R1 ResearchPublic

Colorado School of Mines

Golden, Colorado·Public, 4-year or above·Rocky Mountains·mines.edu
6-yr Graduation
82%
+20.0pp vs R1 Research
Total enrollment
8,044
peer median 20,130
Avg net price
$29,240
+$8.8k vs R1 Research
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Admissions & acceptance rate

First-time freshman admissions: how selective the college is, and how many admitted students choose to enroll.

Applied
11,436
11,436 candidates competed
Admitted
6,940
60.7% acceptance rate
Enrolled
1,602
23.1% yield

Graduation rate & outcomes

Completion, retention, and the equity gap between Pell and non-Pell students.

Overall completion
82%+20.0pp vs R1 Research
4-year graduation
67%
6-year graduation (bachelor’s)
82%
Full-time retention
93%

Pell equity

4.0pp gap
Pell recipients
72%
Non-Pell
76%

Non-Pell students graduate at a 4.0-point higher rate than Pell recipients.

Program outcomes

Federal Program Performance Data: how each program's graduate earnings and debt measure up under Financial Value Transparency and Gainful Employment.

Of 88 Title IV programs, 19 pass the federal Gainful Employment test and 0 fail. 69 have graduate earnings too small to publish, so they carry no pass/fail verdict.

Total programs
88
Passing
19
21.6% of portfolio
Failing (GE)
0
0.0% of portfolio
Fail rate
0.0%
-0.6pp vs 0.6% national

Pass / fail distribution

88programs
  • Passing19 · 21.6%
  • No Data69 · 78.4%
  • Failing0 · 0.0%

Severity spectrum

Critical
0
Severe
0
Recoverable
0
At Risk
0
Watch
0
Safe
19
No data
69

Tiers band programs by how far graduate earnings sit above or below the benchmark, from Critical (below −15%) through Safe (above +25%). No data means earnings were privacy-suppressed.

Earnings premium gap

Graduate earnings versus the federal benchmark, worst gaps first.

19
Civil Engineering
Master's Degree · Engineering
+45.9%
$93,132 vs $63,816
Geological/Geophysical Engineering
Master's Degree · Engineering
+59.8%
$102,007 vs $63,816
Mechanical Engineering
Master's Degree · Engineering
+80.3%
$115,085 vs $63,816
Geological and Earth Sciences/Geosciences
Master's Degree · Physical Sciences
+83.6%
$109,407 vs $59,600
Engineering-Related Fields
Master's Degree · Engineering Technologies/Technicians
+94.1%
$123,855 vs $63,816
Environmental/Environmental Health Engineering
Bachelor Degree · Engineering
+122.8%
$87,278 vs $39,174
Geological/Geophysical Engineering
Bachelor Degree · Engineering
+125.9%
$88,484 vs $39,174
Computer Science
Master's Degree · Computer And Information Sciences And Support Services
+131.4%
$147,702 vs $63,816

Debt vs earnings

Median completer debt against median graduate earnings, highest burden first.

15
Geological/Geophysical Engineering
Bachelor Degree · Engineering
31%
$27,000 debt · $88,484 earn
Environmental/Environmental Health Engineering
Bachelor Degree · Engineering
29%
$25,000 debt · $87,278 earn
Mechanical Engineering
Master's Degree · Engineering
27%
$30,750 debt · $115,085 earn
Mechanical Engineering
Bachelor Degree · Engineering
26%
$25,000 debt · $97,087 earn
Engineering Physics
Bachelor Degree · Engineering
25%
$24,373 debt · $97,497 earn
Civil Engineering
Bachelor Degree · Engineering
25%
$23,250 debt · $94,228 earn
Biomedical/Medical Engineering
Bachelor Degree · Engineering
24%
$23,000 debt · $95,142 earn
Chemical Engineering
Bachelor Degree · Engineering
24%
$22,250 debt · $94,598 earn

Accreditation status & history

Who accredits the institution, current standing, and any past actions.

AccreditedInstitutional accreditor

Higher Learning Commission

Accredited since 1960Next review Aug 2033
AccreditedInstitutional accreditor

Higher Learning Commission

Accredited since 1929

Action history · 1

  1. Jun 2023Renewal of Accreditation
    Higher Learning Commission

Source: U.S. Dept. of Education

Tuition & cost

What families actually pay, broken down by family income.

Net price by family income

Aid exceeds costFamily pays
$0–30k$19,231
$30–48k$19,616
$48–75k$25,347
$75–110k$30,370
$110k+$33,931

Negative values mean aid exceeds the published cost of attendance for that income band.

Avg net price
$29,240
+$8,778vs R1 Research median $20,463
Federal loans
33.6%
In-state tuition
$21,186
Out-of-state
$44,376

Federal aid volume & trends

Pell grants and federal Direct Loan volume disbursed to students, and how they've trended.

In AY 2024–25, 1,106 students received $6.4M in Pell grants, alongside $37.2M in federal Direct Loans.

