratio below 1.0. Students see modest but steady income growth, reaching nearly $31,000 by year four.

What stands out is the relatively stable foundation this program provides in an otherwise volatile field. While $28,000 isn't a windfall, it's significantly better than what most film school graduates earn initially, and the trajectory points upward rather than stalling out. Within Kansas, the program sits at the 60th percentile—solidly middle-of-the-pack among the handful of film programs in the state. The low admission rate and reasonable Pell grant percentage suggest KU maintains accessible standards while producing competitive outcomes.

For parents concerned about their child's creative ambitions, this represents one of the safer bets in film education. The earnings won't match business or engineering degrees, but they exceed what most film programs deliver, and the debt remains manageable enough that loan payments won't consume a disproportionate share of income. It's a practical launchpad for students serious about media careers.