Lima is a college town: 16 of every 100 residents are students
No college sits inside Lima’s boundary, but Rochester Institute of Technology’s campus in Rochester, with 16,249 students on campus, is 12.6 miles from the center of town, and Monroe Community College is 13.4 miles away in Rochester. Across New York, 7 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 Lima. Colleges are described, not graded.
What stands out about college from Lima
Facts about the town and its distance to campus; each college’s own figures follow.
What it’s like to live in Lima
How much the colleges shape the town, from the Census Bureau’s survey of residents.
16 of every 100 Lima residents are in college (NY: 7).
How students change Lima’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: 6.1% of Lima residents are below the poverty line, 6.0% when college students are left out (that estimate could be off by 3 points either way). 10% 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 counts the share of renters paying 30% or more of income on rent, leaving it out only where students are a quarter of residents or more. Here they are 16%, so student incomes still weigh on that figure.
CDC’s estimates follow each place’s age mix, and Lima’s median age is 36.6 (New York 39.8), 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 Lima
Two private colleges within 14.3 miles, one public college within 13.1 miles, and Monroe Community College 13.4 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 Lima’s median household income ($69,420) 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 Lima: 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 Lima
Is Lima a college town?
Yes. 16 of every 100 Lima residents are enrolled in college (Census, 2020–24), against 7 across New York. The nearest campus, Rochester Institute of Technology, is 12.6 miles away in Rochester.
What colleges are near Lima?
Within 15 miles: Rochester Institute of Technology (12.6 miles, 16,249 students on campus), SUNY College at Geneseo (13.1 miles, 3,909), Monroe Community College (13.4 miles, 6,485) and Nazareth University (14.3 miles, 2,408).
Why is Lima’s poverty rate so high?
Students who live off campus count in the Census figures. 6.1% of residents are below the poverty line; leaving college students out, 6.0% are (ACS 2020–24, give or take 3 points).
What is the closest community college to Lima, and what does it cost?
Monroe Community College in Rochester, 13.4 miles away. Tuition and fees are $6,006 a year for New York residents; the federal net price, $6,353, 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 Lima. 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 →