Pell recipients
1,106
AY 2024–25
Pell disbursed
$6.4M
$6,380,496 total
Direct Loans
$37.2M
3,767 loan awards

Pell recipients · 5-year trend

1k
20
1k
21
1k
22
1k
23
1k
24

Loan volume by type · AY 2024–25

Subsidized$4.9M
1,153 loan awards
Unsubsidized · UG$6.9M
1,647 loan awards
Unsubsidized · Grad$4.1M
254 loan awards
Parent PLUS$19.7M
642 loan awards
Grad PLUS$1.6M
71 loan awards

Loan awards count each loan type a student holds, not unique borrowers; one student may carry several (e.g. subsidized and unsubsidized), so the per-type figures are the reliable detail.

Source: U.S. Dept. of Education

Student loan default rate

The share of student borrowers who default on federal loans within three years, against the national benchmark.

Of 875 borrowers who entered repayment, 5 (0.5%) defaulted within three years below the 2.3% national rate.

Default rate
0.5%
-1.8pp vs 2.3% national
Borrowers in repayment
875
Defaulted
5
Measurement window
3 years
Federal CDR standard

Default rate vs national, by cohort

2016
1.2%
2017
1.7%
2018
0.7%
2019
0.5%
2020*
0.0%
This institutionNational rate

* Cohorts 2020 and later read near 0% because the federal COVID-19 payment pause (CARES Act) suspended defaults nationwide. These years reflect a national policy, not institutional performance; the 2019 cohort is the last measured under normal repayment.

Source: U.S. Dept. of Education

Academic programs at Colorado School of Mines

Top program areas ranked by completions.

Distinct CIP programs39
UndergraduateOffered
GraduateOffered

Top program families by completions

1,909 total completions
01Engineering
1,28867.5%
02Computer Sciences
35218.4%
03Physical Sciences
844.4%
04Engineering Tech
532.8%
05Mathematics
522.7%
06Social Sciences
321.7%
07Multi/Interdisciplinary
291.5%
08Biological Sciences
130.7%
09Education
60.3%

Enrollment trends & demographics

Fall headcount, 12-month unduplicated enrollment, and student body composition.

Fall total
8,044
12-mo unduplicated
8,103
Undergraduate
6,106
Graduate
1,997

Gender split

Men
68%5,519
Women
32%2,584

Race / ethnicity composition

White
68.1%
Hispanic
13.0%
Asian
6.5%
Two or more
6.5%
Non-resident
2.4%
Unknown
1.6%
Black
1.4%
American Indian / Alaska Native
0.5%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander
0.1%

Athletics & Title IX gender equity

How athletic participation, aid, and spending are split between men and women.

Athletes
288
228 M · 60 W
Women athletes
20.8%
Athletic aid
$5.3M
Total student aid
Budget
$14.8M
Total expenses

Men vs women · spending splits

Athletic student aid
$3.4M
$1.9M
Recruiting expense
$91K
$64K
Head-coach salaries
$67K
$55K
Men Women

Sport-by-sport · 12

Football
151 M ·
$3.2M
Track and Field (Indoor)
49 M · 39 W
$539K
Track and Field (Outdoor)
48 M · 37 W
$532K
Soccer
27 M · 34 W
$1.3M
Cross Country
27 M · 18 W
$439K
Baseball
44 M ·
$704K

Source: U.S. Dept. of Education

Campus safety & crime statistics

Reported on-campus crimes over the last three years, including violence and hate crimes.

Criminal offenses · per 1,000 students
1.62
12 offenses · 7,403 students

3-year trend

4.602 yrs ago2.091 yr ago1.62Latest
Offenses · 3-yr
58
Last three years
VAWA · 3-yr
15
DV, dating, stalking
Hate crimes · 3-yr
0
Res-hall fires · 3-yr
1

Criminal offenses by type

Burglary
8
Motor vehicle theft
2
Fondling
1
Aggravated assault
1

By location

12total
  • On campus12

Includes 7 in residence halls (a subset of on-campus, not added to the total).

VAWA offenses

2
Domestic violence
0
Dating violence
0
Stalking
2 total under the Violence Against Women Act.

Hate crimes by bias

No hate crimes reported.

Arrests vs disciplinary referrals

CategoryArrestsReferrals
Weapons30
Drugs011
Liquor265

Residence-hall fires

  • Mines Park Bldg 19031 fire
    CookingDamage $0-$99

Data quality: 1 report was later determined unfounded across the reporting period and are excluded from the totals above.

Source: U.S. Dept. of Education

Student-faculty ratio

Student-to-faculty ratio and instructional staff counts.

Student-to-faculty
18.0:1
Instructional staff (full-time equivalent)
367

Colorado School of Mines vs Peer comparison

The peer institutions Colorado School of Mines selected for federal comparison reporting.

GraduationRetentionSelectivityEnrollmentAffordabilityYield
This institutionPeer median

A larger shape on any axis means this institution outperforms its peers on that dimension. For acceptance rate and net price, lower raw values are inverted so "more selective" and "more affordable" appear larger.

