By Glyn Caddell, BSME · Author of Digital SAT Math Secrets · Tutoring since 2008 — Updated October 1, 2026
Nine Colorado colleges with pre-med programs, what they cost, and the SAT scores of the students they admit.
Colorado has two medical schools, and one state university runs an agreement that gives five of its students a year provisional acceptance to one of them without taking the MCAT.
Scores are given by section rather than as a single total, because a student at 680 Reading & Writing and 590 Math is in a different position from a student at 590 and 680.
Table of Contents
- Colorado Pre-Med Colleges by SAT Score
- Colorado Has Two Medical Schools
- Five Colorado Students a Year Get Into Medical School Without the MCAT
- The Air Force Academy Costs Nothing and Almost No One Lists It
- What If Your Scores Are Below the Range You Want?
Colorado Pre-Med Colleges by SAT Score
| College | Reading & Writing | Math | Cost of attendance | Undergraduates | Admit rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Colorado School of Mines | 650 to 730 | 670 to 750 | $40,560 | 6,155 | 61% |
| Colorado College | 640 to 730 | 590 to 730 | $86,921 | 2,014 | 18% |
| University of Denver | 640 to 710 | 600 to 700 | $78,476 | 6,025 | 78% |
| University of Colorado Boulder | 630 to 710 | 610 to 720 | $37,684 | 31,939 | 78% |
| United States Air Force Academy | 620 to 710 | 610 to 730 | No tuition | 4,114 | 14% |
| Western Colorado University | 608 to 683 | 555 to 670 | $25,736 | 1,586 | 100% |
| University of Colorado Colorado Springs | 510 to 620 | 500 to 600 | $24,595 | 8,697 | 97% |
| University of Colorado Denver | 490 to 620 | 490 to 600 | $24,902 | 10,519 | 75% |
| Colorado State University, Fort Collins | Does not report SAT data | Does not report SAT data | $31,642 | 25,538 | 89% |
Each range covers the middle 50% of admitted students who submitted scores. A quarter scored below the lower number, and the top quarter scored at or above the upper one. Being under the lower number does not rule a student out, and being just above it is not as safe as it looks.
Colorado has the widest cost spread of any state we cover. The Air Force Academy charges no tuition. Colorado College is $86,921. Those are both on this page.
The flagship is not the most selective school. CU Boulder admits 78% of applicants. Colorado College admits 18% and the Air Force Academy admits 14%. Size and selectivity move independently.
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Colorado School of Mines
Colorado School of Mines is an engineering and applied science institution rather than a conventional pre-med destination, and it has the strongest Math range in the state. That is why it leads the table.
For a student weighing medicine against engineering, or interested in biomedical engineering, it’s a real option. For a student certain about medicine, the larger universities have more of the advising and clinical infrastructure.
Reading & Writing 650 to 730, Math 670 to 750. The top quarter of admitted students scored at or above 730 and 750. Cost of attendance $40,560, with tuition and fees at $21,914 in-state and $45,824 out-of-state. 6,155 undergraduates, 61% admitted.
Colorado College
Colorado College is a small liberal arts college in Colorado Springs, and it is both the most selective institution in the state and the most expensive.
Reading & Writing 640 to 730, Math 590 to 730. The top quarter scored at or above 730 in both sections. Cost of attendance $86,921, with tuition and fees at $70,734. 2,014 undergraduates, 18% admitted.
University of Denver
The University of Denver is a private university with 6,025 undergraduates and a 78% admit rate, which makes it considerably less selective than its price suggests.
Reading & Writing 640 to 710, Math 600 to 700. The top quarter scored at or above 710 and 700. Cost of attendance $78,476, with tuition and fees at $61,398. 6,025 undergraduates, 78% admitted.
Denver costs more than twice CU Boulder and admits at the same rate.
University of Colorado Boulder
The University of Colorado Boulder is the state flagship and the largest school on this list.
