Public · University

Metropolitan State University of Denver

Denver, Colorado · Large city

#4 best value in Colorado
98.8%
Admit rate
$15,327
Avg net price
32%
Graduation rate
$52,093
Median earnings

Metropolitan State University of Denver is a public bachelor's-granting institution in Denver, Colorado (large city setting), enrolling 15,002 undergraduates. It is a Hispanic-Serving Institution (HSI).

PublicLarge · 15,002 undergradsLarge cityAccessible · 99% admitNCAA Division II without footballCold wintersSnowy

Will you get in?

See where your numbers land against Metropolitan State University of Denver's admitted students.

Admit rate
98.8%
SAT (mid 50%)
880–1130
Avg GPA (est.)
2.92

Enter a test score to see where you land against Metropolitan State University of Denver's admitted students.

A guide, not a prediction. It compares your numbers with the middle 50% of admitted students and Metropolitan State University of Denver's overall admit rate — it can't see essays, recommendations, activities, or your intended major, which all move real decisions.

About Denver, Colorado

Denver is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. By the terms of the 1851 Treaty of Fort Laramie between the United States and various tribes including the Cheyenne and Arapaho, the United States unilaterally defined and recognized Cheyenne and Arapaho territory as ranging from the North Platte River in present-day Wyoming and Nebraska southward to the Arkansas River in present-day Colorado and Kansas. Apollo Hall opened soon after the city's founding in 1859 and staged many plays for eager settlers. In the 1880s Horace Tabor built Denver's first opera house. (Wikipedia)

Setting
Large city
Highest degree offered
Graduate
Nearest big city
1 mile to Denver, CO
To the ocean
745 miles
Nearest airport
13 miles to Rocky Mountain Metropolitan (BJC)

How Metropolitan State University of Denver compares

Selectivity98.8%

More selective than 6% · #14 most selective of 17 in Colorado

SAT average1019

Higher than 10%

Graduation rate32%

Higher than 13% · #18 of 19 in Colorado

First-year retention63%

Higher than 17%

Earnings, 10 years after entry$52,093

Higher than 45% · #13 of 22 in Colorado

Average net price$15,327

Cheaper than 71% · #4 cheapest of 20 in Colorado

Median debt at graduation$21,500

Lower than 63%

Student–faculty ratio14 : 1

Lower than 42%

Undergraduate enrollment15,002

Larger than 93%

Percentiles compare Metropolitan State University of Denver with the nation's 2,196 four-year colleges, among schools reporting each statistic. State ranks count four-year colleges in Colorado.

Student body

Undergraduate vs. graduate

16,181students
  • Undergraduate15,00293%
  • Graduate1,1797%

Undergraduates by gender

15,002undergrads
  • Women8,52657%
  • Men6,47643%

Undergraduates by race / ethnicity

  • White42%
  • Black8.6%
  • Hispanic37%
  • Asian4.5%
  • Other or multiracial8.5%

Graduate gender splits aren't published in this data, so the gender chart covers undergraduates only.

By the numbers

Undergraduate enrollment
15,002
Graduate enrollment
1,179
Student–faculty ratio
14 : 1
Pell Grant recipients
36%
First-generation students
40%
Students over 25
29%
Median family income
$32,101
Avg faculty salary (academic year)
$90,945
Endowment
$28,890,481

Colleges don't publish true class-size data; student–faculty ratio (IPEDS) is the closest public measure of it.

Where students come from

Home state of the 2,324 first-year students who entered in fall 2023.

  • From Colorado97%
  • Other U.S. states3.1%

Most first-years stay in state — Metropolitan State University of Denver draws overwhelmingly from Colorado.

Out-of-state students usually pay a higher tuition rate at public schools — check the cost card above for your bracket. Source: IPEDS residence & migration, fall 2023 entering class.

Admissions

Admission rate
98.8%
Test scores
Considered but not required
SAT range (25th–75th %)
880–1130
SAT average
1019
SAT reading
450–570
SAT math
430–560
ACT composite
17–26
Average GPA (estimated)
2.92

Cost

In-state tuition
$11,124
Out-of-state tuition
$30,684
Room & board
Books & supplies
$1,460
Total cost of attendance
$24,622
Average net price
$15,327

Net price is the total cost minus grants and scholarships — what students actually pay. It varies sharply by family income; see the breakdown below.

Outcomes

Graduated (within 6 years)
32%
Graduated on time (4 years)
12%
First-year retention
63%
Transferred to another college
29%
Median earnings, 6 years after entry
$45,391
Median earnings, 10 years after entry
$52,093
Median debt at graduation
$21,500
Students with federal loans
28%
Paying down their loans (1 year in)
41%

About 19% of students who finish here need more than four years — each extra year adds roughly another year of tuition and living costs.

