Henry Clay Furnace · Photo: Brian Masney · CC BY-SA 3.0West Virginia University is 6 miles from Cheat Lake
No college sits inside Cheat Lake’s boundary, but West Virginia University’s campus in Morgantown, with 21,691 students on campus, is 6 miles from the center of town, and Pierpont Community and Technical College is 24.3 miles away in Fairmont. About 3% of Cheat Lake’s residents are enrolled in college, below West Virginia (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 Cheat Lake. Colleges are described, not graded.
What stands out about college from Cheat Lake
Facts about the town and its distance to campus; each college’s own figures follow.
Colleges within 15 miles of Cheat Lake
It is public. Every other college is more than 15 miles from Cheat Lake.
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 Cheat Lake’s median household income ($117,014) 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 Cheat Lake: 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: West Virginia University (3).
Questions about college near Cheat Lake
Is Cheat Lake a college town?
No. About 3 of every 100 Cheat Lake residents are enrolled in college (Census, 2020–24), below West Virginia (5). The nearest campus, West Virginia University, is 6 miles away in Morgantown.
What colleges are near Cheat Lake?
Within 15 miles: West Virginia University (6 miles, 21,691 students on campus).
What is the closest community college to Cheat Lake, and what does it cost?
Pierpont Community and Technical College in Fairmont, 24.3 miles away. Tuition and fees are $5,762 a year for West Virginia residents; the federal net price, $8,325, counts housing and food at full cost.
How much does West Virginia University cost if we live in West Virginia?
Tuition and fees are $10,104 a year in-state and $28,608 from out of state. After grants, families on federal aid paid an average of $9,450 (under $30,000 income) to $20,273 (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 Cheat Lake. 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 →