Best Acting Schools and Classes in New York (Ranked)

The best acting schools in New York are The Juilliard School, Fordham University and NYU Tisch School of the Arts for undergraduates, and Yale, Juilliard, NYU Tisch and Columbia for MFA actors. For part-time acting classes in New York City, the most respected studios include the Terry Knickerbocker Studio, William Esper Studio, HB Studio, the Stella Adler Studio of Acting and Atlantic Acting School.

We ranked each degree program on four things: the quality of the actor training, the real cost after financial aid, notable alumni, and how selective it is. Scores are out of 5. Tuition is the latest published yearly rate before financial aid; details are under each school.

New York acting schools at a glance

School	Degree	Tuition	Score
Juilliard BFA	BFA in Acting	$57,200/yr	4.3
Fordham Theatre BA	BA in Theatre (Performance)	$67,925/yr before aid	4.3
NYU Tisch BFA	BFA in Drama	$75,326/yr	3.3
Pace BFA	BFA in Acting	$56,382/yr before aid	3.3
Brooklyn College BFA	BFA in Acting	Low CUNY public rate	3.0
Northeastern NYC (Marymount) BFA	BFA in Acting	Northeastern rate	2.7
Yale MFA	MFA in Acting	Free	5.0
Juilliard MFA	MFA in Acting	Free	5.0
NYU Grad Acting	MFA in Acting	$76,646/yr before aid	4.7
Columbia MFA	MFA in Acting	Full rate, lower in year 3	3.7

Best undergraduate acting programs in New York (BFA and BA)

1. The Juilliard School: BFA in Acting

Best for: Actors who want the most rigorous classical-to-camera conservatory training in the country.

Juilliard’s Drama Division is a four-year conservatory. Actors train in Linklater voice, Alexander Technique, mask, clown, singing and physical transformation, and are cast in productions in their third and fourth years. Acting for the camera has grown in recent years, and BFA actors train side by side with the MFA actors in one small ensemble.

• Location: Lincoln Center, Manhattan
• Tuition: About $57,200 a year (2026–27). Most students receive aid, but loans are common.
• Acceptance rate: About 1%
• Notable alumni: Viola Davis, Jessica Chastain, Adam Driver, Oscar Isaac, Laura Linney, Robin Williams
• Our score: 4.3 / 5
• Visit the Juilliard BFA website →

2. Fordham University: BA in Theatre (Performance)

Best for: Actors who want conservatory-level training inside a liberal arts degree, with strong scholarships.

Fordham’s Performance concentration teaches Stanislavski-based action work across contemporary, classical and surrealist texts, with Linklater voice, Alexander and Butoh movement, and advanced classes in clown, Shakespeare and on-camera acting. Each year brings four mainstage productions, 8–12 studio productions and new-work festivals. As a BA, it adds general education requirements and optional directing or playwriting training.

• Location: Lincoln Center, Manhattan
• Tuition: About $67,925 a year before aid (2026–27). The department is known for large scholarships, sometimes covering full tuition.
• Acceptance rate: About 6%
• Notable alumni: Denzel Washington, Patricia Clarkson, Betty Gilpin, Taylor Schilling, Tommy Dorfman
• Our score: 4.3 / 5
• Visit the Fordham Theatre BA website →

3. NYU Tisch School of the Arts: BFA in Drama

Best for: Actors who want a big network and a choice of acting technique.

NYU Tisch places each drama student in one of its professional training studios, each built around a technique such as Meisner, Stanislavski or acting for film. Students spend their first two years in that studio and move to a second studio in their third year, alongside theatre history and academic courses. The class is large, so performance opportunities depend on the studio.

• Location: Greenwich Village, Manhattan
• Tuition: About $75,326 a year (2026–27), with less scholarship aid than smaller programs.
• Acceptance rate: About 27%
• Notable alumni: Philip Seymour Hoffman, Donald Glover, Aubrey Plaza, Pedro Pascal, Stephanie Hsu, Miles Teller
• Our score: 3.3 / 5
• Visit the NYU Tisch BFA website →

4. Pace University: BFA in Acting

Best for: Actors who want strong on-camera training and an LA industry connection.

