The Colorado School of Mines, informally called Mines, is a

public In public relations and communication science, publics are groups of individual people, and the public (a.k.a. the general public) is the totality of such groupings. This is a different concept to the sociological concept of the ''Öffentlichkei ...

research university A research university or a research-intensive university is a university that is committed to research as a central part of its mission. They are the most important sites at which knowledge production occurs, along with "intergenerational kno ...

Golden, Colorado Golden is a home rule city that is the county seat of Jefferson County, Colorado, United States. The city population was 20,399 at the 2020 United States Census. Golden lies along Clear Creek at the base of the Front Range of the Rocky Mountai ...

, founded in 1874. The school offers both

undergraduate Undergraduate education is education conducted after secondary education and before postgraduate education. It typically includes all postsecondary programs up to the level of a bachelor's degree. For example, in the United States, an entry-le ...

and

graduate degree Postgraduate or graduate education refers to academic or professional degrees, certificates, diplomas, or other qualifications pursued by post-secondary students who have earned an undergraduate (bachelor's) degree. The organization and struc ...

s in engineering, science, and mathematics, with a focus on energy and the environment. While Mines does offer minor degrees in the humanities, arts, and social sciences, it only offers major degrees in STEM fields, with the exception of

economics Economics () is the social science that studies the Production (economics), production, distribution (economics), distribution, and Consumption (economics), consumption of goods and services. Economics focuses on the behaviour and intera ...

. In the Fall 2019 semester, the school had 6,607 students enrolled, with 5,155 in an undergraduate program and 1,452 in a graduate program. The school has been

co-educational Mixed-sex education, also known as mixed-gender education, co-education, or coeducation (abbreviated to co-ed or coed), is a system of education where males and females are educated together. Whereas single-sex education was more common up to t ...

since its founding, however, enrollment remains predominantly male (69.2% as of Fall 2020). In every

QS World University Ranking ''QS World University Rankings'' is an annual publication of university rankings by Quacquarelli Symonds (QS). The QS system comprises three parts: the global overall ranking, the subject rankings (which name the world's top universities for the ...

from 2016 to 2020, the university was ranked as the top institution in the world for

mineral In geology and mineralogy, a mineral or mineral species is, broadly speaking, a solid chemical compound with a fairly well-defined chemical composition and a specific crystal structure that occurs naturally in pure form.John P. Rafferty, ed. (2 ...

and

mining engineering Mining in the engineering discipline is the extraction of minerals from underneath, open pit, above or on the ground. Mining engineering is associated with many other disciplines, such as mineral processing, exploration, excavation, geology, and ...

. It is classified among "R1: Doctoral Universities – Very high research activity". __toc__

History

Early history

Golden, Colorado, established in 1859 as Golden City, served as a supply center for miners and settlers in the area. In 1866, Bishop George M. Randall of

Massachusetts Massachusetts (Massachusett language, Massachusett: ''Muhsachuweesut assachusett writing systems, məhswatʃəwiːsət'' English: , ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is the most populous U.S. state, state in the New England ...

arrived in the territory and, seeing a need for higher education facilities in the area, began planning for a university which would include a school of mines. In 1870, he opened the Jarvis Hall Collegiate School in the central building of the

Colorado University Schools The Colorado University Schools campus was the multi-collegiate campus in Golden, Colorado, spearheaded by the visionary missionary Bishop George Maxwell Randall of the Episcopal Church. History Having a ministerial passion for education and se ...

campus just south of the town of Golden, accompanied it with Matthews Hall divinity school in 1872, and in 1873 the School of Mines opened under the auspices of the Episcopal Church. In 1874 the School of Mines, supported by the territorial government since efforts began in 1870, was acquired by the territory and has been a state institution since 1876 when Colorado attained statehood. Tuition was originally free to residents of Colorado.

Recent history

CoorsTek Center for Applied Science and Engineering

In August 2007, a new student recreation center was completed. In 2008, the school finished expanding its main computer center, the Center for Technology and Learning Media (CTLM). In May 2008 the school completed construction and installation of a new supercomputer nicknamed "Ra" in the CTLM managed by the Golden Energy Computing Organization (GECO), a partnership among the Colorado School of Mines, the

National Renewable Energy Laboratory The National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) in the US specializes in the research and development of renewable energy, energy efficiency, energy systems integration, and sustainable transportation. NREL is a federally funded research an ...

, the

National Center for Atmospheric Research The US National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR ) is a US federally funded research and development center (FFRDC) managed by the nonprofit University Corporation for Atmospheric Research (UCAR) and funded by the National Science Foundatio ...

and the

National Science Foundation The National Science Foundation (NSF) is an independent agency of the United States government that supports fundamental research and education in all the non-medical fields of science and engineering. Its medical counterpart is the National ...

. In 2014,

CoorsTek CoorsTek, Inc. is a privately owned manufacturer of technical ceramics for aerospace, automotive, chemical, electronics, medical, metallurgical, oil and gas, semiconductor and many other industries. CoorsTek headquarters and primary factories a ...

granted a $27 million investment to the university, leading to the 2017 opening of the CoorsTek Center for Applied Science and Engineering, a multi-disciplinary building on campus dedicated to both academic and research activities. Since 1964, the Colorado School of Mines has hosted the annual

oil shale Oil shale is an organic-rich fine-grained sedimentary rock containing kerogen (a solid mixture of organic chemical compounds) from which liquid hydrocarbons can be produced. In addition to kerogen, general composition of oil shales constitut ...

symposium, one of the most important international oil shale conferences. Although the series of symposia stopped after 1992, the tradition was restored in 2006.

