University of Colorado Boulder Reviews

  • 124 Reviews
  • Boulder (CO)
  • Annual Tuition: $40,356
95% of 124 students said this degree improved their career prospects
90% of 124 students said they would recommend this school to others
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Student & Graduate Reviews

Hydrology Goddess
  • Reviewed: 8/4/2015
  • Degree: Liberal Studies
"Studying physical geography and Geology at CU (not UC- that is California) was the most amazing experience and best decision of my life. I had brilliant professors who inspired and encouraged me. Due to the location of the campus, many of the classes had a field component. Instead of looking at slides of glacial formations, we got in a van, drove into the mountains and hiked around as we learned how the topography formed. When studying soils we headed East of 15 min, to the high plains. The social life is amazing. Many of my best friends are people I met in my Freshman dorm. CU is very big, so whatever crowd you are looking for, you will find it. Class size for freshman courses can be 100 to 600 students (Chemistry Room 140), so you can blend in if you want. You can also stand out and have your professors and TAs know you by name, you just need to reach out and introduce yourself during Office Hours. The social and academic opportunities are endless!"
Anonymous
  • Reviewed: 8/4/2015
  • Degree: Chemical Engineering
"It was a lot of work. Engineering majors are more different than I thought as a freshman and I wish I'd have waited a year to pick my major. I didn't party much, which I didn't miss."
DR
  • Reviewed: 8/4/2015
  • Degree: Music
"I wish I had taken on an academic minor in addition to my BA in music, I felt intimidated by the number of intro-level academic courses I had to catch up on as an upperclassman to earn a BA rather than a BM in music."
Will
  • Reviewed: 8/4/2015
  • Degree: Civil Engineering
"Amazing faculty, facilities and grounds. Class sizes for some of the core undergraduate engineering classes were a little too big. Overall a great experience."
Hydrology Goddess
  • Reviewed: 8/4/2015
  • Degree: Liberal Studies
"Studying physical geography and Geology at CU (not UC- that is California) was the most amazing experience and best decision of my life. I had brilliant professors who inspired and encouraged me. Due to the location of the campus, many of the classes had a field component. Instead of looking at slides of glacial formations, we got in a van, drove into the mountains and hiked around as we learned how the topography formed. When studying soils we headed East of 15 min, to the high plains. The social life is amazing. Many of my best friends are people I met in my Freshman dorm. CU is very big, so whatever crowd you are looking for, you will find it. Class size for freshman courses can be 100 to 600 students (Chemistry Room 140), so you can blend in if you want. You can also stand out and have your professors and TAs know you by name, you just need to reach out and introduce yourself during Office Hours. The social and academic opportunities are endless!"
Natalia
  • Reviewed: 7/27/2015
  • Degree: Biology
"Academics: The biology department at this school is pretty good; the instructors/researchers are for the most part cooperative with each other and with students. TA's from the biology department were excellent. I hated living in Boulder (a very crowded small city with high strung people), but the biology department and the setting of the city kept me there for nearly 5 years."
Kristin
  • Reviewed: 7/20/2015
  • Degree: Marketing
"I love CU Boulder! There are so many creative people. The advertising and technology, arts, & media programs are phenomenal. The professors are extremely knowledgeable and fun."
cheezburger
  • Reviewed: 7/20/2015
  • Degree: Cultural Studies
"Although it is known as a party school, CU can be a great place to get a degree if you try hard, stay focused, and get to know your professors. The languages department had some great professors who have been at CU for a long time. There were good extracurricular activities such as movie nights and language conversation tables. Boulder is a fantastic place to live, especially if you love the outdoors. Unfortunately rent is very expensive."
AMW
  • Reviewed: 7/13/2015
  • Degree: Psychology
"Best college experience. I transferred after a year at another out of state school, and hands down CU was the best place to be. The classes are academically challenging and the environment is unbeatable. There's such an environment of unity at this school."
Physics grad 2015
  • Reviewed: 6/11/2015
  • Degree: Physics
"CU's Physics department has a strong research focus. This means professors tend to be up-to-date on current research, and will often mentor undergraduate researchers. On the other hand, many of the professors do not want to teach, but are forced to in order to continue their research. As a final note, the Physics Education Research group works to improve course quality, and is generally successful."
speech pathology grad 2010
  • Reviewed: 5/29/2015
  • Degree: Health Sciences
"I feel it was a very good program that prepared me well. It also has good name recognition and is well-respected in our field."
