2023 Best Basic Certificate Trade Schools in Colorado
With all the trade school programs available today, it can be tough to choose which one is the best for you. You can choose a traditional brick and mortar school, or with the growth of online education, you can attend a school half-way across the country without even leaving your house.
Along with in-depth profiles of schools and the programs they offer, Trade College Search has created the Best Basic Certificate Trade Schools in Colorado to help you in your search for the best school for you. This report analyzed 16 schools in Colorado to see which ones offered the best basic certificate programs for trade school students.
View our full ranking methodology.
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Top Trade Basic Certificate Schools in Colorado
Learn more about these excellent schools below:
Our analysis found Red Rocks Community College to be the best school for trade school students who want to pursue a basic certificate in Colorado. Red Rocks Community College is a public institution located in Lakewood, Colorado. The school has a medium-sized population, and it awarded 1,290 basic certificates in 2021-2022.
Full-time students from Colorado pay an average of $4,471 in tuition and fees if they choose to attend Red Rocks Community College. Out-of-state students pay an average of $16,135.
Online courses are available at Red Rocks Community College, but you will need to check with the school to see if they are available for your field of interest. To give an idea of how popular online courses are at the school, 51% of undergraduates took at least one course online in 2020-2021.
A rank of #2 on this year’s list means Trinidad State Junior College is a great place for trade school students working on their basic certificate. Trinidad State Junior College is a small public school situated in Trinidad, Colorado. It awarded 339 basic certificates in 2021-2022.
In-state students pay an average of $5,240 in tuition and fees if they attend Trinidad State Junior College full time. Out-of-state students pay an average of $8,360.
If you are interested in distance education, be sure to check with the school since Trinidad State Junior College does offer online classes for certain majors. In 2020-2021 about 15% of the undergraduate students at the school chose to take one or more online courses.
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend Pikes Peak Community College. The school came in at #3 on this year’s Best Basic Certificate Trade Schools in Colorado list. Located in Colorado Springs, Colorado, the fairly large public school awarded 1,253 diplomas to qualifed basic certificate students in 2021-2022.
In-state students pay an average of $4,065 in tuition and fees if they attend PPCC full time. Those students who come from outside the state pay an average of $15,714.
Some students may be able to take online classes at PPCC. During the 2020-2021 year, about 51% of the undergraduates at the school took at least one online course.
Out of the 16 schools in Colorado that were part of this year’s ranking, Front Range Community College landed the # 4 spot on the list. Front Range Community College is a fairly large public school located in Westminster, Colorado that handed out 3,473 basic certificates in 2021-2022.
Full-time students from Colorado pay an average of $4,126 in tuition and fees if they choose to attend FRCC. If you are from out of state, expect to pay an average of $15,776.
Depending on your major, you may be able to take online classes at FRCC. During the 2020-2021 year, about 33% of the undergraduates at the school took at least one online course.
A rank of #5 on this year’s list means Colorado Mountain College is a great place for trade school students working on their basic certificate. This medium-sized public school is located in Glenwood Springs, Colorado, and it awarded 647 basic certificates in 2021-2022.
In-state students pay an average of $4,980 in tuition and fees if they attend Colorado Mountain College full time. If you are from out of state, expect to pay an average of $11,820.
If you are interested in distance education, be sure to check with the school since Colorado Mountain College does offer online classes for certain majors. Of all the undergraduates enrolled at the school during the 2020-2021 academic year, around 27% took at least some of their classes online.
With a ranking of #6, Colorado Mesa University did quite well on this year’s best schools for trade school students working on their basic certificate. Colorado Mesa is located in Grand Junction, Colorado and has a medium-sized student population. In 2021-2022, this school awarded 383 basic certificates to qualified students.
The average in-state tuition and fees for students at Colorado Mesa is $9,297. Out-of-state students pay an average of $23,019.
Colorado Mesa does offer online classes for certain degree levels. During the 2020-2021 year, about 43% of the undergraduates at the school took at least one online course.
Otero Junior College did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for trade school students to get a basic certificate. It came in at #7 on the list. This very small public school is located in La Junta, Colorado, and it awarded 94 basic certificates in 2021-2022.
The average in-state tuition and fees for students at Otero JC is $4,226. Out-of-state students pay an average of $6,730.
Online courses are available at Otero JC, but you will need to check with the school to see if they are available for your field of interest. In fact, around 32% of the undergraduate population registered for at least one online class in 2020-2021.
With a ranking of #8, Morgan Community College did quite well on this year’s best schools for trade school students working on their basic certificate. Fort Morgan, Colorado is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. The public school handed out basic certificates to 69 students in 2021-2022.
In-state students pay an average of $3,930 in tuition and fees if they attend Morgan Community College full time. Out-of-state students pay an average of $15,579.