Graduating on time

By student background (4 years)

All students
12%
Low-income (Pell)
31%
First-generation
30%

When these bars run close together, students from every background tend to finish at similar rates — a sign the school supports the ~30% who are first-gen or low-income.

Campus life & athletics

On-campus housing
No
Application fee
Free
Athletics
NCAA Division II without football
Varsity athletes
368 (196 men · 172 women)

Housing and fees: IPEDS 2023–24. Athletics rosters: Equity in Athletics data, 2024–25. Dorm capacity can include graduate and family housing, so the share of undergrads can top 100%.

Varsity sports (8)

Track and Field and Cross Country (combined)170
Soccer62
Baseball45
Basketball29
Softball21
Tennis18
Volleyball16
Golf7

Athlete counts per sport, Equity in Athletics data, 2024–25.

Campus safety

Safety grade
C
Reported offenses per 1,000 students
3.6 / year
Violent offenses (2022–2024)
42
Property offenses (2022–2024)
156

On-campus criminal offenses reported under the Clery Act, 2022–2024, across 1 campus (18,453 students). Counts reflect reports, not convictions — schools with strong reporting cultures often show more, so a higher count doesn't simply mean a more dangerous campus.

Reported offenses in an average year

The same 2022–2024 Clery Act reports, divided down to one year.

66reported offenses a year
14 violent a year52 property a year

By offense type, per year

Motor vehicle theft
37
Burglary
10
Rape
5.0
Aggravated assault
5.0
Arson
5.0
Fondling
3.0
Robbery
1.0

Averages, not a forecast — a single year can run well above or below this. Bars are scaled against this campus's most-reported offense, so they compare types here rather than against other schools.

What you'll actually pay, by family income

Average net price (total cost minus grants and scholarships) paid by aided students in each family-income band.

< $30k
$12,481
$30–48k
$12,436
$48–75k
$14,927
$75–110k
$19,539
$110k+
$23,822

College Scorecard / IPEDS, most recent year. Family income is total household income; net price covers tuition, fees, room, board and supplies after grant aid, for students receiving federal aid.

Four-year (or more) true cost

Net price for your family's income, projected across the time it actually takes students here to graduate.

Est. total to a degree
$73,381

$14,927/year × about 4.9 years — most students here don't finish in exactly four, and each extra term adds cost. A planning estimate from net-price and graduation-timing data, not a bill.

Does the school pay you to attend?

Grant aid from the school's own funds — the discount off sticker, on top of any federal or state help.

39%
of first-years get a grant from the school
$3,480
average award, among those who get one

Modest institutional aid: 39% of freshmen get a grant from the school, averaging $3,480. Most of what lowers the price here is federal or state money, not the school's own funds.

Blends need-based and merit aid — IPEDS doesn't split the two, so a high number can mean generous merit scholarships, deep need-based aid, or both. Figures cover 1,561 full-time first-year undergraduates, 2022–23. Source: IPEDS Student Financial Aid.

Is it worth it?

A rough return-on-investment read from what graduates earn versus what they borrow.

Median earnings (10 years)
$52,093
Typical debt at graduation
$21,500
Debt vs. one year's pay
41%
Out-earn a HS grad
62%

Typical debt would take roughly 4.1 years to repay at about a tenth of median earnings.

Solid value

A reasonable return: earnings comfortably clear the debt over a few years for most students who finish.

Earnings are the College Scorecard median for former students (working, not enrolled) 10 years after entry — not a guarantee, and they vary a lot by major. Debt is the median federal loan balance at graduation.

The pay gap here

Median earnings 10 years after entry, split by gender.

Women
$49,272
Men
$56,561

Men out-earn women by $7,289 (15%) a decade out.

Federal figures for former students working and not enrolled, 10 years after they first entered. A gap this wide usually reflects which majors men and women here tend to choose — not different pay for the same job.

Campus climate

Summer high
91°F
Winter low
21°F
Annual rain
15.8″
Annual snow
40.7″

Average temperature

HighLow
10°60°100°JFMAMJJASOND

Average precipitation (inches)

0.01.32.6JFMAMJJASOND

NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals, Denver Water Dept, CO US station (1 mi from campus).

Median earnings of this school's own graduates 1 and 5 years after finishing each program, and median federal-loan debt at completion (College Scorecard). Small programs are privacy-suppressed (—). Click a major to compare colleges nationally.

Colleges similar to Metropolitan State University of Denver

Schools with a comparable profile — size, selectivity, cost, and graduate outcomes. Compare Metropolitan State University of Denver side by side →

Colleges near Metropolitan State University of Denver

Source: US Department of Education College Scorecard (most recent cohorts), IPEDS institutional characteristics, Equity in Athletics (EADA) data, Clery Act Campus Safety and Security data, and NOAA US Climate Normals. Distances are straight-line from campus coordinates. Percentiles compare schools of the same level (four-year vs. two-year) that report each statistic.