By 2010, the global entertainment and media industry is projected to be a $1.83 trillion industry – up from $1.33 trillion in 2005.

“New delivery systems to share ideas, culture, and fun will make the existing Internet and currently available electronic entertainment devices seem as quaint and outdated as windup toys,” according to Futurist James Canton, Ph.D. In his book Extreme Future; Penguin, 2006, readers will find a list entitled the Top Ten Industries of the Innovation Economy: Who Will Benefit Most. Entertainment Media comes in number seven, and Education and Learning is number eight, stating that the creation of immediate portable, transferable, on-demand knowledge sources on a scale equivalent to the Library of Congress.

Canton also predicts that quality public education, in crisis today, will either propel or crash the future aspirations of the American workforce. “The education market is a competitive and complex market as the purchasing process varies by country and institution.” (Source: Gartner, Inc. April 12, 2007)  

Today finding a good school is more about which school will provide an education that the industry will take seriously and the reputation of the school. Costs also play into the formula and often times it is very difficult to determine how much a degree will cost, because colleges and universities have formulas that they use. Applicants can be charged by the credit hour, by clock hour, or by semester. Then add in fees, books and supplies.

Traditional film schools cost from $20,000 to $140,000, while an Entertainment Connection school is $7,000. The following provides a comparison of some of the other schools and average costs associated with obtaining a degree.