University of Texas at Austin
Locations: Austin, TX
Degrees: Bachelor's, Master's, Doctoral
Programs: Radio-Television-Film, Film Media Production, Media Studies, Screenwriting and many more (over 170 fields of study)
Tuition Range: $5,000 - $15,000 per Semester
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Set on a sprawling 350-acre campus in the heart of Austin Texas, the University of Texas at Austin has a total enrollment of over 50,000 students and over 170 fields of study. Of particular note is their Department of Radio-Film-Television, recognized as one of the top ten programs of its kind in the nation, with over 900 undergraduate and 160 graduate students in this department alone. Besides offering a bachelor’s degree in Radio-Film-Television, this program also offers master’s programs in Film & Media Production, Screenwriting, and Media Studies, and even a Ph.D. in Media Studies. Austin is known for its burgeoning film community, and film students from UT-Austin regularly participate in Austin’s numerous film festivals, as well.
A state university, UT-Austin offers heavy discounts for residents of Texas. Even so, full-time students who are Texas residents should expect to pay about $5000 per semester, and non-residents will pay between $11,000-$15,000 per semester. Expect to spend four years for a bachelor’s degree, and up to three years for a master’s degree.
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Student Reviews
Set on a sprawling 350-acre campus in the heart of Austin Texas, the University of Texas at Austin has a total enrollment of over 50,000 students and over 170 fields of study. Of particular note is their Department of Radio-Film-Television, recognized as one of the top ten programs of its kind in the nation, with [...]
Review by Hallease C.
June 19, 2012 3I graduated from The University of Texas at Austin, Radio-Television-Film degree in 2011.The film program at UT is a good program if you take advantage of it fully. I tried to dabble in all the classes and each facet of production and there are still classes I wish I would have taken before I left.
Currently, I have “part-time” freelance work through a small online branding company here in Austin Texas but I definitely am looking for something more to supplement my income it’s not nearly consistent enough. I am also editing shorts for free when time permits.
I support the fact that UT offers you a film degree for a fraction of the price that other well known schools cost (NYU, USC, etc) and is from what I’ve seen comparable. I would recommend UT as an alternative if the person knew they could not afford a private school.
The only thing I would do over is double major. Since it is hard to break into the industry, especially if you stay in Texas, I wish I would have double-majored in something else and learned more technical skills of the industry as well. I probably would have tried to double major in something more conventional and reliable for income post graduation, while I followed my passion for editing on the side, and could afford to produce shorts and/or work for free.
Found work after graduation? Yes
Review by Isaiah S.
June 9, 2012 3.5I went to the University of Texas, and I started in 2004 and I finished, graduated, in May 2009. Their film school definitely met my expectations. When I went to school, I really didn’t know much about it. I knew I had a passion about film making because it was something I wanted to do, from an early age. When I was about 16, I got a camera. I loved it. I fell in love with videotaping and making my own little home movies and that’s why I definitely wanted to do. I went to school. When I got out of school, I definitely learned more than I knew. I was disciplined, in terms of just taking care of my classes. I was very studious. I made good grades. I used to study a lot. And I also played football, so I got a lot of discipline from having to make good grades and having to stay focused just to play on Saturdays.
The school met my expectations however, I think I could have learned more. One reason I know, playing football took away a lot of time for me to do the hands on experience classes, so I couldn’t do too many of those. I know I would have learned more in those classes. Also, you can’t learn everything in school. There’s no way they can teach you everything in school. There’s not enough time in those little four years that you’re there to teach you everything you could possibly experience or go through in the real world. It met my expectations at the time when I graduated, but when I look back three years ago and the things that I’ve learned in these short three years after being out of school, I learned so much that it’s almost ridiculous. I’ve learned more in these last three years than I learned in school. So now, I would say it didn’t meet my expectation. Now that I’ve gone through film school and to see how much I learned in this world, in the real world, the working world, I would say no, there’s so much more that you need to learn in film school. But at the time, just coming out, I would say, like I said before, I learned more than I knew going in.
