Photo: Quintin Soloviev · CC BY 4.0Rocky Mountain College is 13.7 miles from Laurel
No college sits inside Laurel’s boundary, but Rocky Mountain College’s campus in Billings, with 984 students on campus, is 13.7 miles from the center of town, and Little Big Horn College is 64 miles away in Crow Agency. About 2% of Laurel’s residents are enrolled in college, below Montana (5%).
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 Laurel. Colleges are described, not graded.
What stands out about college from Laurel
Facts about the town and its distance to campus; each college’s own figures follow.
Colleges within 15 miles of Laurel
One private college within 13.7 miles, and one public college within 14.9 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 $48–75k, where Laurel’s median household income ($68,474) 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 Laurel: 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 Laurel
Is Laurel a college town?
No. About 2 of every 100 Laurel residents are enrolled in college (Census, 2020–24), below Montana (5). The nearest campus, Rocky Mountain College, is 13.7 miles away in Billings.
What colleges are near Laurel?
Within 15 miles: Rocky Mountain College (13.7 miles, 984 students on campus) and Montana State University Billings (14.9 miles, 3,170).
What is the closest community college to Laurel, and what does it cost?
Little Big Horn College in Crow Agency, 64 miles away. Tuition and fees are $3,200 a year for Montana residents; the federal net price, $8,331, counts housing and food at full cost.
How much does Montana State University Billings cost if we live in Montana?
Tuition and fees are $7,280 a year in-state and $22,897 from out of state. After grants, families on federal aid paid an average of $13,927 (under $30,000 income) to $20,035 (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 Laurel. 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 →