Photo: KudzuVine · Public domainMiller-Motte College-Chattanooga is 9 miles from Ringgold
No college sits inside Ringgold’s boundary, but Miller-Motte College-Chattanooga’s campus in Chattanooga, with 236 students on campus, is 9 miles from the center of town, and Georgia Northwestern Technical College is 47.7 miles away in Rome. About 4% of Ringgold’s residents are enrolled in college, about the same as Georgia (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 Ringgold. Colleges are described, not graded.
What stands out about college from Ringgold
Facts about the town and its distance to campus; each college’s own figures follow.
Colleges within 15 miles of Ringgold
Four private colleges within 14.8 miles, two public colleges within 13.7 miles, and Chattanooga State Community College 14.5 miles away.
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 $30–48k, where Ringgold’s median household income ($42,583) 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 Ringgold: 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: Miller-Motte College-Chattanooga (22).
Questions about college near Ringgold
Is Ringgold a college town?
No. About 4 of every 100 Ringgold residents are enrolled in college (Census, 2020–24), about the same as Georgia (6). The nearest campus, Miller-Motte College-Chattanooga, is 9 miles away in Chattanooga.
What colleges are near Ringgold?
7 colleges are within 15 miles. The largest: The University of Tennessee-Chattanooga (13.7 miles, 10,079 students on campus), Chattanooga State Community College (14.5 miles, 4,824) and Dalton State College (11.7 miles, 4,265).
What is the closest community college to Ringgold, and what does it cost?
Georgia Northwestern Technical College in Rome, 47.7 miles away. Tuition and fees are $3,300 a year for Georgia residents; the federal net price, $5,720, counts housing and food at full cost.
How much does Dalton State College cost if we live in Georgia?
Tuition and fees are $3,336 a year in-state and $10,656 from out of state. After grants, families on federal aid paid an average of $3,962 (under $30,000 income) to $10,055 (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 Ringgold. 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 →