Metropolitan State University Of Denver

Metropolitan State University Of Denver International Student Insurance

The Metropolitan State University of Denver (MSU Denver), located in Denver, Colorado, was established in 1965. It’s located on the Auraria Campus, an educational facility that houses campuses of three separate universities: the University of Colorado Denver, the Community College of Denver, and MSU Denver. It was founded as an opportunity school, intended to give a more diverse population access to higher education. It opened as Metropolitan State College with an initial enrollment of almost 1,200. It moved to its current location in 1977 and became the Metropolitan State College of Denver after a perceived lack of name recognition. It gained its present name in 2012. 

Today, MSU Denver enrolls almost 20,000 students and counting each year. The school colors are blue and red, and its athletic nickname is the roadrunners.

Academic Offerings

MSU Denver offers more than 100 undergraduate majors, almost 10 graduate programs, and more than 30 certificate programs across its four academic divisions: the College of Business; the College of Letters, Arts and Sciences; the College of Professional Studies; and the School of Education. The university also offers an Individualized Degree Program that lets students propose and design their own major (or minor) if their educational goals can’t be met by any formal established curriculum.

On Campus

MSU Denver was the first university to allow DREAMers—undocumented immigrants who entered the U.S. as minors—to enroll and pursue a higher-education degree. The move made national headlines in 2012. Within the student body, slightly less than half are students of color, and slightly more than half are the first in their family to attend college. The average undergraduate student is 25 years old. 

MSU Denver is located in downtown Denver’s central business district, close to recreational opportunities like the Pepsi Center, Elitch Gardens, the Denver Performing Arts Complex, and various shopping centers and restaurants.

Notable Alumni

Notable MSU Denver alumni include author David W. Ball; actress Pam Grier; Gloria Tanner, the first African-American woman Colorado state senator; former NFL player Hayden Smith; and Discovery Channel meteorologist and storm chaser Tony Laubach.

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