2026 Recognition of Institutional Excellence in Media

The Broadcast Education Association (BEA) is pleased to announce the 2026 rankings of schools based on the creative achievement of their students.  The rankings, which began in 2022, are founded on the results from the BEA Festival of Media Arts.  The BEA Festival is the preeminent international media competition focused on student and faculty creative endeavors.  In the last five years alone, over 8,250 student creative works were submitted from BEA’s more than 300 member institutions around the globe for BEA’s extensive juried process.   

The BEA rankings take a unique approach to the evaluation of academic media programs from across the globe.  Instead of being an overall evaluation of an academic unit’s curriculum and structure, comparison of institutions is done by looking at outcomes.  Those outcomes are the quality and consistency of student’s creative works from one participating institution as compared to others.  While BEA has been systematically evaluating student work for over 30 years, the annual rankings are based on the past five-year period of student success.   

Schools and students can submit their creative content in multiple media categories including Audio, Documentary, Film & Video, Interactive Multimedia & Emerging Technologies, News, Scriptwriting, and Sports.  Student creative work goes through a rigorous blind-juried process that includes multiple evaluations by both academic and professional experts from across the country.  Standards for Festival winners are quite high.  On average, only the top 20% of entries are even considered for awards. These finalists are then judged for five levels of awards: First Place, Second Place, Third Place, Award of Excellence and the special honor of being Best of Festival.  The rankings take into account both the quantity and quality of student works.  For instance, Best of Festival winners are given a higher weight than Awards of Excellence.    

Each school’s student achievements are then calculated and ranked for each of the seven competition categories. Additionally, there is an Overall Ranking based on a combined achievement across the multiple media creative disciplines, and specifically in this case, combined across all Festival competitions. Newer categories without five years of results were not considered for this year’s rankings.  While the BEA honors outstanding achievements of both faculty and students, the rankings focus solely on student accomplishments.  In the “2026 BEA Festival School Rankings,” 159 schools are represented with student winners. The statistics are compiled and confirmed by the BEA Festival Advisory Committee, which is made up of past Festival Chairs and Creative Directors. 

2026 Top Winning Overall Programs

Rank	School
1	University of Oklahoma
2	Syracuse University
3	Arizona State University
4	University of Florida
5	Ball State University
6	Taylor University
7	Huntington University
8	Missouri State University
9	Elon University
10	University of Miami
11	Pennsylvania State University
12	West Virginia University
13	Michigan State University
14	Goshen College
15	Huntington University Arizona
16	Rowan University
17	Bethany Lutheran College
18	James Madison University
19	University of Nebraska Lincoln
20	Hofstra University
21	Brigham Young University
22	University of Georgia
23	The American University in Cairo
24	Middle Tennessee State University
25	University of Alabama
25	University of Southern Indiana
27	St. Cloud State University
28	Appalachian State University
29	Texas Christian University
30	Palm Beach Atlantic University
31	Xavier University
32	University of Connecticut
33	Liberty University
34	Regent University
35	Ithaca College
35	SUNY Oswego
37	Fort Hays State University
38	University of Southern California
38	University of South Carolina
40	Northwest Missouri State University
41	University of Maryland
42	Harding University
43	University of Arkansas
44	University of Nebraska Omaha
45	Weber State University
46	University of North Carolina Wilmington
47	Northern Arizona University
48	University of North Texas
49	Oklahoma State University
50	York College of Pennsylvania
51	John Carroll University
52	Marshall University
53	Purdue University Northwest
53	Temple University
55	Colorado State University
56	Drake University
56	Ferris State University
58	Ohio University
58	University of Cincinnati
60	Midwestern State University
61	University of Kentucky
62	University of West Georgia
63	Furman University
64	Bethel University
64	University of Denver
66	Kansas State University
67	Indiana State University
67	University of Colorado Boulder
69	University of Tennessee
70	Kentucky Wesleyan College
70	St. Bonaventure University
70	Western Kentucky University
73	San Jose State University
74	University of Montevallo
75	Purdue University
75	University of Central Oklahoma
77	Mississippi State University
77	University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
79	University of Indianapolis
80	University of Texas at Arlington
81	California State University Fullerton
82	SUNY New Paltz
83	Baylor University
83	Gordon College
83	Southern Illinois University Carbondale
83	University of Central Florida
83	Westminster College
88	San Francisco State University
89	Loyola University Chicago
90	University of Wisconsin Oshkosh
91	Southern Illinois University Edwardsville
92	University of Toledo
93	Georgia Southern University
93	North Carolina Central University
95	Illinois State University
96	Nottingham Trent University
96	University of La Verne
98	Champlain College
98	College of Saint Benedict and Saint John's University
98	Loyola Marymount University
98	San Diego State University

