Photo: Dougtone · CC BY-SA 2.0Kent State University at East Liverpool is 0.8 miles from Chester
No college sits inside Chester’s boundary, but Kent State University at East Liverpool’s campus in East Liverpool, with 293 students on campus, is 0.8 miles from the center of town, and West Virginia Northern Community College is 38.9 miles away in Wheeling. About 1% of Chester’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 Chester. Colleges are described, not graded.
What stands out about college from Chester
Facts about the town and its distance to campus; each college’s own figures follow.
Colleges within 15 miles of Chester
All 3 are public. Every other college is more than 15 miles from Chester.
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 and the nearest public four-year college. Pick your family’s income.
Starts at $48–75k, where Chester’s median household income ($56,607) 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: 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: Kent State University at East Liverpool (8); Pennsylvania State University-Penn State Beaver (22).
Questions about college near Chester
Is Chester a college town?
No. About 1 of every 100 Chester residents are enrolled in college (Census, 2020–24), below West Virginia (5). The nearest campus, Kent State University at East Liverpool, is 0.8 miles away in East Liverpool.
What colleges are near Chester?
Within 15 miles: Kent State University at East Liverpool (0.8 miles, 293 students on campus), Community College of Beaver County (13.8 miles, 970) and Pennsylvania State University-Penn State Beaver (14.7 miles, 501).
What is the closest community college to Chester, and what does it cost?
West Virginia Northern Community College in Wheeling, 38.9 miles away. Tuition and fees are $4,706 a year for West Virginia residents; the federal net price, $5,329, counts housing and food at full cost.
How much does West Liberty University cost if we live in West Virginia?
Tuition and fees are $8,893 a year in-state and $17,442 from out of state. After grants, families on federal aid paid an average of $12,714 (under $30,000 income) to $18,566 (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 Chester. 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 →