America's Top 10 College Towns of 2015 Revealed

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According to Livability.com's newly released Top 10 Best College Towns of 2015, where you want to live as a student is becoming a growing influence to which college students want to attend as the subject matter they want to study.

Living in a college town allows residents to tap into the economic stability that universities provide and the creative energy that students bring. Even if you're not a student, being a college town resident will certainly keep you entertained. With this in mind, these cities provide supportive places for students to thrive both academically and socially, endless entertainment options and cultural and economic enhancements from their area universities.

When choosing the best college towns, our editors first analyzed data from the Census, Esri and other sources to find cities with a high concentration of schools and a highly educated population. They looked at cities that have a high population of 25- to 29-year-olds as an indicator of the town's ability to retain graduates who decided it's a cool enough place to stay after graduation. They also looked for diverse towns where education is a dominant employer. Some bonus points were given to towns with Division I athletics because, like it or not, strong sports programs help define college towns. The availability of rental housing and the affordability of that housing were also considered.

"For most college-bound kids, this is really the first time they are choosing where they get to live," says Livability.com editor Matt Carmichael. "It shouldn't be the only consideration in selecting a college, but it should be factored in."
 
The Top 10 Best College Towns of 2015 are:

1.     Manhattan, KS

2.     Durham, NC

3.     Columbia, MO

4.     Berkeley, CA

5.     Denton, TX

6.     Cambridge, MA

7.     Gainesville, FL

8.     Columbia, SC

9.     Lincoln, NE

10.   Bowling Green, KY