Reading & Writing 630 to 710, Math 610 to 720. The top quarter scored at or above 710 and 720. Cost of attendance $37,684, with tuition and fees at $15,666 in-state and $44,918 out-of-state. 31,939 undergraduates, 78% admitted.
Western Colorado University
Western Colorado University is in Gunnison, with 1,586 undergraduates, a 100% admit rate, and the Rocky Vista agreement covered above.
Reading & Writing 608 to 683, Math 555 to 670. The top quarter scored at or above 683 and 670. Cost of attendance $25,736, with tuition and fees at $11,318 in-state and $24,434 out-of-state. 1,586 undergraduates, 100% admitted.
The 100% admit rate and the reported score ranges sit together oddly until you consider who applies. A school in a mountain town of 6,000 people draws a self-selecting applicant pool.
University of Colorado Colorado Springs
The University of Colorado Colorado Springs has 8,697 undergraduates and is the least expensive school on this page.
Reading & Writing 510 to 620, Math 500 to 600. The top quarter scored at or above 620 and 600. Cost of attendance $24,595, with tuition and fees at $10,149 in-state and $24,336 out-of-state. 8,697 undergraduates, 97% admitted.
University of Colorado Denver
The University of Colorado Denver shares a university with the Anschutz Medical Campus, where the state’s MD program sits.
Reading & Writing 490 to 620, Math 490 to 600. The top quarter scored at or above 620 and 600. Cost of attendance $24,902, with tuition and fees at $10,383 in-state and $29,391 out-of-state. 10,519 undergraduates, 75% admitted.
Colorado State University, Fort Collins
Colorado State University is the state’s second flagship, with 25,538 undergraduates and a strong veterinary and life sciences reputation.
The university does not report SAT score data. Cost of attendance $31,642, with tuition and fees at $13,373 in-state and $34,783 out-of-state. 25,538 undergraduates, 89% admitted.
Colorado Has Two Medical Schools
Colorado has two medical schools. One awards an MD and one awards a DO.
University of Colorado School of Medicine, on the Anschutz Medical Campus in Aurora, is the state’s only MD program. It receives over 10,000 applications, interviews approximately 700 people, and admits 184. The median admitted GPA is around 3.89 and the median MCAT around 516.
Rocky Vista University College of Osteopathic Medicine, in Parker, is the state’s only DO program. It opened in 2006 and was the first modern for-profit medical school in the United States, which is a fact worth knowing when weighing it rather than a judgment about it. Reported acceptance rates run between approximately 5.5% and 11%, with a median MCAT around 505.
Some of these award an MD and some a DO. The two degrees are treated as equivalent and the difference is a question for the medical school application rather than the college one.
One undergraduate connection is worth naming. The University of Colorado Denver shares a university with the Anschutz Medical Campus, which houses the medical school along with the pharmacy, nursing, dental and public health schools. CU Denver has 10,519 undergraduates.
A second connection is more unusual, and it is an actual route rather than a matter of geography.
Five Colorado Students a Year Get Into Medical School Without the MCAT
Western Colorado University and Rocky Vista run an Early Acceptance Program. Rocky Vista reserves up to five seats a year for Western students granted provisional acceptance through it.
Five. That’s the whole program, and it’s worth saying before anything else about it.
What it gives you. Candidates in good standing are not required to take the MCAT. Given Rocky Vista’s acceptance rate and a median MCAT around 505, bypassing that process entirely is worth a great deal to the five students who get it.
What it costs you, and this is the part to think hardest about. Students in the program must submit an AACOMAS application designating Rocky Vista, and may not apply to any other medical school or program while they’re in it. You are trading the ability to apply anywhere else that cycle for a provisional place at one school.
For a student certain about osteopathic medicine and happy with Rocky Vista, that’s a good trade. For a student who wants to see what his options are, it isn’t.
How it works. Students apply after completing 60 to 90 semester hours, typically at the end of sophomore year, with a minimum of 30 credit hours completed at Western Colorado. Applications are due 1 November. Western conducts preliminary interviews in late November, Rocky Vista interviews candidates on Western’s campus in December, and provisional acceptances are notified in January.
