Education

Coloradans are among the nation’s most highly educated populations, ranking 2nd in the number of citizens with a bachelor’s degree. A 2015 study by WalletHub ranked Colorado has having the 2nd best school system in the U.S.

Colorado’s 178 school districts had an enrollment of nearly 877,000 students in the 2013-2014 school year. Colorado has the highest percentage of high school graduates achieving ACT and SAT scores in the top 20th percentile for each test. States that score high on this measure produce more high school graduates who are prepared for college.

In the Colorado higher education system, there are over 470 institutions educating approximately 400,000 students. These include publicly supported, private accredited, area technical, and private occupational institutions.

View a complete list of all Colorado colleges and universities.

Colorado Educational Statistics

• Colorado ranks 6th highest in the amount of 4th graders proficient or better in reading. Colorado not only has a high percentage of proficient fourth grade readers, it exceeds every other western state in the percentage of fourth graders who read at advanced levels. The National Center for Education Studies, 2012
• The Aerospace/Aeronautical/Astronautical Engineering program at the University of Colorado Boulder is ranked the 9th best in the nation. EMSI Analyst, 2014
• The Atomic/Molecular/Optical Physics Program at the University of Colorado Boulder is ranked as the best in the nation. US News & World Report, Best Colleges and Universities 2014
• During 2012, more than 8,200 Business Administration and Management degrees were awarded. EMSI Analyst, 2014
• During 2012, nearly 18,200 degrees in health professions were awarded. EMSI Analyst, 2014
• More than 2,500 degrees in the field of computer and information sciences were awarded to Colorado students during 2012. EMSI Analyst, 2014
• In 2012, Colorado awarded 12.5% of degrees in STEM fields. EMSI Analyst, 2014
• University of Colorado at Colorado Springs is the first school to offer a bachelor’s degree with a core on innovation.

Research and Development Laboratories in Colorado

Colorado is a global leader in research, technology innovation and commercialization, and is home to some of the most advanced research laboratories in the world. There are 24 federal research and development laboratories in Colorado.

• Bureau of Reclamation, U.S. Department of the Interior
• Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
• Cooperative Institute for Research in the Atmosphere
• Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Sciences
• JILA
• Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics
• National Ecological Observatory Network
• National Institute of Standards and Technology
• National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration – Earth System Research Laboratory, National Geophysical Data Center, National Weather Service, National Enviroinmental Satellite, Data, and Information Services, Space Weather Prediction Center
• National Renewable Energy Laboratory
• National Telecommunications and Information Administration
• University Corporation for Atmospheric Research – National Center for Atmospheric Research
• U.S. Department of Agriculture – Agricultural Research Service – Natural Resources Research Center, National Center for Genetic Resources Preservation, Crops Research Laboratory, Central Great Plains Research Station
• U.S. Department of Agriculture – Rocky Mountain Research StatioT/FRA – Transportation Technology Center
• U.S. Air Force Academy
• U.S. Geological Survey
• CO-LABS, a consortium of federally funded scientific laboratories,
• U.S. Department of Agriculture – National Wildlife Research Center
• DOT/FRA – Transportation Technology Center
• U.S. Air Force Academy
• U.S. Geological Survey
• CO-LABS, a consortium of federally funded scientific laboratories, universities, businesses, local governments and community leaders, was organized to establish Colorado as a global leader in research, technology innovation, and commercialization.