Best Community Colleges in New Jersey of 2023

Located in Somerset County, Raritan Valley Community College has a student body of 5,300, half of whom are under 21. The school’s official values include diversity, equity, and inclusion. Over 90 associate degree and career preparation programs are available at Raritan Valley Community College. The most popular programs by enrollment are the Associate of Arts in Liberal Arts, the Associate of Science in General Business, and the Associate of Science in Health Science Nursing. About 30% of students will transfer to a four-year institution after completing their associate degree at Raritan Valley Community College. The school has articulation agreements with over 50 public and private institutions worldwide. Formal articulation agreements include those with Cornell University, Colorado State University, and the Fashion Institute of Technology. Rutgers University, Kean University, and Montclair State University are top transfer destinations for Raritan Valley Community College students.

As the county college of Monmouth, Brookdale Community College offers 68 academic programs and has a student body of about 9,500. While the school has several regional locations, most classes and programs are held at the Lincroft campus. The majority of students at Brookdale Community College are in associate degree programs leading to transfer to a four-year school. Degree choices include an Associate of Science in Fashion Design and Merchandising, an Associate of Science in Computer Science, and an Associate of Arts in Creative Writing. The school offers several dual-degree programs with four-year institutions on the Brookdale Community College campus. These include the Brookdale-Georgian Court University Partnership, which offers six different bachelor’s degrees, and the Brookdale-Rutgers University Partnership, which offers seven bachelor’s degrees. The school also has transfer agreements with over 45 colleges and universities around the world.

Warren County Community College, located in the community of Washington, offers 33 associate degree programs and ten credit certificate programs to over 2,300 full-time and part-time students annually. There is also a career, youth, personal development, and training branch of the school that educates about 4,000 other students annually. Credits earned in any of Warren County Community College’s associate degree programs are 100% transferable to the state’s four-year public institutions. The school’s Instructional Support Center provides free academic tutoring for all students in-person or online in a variety of areas, including accounting, English, math, and computer science. Students can also apply for paid jobs as peer tutors. Other student services include career services like resume writing and mock interviews and the campus Safety Nest, which provides food and grocery store gift cards for students with hardships or unexpected emergencies.

Established in 1933, Union County College is the oldest of the 18 community colleges in New Jersey. Its main campus is in Cranford, and it also has locations in Elizabeth, Plainfield, and Scotch Plains. The school is known for its diversity and has students from 30 countries taking courses in its associate degree or career and technical education programs. Union County College has a well-established American Honors program for high-achieving and academically motivated students. The average GPA of students selected for the program is 3.62. Honors students benefit from small class sizes of under 20 students, specialized academic advising, seminars and workshops, access to an honors lounge on campus, and personalized support with transferring to a four-year college or university. Graduates of the honors program have transferred to UCLA, Princeton University, Columbia University, and Georgetown University.

The County College of Morris stands out for having the best graduation rate of all the colleges on this list. Located in Randolph, the school has a student population of 7,000. It offers over 100 associate degrees, certificates, and professional programs. Most students who graduate from the College of Morris with an associate degree transfer to a four-year institution. The college boasts 26 articulation agreements with schools, including Drexel University, New Jersey Institute of Technology, and West Virginia University. The school has a strong Office of Transfer Services that assists students with the transfer process as soon as they start on campus. Transfer services include transcript requests, transferring counseling, transfer planning, transfer events, and assistance finding scholarships available to transfer students. The office also hosts visits from admissions representatives from four-year schools on campus.

Founded in 1964, Ocean County College was the first county college in New Jersey. It is located in Toms River and has 7,321 students and more than 49,000 alums. The school offers associate degrees in 24 programs, the most popular being liberal arts, nursing, and business administration. There are also certificate programs in more than 40 areas of study. Accounting is the most popular. A notable program at Ocean County College is the Kean Ocean partnership with Kean University, which allows students to earn bachelor’s and master’s degrees in select subjects on-campus in Toms River. Ocean County College has a very strong alumni network. Alumni benefits include free career services consultations, discounts on tickets at the school’s Robert J. Novins Planetarium and Jay and Linda Grunin Center for the Arts, and use of the school’s tennis courts and fitness center.

Rowan College of South Jersey is a regional public institution with two campuses: the Gloucester campus in Sewell and the Cumberland campus in Vineland. Between the two campuses, over 120 associate degree and certificate programs are offered to an overall student body of about 10,000. Popular areas of study are biomedical science, liberal arts, and nursing. The school provides programs through Rowan University, a public research university in Glassboro that offers bachelor's, master's, and doctoral-level degrees. These programs allow students who graduate with their associate degrees from Rowan College of South Jersey to earn higher degrees conveniently and cost-effectively at Rowan University or on campus in Cumberland. Among the many student support services offered by Rowan College of South Jersey are free, culturally sensitive, short-term counseling services for all enrolled students and wellness events each Wednesday.

Mercer County Community College has campuses in West Windsor and Trenton. The two-year school offers 69 publicly supported associate degrees that lead to transfer to four-year colleges. It also offers 34 certificates of proficiency in career specializations and technical areas. Part of Mercer County Community College’s mission is to ensure student success and expand innovative partnerships. The school offers on-site bachelor’s and master’s programs via partnerships with Fairleigh Dickinson University, Felician University, Rutgers University, William Paterson University, and Wilmington University. A notable offering at the college is its Mercer County Holocaust, Genocide, and Human Rights Education Center, dedicated to education about the Holocaust and other genocides. Faculty are deeply committed to the school’s mission and have a faculty statement of educational philosophy on the institution’s website. This statement promises high standards of professionalism and creative and engaging teaching styles with effective feedback offered.

More than 740,000 students have taken classes at Bergen Community College since it opened in 1968. The two-year public school currently serves 32,000 students in over 120 degree programs, as well as continuing education and adult education. The main campus is located in Paramus, and there are also campuses in Hackensack and Lyndhurst. Bergen Community College, whose graduates have transferred to all eight Ivy League institutions, offers a unique curriculum option called Learning Communities. In a learning community, two or more courses in the same semester are linked together, and the same students take them as a cohort. This cooperative learning style leads to deeper learning and a strong academic support system. Notable academic programs at Bergen Community College include its Women and Gender Studies program and World Languages Program, where students can specialize in 14 languages, including American Sign Language, Arabic, and Gaelic.

About 7,000 students attend Rowan College at Burlington County, a two-year community college whose main campus is located in Mount Laurel. The five most popular areas of study are health sciences, business administration, nursing, psychology, and liberal arts. The school offers several programs through Rowan University, a public research university in Glassboro that offers bachelor's, master's, and doctoral-level degrees. These programs allow students who graduate with their associate degrees from Rowan College at Burlington County to earn higher degrees conveniently and cost-effectively at Rowan University or on campus in Mount Laurel. In 2022 the college opened its Center of Excellence for Veterans Student Success which provides enhanced advising, academic support, and online resources for student veterans, reservists, and dependents. There is also a brand new, dedicated student lounge on campus for veterans.