Public colleges and universities account for almost 75 percent of all undergraduate students in the U.S. The best public colleges in Colorado provide broad access to reputable degree programs, affordable tuition, and sprawling educational communities.
Fans of the outdoors will feel right at home in Colorado. With the Rocky Mountains, Colorado River, and even part of the Great Plains, you’re sure to find adventure in The Centennial State. Students looking to balance outdoor adventure with higher education can choose from over 40 colleges and universities offering associate, bachelor’s, master’s, and doctoral degrees for an average in-state tuition of $10,800.
Find college admissions consultants in your state.
Colorado’s 28 public institutes include junior colleges, universities, the United States Air Force Academy, and the Colorado School of Mines, a research university that specializes in science, technology, engineering, and math.
Tuition for Colorado’s public schools ranges from $3,000 to $19,000, with many of the colleges and junior colleges starting at $4,000 and the universities at $8,000. Several of public colleges in Colorado enroll a large number of online students, including Colorado State University
.Colorado’s private institutions boast smaller class sizes and student populations. This category includes five religiously affiliated campuses. Private colleges in Colorado tend to be more expensive, ranging from $4,000 to $55,000 in tuition. There are several online colleges in Colorado that are categorized as private schools.
The University of Colorado, Boulder, a notable research institute, is ranked as the number one school in the state and has a student population of just over 32,000. Students can earn degrees in computer science and physics both through in-person courses and online learning. Influential Boulder alumni include Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak and Academy Award-winning actor and director Robert Redford.
Prospective art students can check out Rocky Mountain College of Art + Design, and those desiring a career in the medical field can look into the Institute of Business and Medical Careers.
To learn more, check out the best brick-and-mortar and online colleges in Colorado.
Public and private colleges and universities operate under different business models. Public colleges and universities are owned by the state and receive both state and federal funding to operate. Private colleges and universities are private companies with private funding. If you’re looking at the pros and cons of private vs. public colleges, consider that many public colleges provide diverse course offerings, influential professors, and an excellent return on your investment.
Public colleges are schools that receive most of their funding from tax revenues. As a result, the cost of a bachelor’s degree at a public university is often lower than the equivalent cost at a private college — especially for students attending a public school in their home state. Attending a college in-state is usually the cheapest option. Private universities and colleges can be very competitive with their funding opportunities, so do not simply believe that private colleges are always going to be more expensive. According to National Center for Educational Statistics, the average annual cost (tuition, fees, room and board for full-time students) at a public university was slightly over $20,000. In contrast, private universities cost, on average, nearly $43,000 annually. But in the end, the cost of college comes down to each student’s academic and financial situation.
This list is composed entirely of public colleges and universities that offer bachelor’s degrees. We’ve identified 17 public universities in Colorado. To be included in our list of the best public colleges in Colorado, shcools must receive direct funding from the state, be fully accredited, and offer a broad range of bachelor’s degress.
Tuition + fees
$13K
Acceptance
80%
Graduation
74%
Student body
34K
Median SAT/ACT
1240/28
University of Colorado Boulder’s faculty and alumni have been influential in:
Tuition + fees
$12K
Acceptance
90%
Graduation
69%
Student body
27K
Median SAT/ACT
1175/26
Colorado State University’s faculty and alumni have been influential in:
Acceptance
12%
Graduation
86%
Student body
5K
Median SAT/ACT
1325/31
United States Air Force Academy’s faculty and alumni have been influential in:
Tuition + fees
$20K
Acceptance
57%
Graduation
83%
Student body
7K
Median SAT/ACT
1355/30
Colorado School of Mines’s faculty and alumni have been influential in:
Tuition + fees
$9K
Acceptance
72%
Graduation
48%
Student body
16K
Median SAT/ACT
1105/24
University of Colorado Denver’s faculty and alumni have been influential in:
Tuition + fees
$11K
Acceptance
91%
Graduation
52%
Student body
9K
Median SAT/ACT
1090/22
University of Northern Colorado’s faculty and alumni have been influential in:
Tuition + fees
$10K
Acceptance
89%
Graduation
30%
Student body
15K
Median SAT/ACT
980/17
Metropolitan State University of Denver’s faculty and alumni have been influential in:
Tuition + fees
$11K
Acceptance
95%
Graduation
44%
Student body
10K
University of Colorado Colorado Springs’s faculty and alumni have been influential in:
Tuition + fees
$9K
Acceptance
80%
Graduation
38%
Student body
7K
Colorado Mesa University’s faculty and alumni have been influential in:
Tuition + fees
$9K
Acceptance
93%
Graduation
44%
Student body
3K
Median SAT/ACT
1060/19
Fort Lewis College’s faculty and alumni have been influential in:
Tuition + fees
$5K
Graduation
18%
Student body
4K
Community College of Denver’s faculty and alumni have been influential in:
Tuition + fees
$11K
Acceptance
91%
Graduation
48%
Student body
2K
Median SAT/ACT
1095/23
Western Colorado University’s faculty and alumni have been influential in:
Tuition + fees
$10K
Acceptance
100%
Graduation
29%
Student body
3K
Median SAT/ACT
990/19
Adams State University’s faculty and alumni have been influential in:
Tuition + fees
$5K
Graduation
27%
Student body
3K
Colorado Mountain College’s faculty and alumni have been influential in:
Tuition + fees
$9K
Acceptance
99%
Graduation
39%
Student body
5K
Median SAT/ACT
1010/20
Colorado State University Pueblo’s faculty and alumni have been influential in:
Tuition + fees
$4K
Graduation
22%
Student body
4K
Red Rocks Community College’s faculty and alumni have been influential in:
Tuition + fees
$5K
Graduation
19%
Student body
4K
Pueblo Community College’s faculty and alumni have been influential in:
Many of our 2022 undergraduate focused rankings look considerably different than 2021. That’s because we took a fundamentally different apporach. For 2021 we utilized our Concentrated Influence algorithm, designed to take away the size advantage larger schools have when we rank their faculty and alumni’s academic influence. Concentrated influence highlights smaller schools that are proportionally as successful as larger universities at cultivating influential alumni and faculty.
Check out our directory of public colleges throughout the U.S. for a look at the top public colleges in every state.