San Francisco Film School
San Francisco, CA 94104-2835
About San Francisco Film School
San Francisco Film School is a private for-profit trade school in San Francisco, California, enrolling about 127 students. Programs focus on certificates and workforce credentials that prepare students for skilled trades and technical careers. The published completion rate is about 51.02% at 150% of normal time. Student demographics in federal data include Race/ethnicity unknown (96.9%) and White (2.4%) among the largest enrollment groups.
Cost benchmarks
| Benchmark | Median Tuition | Median Net Price | Count |
|---|---|---|---|
| San Francisco Film School | — | $31,768 | 1 |
| Private For-profit (national median) | $16,757 | — | 494 |
| California (state median) | $8,510 | $7,373 | 288 |
| Urban (City) (locale median) | $15,860 | $20,660 | 1,347 |
| United States (national median) | $12,200 | $17,569 | — |
Compares this campus to school-type, state, and locale medians plus a U.S. national median (College Scorecard–derived). Locale groups campuses by NCES locale type; state tuition is the median published tuition among campuses in that state.
How expensive is San Francisco Film School really?
Evidence: average net price at San Francisco Film School versus state, locale, and U.S. medians.
What undergraduates typically pay
Finding Average net price at San Francisco Film School is $31,768.
Evidence College Scorecard average net price is $31,768 (cost of attendance minus average grant aid for aided undergraduates). That is about $24,395 above the California median net price. Versus urban (city) campuses, net price runs $11,108 above the locale median.
Method Average net price from College Scorecard; compared with state, locale, and U.S. medians from EDsmart aggregates.
Interpretation Average net price is a stronger institutional cost signal than published tuition because it incorporates grant aid.
Limitation The campus average masks large differences by household income; income-band net prices can diverge sharply from the overall average.
San Francisco Film School: research record
Canonical EDsmart Data findings for San Francisco Film School—costs, outcomes, admissions, and programs—with evidence and methodology notes.
Research findings
Interpretation
High completion indicates students finish programs at scale; it does not alone measure instructional quality or labor-market fit.
Financial profile
Avg. net price
$31,768
Net price by family income
| Income bracket | Avg. annual net price |
|---|---|
| $0–$30,000 | $32,380 |
| $30,001–$48,000 | $31,657 |
| $48,001–$75,000 | $31,281 |
Student outcomes
Share of first-year students returning the following fall.
Graduation rate and 10-year earnings are in the hero strip above; see Graduates for more.
What San Francisco Film School is known for
Top program completions
See earnings & programs for more.
Is San Francisco Film School a good school?
Data-framed fit—not a prestige rating.
San Francisco Film School is a good school for those looking for high program completion rates.
EDsmart Data does not assign an opinion score; this framing summarizes the strongest Scorecard signals for this campus.
More from the data
Location, control, enrollment, and aid context for San Francisco Film School.
Campus
Location
San Francisco, CA
City / state
- ZIP
- 94104-2835
- NCES locale
- City
Compared with Urban (City) campuses nationally, net price is 54% above the median for Urban (City) campuses ($20,660 median).
Control
Institution type
Private For-profit
Control
- Region
- Far West
- Carnegie
- Special Focus Two-Year: Arts & Design
Size
Enrollment
127
Undergraduates (fall)
- Undergraduates (full year)
- 216
- Full-time share
- 95%
Student aid
Debt & aid
- Pell grant share
- 27.78%
Total Cost, Aid & Default
Total Cost of Attendance
Costs include tuition and fees. Room & board, books, and other expenses are additional where not shown.
Tuition vs average net price after aid for San Francisco Film School.
Financial Aid by Income Level
Financial aid distribution by income level.
Student Loan Default Rate
The published 3-year cohort default rate for borrowers at San Francisco Film School was 0.00%.
Cohort default rates account for borrowers who default in the first three years.
Tuition tracker
Published tuition and average net price by reporting year come from the College Scorecard institution file. Values are not adjusted for inflation; missing cells mean the field was not reported or was suppressed for San Francisco Film School in that year.
Reporting years in the table below: 2015–2023 (Scorecard labels refer to the institutional submission cycle).
| Year | In-state tuition & fees | Out-of-state tuition & fees | Average net price |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | — | — | $32,318 |
| 2016 | — | — | $28,727 |
| 2017 | — | — | $33,523 |
| 2018 | — | — | $19,592 |
| 2019 | — | — | $30,627 |
| 2020 | — | — | $29,129 |
| 2021 | — | — | $26,774 |
| 2022 | — | — | $28,896 |
| 2023 | — | — | $31,029 |
Sticker tuition and net price over time
Where the institution reported separate in-state and out-of-state tuition, both appear. Gaps mean the value was not reported for that year.
College Scorecard reporting-year fields (not inflation-adjusted).
Net price by family income
Brackets follow Scorecard definitions for the series shown (public vs private institution).
Latest income-band net prices available in the processed extract.
How difficult is it to get in?
Acceptance Rate
Acceptance rate data is not available for this institution.
Admissions funnel data is not available for this institution.
Test Scores
Test score data is not available for this institution.
Score distribution is not available for this institution.
Academic Requirements
GPA requirements are not published by this institution. Contact the admissions office for specific academic requirements.
Estimated GPA range is not available for this institution.
Enrollment & Student Demographics
San Francisco Film School reported total enrollment of about 127 students in the latest College Scorecard extract. The student body is about 91% male and 9% female. Enrollment by race and ethnicity includes Race/ethnicity unknown (96.9%), White (2.4%), and Two or More Races (0.8%). About 27.78% of undergraduates receive Pell Grants.
Full-Time vs Part-Time Enrollment
95.3% Full-Time Enrollment
The total enrollment at San Francisco Film School in 2024 is 127 students.