Andrew Tracy
  • Reviewed: 5/26/2015
  • Degree: Civil Engineering
"My program is competitve and even nationally ranked, but the cost of tuition and cost of living make balancing my budget more difficult than at my private undergraduate university. That said, it is still a great program and will help me one day reach my career goals."
Anna Osipova
  • Reviewed: 5/26/2015
  • Degree: Educational Leadership
"The classes are small and the professors seem genuinely interested in the success of the students."
Amy Osatinski
  • Reviewed: 4/14/2015
  • Degree: Liberal Arts
"Boulder is a beautiful place and CU is a wonderful institution. The graduate faculty is of a high quality and the theatre department is a wonderful community. The biggest downside is funding, Colorado does a horrible job with school funding so there just isn't enough money to go around"
Nancy Schoemann
  • Reviewed: 1/25/2015
  • Degree: Entrepreneurship
"Wonderful focus at the school of fostering ethics and social responsibility within the business world."
Margaret Schneider
  • Reviewed: 1/23/2015
  • Degree: Chemical Engineering
"The classes for the first year are incredibly challenging in a frustrating more than rewarding way. The research faculty are incredible invested in their students and the facilities are remarkable. CU is definitely a great choice for a ChemE PhD, and Boulder is an excellent place to live."
Kegan
  • Reviewed: 8/25/2014
  • Degree: Journalism
"The journalism school eventually lost its accreditation, but luckily I got out before that happened. CU is a for-profit school, and it shows. The TAM program is the only saving grace. It gave my pathetic Journalism degree the boost it needed to actually help get me a job in my field. Thanks TAM!"
Russell Mehring
  • Reviewed: 8/11/2014
  • Degree: Computer Science
"Pros: Strong classroom experiences, great professors committed to enhancing student learning, great community of peers open to working together. Cons: Somewhat unguided during the program in that graduate students are expected to be their own advisor in a lot of ways. Sometimes the work load is a bit much, but in general pretty manageable."
Greta M
  • Reviewed: 8/6/2014
  • Degree: Psychology
"I like Boulder and what it has to offer. It is an energetic city with plenty of things to do- hiking, camping, anything active, great breweries, music options...beautiful! My academic experience, however, was not what I expected, wanted, or needed. The classes were too big (had many 400 person classes) and the professors were really hit or miss. CU did offer a variety of classes and interesting options, but unless you were lucky or got to register early you weren't able to get in. Overall, I feel like the school didn't really help its students. I struggled in almost every area- concerning finances, academics, living situations, general concerns-and would not feel supported or helped at all. Especially being in state and needing a lot of financial aid, it was frustrating not having people that cared. I truly value education, but really developed no desire to go to class (I still did). CU is extremely over priced with not a lot to show. It is the most beautiful campus in the nation-is that where our money is going? Somehow, it was "voted" yes to construct a buffalo shaped pool, and upgrade the rec center once again. Completely unnecessary, I paid for it, and wasn't able to use it since I graduated the year after it was all finished. I was really excited for CU. It seemed promising. Not all of my college career was bad, I met amazing people and had fun, also learned about myself and grew up. With 30,000 people at your school, you kind of learn to swim. But it was too big, and I got too lost. There were some really low points. If you want an active, thriving environment, then go for CU. If you are into too much Greek life and creepy/ gross fraternity parties, then boulder is your place. I know people that had positive experiences too, so as everything it is subjective. But I would do it all differently. As a city I love boulder and its down to earth with great people. Also pretty yuppy people with lots of money and very particular needs concerning diet this, gluten free that, organic everything, and they look down at you if you're not (and can't afford it) I am all for good health too, but boulder is extreme. It is its own bubble! Interesting, not as diverse and excepting as people think. Great beer."
KR
  • Reviewed: 8/6/2014
  • Degree: Art & Design
"As with any big university you get lost in a lot of classes - too big for the professors to care to know your name. But once you get deeper into your field they get weeded down and you get to know your professors well and students too! Everyone is very nice, laid back and understanding. CU often has a bad wrap for being a "party" school, but the truth is there are hundreds of highly intelligent people on campus. Variety is good :)"