Colorado State University acceptance rate and your odds of getting in
Colorado State University is a public university in Colorado that admits most qualified applicants (around 89%), which puts it in the accessible range. A rate like this means it admits most qualified applicants; the bar is less about clearing a single cutoff and more about how your full profile compares to admitted students.
Use this page to see what Colorado State University weighs, where it ranks among Colorado schools, and how a profile like yours is likely to land. Admitted students post a 75th-percentile SAT around 1270, a useful checkpoint for where your scores sit, though it is a reference range and not a cutoff.
Colorado State University application deadlines, 2026-27 · Colorado State University supplemental essays, 2026-27
What do students study at Colorado State University?
Bachelor's degrees awarded by field in 2023 (IPEDS completions). Each field has its own page with the school's numbers, the model's major adjustment, and peers offering it.
Will I get into Colorado State University?
Direct answers to what applicants ask about getting into Colorado State University, plus a free way to calculate your own odds.
What are my chances of getting into Colorado State University?
At Colorado State University, your real chance depends on far more than the published 89% admit rate. Your real odds depend on how your GPA, course rigor, test scores, and activities compare to its admitted students. Run your profile through the free CollegeCalcAI calculator to get a personalized acceptance percentage for Colorado State University in about three minutes, with no account needed to start.
Is Colorado State University hard to get into?
Colorado State University is accessible: it admits most qualified applicants, with about a 89% acceptance rate. Meeting the academic basics gives most qualified applicants a realistic shot.
What GPA do you need to get into Colorado State University?
There is no hard GPA cutoff at Colorado State University, but admitted students span a wide GPA range, with many in the 2.8 to 3.5 band. Colorado State University reads your GPA alongside the rigor of your courses, so a challenging schedule matters as much as the number itself.
What SAT score do you need for Colorado State University?
Colorado State University does not publish a required score, but the admitted-student 75th-percentile SAT is around 1270. A score at or above that range strengthens your application, while a lower score puts more weight on your rigor, activities, and essays. CollegeCalcAI shows how your exact score shifts your odds at Colorado State University.
Your chances at Colorado State University by GPA and SAT
Estimated chance of admission at Colorado State University for plain profiles, from the same model as the calculator. Unweighted GPA, 3 AP courses, Regular Decision, no legacy, athletic or first-generation hook. The last column is test-optional (no score sent).
What are my chances at Colorado State University with a 3.1 GPA and a 1210 SAT?
About 98% (Safety), by CollegeCalcAI's deterministic model, for an applicant with a 3.1 unweighted GPA and a 1210 SAT, the middle of Colorado State University's admitted range, applying Regular Decision without a hook. A 3.4 GPA with a 1270 SAT comes out near 98%. Courses, activities, essays and the application round move the number; the free calculator includes them.
Estimates, not guarantees. Get yours with your real courses and activities. Assistants and developers can fetch this table from the free API: /api/v1/colleges/colorado-state-university.
How to get into Colorado State University
Built from Colorado State University's admitted class and what it reports weighing. The typical-admit GPA and SAT are CollegeCalcAI's modeled figures, not published cutoffs.
Getting into Colorado State University comes down to four decisions, each one visible in the data on this page.
CollegeCalcAI's modeled typical admit at Colorado State University carries about a 3.02 core GPA and a 1220 SAT, in the most rigorous schedule available. Meeting it puts you in the admitted range for most applicants.
Colorado State University rates rigor of secondary school record, academic GPA, and standardized test scores highest in its own Common Data Set. Put your depth there: and a transcript whose rigor rises through junior year.
Most public universities read early applicants first without a binding commitment. Apply by Colorado State University's early or priority deadline (confirm dates at colostate.edu), and if you are out of state, know that residency changes both the bar and the price.
How many students apply to Colorado State University, and how many get in?
36,612 students applied to Colorado State University for fall 2023; 32,801 were admitted (89.6%). 5,293 enrolled. Only about 16% of admitted students enrolled, so the school admits several students for every seat it expects to fill, which is why its acceptance rate reads higher than its selectivity feels. Colorado State University enrolls about 25,538 undergraduates in total, 55% of them women, with a student-to-faculty ratio of 17 to 1.
Source: U.S. Department of Education, IPEDS 2023 admissions and enrollment.
What SAT and ACT scores do you need for Colorado State University?
Colorado State University reports that it neither requires nor recommends test scores, so admission turns on your transcript, rigor, and the rest of the file.
Source: College Scorecard (U.S. Department of Education), release 2026-06-10.
