Fresno, CA (population: 490,930) has eighteen audio schools within a 500-mile radius of its city center. University of California-San Diego, the highest ranked school in this group with an audio program, has a total student population of 28,418. It is the 22nd highest ranked school in the USA and the 4th highest in the state of California (#1 is University of California-Los Angeles).
Audio students from Fresno schools who go on to become audio professionals, audio production engineers, audio engineers, audio recording professionals, etc. have a good chance at finding employment. For example, there are 46,070 people working as audio and video equipment technicians alone in the US, and their average annual salary is $42,450. Also, Sound engineering technicians make on average $53,940 per year and there are about 15,560 of them employed in the US today.
Fresno lies in Fresno county, which is one of the 57 counties in California. Overall, the Fresno area has 323,470 total employed workers according to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, with a 1% unemployment rate, $19/hr average worker wage, and a $40,460 average annual salary.
Of the 18 audio schools with a 500-mile radius of Fresno, only 11 have a student population over 10k. After taking into account tuition, living expenses, and financial aid, University of Redlands comes out as the most expensive ($27,286/yr) for audio students, with Grossmont College as the lowest, reported at only $3,021/yr.
| Name | State | Population | # of Schools | Avg School Rank | Total Programs | Distance from Fresno |
| Hanford | CA | 51,853 | 0 | - | 0 | 32.1 miles |
| Visalia | CA | 127,444 | 7 | 18.6498 | 161 | 40.6 miles |
| Merced | CA | 78,579 | 3 | 29.789 | 150 | 52.4 miles |
| Porterville | CA | 53,185 | 1 | 11.8615 | 42 | 65.3 miles |
| Ceres | CA | 43,443 | 0 | - | 0 | 85.9 miles |
| Sonora | CA | - | 1 | 10.5858 | 57 | 89.4 miles |
| Modesto | CA | 203,882 | 4 | 24.9737 | 137 | 89.9 miles |
| Salida | CA | - | 2 | 26.0837 | 19 | 95.8 miles |