St. Mary's-By-The-Sea · Photo: Suekoehler · CC BY-SA 4.0College of the Atlantic is 6.9 miles from Mount Desert
No college sits inside Mount Desert’s boundary, but College of the Atlantic’s campus in Bar Harbor, with 367 students on campus, is 6.9 miles from the center of town, and Eastern Maine Community College is 39.7 miles away in Bangor. About 4% of Mount Desert’s residents are enrolled in college, about the same as Maine (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 Mount Desert. Colleges are described, not graded.
What stands out about college from Mount Desert
Facts about the town and its distance to campus; each college’s own figures follow.
Colleges within 15 miles of Mount Desert
One private college within 6.9 miles. The nearest public four-year college, Maine Maritime Academy, is 23.7 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 and the nearest public four-year college. Pick your family’s income.
Starts at $75–110k, where Mount Desert’s median household income ($92,813) 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: 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 Mount Desert
Is Mount Desert a college town?
No. About 4 of every 100 Mount Desert residents are enrolled in college (Census, 2020–24), about the same as Maine (6). The nearest campus, College of the Atlantic, is 6.9 miles away in Bar Harbor.
What colleges are near Mount Desert?
Within 15 miles: College of the Atlantic (6.9 miles, 367 students on campus).
What is the closest community college to Mount Desert, and what does it cost?
Eastern Maine Community College in Bangor, 39.7 miles away. Tuition and fees are $4,156 a year for Maine residents; the federal net price, $8,928, counts housing and food at full cost.
How much does Maine Maritime Academy cost if we live in Maine?
Tuition and fees are $15,158 a year in-state and $31,102 from out of state. After grants, families on federal aid paid an average of $9,511 (under $30,000 income) to $25,021 (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 Mount Desert. 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 →