Carnegie
SubjectColorado School of Mines
82%8,044$29,240R1 Research
46%74.7%23,124$19,133R1 Research
67%88.5%34,096$20,332R1 Research
74%78.1%38,799$21,480R1 Research
49%95.9%10,811$17,118R1 Research
57%82.1%17,135$20,593R1 Research
Peer group median62%82.1%20,130$20,463

Institutions like Colorado School of Mines

Explore the federal data for institutions in Colorado School of Mines's comparison group.

Colorado School of Mines Institutional Research office

The IR team responsible for the institution's federal reporting.

Office
Institutional Research | Strategic Analytics
Address
1600 Jackson St. Golden, CO 80401

Institutional Research and Strategic Analytics collects, preserves, analyzes, interprets, and disseminates data, providing high quality, timely information to internal constituents, the federal government, the Colorado Department on Higher Education, and others.

Visit IR office page
Team
7 members
  • Sean Petranovich
    Director, IRSA
  • Scott Harper
    Data Scientist
  • Jennifer Haynes
    Data Scientist
  • Mary Hussey
    HR & Finance Reporting Analyst
  • Andi Niess
    Business Intelligence Analyst
  • Kyler Sheets
    HR & Finance Reporting Analyst
  • Alyssa Strickler
    Data Scientist

Common Data Set

Colorado School of Mines's own annual Common Data Set: the most detailed self-reported reference for selectivity, cost, outcomes, and the student body.

Total enrollment
6,605
5,154 UG · 1,451 grad
6-yr graduation rate
83%
First-year retention
92%
Student–faculty ratio
15 to 1
Est. net price (aided)
$28,647
after avg need-based grant
01

Affordability & Value

Cost of attendance

G
Total$34,773
Tuition
$16,65048%
Fees
$2,4127%
Room & board
$14,21141%
Books
$1,5004%

Total sticker cost of attendance is $34,773 (2020-2021).

Sticker vs. net price

G+H
Sticker COA
$34,773
Net (aided)
$28,647
Avg need grant
$6,126

Sticker $34,773 → about $28,647 net for aided students after the average need-based grant ($6,126); 61% of demonstrated need is met.

Where grant aid comes from

H1
Institutional68.6%
Federal15.4%
External8.9%
State7.1%

69% of need-based grant dollars come from the institution itself.

Graduate debt

H4/H5
Grads with debt
49%
Avg debt
$30,983

49% of graduates borrowed; those who did owed $30,983 on average.

02

Outcomes & Equity

Graduation & retention

B
6-yr grad rate
83%
Retention
92%

6-year graduation rate 83%; first-year retention 92%.

Equity: Pell graduation gap

B4
All students83%
Pell recipients78%

Pell-grant recipients graduate 5 pts below the overall rate (78% vs 83%).

03

Academic Experience

Class-size distribution

I3
2-9 students91
10-19 students134
20-29 students187
30-39 students93
40-49 students98
50-99 students126
100+ students37

29% of classes have under 20 students; 21% have 50+.

Faculty profile

I
Student–faculty ratio
15 to 1
Faculty with terminal degree
60%
Women faculty
34%

Key faculty indicators.

Degrees by discipline

J
Engineering85%
Computer and information sciences9%
Mathematics and statistics3%
Physical sciences2%
Social sciences1%

STEM-dominant: ~99% of bachelor's degrees are in computing, engineering, math & sciences.

04

Student Body & Diversity

Undergraduate race/ethnicity

B2
White69.6%
Hispanic/Latino10.6%
Nonresident aliens5.8%
Two or more races5.5%
Asian4.7%
Race and/or ethnicity unknown2.5%
Black or African American1.0%
American Indian or Alaska Native0.3%
Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander0.1%

Undergraduate enrollment by race/ethnicity.

International students

B2
International UG
297
Share
6%

6% of undergraduates are international (nonresident).

Undergrad vs graduate

B1
Undergraduate
5,15478%
Graduate
1,45122%

5,154 undergraduates and 1,451 graduate students.

05

Transfer Path

Transfer admissions

D1
Applied
543
Admitted
326
Enrolled
191

543 transfer applicants → 326 admitted (60.0%) → 191 enrolled

Source publications

Frequently asked questions about Colorado School of Mines

Quick answers to the questions most often asked about Colorado School of Mines.

What is the graduation rate at Colorado School of Mines?

Colorado School of Mines reports a 6-year graduation rate of 82% per the latest IPEDS.

How many students attend Colorado School of Mines?

Colorado School of Mines reports a total enrollment of 8,044 students per the latest IPEDS.

What is the average net price at Colorado School of Mines?

The average net price at Colorado School of Mines is $29,240 per the latest College Scorecard. Net price is the published cost of attendance minus grant aid.

What is the yield rate at Colorado School of Mines?

Colorado School of Mines's yield rate is 23.1%, the share of admitted students who enrolled, per the latest IPEDS.

Where is Colorado School of Mines located?

Colorado School of Mines is located in Golden, Colorado 80401.

Who runs Institutional Research at Colorado School of Mines?

Colorado School of Mines's IR work is done by the Institutional Research | Strategic Analytics.

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