Belmont Abbey College is 3.7 miles from Lowell
No college sits inside Lowell’s boundary, but Belmont Abbey College’s campus in Belmont, with 1,480 students on campus, is 3.7 miles from the center of town, and Gaston College is 5.3 miles away in Dallas. About 3% of Lowell’s residents are enrolled in college, below North Carolina (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 Lowell. Colleges are described, not graded.
What stands out about college from Lowell
Facts about the town and its distance to campus; each college’s own figures follow.
Colleges within 15 miles of Lowell
Five private colleges within 14.6 miles, one public college within 11.9 miles, and Gaston College 5.3 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. Pick your family’s income.
Starts at $48–75k, where Lowell’s median household income ($52,500) 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 Lowell: 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: Johnson & Wales University-Charlotte (3).
Questions about college near Lowell
Is Lowell a college town?
No. About 3 of every 100 Lowell residents are enrolled in college (Census, 2020–24), below North Carolina (6). The nearest campus, Belmont Abbey College, is 3.7 miles away in Belmont.
What colleges are near Lowell?
7 colleges are within 15 miles. The largest: Gaston College (5.3 miles, 2,695 students on campus), Belmont Abbey College (3.7 miles, 1,480) and Johnson & Wales University-Charlotte (14.6 miles, 1,120).
What is the closest community college to Lowell, and what does it cost?
Gaston College in Dallas, 5.3 miles away. Tuition and fees are $3,186 a year for North Carolina residents; the federal net price, $6,592, counts housing and food at full cost.
How much does Carolinas College of Health Sciences cost if we live in North Carolina?
Tuition and fees are $18,882 a year in-state and $18,882 from out of state.
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 Lowell. 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 →