R1 ResearchPrivate nonprofit

University of Denver

Denver, Colorado·Private not-for-profit, 4-year or above·Rocky Mountains·du.edu
6-yr Graduation
76%
-15.0pp vs R1 Research
Total enrollment
12,813
peer median 15,304
Avg net price
$36,037
+$2.2k 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
18,786
18,786 candidates competed
Admitted
14,618
77.8% acceptance rate
Enrolled
1,337
9.1% yield

Graduation rate & outcomes

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

Overall completion
76%-15.0pp vs R1 Research
4-year graduation
66%
6-year graduation (bachelor’s)
76%
Full-time retention
89%

Pell equity

3.0pp gap
Pell recipients
77%
Non-Pell
74%

Pell recipients graduate at a higher rate than non-Pell students here — unusual and worth investigating.

Program outcomes

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

Of 174 Title IV programs, 56 pass the federal Gainful Employment test and 0 fail. 118 have graduate earnings too small to publish, so they carry no pass/fail verdict.

Total programs
174
Passing
56
32.2% of portfolio
Failing (GE)
0
0.0% of portfolio
Fail rate
0.0%
-0.6pp vs 0.6% national

Pass / fail distribution

174programs
  • Passing56 · 32.2%
  • No Data118 · 67.8%
  • Failing0 · 0.0%

Severity spectrum

Critical
0
Severe
0
Recoverable
0
At Risk
0
Watch
5
Safe
51
No data
118

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
Music
Master's Degree · Visual And Performing Arts
+11.9%
$53,050 vs $47,421
International Relations and National Security Studies
Master's Degree · Social Sciences
+16.2%
$74,159 vs $63,816
Music
Bachelor Degree · Visual And Performing Arts
+23.7%
$48,461 vs $39,174
Psychology Other
Master's Degree · Psychology
+23.8%
$60,246 vs $48,653
International/Globalization Studies
Master's Degree · Multi/Interdisciplinary Studies
+24.0%
$66,493 vs $53,607
English Language and Literature General
Bachelor Degree · English Language And Literature/Letters
+25.8%
$49,287 vs $39,174
Environmental/Natural Resources Management and Policy
Graduate Certificate · Natural Resources And Conservation
+25.9%
$64,887 vs $51,545
Economics
Master's Degree · Social Sciences
+29.7%
$82,777 vs $63,816

Debt vs earnings

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

48
Psychology Other
Master's Degree · Psychology
214%
$129,140 debt · $60,246 earn
Law
First Professional Degree · Legal Professions And Studies
148%
$152,717 debt · $103,145 earn
Clinical Counseling and Applied Psychology
Master's Degree · Psychology
145%
$99,568 debt · $68,815 earn
International Relations and National Security Studies
Master's Degree · Social Sciences
128%
$94,715 debt · $74,159 earn
Social Work
Master's Degree · Public Administration And Social Service Professions
106%
$69,060 debt · $65,203 earn
Economics
Master's Degree · Social Sciences
100%
$82,521 debt · $82,777 earn
Library Science and Administration
Master's Degree · Library Science
95%
$53,672 debt · $56,359 earn
Curriculum and Instruction
Master's Degree · Education
81%
$50,765 debt · $62,426 earn

Accreditation status & history

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

AccreditedInstitutional accreditor

Higher Learning Commission

Accredited since 1914Next review Aug 2031

Programmatic accreditations · 10

Action history · 12

  1. Apr 2024Renewal of Accreditation
    American Psychological Association, Commission on Accreditation · Clinical Psychology (CLPSY) - PhD Doctoral programs
  2. Apr 2024Initial Accreditation
    American Psychological Association, Commission on Accreditation · School Psychology (SCPSY) - PhD Doctoral programs
  3. Aug 2021Loss of Accreditation or Preaccreditation: Voluntary Withdrawal
    Commission on English Language Program Accreditation · English Language
  4. Jan 2021Renewal of Accreditation
    Higher Learning Commission
  5. Jul 2020Renewal of Accreditation
    American Psychological Association, Commission on Accreditation · Clinical Psychology (CLPSYD) - PsyD Doctoral programs

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$20,820
$30–48k$21,648
$48–75k$28,981
$75–110k$30,753
$110k+$46,428

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

Avg net price (private)
$36,037
+$2,183vs R1 Research median $33,854
Federal loans
30.1%
In-state tuition
$59,340
Out-of-state
$59,340

Federal aid volume & trends

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

In AY 2024–25, 1,233 students received $7.3M in Pell grants, alongside $148.7M in federal Direct Loans.

