R1 ResearchPublic

University of Colorado Boulder

Boulder, Colorado·Public, 4-year or above·Rocky Mountains·colorado.edu
6-yr Graduation
74%
+8.0pp vs R1 Research
Total enrollment
38,799
peer median 31,500
Avg net price
$21,480
+$1.7k 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
67,286
67,286 candidates competed
Admitted
52,539
78.1% acceptance rate
Enrolled
7,432
14.1% yield

Graduation rate & outcomes

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

Overall completion
74%+8.0pp vs R1 Research
4-year graduation
57%
6-year graduation (bachelor’s)
74%
Full-time retention
90%

Pell equity

4.0pp gap
Pell recipients
67%
Non-Pell
71%

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 299 Title IV programs, 53 pass the federal Gainful Employment test and 3 fail. 243 have graduate earnings too small to publish, so they carry no pass/fail verdict.

Total programs
299
Passing
53
17.7% of portfolio
Failing (GE)
3
1.0% of portfolio
Fail rate
1.0%
+0.4pp vs 0.6% national

Pass / fail distribution

299programs
  • Passing53 · 17.7%
  • No Data243 · 81.3%
  • Failing3 · 1.0%

Severity spectrum

Critical
0
Severe
1
Recoverable
2
At Risk
1
Watch
3
Safe
49
No data
243

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.

56
Fine and Studio Arts
Master's Degree · Visual And Performing Arts
-14.9%
$40,376 vs $47,421
Music
Master's Degree · Visual And Performing Arts
-4.9%
$45,110 vs $47,421
Music
Bachelor Degree · Visual And Performing Arts
-1.2%
$38,701 vs $39,174
Film/Video and Photographic Arts
Bachelor Degree · Visual And Performing Arts
+1.4%
$39,720 vs $39,174
Communication Disorders Sciences and Services
Master's Degree · Health Professions And Related Clinical Sciences
+11.9%
$69,214 vs $61,854
Music
Doctoral Degree · Visual And Performing Arts
+19.1%
$56,459 vs $47,421
Fine and Studio Arts
Bachelor Degree · Visual And Performing Arts
+20.7%
$47,297 vs $39,174
History
Bachelor Degree · History
+26.1%
$49,401 vs $39,174

Near the line (±5%)

Programs within five points of the pass line, one cohort year from flipping.

3
Music
Master's Degree · Visual And Performing Arts
-4.9%
$2,311
Music
Bachelor Degree · Visual And Performing Arts
-1.2%
$473
Film/Video and Photographic Arts
Bachelor Degree · Visual And Performing Arts
+1.4%
+$546

Debt vs earnings

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

48
Law
First Professional Degree · Legal Professions And Studies
90%
$98,432 debt · $109,411 earn
Communication Disorders Sciences and Services
Master's Degree · Health Professions And Related Clinical Sciences
90%
$61,927 debt · $69,214 earn
Natural Resources Conservation and Research
Master's Degree · Natural Resources And Conservation
74%
$60,155 debt · $81,568 earn
Music
Master's Degree · Visual And Performing Arts
66%
$29,900 debt · $45,110 earn
Music
Doctoral Degree · Visual And Performing Arts
62%
$34,753 debt · $56,459 earn
Film/Video and Photographic Arts
Bachelor Degree · Visual And Performing Arts
49%
$19,500 debt · $39,720 earn
Fine and Studio Arts
Master's Degree · Visual And Performing Arts
48%
$19,211 debt · $40,376 earn
Fine and Studio Arts
Bachelor Degree · Visual And Performing Arts
46%
$21,670 debt · $47,297 earn

Accreditation status & history

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

AccreditedInstitutional accreditor

Higher Learning Commission

Accredited since 1913Next review Aug 2030

Programmatic accreditations · 9

Action history · 8

  1. Jul 2022Renewal of Accreditation
    American Speech-Language-Hearing Association, Council on Academic Accreditation in Audiology and Speech-Language Pathology · Clinical doctoral program in Audiology
  2. Jul 2022Renewal of Accreditation
    American Speech-Language-Hearing Association, Council on Academic Accreditation in Audiology and Speech-Language Pathology · Speech-Language Pathology (SLP) - Graduate degree programs
  3. Apr 2021Renewal of Accreditation
    American Psychological Association, Commission on Accreditation · Clinical Psychology (CLPSY) - PhD Doctoral programs
  4. Mar 2020Renewal of Accreditation
    Higher Learning Commission
  5. Oct 2018Renewal of Accreditation
    American Bar Association, Council of the Section of Legal Education and Admissions to the Bar · Law (LAW) - Professional schools

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$11,251
$30–48k$12,545
$48–75k$17,204
$75–110k$26,247
$110k+$30,549

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

Avg net price
$21,480
+$1,748vs R1 Research median $19,733
Federal loans
24.4%
In-state tuition
$16,430
Out-of-state
$41,943

Federal aid volume & trends

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

In AY 2024–25, 5,932 students received $36.4M in Pell grants, alongside $157.9M in federal Direct Loans.

