Taft College is 4.9 miles from Valley Acres
No college sits inside Valley Acres’ boundary, but Taft College’s campus in Taft, with 3,092 students on campus, is 4.9 miles from the center of town. About 7% of Valley Acres’ 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 Valley Acres. Colleges are described, not graded.
What stands out about college from Valley Acres
Facts about the town and its distance to campus; each college’s own figures follow.
Colleges within 15 miles of Valley Acres
It is public. Every other college is more than 15 miles from Valley Acres.
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 Valley Acres’ median household income ($135,820) 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 Valley Acres: 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.
Questions about college near Valley Acres
Is Valley Acres a college town?
No. About 7 of every 100 Valley Acres residents are enrolled in college (Census, 2020–24), about the same as California (8). The nearest campus, Taft College, is 4.9 miles away in Taft.
What colleges are near Valley Acres?
Within 15 miles: Taft College (4.9 miles, 3,092 students on campus).
What is the closest community college to Valley Acres, and what does it cost?
Taft College in Taft, 4.9 miles away. Tuition and fees are $1,108 a year for California residents; the federal net price, $2,823, counts housing and food at full cost.
How much does Taft College cost if we live in California?
Tuition and fees are $1,108 a year in-state and $10,852 from out of state.
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 Valley Acres. 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 →