Photo: Steve Shook · CC BY 2.0Indiana University-Northwest is 13.9 miles from Cedar Lake
No college sits inside Cedar Lake’s boundary, but Indiana University-Northwest’s campus in Gary, with 2,280 students on campus, is 13.9 miles from the center of town, and Ivy Tech Community College is 127.6 miles away in Indianapolis. About 5% of Cedar Lake’s residents are enrolled in college, about the same as Indiana (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 Cedar Lake. Colleges are described, not graded.
What stands out about college from Cedar Lake
Facts about the town and its distance to campus; each college’s own figures follow.
Colleges within 15 miles of Cedar Lake
All 3 are public. Every other college is more than 15 miles from Cedar Lake.
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 $75–110k, where Cedar Lake’s median household income ($83,381) 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 Cedar Lake: 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 Cedar Lake
Is Cedar Lake a college town?
No. About 5 of every 100 Cedar Lake residents are enrolled in college (Census, 2020–24), about the same as Indiana (6). The nearest campus, Indiana University-Northwest, is 13.9 miles away in Gary.
What colleges are near Cedar Lake?
Within 15 miles: Indiana University-Northwest (13.9 miles, 2,280 students on campus), Purdue University Northwest (14.7 miles, 7,964) and Prairie State College (14.7 miles, 2,611).
What is the closest community college to Cedar Lake, and what does it cost?
Ivy Tech Community College in Indianapolis, 127.6 miles away. Tuition and fees are $5,154 a year for Indiana residents; the federal net price, $7,258, counts housing and food at full cost.
How much does Indiana University-Northwest cost if we live in Indiana?
Tuition and fees are $8,424 a year in-state and $22,811 from out of state. After grants, families on federal aid paid an average of $1,419 (under $30,000 income) to $13,042 (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 Cedar Lake. 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 →