Western State College of Colorado

Western State Colorado University delivers a full liberal arts curriculum and career preparation to 2,900 intellectually adventurous students, deep in the heart of the Rocky Mountains. The university’s small size, unique setting and low-cost ensure students receive personalized attention, gain hands-on experience and graduate without taking on excessive debt.

Western State Colorado University fulfills its statutory mission by promoting intellectual maturity and personal growth in its students, and graduates citizens prepared to assume constructive roles in local, national and global communities.

Western helps its students develop the skills and commitments needed to continue learning throughout their lives and strives to elucidate the connections unifying academic domains, which have traditionally existed separately: the sciences, liberal arts and professional programs.

The University provides students with a solid foundation of skills in written and spoken communication, problem solving, critical thinking and creativity. Our programs encourage a breadth and depth of knowledge to serve as a foundation for a professional career or graduate study, and an appreciation of values appropriate to a liberally educated individual.

Western's distinctive character emerges from its unity among academic and professional disciplines, its high standards of scholarship and its unique environment in the mountains of Western Colorado.

Western State Colorado University takes a firm and unyielding stance in support of diversity, inclusivity, scientific inquiry, and creative expression. We believe these principles are necessary for the free and open inquiry that defines our role as a public institution in a democratic society. We believe that these principles are a moral imperative requiring constant vigilance and a firm stance against actions motivated by hate or intimidation. The university welcomes people of color, people with disabilities, people of all genders and orientations, people of all religious preferences, immigrants and refugees regardless of national origin or ethnicity and other underrepresented communities regardless of socioeconomic class. We actively seek to build a civil and respectful culture which affirms these principles in all that we do.

At Western, you'll connect with driven classmates and dedicated professors. At Western, you'll launch more than just your college education, you'll launch your career. Our mix of liberal arts and practical career preparation ensure you'll graduate ready for the working world, armed with both hard and soft skills. Our tight-knit campus community, small-town setting and adventure-filled valley will ensure you'll have fun along the way.

We look forward to guiding you through the admission process and invite you to contact us with any questions that may arise. What will you love most about Western? There's only one way to find out: Start your application today and plan a visit to campus to experience Western for yourself!

Western Colorado University academic programs promote intellectual maturity and personal growth in its students and graduates citizens prepared to assume constructive roles in local, national, and global communities.

In the late 19th century, Gunnison was a progressive cattle and mining town establishing itself as a cultural leader of Colorado’s Western Slope. Placed on the leading edge of the American frontier, Gunnison sought to establish educational programs for the citizens of the area. A bill was introduced in 1885 to establish a college, but it would take until 1901 for a bill to be approved by the state legislature. The seed for Western Colorado University as we know it was planted, but all that existed was a designated swath of land that cattle could still graze on.

The cornerstone of North Hall (now Taylor Hall) was placed in October 1910. The following year, Colorado State Normal School, a two-year college, welcomed its first class of 13 students. The Normal School was the first college on Colorado’s Western Slope. Students and faculty in those early years were as tough as today’s mascot—the Mountaineer. Complaints about mountain weather were taboo, and getting over mountain passes and snowy roads was no excuse for not making it to class on time. Students handled most maintenance on campus and had fun by skiing off Cupola Hill and tobogganing by North Hall. The foundation of the Mountaineer spirit was laid in these pioneering years.

After World War II, Western entered a period of unprecedented expansion, peaking with a student enrollment of 3,200 in the late 1970s. The college became known as one of the top outdoor education schools in the nation. Athletic Director Paul Wright became known as “the father of intercollegiate skiing” when he got the NCAA to adopt it as an official sport in 1953. Western Ski Coach Sven Wiik became known as the “father of Nordic skiing in the U.S.” and served as the U.S. Olympic coach, turning out more than 20 Olympic skiers. The men’s and women’s cross country teams won 12 NCAA titles and turned out four Olympians.

Today, Western has state-of-the-art facilities including the new Mountaineer Field House, University Center and residence halls. It gained university status in 2012 and is now regarded as one of America’s top universities by Forbes magazine. Elevation Outdoors magazine rates the school as the Top Adventure College in the Rocky Mountains.

Academically, Western has renowned programs in Environment & Sustainability, Biology, Geology, Energy Management, Exercise & Sport Science, Business and Recreation & Outdoor Education—along with a host of graduate programs. Western Colorado University carries much of the charm it did more than 100 years ago. It is a small university in the heart of the Rocky Mountains, a great outdoor laboratory with excellent and engaged professors, small classes and great attention given to students.