Moraine Valley Community College is 3 miles from Chicago Ridge
No college sits inside Chicago Ridge’s boundary, but Moraine Valley Community College’s campus in Palos Hills, with 9,764 students on campus, is 3 miles from the center of town. About 3% of Chicago Ridge’s residents are enrolled in college, below Illinois (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 Chicago Ridge. Colleges are described, not graded.
What stands out about college from Chicago Ridge
Facts about the town and its distance to campus; each college’s own figures follow.
Colleges within 15 miles of Chicago Ridge
29 private colleges within 15 miles, two public colleges within 13.4 miles, and 10 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 $48–75k, where Chicago Ridge’s median household income ($68,964) 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 Chicago Ridge: 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: Lincoln College of Technology-Melrose Park (8); Pacific College of Health and Science (3).
Questions about college near Chicago Ridge
Is Chicago Ridge a college town?
No. About 3 of every 100 Chicago Ridge residents are enrolled in college (Census, 2020–24), below Illinois (6). The nearest campus, Northwestern College, is 2.3 miles away in Oak Lawn.
What colleges are near Chicago Ridge?
41 colleges are within 15 miles. The largest: the University of Illinois Chicago (13.4 miles, 29,607 students on campus), DePaul University (14.4 miles, 18,382) and the University of Chicago (11 miles, 18,240).
What is the closest community college to Chicago Ridge, and what does it cost?
Moraine Valley Community College in Palos Hills, 3 miles away. Tuition and fees are $3,822 a year for Illinois residents; the federal net price, $2,829, counts housing and food at full cost.
How much does Chicago State University cost if we live in Illinois?
Tuition and fees are $12,754 a year in-state and $12,754 from out of state. After grants, families on federal aid paid an average of $9,073 (under $30,000 income) to $28,427 (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 Chicago Ridge. 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 →