Today, more than 160,000 students attend Miami Dade College, a state-supported college with eight campuses and numerous outreach centers. We are the largest institution of higher education in the United States and one of the most highly regarded colleges in the nation.
Each of our campuses has its own distinct identity and specialties. But, they also offer a broad base of general education courses, allowing you to take first-year classes at any of our campuses (except the Medical Campus). That means you get to decide what campus you want to attend. Take all of your first-year classes at one campus, or follow the path of some of our working students and take morning classes near your home and evening and weekend classes near your place of work. As you begin to take more advanced courses, you may need to focus your studies at a specific campus where your program is offered.
Miami Dade was created with the idea that anyone with a desire to get a college degree should be given that opportunity. Miami Dade first opened its doors in the 1960s, amidst the strain of desegregation and the influx of thousands of Cuban refugees. Initially, 1,428 students entered “Chicken Coop College,” nicknamed for the original buildings that were transformed into classrooms. Dade County Junior College, as it was known back then, was open to any county resident who had graduated from high school. When it opened, the College became Florida’s first integrated junior college. By the mid-1960s, enrollment had grown to more than 15,000 students. By 1967, the College was the largest institution of higher education in the state of Florida.
During the next decade, Miami Dade further increased its expectation of students, setting a new standard for community colleges throughout the nation. It was during this time that K. Patricia Cross, visiting professor at Harvard’s Graduate School of Education, called Miami Dade, “the most exciting institution of higher education in the country.” Almost 66 percent of students were minorities and 56 percent were women. Part-time students were common. In 1984, Miami Dade started Books by the Bay, which evolved into the Miami Book Fair International.
The next two decades were marked by comprehensive reforms of academic programs, as well as the creation of more than 50 new degree and short-term certificate training programs. Miami Dade also introduced multimedia classrooms and the Virtual College, followed by the prestigious Honors College and the Emerging Technologies Center of the America’s (ETCOTA), as well as took on management of the reinvigorated Miami International Film Festival. In 2003, Miami Dade also introduced four-year degrees and changed its name to Miami Dade College.
Miami Dade College, or simply Miami Dade, is a public college with its main campus in Miami, Florida and with seven other campuses throughout Miami-Dade County, Florida in the United States. Founded in 1959 as Dade County Junior College, it is the largest institution of higher learning in the United States with over 164,000 students. It is run by the Florida Community College's Board of Trustees, appointed by the governor of Florida, whose chair is Helen Aguirre Ferré, although it is not a community college. Miami-Dade is also run by its President, currently Eduardo J. Padrón, and by its various campus presidents throughout Miami-Dade County. The College has eight different campuses, each having various outreach centers. These campuses are: the North Campus, Kendall Campus, Medical Center, Wolfson Campus in Downtown Miami, Homestead Campus, InterAmerican Campus, Hialeah Campus, and the West Campus.
Miami Dade College was established in 1959 and opened in 1960 as Dade County Junior College. The original campus was located at a fairly new high school- Miami Central High-. The campus consisted of a portion of the High School and an adjacent farm. In 1961 a facility was built on an old naval air station nearby Opa-Locka Airport (known as Amelia Earhardt field), which would soon become the College's North Campus. The College enrolled African American students, becoming Florida's first integrated junior college, and Cuban exiles who could not afford other schools. As the college grew, a temporary satellite campus opened in Kendall at Miami Palmetto High School until a new campus was built in Kendall, and was named the South Campus. (It would later change its name again to the Kendall Campus). Later, the College was re-named Miami-Dade Junior College, and its two flagship campuses expanded and enrolled more students, and began enrolling more students than the University of Florida or Florida State University. After some time, college president Mitchell Wolfson Jr. envisioned a campus at the heart of Downtown Miami, and in 1973, the Wolfson Campus was built. The College changed its name to Miami-Dade Community College around the same time.
|
Full-Time vs. Part-Time
|
Race/Ethnicity
|
|
In State vs. Out-of-State
|
Top States for Incoming Freshman
|
| Percent of Students International: | 2% |
| On-Campus Housing Available: | No |
| Tuition & Fees (undergraduate) | In-State | Out-of-State | |
Published Tuition and Fees: |
$ 2,022 | $ 6,574 | |
Average Tuition for Full-Time Undergrads: |
$ 1,922 | $ 6,574 | |
Required Fees for Full-Time Undergrads: |
$ 100 | $ 100 | |
| Financial Aid | Avg. Amount Received | % of Students Receiving Aid | |
Federal Grants: |
$ 3,502 | 64% | |
State and Local Grants: |
$ 1,109 | 5% | |
Institutional Grants: |
$ 1,043 | 13% | |
Student Loans: |
$ 4,072 | 8% | |
Any Aid: |
71% |
| Acceptance Rate: | 100% (Open Admissions) |
| Application Fee: | $ 20.00 |
