Image editor education requirements

Updated January 8, 2025

4 min read

There are several educational requirements to become an image editor. Image editors usually study graphic design, photography, or fine arts. 60% of image editors hold a bachelor's degree, and 23% hold an associate degree. We analyzed 478 real image editor resumes to see exactly what image editor education sections show.

The most common colleges for image editors are the Florida State College at Jacksonville and the Florida State College at Jacksonville.

There are also many online image editor courses to help get the education required to be an image editor.

What education do you need to become an image editor?

What degree do you need to be an image editor?

The most common degree for image editors is bachelor's degree, with 60% of image editors earning that degree. The second and third most common degree levels are associate degree degree at 23% and associate degree degree at 8%.

Bachelor's, 60%

Associate, 23%

High School Diploma, 8%

Master's, 5%

Other Degrees, 4%

What should I major in to become an image editor?

You should major in graphic design to become an image editor. 24% of image editors major in graphic design. Other common majors for an image editor include photography and fine arts.

Graphic Design, 24%

Photography, 19%

Fine Arts, 12%

Communication, 6%

Other Majors, 39%

Most common colleges for image editors

Image editors often get their degrees at Florida State College at Jacksonville, University of Iowa, and The University of Tennessee - Chattanooga. Here are the most common colleges for image editors in the US based on their resumes.

Image editor common college	Percentages
Florida State College at Jacksonville	12.50%
University of Iowa	9.38%
The University of Tennessee - Chattanooga	6.25%
University of North Florida	6.25%
University of North Carolina at Wilmington	6.25%

Show more common image editor colleges

Best majors for image editors

Rank	Major	Percentages
1	Graphic Design	23.8%
2	Photography	18.6%
3	Fine Arts	12.3%
4	Communication	5.6%
5	Computer Science	5.2%

Show more common image editor majors

Best colleges for image editors

The best colleges for image editors are Northwestern University, Washington University in St Louis, and University of Southern California.

An image editor with advanced education typically earns a higher salary and has access to better jobs. That's why Zippia looked into the best colleges for image editors. We based this list on several metrics: admissions rate, retention rate, mean earnings of graduates, the ratio of working vs. non-working students ten years after admission, the average cost of attendance, and median debt for graduates who become image editors.

1. Northwestern University

Evanston, IL • Private

In-state tuition

$54,568

Enrollment

8,451

2. Harvard University

Cambridge, MA • Private

In-state tuition

$50,420

Enrollment

7,582

3. Stanford University

Stanford, CA • Private

In-state tuition

$51,354

Enrollment

7,083

4. Washington University in St Louis

Saint Louis, MO • Private

In-state tuition

$53,399

Enrollment

7,356

5. University of Southern California

Los Angeles, CA • Private

In-state tuition

$56,225

Enrollment

19,548

6. New York University

New York, NY • Private

In-state tuition

$51,828

Enrollment

26,339

7. University of Texas at Austin

Austin, TX • Private

In-state tuition

$10,610

Enrollment

40,329

8. Columbia University in the City of New York

New York, NY • Private

In-state tuition

$59,430

Enrollment

8,216

9. University of Washington

Seattle, WA • Private

In-state tuition

$11,207

Enrollment

30,905

10. University of California, Berkeley

Berkeley, CA • Private

In-state tuition

$14,184

Enrollment

30,845

20 best online courses for image editors

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1. Style Images with CSS

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2. Build Image Quality Inspection using AWS Lookout for Vision

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3. Get High Quality Royalty Free Images For Your Website & Blog

4.3

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4. Quick & Easy FREE Image Fixes for Beginners: GIMP Spotlight

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5. Adobe Photoshop CC Essentials Photoshop Retouching

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This Adobe Photoshop masterclass will teach you Photoshop retouching + photo editing. Bonus: 7 Photoshop courses in 1...

6. Affinity Photo: Master Photo Editing in Affinity Photo 2

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Affinity Photo Editing Course Learn Affinity Photo 2, an easy-to-use photo editing tool for Mac or PC...

7. Introduction to Medical Imaging

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8. Adobe Lightroom Classic CC & CC: Photo Editing Masterclass

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9. Python Digital Image Processing From Ground Up™

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12. Learn MATLAB with Image Processing from scratch!

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13. Adobe Lightroom Classic CC - Zero to Pro

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14. Photoshop for Photographers - Beginner to Professional

4.4

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15. Mac Photos: Photo Editing, Organizing & Sharing on Mac

4.5

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16. Learn Computer Vision and Image Processing in LabVIEW

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Learn Computer Vision and Image Processing From Scratch in Lab VIEW and build 9 Vision-based Apps...

17. Adobe Lightroom CC Photo Editing: Your Lightroom Masterclass

4.5

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18. Design stunning Social Media Marketing Images with Photoshop

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Learn how to design + 17 stunning social media images with Photoshop CC for your Social Networks. For Beginners...

19. High End Beauty Retouching in Photoshop 2.0

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20. Professional Retouching Course in Photoshop

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Photoshop Non-destructive Retouching Techniques. Learn Portrait, Beauty and Outdoor Retouching in Photoshop...

