Photo: User:Grey Wanderer · CC BY-SA 3.0Central Methodist University-College of Graduate and Extended Studies is 12.1 miles from Harrisburg
No college sits inside Harrisburg’s boundary, but Central Methodist University-College of Graduate and Extended Studies’s campus in Fayette, with 1,664 students on campus, is 12.1 miles from the center of town, and Moberly Area Community College is 19.2 miles away in Moberly. About 2% of Harrisburg’s residents are enrolled in college, below 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 Harrisburg. Colleges are described, not graded.
What stands out about college from Harrisburg
Facts about the town and its distance to campus; each college’s own figures follow.
Colleges within 15 miles of Harrisburg
Four private colleges within 15 miles. The nearest public four-year college, University of Missouri-Columbia, is 15.2 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 $48–75k, where Harrisburg’s median household income ($68,906) 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. *Reported for all the campuses that file together: Central Methodist University-College of Graduate and Extended Studies (2); Central Methodist University-College of Liberal Arts and Sciences (2).
Questions about college near Harrisburg
Is Harrisburg a college town?
No. About 2 of every 100 Harrisburg residents are enrolled in college (Census, 2020–24), below Missouri (6). The nearest campus, Central Methodist University-College of Graduate and Extended Studies, is 12.1 miles away in Fayette.
What colleges are near Harrisburg?
Within 15 miles: Central Methodist University-College of Graduate and Extended Studies (12.1 miles, 1,664 students on campus), Central Methodist University-College of Liberal Arts and Sciences (12.1 miles, 1,017), Columbia College (14.5 miles, 1,940) and Stephens College (15 miles, 480).
What is the closest community college to Harrisburg, and what does it cost?
Moberly Area Community College in Moberly, 19.2 miles away. Tuition and fees are $4,110 a year for Missouri residents; the federal net price, $6,810, counts housing and food at full cost.
How much does the University of Missouri-Columbia cost if we live in Missouri?
Tuition and fees are $14,837 a year in-state and $36,056 from out of state. After grants, families on federal aid paid an average of $13,841 (under $30,000 income) to $26,304 (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 Harrisburg. 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 →