Benjamin Caryl House · Photo: Tim Pierce · CC BY-SA 3.0Babson College is 4.6 miles from Dover
No college sits inside Dover’s boundary, but Babson College’s campus in Wellesley, with 3,646 students on campus, is 4.6 miles from the center of town, and Massachusetts Bay Community College is 5.6 miles away in Wellesley Hills. About 7% of Dover’s residents are enrolled in college, about the same as 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 Dover. Colleges are described, not graded.
What stands out about college from Dover
Facts about the town and its distance to campus; each college’s own figures follow.
Colleges within 15 miles of Dover
39 private colleges within 14.9 miles, three public colleges within 14.1 miles, and four 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 Over $110k, where Dover’s median household income ($250,001) 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 Dover: 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: Northeastern University (3); Longy School of Music of Bard College (3).
Questions about college near Dover
Is Dover a college town?
No. About 7 of every 100 Dover residents are enrolled in college (Census, 2020–24), about the same as Massachusetts (8). The nearest campus, Wellesley College, is 4 miles away in Wellesley.
What colleges are near Dover?
46 colleges are within 15 miles. The largest: Boston University (12.4 miles, 32,537 students on campus), Northeastern University (12.7 miles, 29,851) and Harvard University (13.1 miles, 22,636).
What is the closest community college to Dover, and what does it cost?
Massachusetts Bay Community College in Wellesley Hills, 5.6 miles away. Tuition and fees are $5,856 a year for Massachusetts residents; the federal net price, $7,169, counts housing and food at full cost.
How much does Framingham State University cost if we live in Massachusetts?
Tuition and fees are $11,920 a year in-state and $18,000 from out of state. After grants, families on federal aid paid an average of $11,934 (under $30,000 income) to $21,962 (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 Dover. 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 →