Claudia Williamson

One draw to the University is its beautiful campus.

The college acceptance and decision season is here. A school that has caught the attention of many students at Benilde-St. Margaret’s is the University of Colorado Boulder. The draw to CU has risen over the past few years, but what is the reason for this year’s popularity spike? Is it the weather, landscape, or football?

The odds of a school in Colorado catching so many eyes at a small school in Minnesota are low, yet the main draw to the University varies among the prospective students. One of the main features that draws people to Boulder is the overall climate and atmosphere. Being a part of the Mountain West area, this could be expected as students oftentimes seek out a college that feels like a different environment than home. “I like being in Colorado because [of] the mountains,” senior Eva Rahn said.

BSM has had 74 students apply to Boulder, but according to previous BSM Naviance records, only nine students have ever attended. The first students to ever apply to Boulder were in 2022, and that was just 17 students. Next, a staggering 30 students applied in 2024, finally moving up to 74 this year. Senior Ellie Shideman has been accepted to Boulder and will be attending the university in the fall. She seems to feel a sense of home in Colorado. “My brother goes there, and I visited him a lot,” Shideman said.

The football team at Colorado has been a rising sensation the past few years after hiring Deion Sanders (Coach Prime) in 2023. Coach Prime took over from a team that went 1-11 in 2022 to a team that started 4-0 his first year and went 9-4 in 2024 making the Valero Alamo Bowl. The hype around Deion’s first year dwindled after falling to 4-8 that season, but the football fame at the University of Colorado Boulder definitely grew. “I think for the most part, Deion is what gets everyone there,” Shideman said.

Some people say the weather in Colorado is dicey, but a lot of people in Boulder say the weather is what they go for. “I love the mountains, and I love the weather. It snows, but it melts really fast, and it’s not too cold,” Shideman said.

The views around campus are something that you can’t get at every college. Mountains, snow, and sun all at the same time are a force to be reckoned with. When people think of Colorado, they think of skiing, the Avalanche, or the Broncos, but now Colorado Boulder should be on that list. “I fell in love with the school and the environment [in Boulder],” Shideman said.