Photo: Lightmetro · CC BY-SA 4.0Clayton is a college town: 26 of every 100 residents are students
Fontbonne University (755 students on campus) and Concordia Seminary (381) are inside the city, and Washington University in St Louis (15,851) is 1.1 miles from the center, in St. Louis. Across Missouri, 6 of every 100 residents are enrolled in college.
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 Clayton. Colleges are described, not graded.
What stands out about college in Clayton
Facts about the town and its distance to campus; each college’s own figures follow.
What it’s like to live in Clayton
How much the colleges shape the town, from the Census Bureau’s survey of residents.
26 of every 100 Clayton residents are in college (MO: 6).
How students change Clayton’s other numbers
Read the town’s other grades with this in mind. How TownRatings handles college towns →
Students who live off campus count in the Census poverty figures: 8.1% of Clayton residents are below the poverty line, 5.9% when college students are left out (that estimate could be off by 5 points either way). 36% of the students themselves are below the line. In college towns, the Jobs & income grade uses the rate without students and leaves unemployment out.
The Cost grade leaves out the share of renters paying 30% or more of income on rent wherever students are a quarter of residents or more (26% here): it would mostly measure student incomes.
CDC’s estimates follow each place’s age mix, and Clayton’s median age is 30.0 (Missouri 39.0), so the adult figures describe a young population.
Crime is counted per resident, and students who live here count as residents. A college with its own police department reports its incidents under that department, not the city.
Colleges within 15 miles of Clayton
17 private colleges within 13.4 miles, two public colleges within 5.8 miles, and two 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 Clayton’s median household income ($123,000) 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 Clayton: 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: Chamberlain University-Missouri (15); St Louis College of Health Careers-Fenton (2).
Questions about college in Clayton
Is Clayton a college town?
Yes. 26 of every 100 Clayton residents are enrolled in college (Census, 2020–24), against 6 across Missouri. Fontbonne University has 755 students on campus, next to 17,807 residents.
What colleges are in Clayton?
Fontbonne University and Concordia Seminary are inside the city. Washington University in St Louis is 1.1 miles from the center, in St. Louis, the University of Missouri-St Louis is 4.7 miles from the center, in Bellerive Acres, Webster University is 3.9 miles from the center, in Webster Groves, and Ranken Technical College is 4.5 miles away in Saint Louis.
Why is Clayton’s poverty rate so high?
Students who live off campus count in the Census figures. 8.1% of residents are below the poverty line; leaving college students out, 5.9% are (ACS 2020–24, give or take 5 points).
What is the closest community college to Clayton, and what does it cost?
Ranken Technical College in Saint Louis, 4.5 miles away. Tuition and fees are $18,008 a year for Missouri residents; the federal net price, $18,795, counts housing and food at full cost.
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 Clayton. 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 →