Your Guide to Colleges Near Palm Coast, FL

I get asked this a lot, especially by people moving here with teenagers or thinking about going back to school themselves: what colleges can you get to from Palm Coast? More than you'd think. Here's the list, with drive times.

Daytona State College (Palm Coast Campus)

• Distance: RIGHT HERE in Palm Coast.

• What It’s Known For: Daytona State is where a lot of local students start. The Flagler/Palm Coast campus offers associate degrees, nursing, business and general education classes, and it's the cheapest way to knock out your first two years without moving away.

• Fast Fact: The campus has been adding programs.

Flagler College (St. Augustine)

• Distance: About 25 miles (a 30–35 minute drive)

• What It’s Known For: A small liberal arts college in downtown St. Augustine. The main building is Henry Flagler's old Ponce de León Hotel, with Tiffany stained glass and courtyards. Classes are small, and popular majors include business, education, communication, coastal environmental science and fine arts.

• Fast Fact: The campus tour is worth doing even if you're not enrolling.

University of North Florida (Jacksonville)

• Distance: About 56 miles (under 1 hour by car)

• What It’s Known For: A state university in Jacksonville that's close enough for some Palm Coast students to commute. It's known for business (especially logistics), nursing, music and coastal and environmental studies, and the campus sits on a 1,300-acre nature preserve.

• Fast Fact: Jacksonville's hospitals and logistics companies hire a lot of UNF graduates.

Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University (Daytona Beach)

• Distance: 33 miles (about 40 minutes)

• What It’s Known For: If your kid wants to fly or build rockets, this is the school. Embry-Riddle is one of the best-known aviation and aerospace universities in the world, with programs in flight training, aerospace engineering and other STEM fields.

• Fast Fact: Students train in flight simulators and wind tunnels and work with aerospace companies on projects.

University of Florida (Gainesville)

• Distance: About 80 to 85 miles (about 1 hour 45 minutes to 2 hours by car)

• What It’s Known For: Florida's flagship university. UF is huge, highly ranked and hard to get into, with strong programs in medicine, engineering, agriculture, business, journalism and the sciences. And there's Gator football.

• Fast Fact: UF regularly ranks in the top 10 public universities in the country.

University of Central Florida (Orlando)

• Distance: About 82 miles (just over 1 hour, 20 minutes)

• What It’s Known For: One of the largest universities in the country by enrollment. UCF is known for engineering, hospitality (with the theme parks right there), computer science, digital media and health sciences.

• Fast Fact: UCF has close ties to the space industry on the Space Coast.

Where that leaves you

From Palm Coast you can start college right in town at Daytona State and still reach Flagler College, Embry-Riddle, UNF, UCF and UF without moving. If you're moving here and school is part of the plan, tell me and I'll factor the commute into your home search. Call or text me at (386) 627-3612.