What you need before applying. At least 8 semester hours of biology including General Biology 1 and 2 with lab, plus Cell Biology, General Chemistry 1 and 2, Organic Chemistry 1 and 2, one English composition course and one communication course. Physician shadowing, and demonstrated leadership and service.
What you need to stay in. A science and cumulative GPA of at least 3.4, a minimum grade of B in every required course, and a meeting with Western’s health professions advisor at the end of each semester, who reports your progress to Rocky Vista.
The context makes this more interesting than it first looks. Western Colorado admits 100% of applicants and costs $25,736 a year in total cost of attendance. A school that takes everyone, costs under $26,000, and has a reserved pipeline into a medical school is not a combination that exists in most states.
Details are on Western Colorado’s announcement and in Rocky Vista’s admissions pages. Check both before planning around it, since program terms change.
The Air Force Academy Costs Nothing and Almost No One Lists It
It’s in Colorado Springs, it admits 14% of applicants, and it charges no tuition. It belongs on a list of Colorado colleges and it almost never appears on one.
Reading & Writing 620 to 710, Math 610 to 730. The top quarter scored at or above 710 and 730. 4,114 undergraduates.
It is not free college. Attendance carries a service commitment after graduation, and the route from the Academy into medicine runs through military channels, including the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences or sponsorship to attend a civilian medical school. A limited number of graduates are selected for medical training each year.
For a student weighing $86,921 a year at Colorado College, it’s worth knowing the option exists. For most students it won’t be the right one, and the commitment is the reason rather than the cost.
Check the Academy’s current admissions requirements and the current route to medical training directly, since both change.
What If Your Scores Are Below the Range You Want?
Being below a school’s published range doesn’t disqualify anyone. A quarter of the students admitted to every school on this list scored below its lower number.
It does mean the score isn’t helping the application, and at a selective school that matters more than at a less selective one. The number worth aiming for is the upper end of a school’s range, the one the top quarter cleared, rather than the middle. The reasoning behind that is on what SAT score you need for college.
Reading the sections separately is the useful part. If your Math sits inside a school’s range and your Reading & Writing doesn’t, you know which section your hours should go to, and that’s a more specific answer than a total score gives you.
The gap is measurable and so is the work to close it. A 70 to 130 point improvement takes approximately 40 hours of effective studying, based on the students we’ve worked with since 2008, and a 130 to 250 point improvement takes approximately 80.
How to improve your SAT score covers the method, including how to work out which topics are actually costing you points. If you don’t have a recent score to compare against this list, a free diagnostic SAT gives you one, broken down by section and by topic.
How to Read These Score Ranges
Every range on this page covers the middle 50% of admitted students who submitted scores. The lower number is the 25th percentile and the upper number is the 75th, which means a quarter of admitted students scored at or above it.
Colorado State Fort Collins reports nothing, which is increasingly common and means the score carries less weight there than at a school that does report.
Because most colleges are now test-optional, the ranges that are published describe only the students who chose to submit. Students with strong scores submit and students with weak ones don’t, so a published range sits higher than the range for everyone who was actually admitted. More on test-optional colleges.
Pre-Med Programs in Nearby States
Plenty of Colorado students apply outside the state, and at most of those universities a score is part of the application in the normal way.
See pre-med colleges in New Mexico, pre-med colleges in Utah, and pre-med colleges in Kansas.
Pre-Med Colleges in Other States
We publish the same breakdown for pre-med programs in every state.
See pre-med colleges by state for the full list.
Glyn Caddell
Glyn Caddell holds a BS in Mechanical Engineering from NJIT and has been tutoring New York City students since 2008. He founded Caddell Prep in 2012 and is the author of Digital SAT Math Secrets: Lessons & Tricks to Quickly Improve to a Perfect 800 on the Math Test, which contains over 900 practice problems and is used in Caddell Prep’s SAT math classes. He is founding president of the Staten Island Technical High School alumni association and teaches every lesson on this site personally.
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