Right out of school, I was blessed with the opportunity to be connected with good people and I was doing a lot of freelance work with companies like ESPN-NASCAR, ESPN-Basketball, the NBA Finals, college football games, ESPN, and CBS. I did a lot of freelance. I did stuff with America’s Got Talent, just stuff here in the Dallas/Fort Worth area for the most part,.But it’s a great opportunity. So I have worked in that aspect. But in terms of getting a full time job, my goal is to be a feature film editor. I love editing. Just in the Dallas area, the opportunity is not as great here as it is in a place like California or even Austin, New York. That said, I got my first job as a videographer and editor for a company in Dallas called SaveMore.com and that was a great experience. It took me about a year and a half, after graduating before I got that first full time job on salary. It lasted for a few months. It was actually a new start-up company and the video portion, which was my job, wasn’t doing too successful and I actually was let go. But God blessed with another job. I work with the media team at my church. We do a lot of media, a lot of online, and that’s an opportunity I’m growing. I’m getting my feet wet. So I didn’t have a hard time finding work. I had a hard time finding a full time job, but as for work, freelance was always there.
I would say to somebody who’s thinking about going to film school. That this is an awesome opportunity. Not everybody gets this opportunity, some people in foreign lands don’t even think about college because it’s almost impossible for them. But just take advantage of it. Learn and grow. If you have free time and you’re not doing stuff, go out and shoot. Develop your skills. Build your reel. I would say things like that and I would say it’s worth it. You’re going to grow. You’re going to meet new friends. You’re going to build a network with people, meet professors. I definitely, especially with no experience, would’nt just skip film school. I don’t think it’s worth it.
Debt Accrued: $25,001 - $50,000
Found work after graduation? Yes
Review by Faith P. (source)
November 15, 2011 4To change the world, The University of Texas at Austin is the best place to start. The academic life at this institution is geared toward the acquisition of knowledge in order to better people as individuals, as well as to prepare them for what tough challenges lay ahead for our generation. From social work majors to biomedical engineering majors to political communications majors, everyone can expect to receive an education that goes beyond just “quality”. Professors expect a lot out of their students and courses can be quite rigorous, but the professors are also more than willing to take the time in office hours or over email to help students go more in-depth into the material. Lower division classes provide students the opportunity to experience a typical lecture-style course, while upper division classes give students the specific attention they need, both to the relevant material of their major and to their learning process.
Review by Jennifer B.
September 25, 2011 4I felt that the production track of the school at the time lacked equipment that would approximate the equipment we should know how to use in=order to seek work professionally after graduation. I switched from the production track to writing, eventually, and I found that program to be very satisfactory. I felt that the professors had a great grasp on both critical studies and screenwriting. I found them to be very nurturing and encouraging.
I think the value to quality ratio is high at UT. My guess is that the quality of equipment for the production side of the school has since been modernized. I would say that the time I attended was a tenuous time for technology anyway – things were just beginning to change over to computers and digital from the old film and manual editing formats.
Review by Mary V.
May 21, 2011 4A big university in a hot, weird town, UT has a lot to give. Thus, I shall list the things I’ve gained during my time at UT.
1. Toned legs. I walk everywhere and lost about 15 pounds during my freshman year. Freshman -15, guys! My sudden increase in attractiveness reeled in a boyfriend. So I guess I can technically also say that UT gave me a boyfriend.
2. An awesome education. Sure, some of the professors are just… BAD, but others are amazing. Luckily, I’ve been blessed with some of the funniest, down-to-earth professors who genuinely care about their students.
3. Lovely scenery. Architecture! Statues! Trees!
4. Proximity to a whole lot to do. The libraries, Blanton Art Museum, Harry Ransom Center, and the State Capitol are just a few. I love it.
It’s too bad the heat and humidity can be too much for me sometimes, but I can’t imagine having gone somewhere else for school. I haven’t graduated yet, but I’ll definitely miss everything… except for the grueling assignments and final exams.
Review by Jeff T.
January 15, 2011 3.5UT was originally my third choice for college; I was accepted into my school but there were problems with my financial aid in both cases.
Now, I know that that was God letting me know that it would be complete and utter idiocy to go anywhere else but UT.
I absolutely love campus, have had good experiences in my classes, and have made amazing connections with professors and outside organizations, all in my first semester. I’ve made a ton of new friends (how can you not when you have 50,000 peers) and am thankful for countless resources available to me (a colossal library system, paid internships, and a huge gym).
Even though I live in Austin, I chose to do dorm-life, just to get the experience. It’s great because I don’t ever have to worry, home is just a short drive away.
I’m just so happy I ended up here; UT is a perfect fit.
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