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The College Opportunity Fund is the process by which the Colorado Legislature provides state financial support to eligible undergraduate students for higher education. It was created by an Act of the Colorado State Legislature and signed into law by Governor Owens in May 2004.
Yes, you need to apply for and authorize COF.
If you do not do this, you will not receive the stipend and will pay your entire tuition bill.
The state has put aside this money for you. If you don’t use it, you will pay more tuition than students who take advantage of the stipend.
You can apply for your stipend on the COF official website.
You only have to apply once, and you will receive the stipend every term that you register for eligible undergraduate courses, authorize for that given term and have not met your 145 credit hour life time limit.
The amount is determined each year by the Colorado Legislature. For the academic year 2024-2025 it is $116.00 per credit hour for full-time students at public institutions.
Review MSU Denver’s Tuition and Fee Rates to review current MSU Denver prices.
Reach out to the Residency Team within the Office of Admissions at [email protected] to see if you qualify for a tuition classification status change.
If you do not have a Social Security Number or a Permanent Resident Number you are able to apply for COF funding through a revised paper application available on the COF official website.
- Scroll down the page, do not click on Apply for a Stipend at the top of this page
- Click on Stipend Application (this is the revised form)
- Print out, fill in, and submit the form by mail to CCHE
You will check a box on the form saying that you have neither identification number. The COF computer system will generate a number that you will receive back in the mail from CCHE and will need to take to the Office of the Registrar, Central Classroom Building, room 105 at MSU Denver.
The university will use this computer-generated number when requesting funding on your behalf. All COF-generated numbers will be audited by the State of Colorado. Only students who don’t have an SSN or Permanent Resident Number need to complete a paper application at this time.
Certain classes have not been eligible for COF dollars including Basic Skills, English as a Second Language and the majority of Extended Campus classes including Surveying and Mapping, and Graduate courses.
Since FALL 2006 the following classes have been eligible for COF:
- Post Secondary Options (High School)
- FastTrack (High School)
- Basic Skills Classes at Community Colleges
- More Extended Campus Classes including,MSU Denver North: Behavioral Science, Professional Elementary Education Licensure.
MSU Denver South: Accounting, Behavioral Science, Computer Information Systems, Hospitality, Meeting, Travel Administration, and Management.
Undergraduate students who are eligible for in-state tuition are eligible for COF at MSU Denver.
The College Opportunity Fund will pay for up-to a total of 145 credit hours towards your Bachelor degree. Ongoing, you can check your specific credit hour account balance at the COF Official website or contact them directly by phone at 720-264-8553 or by email at [email protected]/
If you exceed the 145 credit hour limit, you have the right to request an institutional waiver for up to one year.
To do this, submit the Institutional COF Waiver Request form.
Graduate level courses do not qualify for COF. You will not receive a COF stipend for course numbers at a 5000 level.
Graduate students to do not qualify for COF. You will not receive a COF stipend for undergraduate if you are attending as a graduate student.
Yes, COF allows an additional 30 credit hours beyond the first degree using COF dollars.
Understanding 'Officially Registered'
Because of the funding process under COF, students must be officially registered with the university for classes.
Officially registered means that students have been accepted for admission by the university, are eligible to register for classes, and that the Course Reference Number (CRN) for the class is entered on the student’s registration record maintained by the Office of the Registrar.
The deadline to register is located on the University Academic Calendar.
There are pro-rated deadlines for part-of-term classes. It is the students’ responsibility to attend only those classes for which they are officially registered. Students who fail to register officially for a class are academically and financially responsible for any consequences of late registration, such as appeals, approvals, denials, availability of a seat in the class, availability of the class, and payment of full in-state tuition.