Tisch School of the Arts at New York University is consistently ranked top of Film School Rankings. It offers a number of training programs including acting, dramatic writing, film and television, and photography. Notable alumni include M. Night Shyamalan, Joel Coen, Ang Lee, Martin Scorsese, Spike Lee, etc.

University of Southern California (USC) is another top ranked film school with undergraduate and graduate programs in screenwriting, critical studies, producing and directing. USC is one of the highest ranked American universities, placed 43rd globally in Webometrics World Top 100 Universities 2009. The university is ranked 7th for Multimedia & Visual Communications, and Public Affairs. US News & World Report 2008 ranked the Roski School of Fine arts Graduate program 37th nationally.

University of California–Los Angeles is ranked in the Top 3 for film programs. The UCLA School of Theater, Film and Television offers undergraduate and graduate degree programs in film, television and digital media. The Master of Fine Arts degree has 4 specializations: Production/Directing, Producers Program, and Animation. Notable alumni inlude Allison Anders, Alexander Payne, Lee Breuer, Charles Burnett, Francis Ford Coppola, Todd Holland, Tim Robbins, Moctesuma Esparza, Gregory Nava, Gina Prince-Bythewood, Tim Robbins, and John Williams.

Top Graduate Schools for Film (Master of Fine Arts) by U.S. News & World Report:

Rank, Institution, Average reputation score (5 = highest)
1. New York University 4.5
1. University of Southern California 4.5
3. University of California–Los Angeles 4.4
4. American Film Institute (CA) 4.1
5. California Institute of the Arts 4.0
6. Columbia University (NY) 3.7
7. School of the Art Institute of Chicago 3.6
7. University of Texas–Austin 3.6
9. Florida State University 3.5
9. Northwestern University (IL) 3.5
9. Temple University (PA) 3.5
12. Rochester Institute of Technology (NY) 3.3
12.San Francisco Art Institute 3.3
12. University of California–San Diego 3.3
15. San Francisco State University 3.1
15. University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee 3.1
17. Ohio University 3.0
17. Southern Illinois University–Carbondale 3.0
17. Syracuse University (NY) 3.0

Source: U.S. News and World Report 1997 (www.usnews.com)

* Suggested Reading:

Top Acting Schools in US

Leading Film Schools in California

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Kelvin Wong Loke Yuen is a top academician with extensive years of teaching experience. He holds an MBA and a Postgraduate Diploma from Heriot-Watt (UK's World-Class University) and a BCom degree from Adelaide (Australia's Group of Eight University), as well as many other internationally recognized certifications. Check out his profile on: LinkedIn

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