Photo: Quintin Soloviev · CC BY 4.0Denver is home to seven colleges, with about 35,000 students on campus
Metropolitan State University of Denver (13,478 students on campus) and the University of Denver (10,402) are inside the city, and the University of Colorado Denver/Anschutz Medical Campus (18,774) is 2.6 miles from the center, just over the line in Aurora. About 6% of Denver’s residents are enrolled in college, about the same as Colorado (6%).
From the U.S. Department of Education (College Scorecard, June 2026; IPEDS fall 2023 enrollment) and the Census Bureau’s American Community Survey, 2020–24. Straight-line distances from the center of Denver. Colleges are described, not graded.
What stands out about college in Denver
Facts about the town and its distance to campus; each college’s own figures follow.
Colleges within 15 miles of Denver
16 private colleges within 14.1 miles, two public colleges within 6.7 miles, and five community colleges.
Degree-granting colleges with 100 or more students on campus (fall 2023 enrollment, minus students who study only online). Admitted: share of applicants offered a place. Net price: the average a year after grants, for students on federal aid. Graduate: within 6 years (4-year colleges) or 3 (2-year). Earnings: median, 10 years after starting.
What would your family pay?
The average a year after grants, for families on federal aid, at the colleges within 15 miles. Pick your family’s income.
Starts at $75–110k, where Denver’s median household income ($94,718) falls.
The average a year after grants and scholarships, for first-time, full-time students on federal aid, from the College Scorecard. Your own price depends on your aid package; every college has a net price calculator. For community colleges the net price counts housing and food at full cost, so tuition is shown beside it. “—”: not reported for that income.
Do students finish, and does it pay?
Each dot is a college within 15 miles of Denver: across is the share who graduate, up is what they earn ten years after starting.
Graduation: first-time, full-time students within 6 years (4-year colleges) or 3 years (2-year). Earnings: median, 10 years after starting, for students who got federal aid. *Reported for all the campuses that file together: Lincoln College of Technology-Denver (8); Concorde Career College-Aurora (2); Pima Medical Institute-Denver (13).
What students study in Denver
Share of bachelor’s and associate degrees by field across Denver’s 6 colleges, weighted by undergraduates; then the biggest programs.
Biggest programs
College Scorecard: degree shares (PCIP; each college’s six largest fields are kept, the rest count as everything else) and the field-of-study file, median earnings 4 years after graduating.
Questions about college in Denver
Is Denver a college town?
No. About 6 of every 100 Denver residents are enrolled in college (Census, 2020–24), about the same as Colorado (6). The largest campus in the city, Metropolitan State University of Denver, has 13,478 students on campus.
What colleges are in Denver?
Metropolitan State University of Denver, the University of Denver, Community College of Denver, Regis University and 3 more are inside the city. the University of Colorado Denver/Anschutz Medical Campus is 2.6 miles from the center, in Aurora, and Community College of Aurora is 5.2 miles away in Aurora.
What is the closest community college to Denver, and what does it cost?
Community College of Aurora in Aurora, 5.2 miles away. Tuition and fees are $4,470 a year for Colorado residents; the federal net price, $8,656, counts housing and food at full cost.
How much does the University of Colorado Denver/Anschutz Medical Campus cost if we live in Colorado?
Tuition and fees are $10,383 a year in-state and $29,391 from out of state. After grants, families on federal aid paid an average of $6,743 (under $30,000 income) to $22,475 (over $110,000), housing and food included.
Neighbors talk college
Students, parents, alumni and the neighbors next door.
Colleges: U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard and IPEDS (Scorecard 06/10/2026 · IPEDS 2024 · fall 2023 enrollment). “On campus” is fall enrollment minus students who study only online. Distances are straight-line from the center of Denver. Residents in college, age, rent and poverty (including poverty without college students, table B14006): U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020–24. Colleges are described, not graded; the College town label marks towns where 15% or more of residents are enrolled. How TownRatings describes colleges →