Pell recipients
1,233
AY 2024–25
Pell disbursed
$7.3M
$7,257,197 total
Direct Loans
$148.7M
8,216 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$5.0M
1,180 loan awards
Unsubsidized · UG$6.2M
1,590 loan awards
Unsubsidized · Grad$59.4M
3,319 loan awards
Parent PLUS$12.2M
385 loan awards
Grad PLUS$65.9M
1,742 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 2,470 borrowers who entered repayment, 18 (0.7%) defaulted within three years below the 2.3% national rate.

Default rate
0.7%
-1.6pp vs 2.3% national
Borrowers in repayment
2,470
Defaulted
18
Measurement window
3 years
Federal CDR standard

Default rate vs national, by cohort

2016
1.8%
2017
1.9%
2018
1.6%
2019
0.7%
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 University of Denver

Top program areas ranked by completions.

Distinct CIP programs162
UndergraduateOffered
GraduateOffered

Top program families by completions

3,678 total completions
01Business
99527.1%
02Public Admin
61916.8%
03Social Sciences
39410.7%
04Psychology
38410.4%
05Computer Sciences
3529.6%
06Legal Professions
2697.3%
07Communication
1814.9%
08Natural Resources
1804.9%
09Biological Sciences
1554.2%
10Education
1494.1%

Enrollment trends & demographics

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

Fall total
12,813
12-mo unduplicated
16,004
Undergraduate
7,320
Graduate
8,684

Gender split

Men
39%6,174
Women
61%9,830

Race / ethnicity composition

White
68.0%
Hispanic
13.7%
Two or more
6.3%
Asian
3.8%
Non-resident
3.2%
Black
2.8%
Unknown
1.6%
American Indian / Alaska Native
0.4%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander
0.1%

Athletics & Title IX gender equity

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

Athletes
372
193 M · 179 W
Women athletes
48.1%
Athletic aid
$14.8M
Total student aid
Budget
$51.5M
Total expenses

Men vs women · spending splits

Athletic student aid
$6.7M
$8.2M
Recruiting expense
$249K
$263K
Head-coach salaries
$267K
$139K
Men Women

Sport-by-sport · 11

Lacrosse
56 M · 36 W
$4.7M
Soccer
32 M · 32 W
$4.2M
Swimming and Diving (combined)
29 M · 32 W
$2.9M
Basketball
15 M · 14 W
$5.2M
Ice Hockey
26 M ·
$5.6M
Skiing
13 M · 11 W
$1.9M

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
4.59
63 offenses · 13,734 students

3-year trend

5.772 yrs ago7.151 yr ago4.59Latest
Offenses · 3-yr
244
Last three years
VAWA · 3-yr
56
DV, dating, stalking
Hate crimes · 3-yr
5
Res-hall fires · 3-yr
5

Criminal offenses by type

Motor vehicle theft
27
Burglary
19
Rape
7
Fondling
7
Aggravated assault
2
Robbery
1

By location

63total
  • On campus52
  • Non-campus1
  • Public property10

Includes 21 in residence halls (a subset of on-campus, not added to the total).

VAWA offenses

2
Domestic violence
2
Dating violence
8
Stalking
12 total under the Violence Against Women Act.

Hate crimes by bias

  • Religion4

Arrests vs disciplinary referrals

CategoryArrestsReferrals
Weapons00
Drugs289
Liquor1319

Residence-hall fires

  • Centennial Towers1 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
9.0:1
Instructional staff (full-time equivalent)
753

University of Denver vs Peer comparison

The peer institutions University of Denver 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 Denver
76%12,813$36,037R1 Research
Emory University
91%10.6%15,175$23,911R1 Research
Boston College
91%16.4%15,432$39,866R1 Research
Yale University
96%3.9%15,564$27,818R1 Research
Carnegie Mellon University
94%11.7%15,888$31,671R1 Research
Tulane University of Louisiana
86%14.0%13,310$43,939R1 Research
Peer group median91%11.7%15,304$33,854

Frequently asked questions about University of Denver

Quick answers to the questions most often asked about University of Denver.

What is the graduation rate at University of Denver?

University of Denver reports a 6-year graduation rate of 76% per the latest IPEDS.

How many students attend University of Denver?

University of Denver reports a total enrollment of 12,813 students per the latest IPEDS.

What is the average net price at University of Denver?

The average net price at University of Denver is $36,037 per the latest College Scorecard. Net price is the published cost of attendance minus grant aid.

What is the yield rate at University of Denver?

University of Denver's yield rate is 9.1%, the share of admitted students who enrolled, per the latest IPEDS.

Where is University of Denver located?

University of Denver is located in Denver, Colorado 80208.

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