2026 Top Winning Audio Programs

Rank	School
1	Taylor University
2	Missouri State University
3	Elon University
4	Rowan University
5	University of Southern Indiana
6	Goshen College
7	Liberty University
8	Arizona State University
9	Texas Christian University
10	University of Nebraska Omaha
11	Huntington University
12	Kentucky Wesleyan College
13	SUNY Oswego
13	University of Nebraska Lincoln
15	York College of Pennsylvania
16	The American University in Cairo
17	Harding University
18	John Carroll University
18	Syracuse University
20	Marshall University
21	University of Texas at Arlington
22	Appalachian State University
22	Northwest Missouri State University
24	North Carolina Central University
24	University of Oklahoma
26	Indiana State University
26	University of Colorado Boulder
28	Nottingham Trent University
28	University of La Verne
30	Linfield Univeristy
30	Southern Illinois University Carbondale
30	University of Central Florida
30	University of West Georgia
30	University of Wisconsin Oshkosh
35	Howard University
35	Susquehanna University
35	Toronto Metropolitan University
38	Furman University
39	Hofstra University
40	Kansas State University
41	Slippery Rock University
42	West Virginia University

2026 Top Winning Documentary Programs

Rank	School
1	Taylor University
2	University of Florida
3	University of Oklahoma
4	Syracuse University
5	Arizona State University
6	Midwestern State University
7	The American University in Cairo
8	Colorado State University
9	Fort Hays State University
10	University of Alabama
11	Michigan State University
12	Ferris State University
13	Rowan University
14	Ball State University
14	Huntington University Arizona
14	San Diego State University
14	University of Connecticut
18	Brigham Young University
19	Harding University
19	University of Tennessee
21	Elon University
21	Goshen College
21	Loyola Marymount University
21	Texas Christian Univeristy
21	University of Central Florida
21	University of Miami

2026 Top Winning Film & Video Programs

Rank	School
1	University of Oklahoma
2	Huntington University
3	Huntington University Arizona
4	Taylor University
5	Elon University
6	University of Florida
7	Syracuse University
8	Bethany Lutheran College
9	Goshen College
10	Middle Tennessee State University
11	Missouri State University
12	University of Connecticut
13	University of North Carolina Wilmington
14	James Madison University
14	Palm Beach Atlantic University
14	Regent University
17	Rowan University
18	Hofstra University
19	Michigan State University
20	Xavier University
21	Ball State University
22	University of Montevallo
23	Baylor University
23	Drake University
25	University of Alabama
26	Northwest Missouri State University
27	University of Central Oklahoma
28	Weber State University
29	University of Maryland
30	College of Saint Benedict and Saint John's University
30	Ferris State University
30	Ithaca College
30	Pennsylvania State University
30	Southern Illinois University Edwardsville
35	Texas Christian University
35	Buffalo State University
37	Gordon College
37	Loyola University Chicago
37	St. Cloud State University
40	Colorado State University
40	Piedmont University
40	University of Cincinnati
40	University of West Georgia
44	Liberty University
44	West Virginia University

2026 Top Winning Interactive Multimedia & Emerging Technology Programs

Rank	School
1	Syracuse University
2	Arizona State University
3	West Virginia University
4	San Jose State University
5	James Madison University
6	University of Oklahoma
6	University of Southern California
8	Weber State University
9	University of North Texas
10	Michigan State University
11	Furman University

2026 Top Winning News Programs

Rank	School
1	University of Florida
2	University of Oklahoma
3	Arizona State University
4	Syracuse University
5	University of Miami
6	Pennsylvania State University
7	West Virginia University
8	Michigan State University
9	University of South Carolina
10	University of Southern California
11	University of Nebraska Lincoln
12	Brigham Young University
13	Ball State University
13	Goshen College
15	The American University in Cairo
16	University of Maryland
17	University of Kentucky
18	Ohio University
19	University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
20	Oklahoma State University
21	University of Denver
22	University of Arkansas
23	Appalachian State University
24	Rowan University
25	Northern Arizona University
26	University of North Texas
26	University of Tennessee
28	Elon University
28	St. Bonaventure University
30	Hofstra University
31	SUNY Oswego
32	Marshall University
33	Fort Hays State University
34	Mississippi State University
35	Temple University
35	University of Toledo

2026 Top Winning Scriptwriting Programs

Rank	School
1	Missouri State University
2	University of Georgia
3	University of Oklahoma
4	Huntington University
5	James Madison University
6	Purdue University Northwest
7	Xavier University
8	University of Alabama
9	San Francisco State University
10	Syracuse University
10	University of North Texas
10	Weber State University
13	Palm Beach Atlantic University
14	Appalachian State University
15	Ball State University
16	Central Michigan University
16	Westminster College
18	York College of Pennsylvania
19	Illinois State University
19	New York University
21	SUNY Oswego
21	University of West Georgia

2026 Top Winning Sports Programs

Rank	School
1	Ball State University
2	Arizona State University
3	Syracuse University
4	University of Oklahoma
5	University of Miami
6	University of Florida
7	St. Cloud State University
8	Michigan State University
9	Bethany Lutheran College
9	Pennsylvania State University
11	Brigham Young University
12	West Virginia University
13	Hofstra University
14	Temple University
15	Ithaca College
16	Northern Arizona University
17	University of Nebraska Lincoln
18	Bethel University
19	Fort Hays State University
20	Elon University
20	Purdue University
22	Western Kentucky University
23	Kansas State University
23	University of Cincinnati
25	Oklahoma State University
26	Taylor University
27	Appalachian State University
27	University of Indianapolis
29	Goshen College
30	Middle Tennessee State University
31	Harding University
31	Northwest Missouri State University
33	Furman University
33	Southeastern Louisiana University
33	St. Bonaventure University
36	University of Southern Indiana
37	Huntington University
37	Ohio University
37	Point Park University