Pell recipients
5,932
AY 2024–25
Pell disbursed
$36.4M
$36,362,714 total
Direct Loans
$157.9M
16,105 loan awards

Pell recipients · 5-year trend

5k
20
5k
21
5k
22
5k
23
6k
24

Loan volume by type · AY 2024–25

Subsidized$21.4M
5,068 loan awards
Unsubsidized · UG$30.4M
7,217 loan awards
Unsubsidized · Grad$20.7M
1,181 loan awards
Parent PLUS$73.4M
2,131 loan awards
Grad PLUS$12.2M
508 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 4,178 borrowers who entered repayment, 47 (1.1%) defaulted within three years below the 2.3% national rate.

Default rate
1.1%
-1.2pp vs 2.3% national
Borrowers in repayment
4,178
Defaulted
47
Measurement window
3 years
Federal CDR standard

Default rate vs national, by cohort

2016
3.2%
2017
3.0%
2018
2.4%
2019
1.1%
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

Top program areas ranked by completions.

Distinct CIP programs116
UndergraduateOffered
GraduateOffered

Top program families by completions

8,143 total completions
01Engineering
1,71621.1%
02Business
1,59519.6%
03Biological Sciences
91211.2%
04Communication
7719.5%
05Social Sciences
7228.9%
06Psychology
6808.4%
07Computer Sciences
6698.2%
08Multi/Interdisciplinary
3854.7%
09Physical Sciences
3614.4%
10Visual/Performing Arts
3324.1%

Enrollment trends & demographics

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

Fall total
38,799
12-mo unduplicated
46,985
Undergraduate
35,164
Graduate
11,821

Gender split

Men
56%26,121
Women
44%20,864

Race / ethnicity composition

White
67.8%
Hispanic
13.5%
Two or more
6.7%
Asian
6.2%
Non-resident
2.7%
Black
1.8%
Unknown
1.0%
American Indian / Alaska Native
0.2%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander
0.1%

Athletics & Title IX gender equity

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

Athletes
408
221 M · 187 W
Women athletes
45.8%
Athletic aid
$12.8M
Total student aid
Budget
$138.3M
Total expenses

Men vs women · spending splits

Athletic student aid
$7.0M
$5.7M
Recruiting expense
$1.1M
$432K
Head-coach salaries
$2.3M
$327K
Men Women

Sport-by-sport · 9

Track and Field and Cross Country (combined)
134 M · 86 W
$4.6M
Football
121 M ·
$38.5M
Basketball
20 M · 29 W
$14.3M
Soccer
· 40 W
$3.5M
Skiing
14 M · 16 W
$2.4M
Lacrosse
· 28 W
$2.0M

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
4.42
175 offenses · 39,585 students

3-year trend

1.982 yrs ago2.621 yr ago4.42Latest
Offenses · 3-yr
351
Last three years
VAWA · 3-yr
90
DV, dating, stalking
Hate crimes · 3-yr
39
Res-hall fires · 3-yr
6

Criminal offenses by type

Burglary
66
Rape
36
Fondling
27
Motor vehicle theft
23
Aggravated assault
13
Arson
8
Robbery
2

By location

175total
  • On campus170
  • Non-campus5

Includes 66 in residence halls (a subset of on-campus, not added to the total).

VAWA offenses

3
Domestic violence
17
Dating violence
25
Stalking
45 total under the Violence Against Women Act.

Hate crimes by bias

  • Race16
  • National origin7
  • Religion6
  • Gender5
  • Ethnicity1
  • Disability1

Arrests vs disciplinary referrals

CategoryArrestsReferrals
Weapons71
Drugs23298
Liquor921,185

Residence-hall fires

  • Baker Hall1 fire
    Arson - a person held a lighter under a smoke detector until the plastic caught fire.Damage $0-$99
  • Sewall Hall1 fire
    ElectricalDamage $50,000-$99,999

Data quality: 4 reports were 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
19.0:1
Instructional staff (full-time equivalent)
1,754

Colorado vs Peer comparison

The peer institutions Colorado 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
SubjectUniversity of Colorado Boulder
74%38,799$21,480R1 Research
Colorado State University-Fort Collins
67%88.5%34,096$20,332R1 Research
University of Colorado Denver/Anschutz Medical Campus
46%74.7%23,124$19,133R1 Research
University of Utah
65%86.0%36,894$13,172R1 Research
Colorado School of Mines
82%60.7%8,044$29,240R1 Research
Utah State University
57%92.5%28,904$12,869R1 Research
Peer group median66%86.0%31,500$19,733

Frequently asked questions about University of Colorado Boulder

Quick answers to the questions most often asked about Colorado.

What is the graduation rate at University of Colorado Boulder?

University of Colorado Boulder reports a 6-year graduation rate of 74% per the latest IPEDS.

How many students attend University of Colorado Boulder?

University of Colorado Boulder reports a total enrollment of 38,799 students per the latest IPEDS.

What is the average net price at University of Colorado Boulder?

The average net price at University of Colorado Boulder is $21,480 per the latest College Scorecard. Net price is the published cost of attendance minus grant aid.

What is the yield rate at University of Colorado Boulder?

University of Colorado Boulder's yield rate is 14.1%, the share of admitted students who enrolled, per the latest IPEDS.

Where is University of Colorado Boulder located?

University of Colorado Boulder is located in Boulder, Colorado 80309-0017.

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