Spanning over 3,000 miles from New Mexico to northern British Columbia in Canada, the Rocky Mountain region is a dream come true for students who would love to spend their study breaks exploring national parks and the beautiful outdoors. If pairing your love for the outdoors with a stellar education sounds good to you, check out these “hidden gem” colleges in the Rocky Mountain region.
What’s a Hidden Gem:
To qualify as a Hidden Gem College of the Rocky Mountain region, a school must meet the following requirements:
- Receive fewer than 5,000 applications per year.
- Have fewer than 7,000 undergraduate students.
- Offer 5 or more unique majors.
- Have a 10% acceptance rate or higher.
- Be located in: Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Utah, or Wyoming.
*Note: We feature the top 3 Hidden Gems per state, however not all states had 3 schools that met all of our criteria, and so may only feature one or two.
2025 Hidden Gems in the Rocky Mountains
COLORADO
Though presently located in Denver, Regis actually started in Las Vegas, Nevada. The school has an 87% acceptance rate and it is $0 to apply for undergraduate school. There is a near 50/50 split between undergraduate and graduate students studying on campus. Blue and gold are the official school colors.
Location
Denver, CO
Institution Type
Private
Student Enrollment
4,668
Competing in the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference, crimson and slate are the colors of Western Colorado University. 86% of students receive institutional financial aid to help cover costs. Alumni of WCU have gone on to careers in athletics, politics, entertainment, and academics. Popular majors are Business Administration and Management, Biology/Biological
Sciences, and Kinesiology and Exercise Science.
Location
Gunnison, CO
Institution Type
Public
Student Enrollment
3,548
A liberal arts school, Fort Lewis College is located by the Animas River. Originally a military fort turned Native American boarding school, Native Americans receive tuition-free education at Fort Lewis. Today, only 38% of incoming students call Colorado home; many others come from New Mexico and Arizona.
Location
Durango, CO
Institution Type
Public
Student Enrollment
3,400
IDAHO
The College of Idaho is the oldest private liberal arts college in the state and offers up to a master’s degree. Graduates have gone onto impressive careers in business, politics, law, and sports. The acceptance rate is 47% and the school does not charge students to apply.
Location
Caldwell, ID
Institution Type
Private
Student Enrollment
1,082
Offering free applications and institutional grants to 99% of students, Northwest Nazarene University has a 63% acceptance rate, 13:1 student-to-faculty ratio, and 72% first year retention rate. NNU has over 60 majors available to undergraduates; many study Registered Nursing and Business Administration and Management.
Location
Nampa, ID
Institution Type
Private
Student Enrollment
1,778
Although it was founded in 1893, Lewis-Clark State College would not get its current name until 1955. Located along the Idaho and Washington border, by the Clearwater River, the school has graduated a number of Major League Baseball players, including Brendan Ryan, Carlos Fisher, Jason Ellison, and Vic Darensbourg. The school accepts 90% of applicants and it is free to apply.
Location
Lewiston, ID
Institution Type
Public
Student Enrollment
3,746
MONTANA
Though the school seal features two lions, Carroll College’s mascot is actually a St. Bernard named Halo. Student athletes compete as the Fighting Saints in sports like track, basketball, and soccer. The campus is located near Mt. Helena. Registered Nursing is the most popular major, followed by Health Services/Allied Health.
Location
Helena, MT
Institution Type
Private
Student Enrollment
1,168
Montana Technological University’s motto of “De Re Metallica” (“Of the metals”) pays homage to the school’s original name - the Montana School of Mines. Many students will major in Mechanical Engineering, Registered Nursing, and Management Information Systems. Green and copper are the official school colors of the Montana Tech Orediggers.
Location
Butte, MT
Institution Type
Public
Student Enrollment
1,625
Rocky Mountain College is a small liberal arts college and the oldest higher education institution in Montana. The school accepts 73% of students and 100% of students who attend will receive institutional grant aid. Most popular majors among students are Biology, Business Administration, and Psychology.
Location
Billings, MT
Institution Type
Private
Student Enrollment
1,054
UTAH
A doctor’s degree is the highest level of education offered at Westminster College. The school has a 69% acceptance rate there is $0 to application fee. They have a good student-to-faculty ratio of 8:1 and a first-year retention rate of 75%. Top majors for Westminster students include Registered Nursing, Research and Experimental Psychology, and Biology.
Location
Salt Lake City, UT
Institution Type
Private
Student Enrollment
1,280
*WYOMING
The University of Wyoming is one of the rare schools that features a live animal mascot - a horse named Cowboy Joe. Another mascot, Pistol Pete, is played by a student in costume. Brown and gold are the official school colors. Also known as UW, the university is a land-grant, space-grant, and public flagship school.
Location
Laramie, WY
Institution Type
Public
Student Enrollment
11,100
*Note: While Wyoming did not have any colleges that qualified under our Hidden Gems criteria this year, we included the closest match. In the spirit of Hidden Gems, we feel it’s important to include schools from all states, so students and families know about the opportunities around them.
Why Consider a Rocky Mountain Hidden Gem?
College Raptor’s Hidden Gem colleges are top rated schools that simply don’t get as many applications as the big names and may not be as recognizable outside the local area. Almost all Hidden Gem schools also reside in the top 33% of our own overall rankings, considers things like diversity, endowment, graduation rates, and more. As a result, most of these schools on our Hidden Gems list will have solid statistics backing them up.
Here are a few more reasons to consider these Hidden Gem schools…
- They tend to be more affordable, especially if you qualify for state grants or your home state participates in reciprocity.
- They’re perfect for students who want a smaller to medium sized school.
- These may be easier to get into as they could have a smaller applicant pool.
- They have a selection of exceptional programs.
- For students who love the outdoors, the Rocky Mountain region offers hiking opportunities, skiing, snowboarding, kayaking, and more.
Interested in any of these hidden gems of the Rocky Mountains? Check out College Raptor’s free match tool to see if they’re a good fit for you!
Methodology
Colleges are ranked based on a combination of factors, including graduation rates, campus diversity, endowment per student, and other data as reported via the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) for the most recently-available enrollment year. Some colleges may have been excluded from rankings based on certain criteria, including specialization and classification. Learn about our full methodology.
