University of Colorado Boulder Data & Information Overview
Find out more about how University of Colorado Boulder ranks, how diverse it is, what majors it offers, and other essential facts below. Want to know more about a specific stat? Just click on its tile, and you’ll go to a page that goes more in-depth on that subject. You can also use the links below to go directly to any section on this page.- Rankings
- Admission and Acceptance
- Faculty
- Retention and Graduation Rates
- Diversity
- Cost
- Student Debt
- Average Earnings
- Location
- Majors
- Online Learning
- Related Schools
How Well Is University of Colorado Boulder Ranked?
2023 Rankings
College Factual recognizes the best colleges and universities in its annual rankings. These rankings include categories for best overall colleges, best colleges for each major, best value schools, and much more.
University of Colorado Boulder was awarded 690 badges in the 2023 rankings. The highest ranked major at the school is telecommunications engineering.
Overall Quality
According to College Factual's 2023 analysis, CU - Boulder is ranked #108 out of 2,241 schools in the nation that were analyzed for overall quality. This lands it a coveted spot in the top 5% of all colleges and universities in the country. This is an improvement over the previous year, when CU - Boulder held the #242 spot on the Best Overall Colleges list.
Out of the 34 colleges in Colorado, CU - Boulder is ranked at #2.
See all of the rankings for University of Colorado Boulder.
Is It Hard to Get Into CU - Boulder?
Acceptance Rate
University of Colorado Boulder has an acceptance rate of 84%, which makes it somewhat selective. Make sure it's not the only school you apply to, even if it's your school of choice. Whether you get in or not will largely depend on how you compare to other applicants.
Average Test Scores
About 73% of students accepted to CU - Boulder submitted their SAT scores. When looking at the 25th through the 75th percentile, SAT Evidence-Based Reading and Writing scores ranged between 570 and 670. Math scores were between 560 and 680.
Learn more about University of Colorado Boulder admissions.
University of Colorado Boulder Faculty
Student to Faculty Ratio
The student to faculty ratio at University of Colorado Boulder is about average at 18 to 1. This ratio is often used to gauge how many students might be in an average class and how much time professors will have to spend with their students on an individual level. The national average for this metric is 15 to 1.
Percent of Full-Time Faculty
In addition to the student to faculty ratio, some people look at what percentage of faculty members are full-time as a sign of how much time professors will be able to spend with their students. This is because part-time teachers may not be be on campus as much as their full-time counterparts.
The full-time faculty percentage at University of Colorado Boulder is 74%. This is higher than the national average of 47%.
Retention and Graduation Rates at University of Colorado Boulder
Freshmen Retention Rate
University of Colorado Boulder has a freshmen retention rate of 85%. That's a good sign that full-time students like the school and their professors enough to want to stick around for another year. It's also a sign that the admissions team did a good job in choosing applicants who were a good fit for the school.
Graduation Rate
Students are considered to have graduated on time if they finish their studies within four years. At CU - Boulder the on-time graduation rate of first-time, full-time students is 47%. That is great when compared to the national average of 33.3%
Find out more about the retention and graduation rates at University of Colorado Boulder.
University of Colorado Boulder Undergraduate Student Diversity
During the 2017-2018 academic year, there were 30,307 undergraduates at CU - Boulder with 27,703 being full-time and 2,604 being part-time.
How Much Does University of Colorado Boulder Cost?
The overall average net price of CU - Boulder is $20,967. The affordability of the school largely depends on your financial need since net price varies by income group. See the table below for the net price for different income groups.Net Price by Income Group for CU - Boulder
| $0-30 K | $30K-48K | $48-75 | $75-110K | $110K + |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| $13,141 | $13,901 | $18,204 | $25,326 | $28,622 |
The net price is calculated by adding tuition, room, board and other costs and subtracting financial aid.Note that the net price is typically less than the published for a school. For more information on the sticker price of CU - Boulder, see our tuition and fees and room and board pages.
