“A 400+ acre community college 30 miles south of St. Louis with on-campus housing, 50+ programs, and one of the lowest tuition rates in Missouri.”
Jefferson College is a public, two-year community college in Hillsboro, Missouri, about 30 miles south of St. Louis. The Community College District of Jefferson County was voted into existence on April 2, 1963, making Jefferson the second junior college district in Missouri to be approved; classes began in 1964 at Hillsboro High School and moved to the present 400+ acre rural campus on Highway 21 the following year. Today the college enrolls roughly 3,700 credit-seeking students and ranks among the lowest-tuition and lowest-debt community colleges in Missouri. Academically, Jefferson College offers more than 50 programs through five associate degree pathways: Associate of Arts (AA), Associate of Arts in Teaching (AAT), Associate of Fine Arts (AFA), Associate of Science (AS), and Associate of Applied Science (AAS), plus a wide range of career and technical certificates. Liberal Arts and Sciences is the largest program of study and feeds students into the University of Missouri system, Missouri State, Southeast Missouri State, and other four-year transfer destinations. The college is also strong in Registered Nursing, Teacher Education, Welding, Automotive Technology, Industrial Engineering Technology, and a regionally distinctive Equine Studies program. The student experience is unusually well-resourced for a community college: Jefferson runs Viking Woods, on-campus student housing — uncommon for two-year colleges in Missouri — a Field House and full athletic facilities, and an Area Technical School that brings high-school dual-enrollment career pathways onto the campus. The Vikings compete in NJCAA Division I athletics in baseball, soccer, basketball, softball, and volleyball. With strong textbook-rental savings, no application fee, and a commuter-plus-housing hybrid model, Jefferson College is a practical choice for international students seeking a low-cost first stop within easy reach of St. Louis.
Visa, OPT, H-1B alumni outcomes, and acceptance rates by country — sourced from FOIA, USCIS H-1B Hub, and DHS SEVIS.
Test Optional — You can submit scores if they help your case, but they're not required.
Official SourceRolling Admission
Open admission policy; applications accepted year-round for fall, spring, and summer terms
The deep admissions playbook beyond the headline acceptance rate — round-by-round breakdowns, nationality data, requirements, and contact paths.
Domestic
$5,250
/yr
Out-of-State / Intl
$8,850
/yr
Beyond the sticker price — every named scholarship, the financial aid policy, need-aware notes, and a personalized net-cost estimate.
How life on campus actually feels — clubs, sports, traditions, housing realities, and how the school integrates with its city.
The college's largest enrollment area, offering AA and AS transfer pathways into Missouri's four-year universities for students pursuing pre-professional, STEM, education, and humanities tracks.
Houses a competitive Registered Nursing (ADN) program preparing graduates for the NCLEX-RN, alongside Practical Nursing, EMT/Paramedic, and other allied-health pathways.
AAS and certificate programs in skilled trades, advanced manufacturing, and applied technology, headquartered in the Career & Technical Education Building and Technology Center.
Houses the Associate of Fine Arts pathway in studio art, music, and theatre, with active student exhibitions and performances at the Fine Arts Building.
Offers the Associate of Arts in Teaching, designed to articulate cleanly into four-year teacher-prep programs across Missouri for early childhood, elementary, middle, and secondary licensure.
2 years
Selective two-year nursing program preparing graduates for NCLEX-RN licensure. Includes clinical placements at regional St. Louis-area healthcare partners.
2 years
Designed for transfer into a four-year teacher education program; clean articulation into Missouri's universities for early childhood, elementary, middle school, and secondary certification.
2 years
Two-year transfer pathway in fine arts that prepares portfolios for transfer into BFA programs at four-year institutions.
Where alumni go after graduation — top industries, grad-school continuation, and the qualitative outcomes story.
Sticker price (annual, out-of-state): $8,850
Net-cost estimate is US-resident-only — international applicants are typically excluded from need-based aid at most schools and should treat the sticker price as the planning baseline.
