College · Public · Fort Collins, CO · City
Colorado State University-Fort Collins
Fort Collins, CO
Admit rate89%
6-yr median pay$50k
Net price / yr$21k
Undergrad size25,538
§ I · The real read
What it's actually like.
The bet
Net price of $21k/yr for a shot at a $50k first-5-year salary. Math out whether that works for you — it does for some people, not for others.
Getting in
Admit rate of 89% means this is workable if your grades and essays are solid. Admitted students average ACT 26.
If you get in
25,538 undergrads. Big. You will have to make it feel small yourself.
Where you live
City campus — public transit, off-campus food, weekends happen nearby.
§ II · Cost & aid
Sticker vs. real.
Sticker cost of attendance is $32k/yr. After need-based aid, the average student pays $21k/yr. Merit aid varies. Run your EFC calculator before you rule anything out.
Sticker · 4 yrs$127k
Before any aid.
Net · 4 yrs$85k
What the average student pays.
Typical aid$41k
Difference over 4 years — higher for lower-income households.
Payback1.7x
4-yr net price ÷ first-5-year salary. Lower is better.
Where the money goes · annual sticker.
- Tuition · in-state
- $13.4k
- Tuition · out-of-state
- $34.8k
- Room & board
- $16.8k
- Books & supplies
- $1,200
How students pay for it.
Pell grants21%
Share of undergrads on federal Pell grants.
Federal loans32%
Share taking out federal student loans.
Median debt · grads$20k
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?
Graduation · 6 yr67%
Majority finish.
6-yr median pay$50k
Cross-major. Your major's number can be very different.
10-yr median pay$61k
Ten years out — where grads tend to land career-wise.
Transfer out16%
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
- 25,538
- Location
- Fort Collins, CO
- Region
- Rocky Mountains (CO, ID, MT, UT, WY)
- Carnegie class
- Doctoral Universities: Very High Research Activity (R1)
- Size & setting
- Four-year · large · primarily residential
- Undergrad program
- Four-year · full-time, selective, lower transfer-in
- Accreditor
- Higher Learning Commission
§ · Who studies here
The student body at a glance.
- White70%
- Hispanic16%
- Two or more races5%
- Asian3%
- Black3%
- International2%
- Unknown1%
- American Indian / Alaska Native1%
First-gen students24%
Share whose parents didn't complete college.
Part-time10%
Mixed full-time and part-time.
Veterans1%
Share using veteran education benefits.
Median family income$63k
Of enrolled students' households — useful for aid context.
§ V · Majors offered here · 71
What you can study.