College · Public · Grand Junction, CO · City
Colorado Mesa University
Grand Junction, CO
Admit rate82%
6-yr median pay$39k
Net price / yr$15k
Undergrad size8,143
§ I · The real read
What it's actually like.
The bet
Net price of $15k/yr for a shot at a $39k first-5-year salary. Math out whether that works for you — it does for some people, not for others.
Getting in
Admit rate of 82% means this is workable if your grades and essays are solid. Admitted students average SAT 1055 · ACT 23.
If you get in
8,143 undergrads. Medium. Clubs matter for finding your people.
Where you live
City campus — public transit, off-campus food, weekends happen nearby.
§ II · Cost & aid
Sticker vs. real.
Sticker cost of attendance is $24k/yr. After need-based aid, the average student pays $15k/yr. Merit aid varies. Run your EFC calculator before you rule anything out.
Sticker · 4 yrs$96k
Before any aid.
Net · 4 yrs$60k
What the average student pays.
Typical aid$36k
Difference over 4 years — higher for lower-income households.
Payback1.5x
4-yr net price ÷ first-5-year salary. Lower is better.
Where the money goes · annual sticker.
- Tuition · in-state
- $9.9k
- Tuition · out-of-state
- $25.1k
- Room & board
- $12.2k
- Books & supplies
- $1,800
How students pay for it.
Pell grants28%
Share of undergrads on federal Pell grants.
Federal loans31%
Share taking out federal student loans.
Median debt · grads$22k
What the median student owes at graduation. Non-completers: $8k.
3-yr default0%
Low — grads tend to pay on time.
§ III · Outcomes
Do people finish? Do they land?
1-yr retention77%
Watch this number.
Graduation · 6 yr41%
A meaningful chunk do not finish — ask why.
6-yr median pay$39k
Cross-major. Your major's number can be very different.
10-yr median pay$46k
Ten years out — where grads tend to land career-wise.
Transfer out27%
Share of full-time students who transfer to another school.
§ IV · Campus & identity
Setting, size, and who this school is.
- Setting
- City
- Control
- Public
- Undergrad size
- 8,143
- Location
- Grand Junction, CO
- Region
- Rocky Mountains (CO, ID, MT, UT, WY)
- Carnegie class
- Baccalaureate Colleges: Diverse Fields
- Size & setting
- Four-year · medium · primarily residential
- Undergrad program
- Four-year · full-time, selective, lower transfer-in
- Accreditor
- Higher Learning Commission
- Also known as
- Colorado Mesa
§ · Who studies here
The student body at a glance.
- White63%
- Hispanic21%
- Unknown7%
- Two or more races4%
- International2%
- Asian1%
- Black1%
- American Indian / Alaska Native1%
First-gen students39%
Share whose parents didn't complete college.
Part-time15%
Mixed full-time and part-time.
Veterans1%
Share using veteran education benefits.
Median family income$45k
Of enrolled students' households — useful for aid context.
§ V · Majors offered here · 38
What you can study.