i’m looking for colleges that are small (preferably LAC) near a beach area. i would also want the area of the school to feel beachy. however, i also need the school to be affordable, so that pretty much knocks out all california schools. any suggestions??? i also live in maryland and i’m looking to do a pre-med track if that helps.
thank you!!!
Pepperdine.
Eckert College in St. Pete, FL.
Salve Regina in Newport, RI isn’t exactly a LAC, but it is small enough to have that feel, and it is right on the water. It will “feel beachy” even though it will be too cold to swim for much of the school year.
It’s actually Eckerd College in St Pete, FL. Not only does it have its own beach, it’s incredibly close to many beautiful other ones. “Think Outside” is their motto.
My youngest lad graduated from there. I’m not sure what major you are looking at, but they seem to do well with the sciences - marine and environmental science being two of their biggies, but even the Chem majors I’ve talked with recently have done quite well and talked about how their undergrad experience helped them. My own lad majored in International Studies.
As a parent, it was really “tough” having to go visit him. The college does its best to help by putting Parents Weekend in Feb. 
What does your family define as affordable? What are your academic stats? IMO affordability and academic fit must be the priory (ahead of proximity to a beach).
FWIW a two second google search will give you multiple lists of colleges near the beach – you can look through those choices and determine fit, affordability etc. It is important to take the time to do research. Here are a couple such threads - you can find MANY more.
https://www.bestcollegereviews.org/colleges-by-the-sea/
https://www.collegechoice.net/rankings/best-oceanside-colleges/
thank you @Creekland and @momofsenior1 for this suggestion! i was actually thinking about applying to this one but i’m a bit concerned about the price 
are they generous with scholarships and merit aid? (uw gpa is 3.96 and sat is 1290) also @Creekland i was thinking about biology or comp sci
Pepperdine is not a LAC
@Groundwork2022 thank you! i have not looked into this one so i will start researching it
Here’s the link to Eckerd’s scholarships: https://www.eckerd.edu/admissions/financial-aid/types/
Not quite a traditional LAC, Christopher Newport University in VA is pretty close to the beach, and is a smaller, more welcoming community. Their undergrad student body has only about 5,000.
Since you’d be in-state, be sure to check out St. Mary’s College of Maryland.
Other beach-y, but potentially larger schools might include; U North Carolina - Wilmington, Coastal Carolina U, College of Charleston, U of North Florida, U of South Florida - St. Petersburg, U of West Florida, Old Dominion, SUNY - Stony Brook, Roger Williams U and U Miami are all on the coast.
For any school you’re interested in, run the NPC to see if they are affordable. Eckerd is terrific for Bio. I’m not sure about CS to be honest. If you’re in MD, also think about St Mary’s College. I know students who have gone there and enjoyed it. It should be affordable for you since you’re in state.
Soka is exceptionally well funded with respect to scholarship availability and offers a Life Science concentration.
@happy1 i’m paying for my own college with loans so i want it to be as cheap as possible and my family’s situation will not get us any financial aid. of course academic fit, etc is a priority but i want to make sure i love the surrounding areas as well so i don’t feel trapped. also i have done a lot of those two second google searches and none of them show a lot of small colleges, they all just suggest uncw, every uc, and a huge state school in florida. i will probably end up at a college not near the beach but i still just wanted suggestions more geared for what i want
The best bets for large merit awards are usually regional schools in your home state. You want to keep your loan amounts as low as possible. The beach will still be there when you graduate.
Are you a rising senior? Can you take the SAT again? If you can get that score up, it might open up more merit scholarships.
Soka is NOT near a beach and the campus couldn’t be less ‘beachy’ if it tried. It’s in an office complex, but is very well kept. There are palm trees.
Flagler in St. Augustine, FL is quite beachy and very inexpensive.
Florida tech is very beachy, has a number of pre-med majors, and gives a lot of aid, but the sticker price is high. Embry-Riddle also on the beach and has bio-tech majors good for pre-med. Neither is an LAC.
Florida International is bigger, but it’s on the beach. U of North Florida is in Jacksonvile, about 15 minutes from the beach. Florida state schools aren’t that expensive for OOS student.
@twoinanddone: What do you mean by not near the beach? Soka is 8.4 miles from Laguna Beach. What do you mean by in an office complex? Soka’s own Mission-stlye architecture defines its campus.
Westmont, Loyola Marymount University Los Angeles, or Point Loma. Generous with merit but still might be too expensive if you’re paying for it yourself. All Christian based if you’re okay with that.
Check out St. Mary’s College of Maryland, which has a waterfront campus (although it may not be your idea of a “beach”). Or, New College of Florida.
Both of these are public LACs. College of the Atlantic in Bar Harbor ME is near water (although again it may not be near your idea of a beach, and the curriculum is rather unusual).
Salisbury U isn’t a LAC, but is near Ocean City MD and relatively small as public universities go.
William & Mary, another small public university, is located between two rivers and about a 75 min. drive from Virginia Beach.
The Soka campus I know is up on top on the ridge in Aliso Viejo. You have to drive through other residential towns to get to the beach. Alisa Viejo is not a beach town.
My daughter played hockey in Aliso Viejo so I was there every Sunday. I never saw a soul one the campus. Not one. Maybe they had all packed up for the trip to the beach.