Best Military-Friendly Online Colleges Near Lakewood, WA

Updated September 6, 2026 On this page

Home > Online Colleges > Military-Friendly > Washington > Lakewood

Key takeaway: 10 accredited institutions within 100 miles of Lakewood offer fully online programs and report both credit for military training and a dedicated point of contact for veterans, servicemembers, and their families (IPEDS IC 2024); 9 report all four services the federal survey tracks. The nearest installation recorded by the Census Bureau is Camp Murray, about 4 miles away, and 8 installations sit within 100 miles (2 Army, 2 Navy, 1 Coast Guard, 1 National Guard, 2 Other). 4 of the 10 schools have a campus within 30 miles; the closest is Pierce College District in Lakewood, WA, about 2 miles from city center. The highest-ranked by BOC Score is University of Washington-Seattle Campus. Lakewood has a population of about 63,034 and a median household income of $70,524; 22.6 percent of adults hold a bachelor’s degree or higher (Census ACS 5-year estimates).

Military-friendly online colleges near Lakewood

Schools based in Washington that report credit for military training and a dedicated military contact, ordered by distance from Lakewood city center, with BOC Score on each card. The tags on each card are the school’s own IPEDS answers for the four military services. The distance table further down covers the nearest qualifying schools regardless of state line.

How We Rank Schools

Every school list on this site is ordered by the BOC Score, computed from the most recent school-level data published by the U.S. Department of Education (College Scorecard and IPEDS). To qualify, a school must be currently operating and accredited by an agency recognized by the U.S. Department of Education. Each eligible school is then scored on five measures, percentile-ranked against schools at the same credential level:

  • Graduation rate 30%
  • Median earnings, 10 years after entry 25%
  • Average net price (lower is better) 20%
  • Retention rate 15%
  • Fully online availability 10%

Schools without enough outcome data appear after ranked schools, without a score. On this page, schools are ordered by distance from Lakewood. Advertising never affects these rankings. Read the full methodology.

Ranked by BOC Score — U.S. Dept. of Education outcome data. Advertising never affects rankings.

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#1

Clover Park Technical College

Lakewood, WA 1.8 miles from Lakewood
  • 4 year
  • Offers a fully online program
  • Accredited
  • Credit for military training
  • Dedicated military contact
  • DoD MOU member
  • Student veteran org
63.9 BOC Score
Graduation rate 42%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry $41,787
Avg net price $9,864/yr
Tuition
In‑state$6,634
Out‑of‑state$6,634
Contact
Key stats
  • Programs offered: 45

Source:Accreditor: Northwest Commission on Colleges and UniversitiesIPEDSCollege Scorecard

#2

Pierce College District

Lakewood, WA 2.0 miles from Lakewood
  • 4 year
  • Offers a fully online program
  • Accredited
  • Credit for military training
  • Dedicated military contact
  • DoD MOU member
  • Student veteran org
69.7 BOC Score
Graduation rate 31%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry $47,532
Avg net price $10,222/yr
Tuition
In‑state$5,418
Out‑of‑state$5,976
Contact
Key stats
  • Programs offered: 38

Source:Accreditor: Northwest Commission on Colleges and UniversitiesIPEDSCollege Scorecard

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Nearest qualifying schools within 100 miles (any state)

School Location Credit for military training Dedicated military contact DoD MOU member Student veteran org BOC Score Distance
University of Washington-Seattle Campus Seattle, WA Yes Yes Yes Yes 89.7 36 mi
University of Washington-Tacoma Campus Tacoma, WA Yes Yes Yes Yes 83.8 7 mi
Shoreline Community College Shoreline, WA Yes Yes Yes Yes 76.4 41 mi
Pacific Lutheran University Tacoma, WA Yes Yes Yes Yes 73.8 4 mi
Bellevue College Bellevue, WA Yes Yes Yes Yes 73.6 34 mi
Skagit Valley College Mount Vernon, WA Yes Yes Yes Yes 72.9 89 mi
Grays Harbor College Aberdeen, WA Yes Yes Yes No 71.6 62 mi
Pierce College District Lakewood, WA Yes Yes Yes Yes 69.7 2 mi
Lake Washington Institute of Technology Kirkland, WA Yes Yes Yes Yes 68.9 41 mi
Tacoma Community College Tacoma, WA Yes Yes Yes Yes 68.9 6 mi

Washington has 39 military-friendly online colleges by this definition; the Washington page lists them all.

Military installations near Lakewood

Installation (as recorded by the Census Bureau) Branch (from the name) Distance from Lakewood
Camp Murray Army 4 mi
Joint Base Lewis-Mcchord Other 9 mi
Manchester Fuel Dep Other 28 mi
Naval Base Kitsap-Bremerton Navy 28 mi
National Guard Bremerton National Guard 28 mi
Coast Guard Station Seattle Coast Guard 31 mi
Camp Wesley Harris Army 32 mi
Naval Undersea Warfare Center Keyport Navy 37 mi

Common post-service careers near Lakewood

Median wages for occupations that veterans commonly move into after an online degree (Bureau of Labor Statistics, May 2025 OEWS), shown for the Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA metro area where BLS publishes it.

Occupation Median annual wage Scope Cost-of-living adjusted (US=100)
Information Security Analysts $161,780 Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA metro $145,617
Logisticians $108,920 Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA metro $98,038
Emergency Management Directors $155,320 Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA metro $139,802
Police and Sheriff’s Patrol Officers $115,120 Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA metro $103,618
Medical and Health Services Managers $160,100 Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA metro $144,104
Project Management Specialists $130,380 Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA metro $117,354
Network and Computer Systems Administrators $104,440 Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA metro $94,005
Transportation, Storage, and Distribution Managers $146,080 Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA metro $131,485

BLS publishes wages for metro areas and states, not individual cities; rows marked with the metro name are metro medians, the rest are statewide.

Campuses within 30 miles of Lakewood

  • Pierce College District (Lakewood, WA), 2 mi, 4 of 4 services reported
  • Pacific Lutheran University (Tacoma, WA), 4 mi, 4 of 4 services reported
  • Tacoma Community College (Tacoma, WA), 6 mi, 4 of 4 services reported
  • University of Washington-Tacoma Campus (Tacoma, WA), 7 mi, 4 of 4 services reported

Nearby cities

Benefit eligibility is determined by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs and your service’s education office. Nothing on this page guarantees education benefits, credit transfer, admission, or a particular cost. Confirm every detail with the school’s military or veteran services office before you enroll.

Sources: U.S. Department of Education, IPEDS Institutional Characteristics survey (IC 2024): veteran and military services indicators (VET2 through VET5), distance-education program flag (DISTPGS); BOC Score from College Scorecard and IPEDS outcome data; U.S. Census Bureau TIGER/Line 2024 Military Installations layer (installation names as recorded there); U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, May 2025 Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics; U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis Regional Price Parities; Census ACS 5-year estimates. Directory counts as of the September 2026 refresh.