Photo: Jordan W. · CC BY-SA 3.0San Joaquin Valley College-Ontario is 5.8 miles from Fontana
No college sits inside Fontana’s boundary, but San Joaquin Valley College-Ontario’s campus in Ontario, with 1,064 students on campus, is 5.8 miles from the center of town, and Chaffey College is 6.9 miles away in Rancho Cucamonga. About 7% of Fontana’s residents are enrolled in college, about the same as California (8%).
From the U.S. Department of Education (College Scorecard, June 2026; IPEDS fall 2023 enrollment) and the Census Bureau’s American Community Survey, 2020–24. Straight-line distances from the center of Fontana. Colleges are described, not graded.
What stands out about college from Fontana
Facts about the town and its distance to campus; each college’s own figures follow.
Colleges within 15 miles of Fontana
22 private colleges within 15 miles, two public colleges within 12.3 miles, and four community colleges.
Degree-granting colleges with 100 or more students on campus (fall 2023 enrollment, minus students who study only online). Admitted: share of applicants offered a place. Net price: the average a year after grants, for students on federal aid. Graduate: within 6 years (4-year colleges) or 3 (2-year). Earnings: median, 10 years after starting.
What would your family pay?
The average a year after grants, for families on federal aid, at the colleges within 15 miles. Pick your family’s income.
Starts at $75–110k, where Fontana’s median household income ($102,821) falls.
The average a year after grants and scholarships, for first-time, full-time students on federal aid, from the College Scorecard. Your own price depends on your aid package; every college has a net price calculator. For community colleges the net price counts housing and food at full cost, so tuition is shown beside it. “—”: not reported for that income.
Do students finish, and does it pay?
Each dot is a college within 15 miles of Fontana: across is the share who graduate, up is what they earn ten years after starting.
Graduation: first-time, full-time students within 6 years (4-year colleges) or 3 years (2-year). Earnings: median, 10 years after starting, for students who got federal aid. *Reported for all the campuses that file together: San Joaquin Valley College-Ontario (14); Universal Technical Institute of California Inc (6); Platt College-Ontario (4); DeVry University-California (11); West Coast University-Ontario (6); North-West College-Riverside (4); American College of Healthcare and Technology (3).
Questions about college near Fontana
Is Fontana a college town?
No. About 7 of every 100 Fontana residents are enrolled in college (Census, 2020–24), about the same as California (8). The nearest campus, San Joaquin Valley College-Ontario, is 5.8 miles away in Ontario.
What colleges are near Fontana?
28 colleges are within 15 miles. The largest: the University of California-Riverside (12.3 miles, 26,138 students on campus), California State University-San Bernardino (9.4 miles, 16,825) and Riverside City College (10.6 miles, 13,488).
What is the closest community college to Fontana, and what does it cost?
Chaffey College in Rancho Cucamonga, 6.9 miles away. Tuition and fees are $1,184 a year for California residents; the federal net price, $5,672, counts housing and food at full cost.
How much does California State University-San Bernardino cost if we live in California?
Tuition and fees are $8,093 a year in-state and $20,693 from out of state. After grants, families on federal aid paid an average of $2,681 (under $30,000 income) to $14,316 (over $110,000), housing and food included.
Neighbors talk college
Students, parents, alumni and the neighbors next door.
Colleges: U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard and IPEDS (Scorecard 06/10/2026 · IPEDS 2024 · fall 2023 enrollment). “On campus” is fall enrollment minus students who study only online. Distances are straight-line from the center of Fontana. Residents in college, age, rent and poverty (including poverty without college students, table B14006): U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020–24. Colleges are described, not graded; the College town label marks towns where 15% or more of residents are enrolled. How TownRatings describes colleges →