Pace’s BFA in Acting is part of the Sands College of Performing Arts. Training combines acting technique with stage combat, film and television, musical theater and comedy. In the fourth year, actors travel to Los Angeles for the LA Intensive to work with casting directors, producers and network executives.

• Location: Lower Manhattan
• Tuition: About $56,382 a year (2024–25), with merit scholarships of up to $33,000 a year.
• Acceptance rate: About 3%
• Notable alumni: Dominique Fishback, Michelle Borth, Vincent Pastore, Christopher Briney
• Our score: 3.3 / 5
• Visit the Pace BFA website →

5. Brooklyn College (CUNY): BFA in Acting

Best for: Actors who want serious training at public-college cost.

Brooklyn College accepts a small BFA class of 10–12 actors a year, which builds a close ensemble. Training covers a range of acting techniques, speech and dialects, and American and world theatre history, with advanced classes in clown, Shakespeare, camera and solo performance. The department produces eight to ten shows a year, and links to Brooklyn’s film schools add on-camera work.

• Location: Midwood, Brooklyn
• Tuition: Low CUNY public tuition, far below private schools, with a higher rate for out-of-state students.
• Acceptance rate: About 8%
• Notable alumni: Mel Brooks, Dominic Chianese, Steve Schirripa
• Our score: 3.0 / 5
• Visit the Brooklyn College BFA website →

6. Northeastern University – New York City (formerly Marymount Manhattan College): BFA in Acting

Best for: Actors who are also interested in directing, playwriting or dramaturgy.

Marymount Manhattan College merged with Northeastern University, and its campus is now Northeastern University – New York City, which still offers a BFA in Acting. The acting track is more literary than most BFAs, with a focus on Shakespeare, script analysis, stagecraft and directing, and room for actors to choose techniques later on. There are six mainstage productions a year plus student directing and playwriting projects.

• Location: Upper East Side, Manhattan
• Tuition: Now set by Northeastern University. Check the current rate with the school.
• Acceptance rate: About 20%
• Notable alumni: Annaleigh Ashford, Adrienne Warren, James Cusati-Moyer
• Our score: 2.7 / 5
• Visit the Northeastern NYC (Marymount) BFA website →

Best graduate acting programs in New York (MFA)

1. Yale David Geffen School of Drama: MFA in Acting

Best for: Actors who want a fully funded, three-year conservatory with a professional theatre attached.

Yale’s MFA moves from contemporary scene study in year one to heightened language and verse in year two, and to surrealist texts and camera work in year three, with commedia and clown along the way. All casting is assigned, and actors work on new plays, student directors’ thesis productions and the Yale Repertory Theatre season.

• Location: New Haven, Connecticut (about 2 hours from NYC)
• Tuition: Tuition-free since 2021, thanks to a $150 million gift from David Geffen. Students still pay living costs.
• Acceptance rate: About 1.5%
• Notable alumni: Meryl Streep, Lupita Nyong’o, Frances McDormand, Paul Giamatti, Brian Tyree Henry, Yahya Abdul-Mateen II
• Our score: 5.0 / 5
• Visit the Yale MFA website →

2. The Juilliard School: MFA in Acting

Best for: Actors who want four years of training at no tuition cost.

Juilliard’s MFA is the only four-year MFA acting program in the U.S. Graduate actors train side by side with the BFA class in voice, movement, mask, clown and singing, then take advanced work in writing, directing and teaching in their final year, with their own performance opportunities.

• Location: Lincoln Center, Manhattan
• Tuition: Tuition-free for the full four years since 2024–25.
• Acceptance rate: About 1.5%
• Notable alumni: Jessica Chastain, Adam Driver, Oscar Isaac, Viola Davis, Laura Linney, Corey Hawkins
• Our score: 5.0 / 5
• Visit the Juilliard MFA website →

3. NYU Tisch Graduate Acting: MFA in Acting

Best for: Actors who want a three-year ensemble program with strong film and new-work ties.

