Photo: Alexander Migl · CC BY-SA 4.0Santa Monica College is 3 miles from Marina del Rey
No college sits inside Marina del Rey’s boundary, but Santa Monica College’s campus in Santa Monica, with 14,294 students on campus, is 3 miles from the center of town. About 2% of Marina del Rey’s residents are enrolled in college, below 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 Marina del Rey. Colleges are described, not graded.
What stands out about college from Marina del Rey
Facts about the town and its distance to campus; each college’s own figures follow.
Colleges within 15 miles of Marina del Rey
33 private colleges within 14.9 miles, two public colleges within 13.6 miles, and 11 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 Over $110k, where Marina del Rey’s median household income ($146,623) 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 Marina del Rey: 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: Spartan College of Aeronautics & Technology (2); UEI College-Gardena (5); American Career College-Los Angeles (2); The Chicago School at Los Angeles (8); Homestead Schools (2); West Coast University-Los Angeles (6).
Questions about college near Marina del Rey
Is Marina del Rey a college town?
No. About 2 of every 100 Marina del Rey residents are enrolled in college (Census, 2020–24), below California (8). The nearest campus, Yo San University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, is 1.3 miles away in Los Angeles.
What colleges are near Marina del Rey?
43 colleges are within 15 miles. The largest: the University of California-Los Angeles (6.6 miles, 46,029 students on campus), the University of Southern California (10.1 miles, 41,282) and El Camino Community College District (9.4 miles, 15,562).
What is the closest community college to Marina del Rey, and what does it cost?
Santa Monica College in Santa Monica, 3 miles away. Tuition and fees are $1,156 a year for California residents; the federal net price, $2,779, counts housing and food at full cost.
How much does Santa Monica College cost if we live in California?
Tuition and fees are $1,156 a year in-state and $10,708 from out of state. After grants, families on federal aid paid an average of $1,896 (under $30,000 income) to $8,395 (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 Marina del Rey. 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 →