Student Loan Debt
Almost 66% of college students who graduated with the class of 2018 took out student loans, but that percentage varies from school to school. At CU - Boulder, approximately 31% of students took out student loans averaging $9,744 a year. That adds up to $38,976 over four years for those students.
The student loan default rate at CU - Boulder is 2.4%. This is significantly lower than the national default rate of 10.1%, which is a good sign that you'll be able to pay back your student loans.
Get more details about paying for University of Colorado Boulder.
How Much Money Do CU - Boulder Graduates Make?
The pay for some majors is higher than others, but on average, students who graduate with a bachelor's degree from CU - Boulder make about $60,740 a year during their first few years of employment after graduation. This is good news for future CU - Boulder graduates since it is 43% more than the average college graduate's salary of $42,485 per year.
See which majors at University of Colorado Boulder make the most money.
Location of University of Colorado Boulder
Located in Boulder, Colorado, University of Colorado Boulder is a public institution. The location of the school is great for students who enjoy the amenities of city life.Get more details about the location of University of Colorado Boulder.
Contact details for CU - Boulder are given below.
| Contact Details | |
|---|---|
| Address: | Regent Drive At Broadway, Boulder, CO 80309-0017 |
| Phone: | 303-492-1411 |
| Website: | www.colorado.edu/ |
| Facebook: | http://www.facebook.com/cuboulder |
| Twitter: | http://www.twitter.com/cuboulder |
University of Colorado Boulder Majors
During the most recent year for which we have data, students from 85 majors graduated from University of Colorado Boulder. Of these students, 7,404 received undergraduate degrees and 2,322 graduated with a master's or doctor's degree. The following table lists the most popular undergraduate majors along with the average salary graduates from those majors make.| Most Popular Majors | Bachelor’s Degrees | Average Salary of Graduates |
|---|---|---|
| Business Administration & Management | 1,105 | $49,673 |
| General Psychology | 512 | $34,383 |
| Computer Science | 475 | $69,804 |
| Public Relations & Advertising | 385 | $42,963 |
| Physiology & Pathology Sciences | 356 | $30,428 |
| Economics | 322 | $44,089 |
| Mechanical Engineering | 240 | $62,457 |
| Political Science & Government | 239 | $34,035 |
| Ecology, Evolution & Systematics Biology | 227 | $30,230 |
| Sociology | 195 | $34,274 |
Online Learning at CU - Boulder
Online learning options are becoming more and more popular at American colleges and universities. Online classes are great for students who have busy schedules or for those who just want to study on their own time.
In 2019-2020, 34,248 students took at least one online class at University of Colorado Boulder. This is an increase from the 4,200 students who took online classes the previous year.
| Year | Took at Least One Online Class | Took All Classes Online |
|---|---|---|
| 2019-2020 | 34,248 | 11,072 |
| 2018-2019 | 4,200 | 1,319 |
| 2017-2018 | 3,287 | 1,053 |
| 2016-2017 | 2,672 | 696 |
| 2015-2016 | 2,915 | 633 |
Learn more about online learning at University of Colorado Boulder.
Find Out More About University of Colorado Boulder
Related Schools
If you’re considering University of Colorado Boulder, here are some more schools you may be interested in knowing more about.
- The University of Tennessee - Knoxville
- University at Buffalo
- University of California - San Diego
- University of Connecticut
- University of Oklahoma Norman Campus
Curious on how these schools stack up against CU - Boulder? Pit them head to head with College Combat, our free interactive tool that lets you compare college on the features that matter most to you!
Notes and References
Footnotes
*The racial-ethnic minorities count is calculated by taking the total number of students and subtracting white students, international students, and students whose race/ethnicity was unknown. This number is then divided by the total number of students at the school to obtain the racial-ethnic minorities percentage.
References
- National Center for Education Statistics
- College Scorecard
- Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System
- Image Credit: By University of Colorado at Boulder under License
More about our data sources and methodologies.
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