Top 10 most affordable universities for image editors

The most affordable schools for image editors are University of Florida, hunter college of the city university of new york, and california state university - long beach.

If the best universities for image editors are out of your price range, check out these affordable schools. After factoring in in-state tuition and fees, the average cost of attendance, admissions rate, average net price, and mean earnings after six years, we found that these are the most affordable schools for image editors.

1. University of Florida

Gainesville, FL • Private

In-state tuition

$6,381

Cost of attendance

21,034

2. Hunter College of the City University of New York

New York, NY • Private

In-state tuition

$7,182

Cost of attendance

13,998

3. California State University - Long Beach

Long Beach, CA • Private

In-state tuition

$6,798

Cost of attendance

18,306

4. Baruch College of the City University of New York

New York, NY • Private

In-state tuition

$7,262

Cost of attendance

14,046

5. Brigham Young University

Provo, UT • Private

In-state tuition

$5,620

Cost of attendance

18,136

6. Florida State University

Tallahassee, FL • Private

In-state tuition

$5,656

Cost of attendance

21,623

7. Brooklyn College of the City University of New York

Brooklyn, NY • Private

In-state tuition

$7,240

Cost of attendance

13,991

8. Queens College of the City University of New York

Queens, NY • Private

In-state tuition

$7,338

Cost of attendance

14,281

9. University of Central Florida

Orlando, FL • Private

In-state tuition

$6,368

Cost of attendance

21,034

10. California State University - Dominguez Hills

Carson, CA • Private

In-state tuition

$6,942

Cost of attendance

14,469

Top 10 hardest universities to get into for image editors

The hardest universities for image editors to get into are Northwestern University, Washington University in St Louis, and University of Southern California.

Some great schools for image editors are hard to get into, but they also set your career up for greater success. The list below shows the most challenging universities to get into for image editors based on an institution's admissions rates, average SAT scores accepted, median ACT scores accepted, and mean earnings of students six years after admission.

1. Northwestern University

Evanston, IL • Private

Admissions rate

SAT average

1,508

2. Washington University in St Louis

Saint Louis, MO • Private

Admissions rate

15%

SAT average

1,506

3. University of Southern California

Los Angeles, CA • Private

Admissions rate

13%

SAT average

1,445

4. Harvard University

Cambridge, MA • Private

Admissions rate

SAT average

1,520

5. Northeastern University

Boston, MA • Private

Admissions rate

19%

SAT average

1,466

6. New York University

New York, NY • Private

Admissions rate

20%

SAT average

1,419

7. Columbia University in the City of New York

New York, NY • Private

Admissions rate

SAT average

1,512

8. Stanford University

Stanford, CA • Private

Admissions rate

SAT average

1,497

9. Boston University

Boston, MA • Private

Admissions rate

22%

SAT average

1,420

10. University of California, Berkeley

Berkeley, CA • Private

Admissions rate

15%

SAT average

1,448

Top 10 easy-to-apply-to universities for image editors

The easiest schools for image editors to get into are Mount Saint Mary's University, notre dame de namur university, and barry university.

Some schools are much easier to get into. If you want to start your career as an image editor without much hassle, check out the list of schools where you will be accepted in no time. We compiled admissions rates, average SAT scores, average ACT scores, and average salary of students six years after graduation to uncover which were the easiest schools to get into for image editors.

1. Mount Saint Mary's University

Los Angeles, CA • Private

Admissions rate

84%

SAT average

1,031

2. Notre Dame de Namur University

Belmont, CA • Private

Admissions rate

82%

SAT average

983

3. Barry University

Miami, FL • Private

Admissions rate

91%

SAT average

1,006

4. Grand View University

Des Moines, IA • Private

Admissions rate

92%

SAT average

1,060

5. Kean University

Union, NJ • Private

Admissions rate

86%

SAT average

991

6. Cardinal Stritch University

Milwaukee, WI • Private

Admissions rate

71%

SAT average

1,035

7. Wayland Baptist University

Plainview, TX • Private

Admissions rate

98%

SAT average

1,003

8. Saint Joseph's College of Maine

Standish, ME • Private

Admissions rate

84%

SAT average

1,069

9. Curry College

Milton, MA • Private

Admissions rate

93%

SAT average

1,026

10. Rosemont College

Rosemont, PA • Private

Admissions rate

89%

SAT average

1,026

Average image editor salary by education level

Image editors with a Doctorate degree earn more than those without, at $58,906 annually. With a Master's degree, image editors earn a median annual income of $55,476 compared to $51,097 for image editors with an Bachelor's degree.

Image editor education level	Image editor salary
Master's Degree	$55,476
Bachelor's Degree	$51,097
Doctorate Degree	$58,906

Image editor education FAQs

What is the best college for Image Editors?

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Updated January 8, 2025

Zippia Team

Editorial Staff

The Zippia Research Team has spent countless hours reviewing resumes, job postings, and government data to determine what goes into getting a job in each phase of life. Professional writers and data scientists comprise the Zippia Research Team.

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