Scott County Courthouse · Photo: Dazspell · CC BY-SA 3.0Southeast Missouri Hospital College of Nursing and Health Sciences is 14.1 miles from Benton
No college sits inside Benton’s boundary, but Southeast Missouri Hospital College of Nursing and Health Sciences’s campus in Cape Girardeau, with 121 students on campus, is 14.1 miles from the center of town, and Three Rivers College is 52.9 miles away in Poplar Bluff. About 4% of Benton’s residents are enrolled in college, about the same as Missouri (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 Benton. Colleges are described, not graded.
What stands out about college from Benton
Facts about the town and its distance to campus; each college’s own figures follow.
Colleges within 15 miles of Benton
One private college within 14.1 miles, and one public college within 14.7 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 $75–110k, where Benton’s median household income ($86,023) 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 Benton: 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 Benton
Is Benton a college town?
No. About 4 of every 100 Benton residents are enrolled in college (Census, 2020–24), about the same as Missouri (6). The nearest campus, Southeast Missouri Hospital College of Nursing and Health Sciences, is 14.1 miles away in Cape Girardeau.
What colleges are near Benton?
Within 15 miles: Southeast Missouri Hospital College of Nursing and Health Sciences (14.1 miles, 121 students on campus) and Southeast Missouri State University (14.7 miles, 7,933).
What is the closest community college to Benton, and what does it cost?
Three Rivers College in Poplar Bluff, 52.9 miles away. Tuition and fees are $4,950 a year for Missouri residents; the federal net price, $8,496, counts housing and food at full cost.
How much does Southeast Missouri State University cost if we live in Missouri?
Tuition and fees are $9,903 a year in-state and $9,903 from out of state. After grants, families on federal aid paid an average of $12,704 (under $30,000 income) to $21,267 (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 Benton. 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 →