Education

Clearwater is well-positioned within the Tampa Bay Region known for its impressive network of higher education institutions, colleges, and technical training centers. This robust educational ecosystem delivers cutting-edge curriculum and industry-aligned programs that help cultivate a highly skilled, work-ready talent pipeline. With a focus on innovation, workforce preparation, and lifelong learning, Clearwater’s education partners play a vital role in supporting business growth and sustaining the region’s competitive edge.

Higher Education

University of South Florida is situated in the vibrant and diverse Tampa Bay region, with campuses in Tampa, St. Petersburg, and Sarasota-Manatee.

Together these campuses serve approximately 48,000 students and offer undergraduate, graduate, specialist and doctoral degrees from over 242 majors and concentrations, as of the 2023-2024 school year.

USF is #1 among U.S. universities for its commitment to industry, innovation and infrastructure (Times Higher Education (THE) Impact Rankings (2022)). USF’s historic invitation in 2023 to join the Association of American Universities takes what many in Tampa Bay once considered a “best-kept secret” to an unprecedented new level.

Click here to review USF's 23-24 pocket fact book.

Click here to review USF’s Point of Pride.

St. Petersburg College works closely with the business community and offers more than 187 degree and certificate programs, including many high-demand, high-skill industry-recognized workforce certifications.

The school's enrollment tops 34,000, and it awards more than 4,000 Bachelors and Associates degrees annually.

See the latest SPC factbook here.

Nova Southeastern University’s Tampa Bay Regional Campus opened its Clearwater medical school campus during the fall semester 2019. The new campus features a 311,000 -square-foot, state-of-the-art facility with new labs, collaboration spaces, advanced simulations, and operating rooms giving students a hands-on advantage.

In 2022, the NSU Drs. Kiran & Pallavi Patel International Dental Program was completed. This fully digitized program is located in an almost 20,000-square-foot space that includes 64 dental chairs, 3 surgical suites, classrooms, and a simulation lab.

The Clearwater regional campus includes additional locations for NSU’s Dr. Pallavi Patel College of Health Care Sciences, the Dr. Kiran C. Patel College of Osteopathic Medicine and the Ron and Kathy Assaf College of Nursing.

Programs of study include education, school psychology, counseling, cardiovascular sonography, anesthesia, nursing, occupational therapy, physical therapy, and osteopathic medicine. Click here to see the 2024 NSU fact book.

Eckerd College is a private liberals arts and sciences college with approximately 1,900 students and more than 40 majors.

See Eckerd’s 24-25 Common Data Set here.

Stetson University College of Law has more than 850 students and is ranked #1 in trial advocacy and #3 in legal writing by U.S. News & World Report. Founded in 1900 as Florida's first law school, Stetson has prepared students to become highly skilled, ethical lawyers and leaders.

Only a short drive from Pinellas County, the University of Tampa is a private university with over 11,000 students offering more than 200 academic programs and approximately 2,600 degrees are confirmed annually.

See their University Profile here.

Career & Technical Education

Pinellas Technical College offers students first-rate career and technical education in over 40 exciting career areas and about 60 programs to nearly 5,000 full-time students. Pinellas Technical College also offers continuing education courses, life enrichment courses, and commercial training services.

PTC is on USA Today's 2025 list of America's Top 250 Vocational Schools. 

National Aviation Academy(NAA) is one of a select group of Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) approved 14 CFR Part 147 Schools in the nation. Their Airframe and Powerplant (A&P) and avionics-focused training gives access to the aviation maintenance workforce.

Pinellas County Schools is an award-winning district that is the largest employer in Pinellas County and the ninth largest district in the state with 144 schools districtwide. Ninety percent of schools in Pinellas County are rated A and B schools.  

Programs offered include:

• Career Academies offering national/industry certifications 
• Fundamental Schools 
• Magnet Programs in STEM 
• Charter Schools 
• International Baccalaureate Programs for gifted students
• School choice 

The area is also home to more than 100 private & faith-based K-12 schools with religious, preparatory, military, boarding and gifted education.