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Rankings & Achievements

CU and the Nobel Prize

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conferred the greatest benefit to human kind"

CU Boulder boasts five Nobel laureates, four in physics and one in chemistry. Perhaps the world's premier honor for intellectuals, and certainly the best known, it celebrates individuals who have "conferred the greatest benefit to human kind" through their work. 

 

Chemistry, 1989

“Discovery of catalytic properties of RNA."
Thomas Cech

Physics, 2001

“The achievement of Bose-Einstein condensation in dilute gases of alkali atoms, and for early fundamental studies of the properties of the condensates.”
Carl Wieman and Eric Cornell

Physics, 2005

“Contributions to the development of laser-based precision spectroscopy, including the optical frequency comb technique.”
John “Jan” Hall

Physics, 2012

“Ground-breaking experimental methods that enable measuring and manipulation of individual quantum systems.”
David Wineland

Lead.

We shape tomorrow’s leaders by recognizing and engaging graduates who consistently demonstrate CU Boulder values and apply intellectual curiosity, rigor and collaboration to creatively address complex issues and opportunities.

 

3

U.S. Supreme Court justices

5

Nobel Prize winners

5

National Medal of Science winners

9

MacArthur ‘genius grant’ fellows

18

CU Boulder-affiliated astronauts

51

Fulbright fellows since 2006

Our First Woman Rhodes Scholar

Serene Singh, Political Science & Journalism BA, 2019

Serene Singh

CU Boulder student Serene Singh is one of 20 CU Boulder students who have received the Rhodes Scholarship.
She will study at Oxford University in England starting in fall 2019.
 

Top Graduate School Rankings

from U.S. News & World Report, 2020

Physics student works in lab.

#2

in the nation 
in Atomic/ Molecular/ Optical Physics

Student in wheel throwing class

#5

in the nation 
in Ceramics

Quantum Physics graphic

#6

in the nation 
in Quantum Physics

Boulder Flatirons at sunset

#8

in the nation 
in Environmental Law

Student looking at model of a rock

#9

in the nation
in Geology

Stars and galaxy in the night sky

#10

in the nation 
in Aerospace Engineering Sciences

Innovate.

We serve as a nexus for innovation by facilitating collaboration and the sharing of diverse perspectives among universities, industry, laboratories and communities to elucidate and address complex issues and opportunities.
 

First

university to achieve a STARS Gold rating for sustainability

#20

top global universities granted U.S. patents

276

license and option agreements granted to businesses in the past 6 years from CU Boulder discoveries

$3.8 billion

in capital raised by 136 startups

Top 50

university for National Science Foundation research funding

Expanding Statewide Access to a University Education

Colorado flag icon

Students Earn a CU Boulder Degree at Home in Gunnison, Grand Junction

Providing access to education is a priority at CU Boulder.
We’ve partnered with Colorado Mesa University and Western Colorado University to allow students to earn a CU Boulder engineering degree.
 

Folsom Field

First

Division 1 zero-waste stadium and athletic program

SEEC building

First

U.S. Green Building Council-certified Leed Platinum research lab in the U.S. (SEEC)

Professor in the lab

10

student lab spaces in our one-of-a-kind ATLAS design and technology program

Students and their musical technology, Specdrums

136

new startups formed out of university technologies

An artist's concept of Cassini during the Saturn orbit insertion. (NASA)

#1

university for NASA awards

Impact.

We broaden research, scholarship and creative work, and articulate our positive impact on humanity. We collaborate to produce graduates who apply their CU Boulder experience to make meaningful contributions to society.
 

500,000+

Coloradans in 52 counties benefit from 230+ public service programs provided by faculty, staff and students

260,000+

K-12 students and teachers in 128 school districts participate in community outreach programs

5th

all time for graduates serving as Peace Corps volunteers

6,000+

CU Boulder students serve each year through Volunteer Resource Center Programs

92,000+

Colorado students in grades 3–12 have seen our Shakespeare and Violence Prevention performance since 2011

Returning Top-notch Teachers to Their Hometown Communities

Brittni Laura Hernandez, Secondary Education and Teaching, Curriculum and Instruction MA, 2018

Brittni Laura Hernandez

Through the “grow your own” program, the School of Education is helping rural school districts attract and retain amazing teachers, like CU Boulder alumna Brittni Laura Hernandez, who is teaching in her hometown of Greeley.
 

$3.85 billion

annual economic impact on the state economy

$2.5 billion+

annual contribution to the Boulder County economy

20,000

Coloradans impacted by Contemporary Dance Works Residency Tour since 1991

50%

of Colorado fourth-graders use fossil and archaeology science kits from the CU Museum of Natural History

Top 10

university for sustainability

(The Princeton Review, 2017)

The CU Boulder Difference

There is great value in higher education, including increased career potential and quality of life. At CU Boulder, we work to make high-quality education worthwhile, relevant and accessible.

Value of a CU Boulder Education

87%

of graduates are employed, in grad school or the military within six months of graduation

$111,000

median midcareer salary for students with a CU Boulder bachelor's degree

(Payscale, 2018)

Local and Global

organizations employing grads: Amazon, Apple, Ball Aerospace, Boeing, Charles Schwab, Disney, Google, IBM, Lockheed Martin, NASA, NBC, Shell, Teach for America, Twitter, U.S. Army, U.S. Navy, Vail Resorts, Yelp

Providing Access to Students in Colorado

Be Boulder pact saves students $8.4 million a year in fees.

CU Boulder student at event

Automatic Merit Scholarships attract Colorado’s highest-achieving high schoolers with weighted GPAs of 3.8 to 4.0+.

New CU Boulder students

CU Promise pays low-income students’ share of tuition and fees.

CU Boulder students at commencement

CU Boulder tuition and fee guarantee offers a predictable, four-year guarantee, providing complete transparency.

Attracting Top Students

2021 Entering Class (6,785)

Most diverse (28%)

Most qualified (3.68 GPA)

students in CU Boulder history

35,897 Fall 2021 Enrollment

17:1 student-to-faculty ratio

1,000+ veterans and dependents using VA education benefits, a record

2,339 international students from 105 countries

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