Boise State University

Public · Moderately Selective · ID

Photo: Iamneven (CC BY-SA 4.0)

School data & stats

TypePublic

LocationID · West

SettingUrban

Undergrads17,674

Student:faculty20:1

Outcomes

4-yr grad rate41.4%

6-yr grad rate60.2%

Drop-out rate21.2%

Study abroad—

Cost

In-state tuition$9k

Out-of-state tuition$28k

Application fee—

Community

Racial diversity30.8%

Gender diversity57.3%

International0.7%

Identity—

Overview

Boise State is a growing public university in Idaho's capital, historically famous nationally for its blue football turf and a stunning 2007 Fiesta Bowl upset of Oklahoma, but increasingly known for computer science, business, and health programs tied to Boise's expanding tech and healthcare economy, anchored locally by employers like Micron Technology. The university itself has grown rapidly in recent decades, adding programs and enrollment right alongside the city's own boom.

Academics

Computer science and business programs have grown quickly alongside Boise's tech-industry expansion, giving students direct access to a fast-growing local job market anchored by Micron Technology and a broader wave of tech relocation to the city. Health programs have similarly benefited from the region's expanding hospital systems, including strong nursing partnerships with Boise's major medical centers. The university's overall academic profile reflects an institution in active growth mode — Boise State only became a university in the 1970s and has been adding capacity and programs to match regional demand ever since.

Campus & student life

The urban campus sits directly along the Boise River greenbelt, giving students walkable access to both downtown Boise and quick trips into nearby mountain recreation, a genuine lifestyle draw for outdoors-minded students. Football culture, anchored by the famous blue turf at Albertsons Stadium and a program that punched well above its weight nationally in the 2000s, remains a major part of campus identity and the surrounding city's civic life. Student life mixes on-campus residents with a substantial commuter population typical of a growing urban university, and Boise's own rapid growth as a city has fed directly into the university's expansion.

Getting in

Admission is generally accessible, with the process weighing academic preparation more than essays or interviews, consistent with Boise State's role as Idaho's largest and fastest-growing public university. Competitive health and computer science tracks draw somewhat stronger applicant pools, and the university has seen rising out-of-state interest as Boise's national profile — both athletic and economic — has grown. The process overall remains credentials-based rather than holistic in the elite-private sense.

After graduation

Computer science and business graduates increasingly stay in the Boise area, feeding the city's growing tech and corporate employers, Micron chief among them. Health program graduates find solid placement in the region's expanding hospital and clinic systems. The university's rapid institutional growth has also meant a rapidly growing alumni base concentrated heavily in the Boise metro area itself, giving graduates a dense local network even without the history of an older flagship.

Worth knowing

The blue turf isn't just a gimmick — it's tied to a real underdog athletic history, including the 2007 Fiesta Bowl upset of Oklahoma that first put Boise State on the national map, and football remains a genuine unifying force on campus. Prospective students should know Boise State is a young, fast-growing institution rather than an old-money flagship, which means newer facilities and expanding programs but fewer long-entrenched traditions outside athletics. Boise's own booming growth as a city is very directly tied to the university's trajectory.

boisestate.edu ↗

Admissions

Acceptance rate87.2%

Enrolled mid-50%—

Test policynot used

Rec letters0

Deadlines (2026–27 cycle)

AdmissionRolling

Applying