You may have the opportunity to take online classes at Morgan Community College. Of all the undergraduates enrolled at the school during the 2020-2021 academic year, around 51% took at least some of their classes online.
Community College of Aurora came in at #9 in this year’s edition of the Best Basic Certificate Trade Schools in Colorado ranking. Aurora, Colorado is the setting for this medium-sized institution of higher learning. The public school handed out basic certificates to 298 students in 2021-2022.
The average in-state tuition and fees for students at CCA is $4,030. If you are from out of state, expect to pay an average of $15,832.
Depending on your major, you may be able to take online classes at CCA. In fact, around 22% of the undergraduate population registered for at least one online class in 2020-2021.
Intellitec College - Grand Junction came in at #10 in this year’s edition of the Best Basic Certificate Trade Schools in Colorado ranking. Intellitec College - Grand Junction is a small private for-profit school located in Grand Junction, Colorado that handed out 180 basic certificates in 2021-2022.
With a ranking of #11, Northeastern Junior College did quite well on this year’s best schools for trade school students working on their basic certificate. Located in Sterling, Colorado, the small public school awarded 273 diplomas to qualifed basic certificate students in 2021-2022.
Full-time students from Colorado pay an average of $5,345 in tuition and fees if they choose to attend NJC. If you are from out of state, expect to pay an average of $7,691.
NJC does have options available for those who want to take online classes. You will need to check with the school to see if they are available for your specific major. To give an idea of how popular online courses are at the school, 30% of undergraduates took at least one course online in 2020-2021.
Aims Community College did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for trade school students to get a basic certificate. It came in at #12 on the list. Aims Community College is located in Greeley, Colorado and has a medium-sized student population. In 2021-2022, this school awarded 819 basic certificates to qualified students.
Students from Colorado who attend Aims Community College full time pay an average of $2,954 in tuition and fees. Those students who come from outside the state pay an average of $10,850.
Online courses are available at Aims Community College, but you will need to check with the school to see if they are available for your field of interest. To give an idea of how popular online courses are at the school, 44% of undergraduates took at least one course online in 2020-2021.
With a ranking of #13, Pueblo Community College did quite well on this year’s best schools for trade school students working on their basic certificate. This medium-sized public school is located in Pueblo, Colorado, and it awarded 1,815 basic certificates in 2021-2022.
Full-time students from Colorado pay an average of $4,626 in tuition and fees if they choose to attend Pueblo Community College. If you are from out of state, expect to pay an average of $16,275.
Pueblo Community College does offer online classes for certain degree levels. During the 2020-2021 year, about 33% of the undergraduates at the school took at least one online course.
With a ranking of #14, Lamar Community College did quite well on this year’s best schools for trade school students working on their basic certificate. LCC is located in Lamar, Colorado and has a very small student population. In 2021-2022, this school awarded 79 basic certificates to qualified students.
Full-time students from Colorado pay an average of $4,216 in tuition and fees if they choose to attend LCC. If you are from out of state, expect to pay an average of $6,720.
LCC does have options available for those who want to take online classes. You will need to check with the school to see if they are available for your specific major. During the 2020-2021 year, about 19% of the undergraduates at the school took at least one online course.
With a ranking of #15, Community College of Denver did quite well on this year’s best schools for trade school students working on their basic certificate. This medium-sized public school is located in Denver, Colorado, and it awarded 408 basic certificates in 2021-2022.
Students from Colorado who attend CCD full time pay an average of $4,586 in tuition and fees. Those students who come from outside the state pay an average of $16,235.
CCD does have options available for those who want to take online classes. You will need to check with the school to see if they are available for your specific major. During the 2020-2021 year, about 59% of the undergraduates at the school took at least one online course.
With a ranking of #16, Metropolitan State University of Denver did quite well on this year’s best schools for trade school students working on their basic certificate. Located in Denver, Colorado, the fairly large public school handed out 114 basic certificate awards in 2021-2022.
Students from Colorado who attend MSU Denver full time pay an average of $10,260 in tuition and fees. Those students who come from outside the state pay an average of $28,092.
Online courses are available at MSU Denver, but you will need to check with the school to see if they are available for your field of interest. In 2020-2021 about 68% of the undergraduate students at the school chose to take one or more online courses.
View Best Trade Basic Certificate Schools Nationwide >
Notes and References
Footnotes
*These averages are for the top 16 schools only.
References
- Read more about our ranking methodology.
- The Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) from the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), a branch of the U.S. Department of Education (DOE) serves as the core of our data about colleges.
- Some other college data, including much of the graduate earnings data, comes from the U.S. Department of Education’s (College Scorecard).
- Information about the national average student loan default rate is from the U.S. Department of Education and refers to data about the 2016 borrower cohort tracking period for which the cohort default rate (CDR) was 10.1%.
More about our data sources and methodologies.
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