Photo: Unknown authorUnknown author · Public domainMassachusetts College of Liberal Arts is 4.7 miles from Adams
No college sits inside Adams’ boundary, but Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts’s campus in North Adams, with 896 students on campus, is 4.7 miles from the center of town, and Berkshire Community College is 15.1 miles away in Pittsfield. About 4% of Adams’ residents are enrolled in college, below Massachusetts (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 Adams. Colleges are described, not graded.
What stands out about college from Adams
Facts about the town and its distance to campus; each college’s own figures follow.
Colleges within 15 miles of Adams
One private college within 7.4 miles, and one public college within 4.7 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 Adams’ median household income ($58,929) 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 Adams: 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 Adams
Is Adams a college town?
No. About 4 of every 100 Adams residents are enrolled in college (Census, 2020–24), below Massachusetts (8). The nearest campus, Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts, is 4.7 miles away in North Adams.
What colleges are near Adams?
Within 15 miles: Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts (4.7 miles, 896 students on campus) and Williams College (7.4 miles, 2,168).
What is the closest community college to Adams, and what does it cost?
Berkshire Community College in Pittsfield, 15.1 miles away. Tuition and fees are $6,164 a year for Massachusetts residents; the federal net price, $9,921, counts housing and food at full cost.
How much does Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts cost if we live in Massachusetts?
Tuition and fees are $12,436 a year in-state and $21,381 from out of state. After grants, families on federal aid paid an average of $9,845 (under $30,000 income) to $22,698 (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 Adams. 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 →