What is considered a “college town”?

[I’m not Stu]

Just having a college doesn’t necessarily make it one. What are the requirements for being considered one?

[Pink Panther]

I would say that the college influences the culture and economy in a significant way.

[GeorgiaModerate]

I would say that the college influences the culture and economy in a significant way.

Another way to look at it is whether the town is primarily known for the presence of the college. For example, Athens GA is a college town because UGA is the principal institution in the town.

[I’m not Stu]

Is Claremont, California considered one?

[Mr. Smith]

I would say that the college influences the culture and economy in a significant way.

This.

I'd hesitate to call Buena Vista, VA a college town.

[Roll Roons]

I would say that the college influences the culture and economy in a significant way.

That's a good definition. I've heard Boston described as the "ultimate college town" and the high concentration of colleges and universities in the area (Harvard and MIT being the most prominent, but also BU, BC, Tufts and quite a few others) definitely has a huge influence on the city. 

[Roll Roons]

Is Claremont, California considered one?

I'd say so. If the Colleges didn't exist it would probably be a fairly nondescript suburb.

[dead0man]

If the primary employment in town is through the college or is in service of young adult's entertainment needs, then it is a college town.  Lincoln and Madison are not college towns, but Iowa City and Champaign are.

[Hope For A New Era]

I would go for:

A place is a "college town" if it is primarily known by people who are not from there for being "the location of [college]."

[Del Tachi]

Blake Gumprecht, an American geographer whose research focuses on college towns, identified the following criteria as diagnostic:

(1)  High percentage of college-aged adults (18-24)
(2)  Educational attainment higher than the U.S. average
(3)  High percentage of residents working in education
(4)  Median income higher than other similarly-sized cities
(5)  Large percentage of renter-occupied housing units
(6)  Transient populations
(7)  Biking, walking and/or public transit more common as commuting options than the U.S. average

Stereotypical American college towns often also have many people in non-traditional lifestyles or subcultures, active music or cultural scenes, liberal politics, and a high tolerance for diversity and unconventionality in general. 

College towns are also frequently distinguished by the central role the campus plays as a public space, often fulfilling the following physical purposes: primary workplace, landscaped park, sports stadium, cultural and social center, and community symbol.

[True Federalist (진정한 연방 주의자)]

I would go for:

A place is a "college town" if it is primarily known by people who are not from there for being "the location of [college]."

I wouldn't. Newberry, SC would be a college town by that definition, and while Newberry College is important to the town, it's not the reason the town exists nor its primary economic focus. Newberry's primary employers/economy is a mix of agriculture, light industry, and government. The town would be hurt if the college suddenly shut down, but it would survive and other than the professors, few would need to move elsewhere.

[I’m not Stu]

What about Claremont’s neighboring city Pomona?

[The Dowager Mod]

Whitewater, WI, where I lived for 15 years literally doubled in population during the school year.

[GeorgiaModerate]

If the primary employment in town is through the college or is in service of young adult's entertainment needs, then it is a college town.  Lincoln and Madison are not college towns, but Iowa City and Champaign are.

This is the best definition I've seen yet in the thread.

[Grumpier Than Uncle Joe]

Morgantown WV

[Santander]

There are multiple types of college towns.

Classic college town - < 150k population, major research university, young and highly-educated population, higher foreign-born population than average, active nightlife, cultural and sports amenities, large campus that anchors the community.
Examples - Lawrence, Bloomington, Ann Arbor

Hybrid state capital/college town - Most of the characteristics of a classic college town, but a fair bit larger in size and with more diverse lifestyle amenities than classic college towns. Generally considered good places for adults unaffiliated with the university to live in.
Examples - Madison, Columbus, at a stretch Austin, notably not Baton Rouge

Micro college town - A miniature and often slightly lame college town because the school lacks the size or institutional profile to hold a larger community together.
Examples - Vermillion, Orono

Enclave college town - College towns attached to or within a large metropolitan area. Distinct character for sure, but some of the life and character bleeds out due to the large metropolitan area. Generally more mixing with people unaffiliated with the college, and no problem for an adult to live there as a townie.
Examples - Boulder, Norman, Tempe

Town with a college - A small to mid-size city with a college, which does play an active role in the city, but is less indispensable to the community and doesn't have a large gravitational pull.
Examples - Terre Haute, Pensacola

Town of colleges - Boston

[I’m not Stu]

Is Irvine, California an enclave college town? What kind of college town is Champaign, Illinois?

[Ferguson97]

If the college is a significant part of the town's culture or economy, while also excluding major metro areas like Boston or NYC.

[beesley]

I don't think anywhere in the UK should be solely understood as a college town, but there are select towns where the university/ies dominate the life of the town or city in a bigger way. I would include Oxford, Cambridge,  Durham, Canterbury, St. Andrews, Aberystwyth and Penryn as examples, but this is strictly in relation to other towns - only the first three are really known best as the home of their universities, and that is because of the prestige and collegiate structure of those universities.

[Starry Eyed Jagaloon]

What about Claremont’s neighboring city Pomona?

Not remotely. Same goes for Irvine. A very different place altogether. The only proper college towns in Southern California are Claremont and San Luis Obispo. A case could be made for Isla Vista, but I really don't think it fits the bill--either culturally or as a distinct place from Santa Barbara/Goleta.

[Orwell]

Hybrid state capital/college town - Most of the characteristics of a classic college town, but a fair bit larger in size and with more diverse lifestyle amenities than classic college towns. Generally considered good places for adults unaffiliated with the university to live in.
Examples - Madison, Columbus, at a stretch Austin, notably not Baton Rouge

Is Lansing a Hybrid state capital college town?  Michigan State at 58k students, so I'd think that'd be a big one.

[Mr. Smith]

What'd you call somewhere like Lynchburg or Provo or Hillsdale, MI then?

[Del Tachi]

Hybrid state capital/college town - Most of the characteristics of a classic college town, but a fair bit larger in size and with more diverse lifestyle amenities than classic college towns. Generally considered good places for adults unaffiliated with the university to live in.
Examples - Madison, Columbus, at a stretch Austin, notably not Baton Rouge

Is Lansing a Hybrid state capital college town?  Michigan State at 58k students, so I'd think that'd be a big one.

From my understanding, there is actually a noticeably different vibe from Lansing to East Lansing, which is actually where the MSU campus is located. 

There's a reason Lansing is never spoken in the same breath as Austin or Madison, FWIW

[progressive85]

I grew up in a town with a college in it but I would not call it a college town the way State College (Penn State) is.

I guess college town conjures up images of a lot of young people hitting up bars at night, getting drunk, lots of fraternities and sororities, lefty faculty members, general debauchery like underwear runs at midnight, maybe a few coffeehouses where there is always a kid in a goatee talking about Karl Marx to a bunch of drowsy friends who are checking their iPhones, and a conservative in the corner reading Ayn Rand, that kind of thing.  It's very cliche.