Ringling College of Art and Design is 4.5 miles from The Meadows
No college sits inside The Meadows’ boundary, but Ringling College of Art and Design’s campus in Sarasota, with 1,721 students on campus, is 4.5 miles from the center of town, and Hillsborough Community College is 39.5 miles away in Tampa. About 3% of The Meadows’ residents are enrolled in college, below Florida (6%).
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 The Meadows. Colleges are described, not graded.
What stands out about college from The Meadows
Facts about the town and its distance to campus; each college’s own figures follow.
Colleges within 15 miles of The Meadows
Three private colleges within 4.5 miles, and two public colleges within 8.8 miles.
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 $48–75k, where The Meadows’ median household income ($69,774) 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 The Meadows: 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: Meridian College (2).
Questions about college near The Meadows
Is The Meadows a college town?
No. About 3 of every 100 The Meadows residents are enrolled in college (Census, 2020–24), below Florida (6). The nearest campus, Galen Health Institutes-Sarasota, is 2.1 miles away in Sarasota.
What colleges are near The Meadows?
Within 15 miles: Galen Health Institutes-Sarasota (2.1 miles, 404 students on campus), Meridian College (3.3 miles, 144), Ringling College of Art and Design (4.5 miles, 1,721), New College of Florida (5.4 miles, 732) and State College of Florida-Manatee-Sarasota (8.8 miles, 5,157).
What is the closest community college to The Meadows, and what does it cost?
Hillsborough Community College in Tampa, 39.5 miles away. Tuition and fees are $2,506 a year for Florida residents; the federal net price, $3,861, counts housing and food at full cost.
How much does New College of Florida cost if we live in Florida?
Tuition and fees are $6,916 a year in-state and $29,944 from out of state. After grants, families on federal aid paid an average of $3,591 (under $30,000 income) to $13,586 (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 The Meadows. 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 →