The University of Northern Colorado Board of Trustees approved a $55,000 tuition for the first four years of the university’s proposed college of osteopathic medicine during a meeting Friday in Greeley.
The approval of the college’s tuition and fees was one of seven action items on the board’s agenda for the meeting held in UNC’s Campus Commons multipurpose hall.
University officials have been working on building and developing a college of osteopathic medicine at UNC over the past several years. The trustees needed to approve the tuition and fee for the university to move to the next step in the multi-year accreditation process, according to meeting documents.
The university aims to bring in the first class of students in fall 2026. The proposed tuition and fee rates will go into effect in 2026 and will apply to students from Colorado and outside the state.
In addition to the $55,000 per year tuition, the board approved fees at $2,000 for the first two years, for a total cost of $57,000 a year. Fees for the second two years are $1,000 a year, for a total cost of $56,000.
A college of osteopathic medicine is a four-year degree program as is a doctor of medicine degree (an MD).
The fees support access to resources specific to the university and the college, including online and virtual anatomy materials. Access to these resources will continue in the third and fourth years when students participate in off-campus clinical rotations.
UNC director of news and public relations Deanna Herbert said Friday the Commission on Osteopathic College Accreditation requires tuition to remain flat until the first cohort of students graduates and the college receives full accreditation.
The U.S. Department of Education recognizes the commission as the accreditor of colleges of osteopathic medicine.
The university recommended the tuition and fees for the new college after reviewing tuition rates for osteopathic medical colleges nationally, reviewing tuition rates at regional medical schools and consulting with the firm UNC hired to develop a business plan for the college.
The university noted the tuition is slightly below the national average of $56,947 using data for 2024-25.
UNC President Andy Feinstein and other university leaders have been studying and planning for the college of osteopathic medicine since 2021. Feinstein has repeatedly cited an anticipated physician shortage in Colorado as the reason behind UNC’s desire to build the college, which will be the third medical college in the state and second public medical college.
The other medical schools in Colorado are the University of Colorado School of Medicine in Aurora and Rocky Vista College of Medicine in Parker.
CU, based at the Anschutz Medical Campus, is also a state school and an allopathic medical program conferring MDs. Graduates at osteopathic programs receive a doctor of osteopathic medicine degree, or DO. Rocky Vista is a private osteopathic college.
Rocky Vista’s tuition is $64,254, according to UNC. At CU Anschutz, the cost for out-of-state students is $70,709. The school is partially subsidized by the state and can offer a discounted in-state tuition rate of $44,754.
Earlier this month, Gov. Jared Polis announced a to pay for health science education at four institutions of higher education including UNC. Under House Bill 24-1231, UNC would receive $128 million to build a 100,000-square-foot academic building to house the medical college.
Sponsors of the bill include Rep. Mary Young of Greeley and Sen. Barb Kirkmeyer of Weld County.
The trustees on Friday also approved a tuition decrease for a bachelor of science nursing track online program, which has seen decreases in enrollment in the past five years because of state legislation allowing community colleges to offer similar programs. The 30-credit program is for registered nurses who have an associate’s degree.
Meeting documents indicate the tuition decrease was proposed to be competitive with community colleges.
The tuition decrease will take the cost to $350 per credit from the current rate of $544 per credit. The rate charged by community colleges is $346.70 after a discount through the College Opportunity Fund.
Also at Friday’s meeting, the board approved an easement agreement with the city of Greeley on a construction project on 16th Street on the north side of the UNC campus.
The city will make significant streetscape improvements including traffic calming measures and pedestrian safety enhancements in the area, according to meeting documents. The work will include constructing roundabouts at the intersections of 16th Street with both 9th and 10th avenues.
The city requested a temporary easement to construct the improvements in the area and three permanent easements for the remaining seating and hardscape features. The total area of the permanent easements is 5,886 square feet, or 0.135 acres.
Earlier this month, the city announced — known as the 16th Street Enhancement Project — won’t begin until 2025 because of a delay in locating underground utilities.
Underground construction will also be delayed until later this year.
The project was estimated to cost $5 million in 2022. The work will focus on 16th Street between 7th and 11th avenues and include the roundabouts, replacing traffic lights at the intersections with 9th and 10th avenues and central diagonal parking from 8th to 11th avenues.