Over a full year, about 216 undergraduates enroll.
Full-time vs part-time enrollment comparison.
Retention Rate over Time
25.0%
2024 Retention Rate
Retention rate measures the number of first-time students who began their studies the previous fall and returned to school the following fall.
Retention rate over time compared to similar institutions.
Enrollment by Race & Ethnicity
Largest share of total enrollment in our College Scorecard extract.
College Scorecard student demographics (total enrollment shares).
Do students complete their programs?
Time to Complete
51.02% 100% Completion Time
51.02% 150% Completion Time
In 2024, 51.02% of students graduating from San Francisco Film School completed their program within 100% "normal time".
Completion rates over time compared to similar institutions.
Completions by Sex (Top Programs)
- Cinematography and Film/Video Production: 83% male / 17% female
IPEDS completions by sex for the five largest programs (aggregate CIPs excluded).
Completions by Race & Ethnicity
Largest group by summed IPEDS award counts across reported programs.
Summed across program completion records in our extract.
What do San Francisco Film School graduates earn—and in which programs?
Financial value and program completions for San Francisco Film School from College Scorecard and IPEDS extracts.
Return on Investment
ROI data is not available for this institution.
Top Programs by Completions
Largest 1 programs by IPEDS completions (2 reported codes; aggregate/unknown CIP buckets excluded).
IPEDS award counts for the largest programs at San Francisco Film School.
Employment Outcomes
Median earnings 6, 8, and 10 years after entry for San Francisco Film School graduates.
Institutional resources
Finding: federal finance and Scorecard instructional fields for San Francisco Film School—instructional staffing and expenditure. Compared with state, regional, and U.S. medians from EDsmart Data institutional financials.
Instructional Resources
- Average faculty salary (monthly): $4,366
- California median 0.43× the median ($10,166)
- Far West median 0.45× the median ($9,635)
- U.S. median 0.57× the median ($7,615)
- Instructional expenditure per FTE: $8,907
- California median 1.4× the median ($6,474)
- Far West median 1.3× the median ($7,030)
- U.S. median 1.2× the median ($7,288)
Instructional metrics from College Scorecard. Peer medians are campus-level; see the institutional financials deep dive. Detailed non-instructional staff counts are not included here.
Scorecard instructional metrics where reported.
San Francisco Film School at a glance
San Francisco Film School
San Francisco Film School is a private for-profit institution in San Francisco, CA, classified as Special Focus Two-Year: Arts & Design.
- Largest programs (IPEDS awards)
- Cinematography and Film/Video Production
- Largest enrollment groups
- Race/ethnicity unknown96.9%White or Caucasian2.4%Two or More Races0.8%
Schools near San Francisco Film School
Other campuses in San Francisco, CA when available, plus nearby institutions in California.
Similar schools
Peers matched by the same EDsmart outcomes grade (Grade F) within California, then by similar ownership and admissions.
Frequently Asked Questions
Where is San Francisco Film School located?
San Francisco Film School is located in San Francisco, CA.
How much does San Francisco Film School cost?
Reported tuition is N/A and average net price is $31,768 in the latest College Scorecard data.
What is the student body demographics at San Francisco Film School?
San Francisco Film School reports undergraduate enrollment of about 216 students, Race/ethnicity unknown (96.9%), White (2.4%) in federal College Scorecard data.
What is the graduation rate at San Francisco Film School?
The 150%-time completion rate is 51.0% for the cohort reported to the College Scorecard.
Is San Francisco Film School public or private?
San Francisco Film School is a private for-profit institution located in San Francisco, CA.
Is San Francisco Film School an HBCU?
No. San Francisco Film School is not flagged as an HBCU in the IPEDS institutional directory.
Is San Francisco Film School a tribal college?
No. San Francisco Film School is not flagged as a tribal college in IPEDS.
Is San Francisco Film School religiously affiliated?
No religious affiliation is reported for San Francisco Film School in IPEDS institutional characteristics.
Data Sources
This page uses data from the following sources:
- College Scorecard - U.S. Department of Education
- Institutional characteristics, costs, completion rates, and earnings data
- Data years: 2015-2024
- Source: collegescorecard.ed.gov
- Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS)
- Employment and wage data by occupation
- Latest data: May 2024
- Source: bls.gov/oes
- O*NET Online - U.S. Department of Labor
- Occupational skills, knowledge, abilities, and work activities
- Database version: 28.0 (August 2023)
- Source: onetcenter.org
- IPEDS (Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System) - National Center for Education Statistics
- Institutional data, completions, enrollment, and financial aid
- Data years: 2015-2024
- Source: nces.ed.gov/ipeds
- Census Bureau American Community Survey (ACS)
- Demographic and workforce data
- Latest data: 2023 ACS 5-Year Estimates
- Source: census.gov/acs
- Related geography & profiles
- California college profile
- California college costs
- California colleges by ROI
- California trade schools profile
- San Francisco, California city profile
- Far West regional profile
- Urban (City) college profile
- Campus-setting profiles
- All state profiles
- Regional profiles
- National benchmarks
- School directory
- All schools in California
Data Processing: All data has been processed, cleaned, and aggregated for presentation. Where specific data points are unavailable, estimates are based on available data and clearly marked.
Last Updated: Data reflects the most recent available information as of January 2025.
Methodology & Data Scope
This profile uses institution-level fields from the U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard, merged with IPEDS directory attributes where needed for locale, ownership, and program completions.
Benchmark rows compare this campus to NCES locale-type medians (for example Suburban) from our processed location extract. Implied U.S. medians are derived from locale-vs-national percentage fields in that extract—not a separate national Scorecard table.