What Colorado State University looks for
What Colorado State University weighs most heavily in its admissions review, informed by its reported Common Data Set.
Colorado State University signals that it values rigor of secondary school record, academic GPA, and standardized test scores above the rest of the file. Solid grades in a challenging schedule do most of the work here, with the rest of the application providing context. These ratings come from Colorado State University's reported Common Data Set, so the full chart below reflects what the school itself says it values, not a generic guess.
SAT score positioning at Colorado State University
How common SAT scores sit relative to the admitted middle. This is context, not a probability. Your full profile determines the real estimate.
How much does Colorado State University cost after financial aid?
The full sticker price at Colorado State University (tuition, fees, housing, food, books) is about $31,642 a year. Tuition and fees are $13,373 for CO residents and $34,783 for out-of-state students, a $21,410 gap that makes residency the single biggest lever on cost. What families actually pay is different: the average net price after grants and scholarships is $21,279 a year, and it ranges from $13,259 for families earning under $30,000 to $29,763 for families earning over $110,000. 21% of undergraduates receive a federal Pell Grant.
Source: College Scorecard (U.S. Department of Education), release 2026-06-10. Net price is what students receiving aid paid after grants, by family income.
What do Colorado State University graduates earn, and how many graduate?
Median earnings for Colorado State University students ten years after entry are $60,543 ($49,748 at the six-year mark). 67% of first-time, full-time students graduate within six years, and 86% return for a second year. Among graduates who borrowed, median federal debt at graduation is $20,000; 32% of undergraduates take federal loans.
Source: College Scorecard (U.S. Department of Education), release 2026-06-10. Earnings cover students who received federal aid.
How Colorado State University compares in Colorado
Colorado State University ranks #11 most selective of 16 schools in Colorado in our database.
Among the 16 Colorado schools we track, Colorado State University ranks #11 most selective by acceptance rate. Schools like U.S. Air Force Academy (14%) and Colorado College (18%) sit nearby, which makes Colorado a useful frame for calibrating a balanced list. As a public university, residency matters: in-state applicants generally see meaningfully better odds than the headline rate suggests.
Similar to Colorado State University
Schools with a similar selectivity profile, worth comparing as you build a balanced list.
If Colorado State University is on your list, schools with a similar admit profile are worth a look: East Carolina University, Iowa State University, and New Mexico State University. Running the same profile against each one in the free calculator is the fastest way to see where you are a reach, a match, or a likely.
Frequently asked questions
What is Colorado State University's acceptance rate?
Colorado State University admitted 32,801 of 36,612 applicants for the fall 2023 entering class, an acceptance rate of 89.6% (U.S. Department of Education, IPEDS). 16% of admitted students enrolled.
Is Colorado State University test-optional?
Colorado State University reports that it neither requires nor recommends test scores.
How much does Colorado State University cost after financial aid?
The average net price at Colorado State University, what students receiving aid paid after grants and scholarships, is $21,279 a year against a sticker price of about $31,642. Families earning under $30,000 paid about $13,259 on average.
What do Colorado State University graduates earn?
Median earnings ten years after entering Colorado State University are $60,543 a year among students who received federal aid, and 67% of students graduate within six years (College Scorecard).
What does Colorado State University value most in applicants?
Based on its admissions profile, Colorado State University weighs rigor of secondary school record, academic GPA, and standardized test scores most heavily. The full factor breakdown is on this page.
Does Colorado State University favor in-state applicants?
As a public university, Colorado State University generally admits in-state applicants at a higher rate than out-of-state applicants, so your home state affects your odds. CollegeCalcAI applies an in-state residency boost when you select your state.
How can I improve my chances at Colorado State University?
Focus on the highest-leverage parts of your application: course rigor and GPA trajectory first, then test scores, then a focused leadership or activity spike. CollegeCalcAI's Power-Ups quantify how much each change would move your odds at Colorado State University specifically.
How does residency affect admission to Colorado State University?
As a public university, Colorado State University typically admits in-state students at a higher rate, and tuition differs sharply by residency. Select your home state in the calculator to fold the in-state effect into your estimate.
Acceptance rate, application counts, admitted test ranges, cost, and outcomes reflect publicly reported federal data (U.S. Department of Education: IPEDS 2023 and the College Scorecard) and each school's Common Data Set; figures are rounded and lag the current cycle by one to two years, so confirm deadlines and policies on the school's own site. The typical-admit GPA and SAT are CollegeCalcAI's modeled estimates. Estimates from CollegeCalcAI are a planning tool computed by a fixed, transparent model, not a guarantee of any admission decision.