NYU Graduate Acting teaches mask, Alexander, voice and speech, yoga and combat every year. Year one releases vocal and physical tension and works on Shakespeare, year two focuses on contemporary scenes and filmmaking, and year three adds musical theatre, original work with The Public Theater and on-camera training. Tisch’s graduate film students cast the actors in their films.

• Location: Greenwich Village, Manhattan
• Tuition: About $76,646 a year before aid (2024–25). The program has historically given most students large fellowships.
• Acceptance rate: About 1.5%
• Notable alumni: Mahershala Ali, Sterling K. Brown, Billy Crudup, Debra Messing, Marcia Gay Harden, Michael C. Hall
• Our score: 4.7 / 5
• Visit the NYU Grad Acting website →

4. Columbia University School of the Arts: MFA in Acting

Best for: Actors focused on the move from school to a working film and TV career.

Columbia trains movement through Alexander, Feldenkrais, Suzuki and stage combat, and voice through breath, dialects and heightened language. On-camera training is strong, led by casting director James Calleri, with films made alongside Columbia’s MFA film students. The third year is built around the showcase, casting workshops and a sizzle reel.

• Location: Morningside Heights, Manhattan
• Tuition: Full graduate tuition in years one and two. The third year is billed at a much lower rate.
• Acceptance rate: About 2%
• Notable alumni: Marcel Spears, Rebecca Henderson, Kristin Dodson
• Our score: 3.7 / 5
• Visit the Columbia MFA website →

Best acting classes and studios in New York City

Not ready for a degree? These New York acting studios offer part-time classes and full-time conservatory programs without a college application.

Terry Knickerbocker Studio

Technique: Meisner. A Brooklyn acting conservatory known for its five-semester Meisner program, plus seasonal acting intensives and electives in voice, Shakespeare and stage combat. Visit website →

William Esper Studio

Technique: Meisner. Founded in Manhattan in 1965 by William Esper, a leading authority on the Meisner technique, offering two-year professional training and part-time classes. Visit website →

HB Studio

Technique: Uta Hagen and Herbert Berghof tradition. A long-running West Village studio taught by working theatre artists, with affordable part-time classes. Alumni include Al Pacino, Sarah Jessica Parker, Matthew Broderick and Christopher Abbott. Visit website →

Stella Adler Studio of Acting

Technique: Stella Adler technique. Founded by Stella Adler in 1949, offering a selective professional conservatory and many part-time and youth classes in Manhattan. Visit website →

Atlantic Acting School

Technique: Practical Aesthetics. The school of Atlantic Theater Company, which David Mamet and William H. Macy founded, teaching a practical, action-based technique to adults and young actors, and partnering with NYU Tisch. Alumni include Clark Gregg, Jessica Alba and Felicity Huffman. Visit website →

Bob Krakower Studio

Technique: On-camera and audition coaching. Coaching and classes from Bob Krakower, who has taught at Yale, Harvard, NYU and Brown and coaches Oscar-, Emmy- and Tony-nominated actors, with a background in TV casting. Visit website →

Larry Moss

Technique: Scene study and master classes. The acclaimed teacher and author of The Intent to Live. His studio is based in Los Angeles, but New York actors can join his online master classes. Visit website →

The Karl Bury Studio

Technique: Scene study. Karl Bury earned his MFA at the University of Washington and has worked with Larry Moss since 1996, teaching scene study in that tradition. Visit website →

How to choose an acting school in New York

• Degree or studio: a BFA or MFA gives you three to four years of full-time training and an industry showcase. A studio gives you focused technique training around a day job.
• Cost after aid: compare what you would actually pay. Yale’s and Juilliard’s MFAs are tuition-free, and CUNY Brooklyn College is the lowest-cost BFA on this list.
• Technique: Meisner (Terry Knickerbocker, Esper), Stanislavski (Fordham, Pace), Adler (Stella Adler Studio) and Practical Aesthetics (Atlantic) build actors in different ways. Take a trial class if you can.
• Stage or screen: Columbia, Pace and NYU Tisch put more weight on camera work and industry access. Juilliard, Yale and Fordham lean toward the stage.
• Class size: small ensembles (Juilliard, Brooklyn College, Yale) mean more stage time and individual attention.

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