Photo: Townofbluffton · CC BY-SA 3.0The University of South Carolina Beaufort is 6.5 miles from Bluffton
No college sits inside Bluffton’s boundary, but the University of South Carolina Beaufort’s campus in Bluffton, with 1,735 students on campus, is 6.5 miles from the center of town, and Technical College of the Lowcountry is 20 miles away in Beaufort. About 4% of Bluffton’s residents are enrolled in college, about the same as South 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 Bluffton. Colleges are described, not graded.
What stands out about college from Bluffton
Facts about the town and its distance to campus; each college’s own figures follow.
Colleges within 15 miles of Bluffton
One private college within 13.7 miles, and one public college within 6.5 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 Over $110k, where Bluffton’s median household income ($111,281) 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 Bluffton: 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 Bluffton
Is Bluffton a college town?
No. About 4 of every 100 Bluffton residents are enrolled in college (Census, 2020–24), about the same as South Carolina (6). The nearest campus, the University of South Carolina Beaufort, is 6.5 miles away in Bluffton.
What colleges are near Bluffton?
Within 15 miles: the University of South Carolina Beaufort (6.5 miles, 1,735 students on campus) and Savannah College of Art and Design (13.7 miles, 15,836).
What is the closest community college to Bluffton, and what does it cost?
Technical College of the Lowcountry in Beaufort, 20 miles away. Tuition and fees are $6,156 a year for South Carolina residents; the federal net price, $14,724, counts housing and food at full cost.
How much does the University of South Carolina Beaufort cost if we live in South Carolina?
Tuition and fees are $10,730 a year in-state and $21,776 from out of state. After grants, families on federal aid paid an average of $11,397 (under $30,000 income) to $20,250 (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 Bluffton. 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 →