Photo: AITFFan1 · CC BY-SA 4.0Old Westbury is a college town: 32 of every 100 residents are students
New York Institute of Technology (6,597 students on campus) and SUNY Old Westbury (4,120) are inside the village, and Long Island University (16,079) is 2.4 miles from the center, just over the line in Brookville. 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 Old Westbury. Colleges are described, not graded.
What stands out about college in Old Westbury
Facts about the town and its distance to campus; each college’s own figures follow.
What it’s like to live in Old Westbury
How much the colleges shape the town, from the Census Bureau’s survey of residents.
32 of every 100 Old Westbury residents are in college (NY: 7).
How students change Old Westbury’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: 3.3% of Old Westbury residents are below the poverty line, 3.7% when college students are left out (that estimate could be off by 2 points either way). 0% 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 (32% here): it would mostly measure student incomes.
CDC’s estimates follow each place’s age mix, and Old Westbury’s median age is 29.5 (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 Old Westbury
18 private colleges within 14.9 miles, six public colleges within 12.2 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 Old Westbury’s median household income ($250,001) 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 Old Westbury: 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.
What students study in Old Westbury
Share of bachelor’s and associate degrees by field across Old Westbury’s 2 colleges, weighted by undergraduates; then the biggest programs.
Biggest programs
College Scorecard: degree shares (PCIP; each college’s six largest fields are kept, the rest count as everything else) and the field-of-study file, median earnings 4 years after graduating.
Questions about college in Old Westbury
Is Old Westbury a college town?
Yes. 32 of every 100 Old Westbury residents are enrolled in college (Census, 2020–24), against 7 across New York. New York Institute of Technology has 6,597 students on campus, next to 5,071 residents.
What colleges are in Old Westbury?
New York Institute of Technology and SUNY Old Westbury are inside the village. Long Island University is 2.4 miles from the center, in Brookville, Hofstra University is 4.9 miles from the center, in Hempstead, and Nassau Community College is 4 miles from the center, in Hempstead.
What is the closest community college to Old Westbury, and what does it cost?
Nassau Community College in Garden City, 4 miles away. Tuition and fees are $6,330 a year for New York residents; the federal net price, $7,095, counts housing and food at full cost.
How hard is it to get into New York Institute of Technology?
New York Institute of Technology admitted 81% of applicants in the Scorecard’s latest year; the middle half of admitted students scored 1,190–1,420 on the SAT.
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 Old Westbury. 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 →