Academy Awards nominations 2025: Where did the Oscar nominees go to university?

Ahead of the 97th edition of the Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, we’ve taken a look at where the 2025 nominees went to university to prep themselves for careers in the film industry.

Although some of the talent did not attend university, choosing instead to dive straight into work, there are 92 universities, theatre schools and specialist schools from all over the world on this year’s list.

Unsurprisingly, universities and colleges in North America and the UK are well represented, but higher education institutions in France, Belgium, Hungary, Australia and Japan also feature.

It is also important to note that universities and theatre schools were included in this list even if the nominee dropped out part way through their course or transferred to another university during their degree programme – and some of the nominees’ education information was not available online at the time of publication.

New York University

New York University has produced the highest number of Oscar nominees this year – seven in total. Four of these nominees attended the university’s prestigious Tisch School of the Arts, which is well known for producing successful artists, film-makers and creatives.

Tisch graduate Sean Baker is nominated for four awards for breakout film Anora. If he wins all four prizes, he will be first person in history to win four Oscars for directing, editing, writing and best picture for the same film. 

Two New York University alumni are nominated for Wicked: veteran film producer Marc Platt and costume designer Paul Tazewell, who is known for creating costumes for Broadway shows and musical films.

University of Pennsylvania

Although it has four nominated alumni this year, the University of Pennsylvania doesn’t usually feature highly for producing Oscar nominees. 

Marc Platt features again, having studied for an undergraduate degree at the University of Pennsylvania. Husband and wife duo Adam J. Graves and Suchitra Mattai, who worked together to produce the live action short film Anuja, both attended UPenn. 

University of Oxford

The University of Oxford regularly produces a large number of Oscar nominees. Tessa Ross and Juliette Howell both attended the University of Oxford and are nominated for best picture for religious drama Conclave. 

Sorbonne University

Sorbonne University in Paris is renowned for its arts programmes. All three of its nominated alumni worked on the Spanish/English feature film Emilia Perez. Director Jacques Audiard is nominated for four awards, including directing and writing. 

La Femis

La Femis is the film and television school of PSL Research University in Paris. The school offers courses in the technical aspects of film-making and is considered one of the most prestigious film schools in Europe. 

Two graduate nominees worked on Emilia Perez while Coralie Fargeat, nominated for directing body horror The Substance, also attended La Femis. 

Where did the rest of the 2025 Oscar nominees go to university?