Presidents

*Chris Stell. – 1873Professor in Charge. *Gregory Board – 1875 *Milton Moss – 1878 *Albert C. Hale – 1880Began as Professor in Charge, became the first President. *Regis Chauvenet – 1883 *Charles S. Palmer – 1902 *Victor C. Alderson – 1903Served as President two times *William G. Haldane – 1913 *William B. Phillips – 1915 *Howard C. Parmelee – 1916 *Victor C. Alderson – 1917 *Melville F. Coolbaugh – 1925 *Ben H. Parker – 1946 *John W Vanderwilt – 1950 *Orlo E. Childs – 1963 *

Guy T. McBride Guy Thornton McBride (December 12, 1919 – March 21, 2011) was an American chemical engineer who was a professor at Rice University, president of the Colorado School of Mines (CSM) and as an executive of a major American corporation. McBride earn ...

, Jr. – 1970 *George S. Ansell – 1984 *Theodore A. Bickart – 1998 *John U. Trefny – 2000 *

Myles W. Scoggins Myles W. Scoggins, Ph.D was the 16th president of the Colorado School of Mines. He was appointed to the position in June 2006. Background He has over 34 years experience in the global oil and gas business with Mobil and ExxonMobil. Dr. Scoggins b ...

– 2006 *Paul C. Johnson – 2015

Campus

Colorado School of Mines Engineering hall

Colorado School of Mines is located to the southwest of Golden's downtown, bordered to the west by

U.S. Route 6 U.S. Route 6 (US 6), also called the Grand Army of the Republic Highway, honoring the American Civil War veterans association, is a main route of the U.S. Highway system. While it currently runs east-northeast from Bishop, California, to P ...

and to the north by Clear Creek. The campus spans , including over a dozen academic and research buildings, indoor and outdoor athletic facilities, two student centers, a library, eight residential halls, and administration buildings. Additionally, the campus hosts a research building for the

United States Geological Survey The United States Geological Survey (USGS), formerly simply known as the Geological Survey, is a scientific agency of the United States government. The scientists of the USGS study the landscape of the United States, its natural resources, ...

, housing the

National Earthquake Information Center The National Earthquake Information Center (abbreviated NEIC) is part of the United States Geological Survey (USGS) located on the campus of the Colorado School of Mines in Golden, Colorado. The NEIC has three main missions: * First, the NEIC determ ...

The school operates the free admission Mines Museum of Earth Science, which displays rock and mineral specimens collected from Colorado's numerous mining districts as well as around the world. Notable objects in the collection include one of the "Goodwill" Apollo 17 lunar samples and the

Miss Colorado The Miss Colorado competition is the pageant that selects the representative for the state of Colorado in the Miss America pageant. Colorado has won the Miss America crown on three occasions. Savannah Cavanaugh of Beaver Creek, Colorado was ...

crown.

The design of the university's buildings have varied widely over time, spanning a spectrum of styles from Second Empire to Postmodernist, created by noted Colorado architectural masters including

Robert S. Roeschlaub Robert Sawers Roeschlaub (July 6, 1843 – October 25, 1923) was a noted Colorado architect. Biography Roeschlaub was born in Munich, Bavaria, Germany to Michael, private physician to the King of Bavaria, and Margaretta, his Scotland-born ...

(Hall of Engineering),

Jacques Benedict Jules Jacques Benois Benedict (April 22, 1879 – January 16, 1948) was one of the most prominent architects in Colorado history, whose works include a number of well-known landmarks and buildings listed on the National Register of Historic Place ...

(Steinhauer Field House), and

Temple Hoyne Buell Temple Hoyne Buell (September 9, 1895 – January 5, 1990) was an American architect, real estate developer and entrepreneur namesake of the Buell Theatre in Denver Center Complex, Buell & Company, and the Temple Buell Foundation. Buell was bor ...

(Berthoud Hall). To date, three main academic buildings are gone (original Territorial School of Mines, 1871–93; Hall of Chemistry, 1880–1958; Paul Meyer Hall, 1963–2016), while the present campus includes: Steinhauer Field House

Major open-air athletic facilities of the Colorado School of Mines include historic Campbell Field and

Darden Field Darden Field is a historic baseball stadium that has been home to the Colorado School of Mines baseball teams since it was constructed in 1937. Featuring fieldstone stands with flagstone benches built into the hillside, the park was originall ...

. The honorary named Colorado School of Mines buildings commemorate Dr. Victor C. Alderson, Edward L. Berthoud,

George R. Brown George Rufus Brown (May 12, 1898 – January 22, 1983) was a prominent Houston entrepreneur. With his brother Herman, Brown led Brown & Root Inc. to become one of the largest construction companies in the world and helped to foster the political c ...

, Dr. Regis Chauvenet, Dr. Melville F. Coolbaugh, Cecil H. and Ida Green,

Simon Guggenheim John Simon Guggenheim (December 30, 1867 – November 2, 1941) was an American businessman, politician and philanthropist. Life Born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania of Jewish descent, Simon Guggenheim was the son of Meyer Guggenheim and Barbara G ...

Nathaniel P. Hill Nathaniel Peter Hill (February 18, 1832 – May 22, 1900) was a professor at Brown University, a mining executive and engineer, and a politician, including serving in the United States Senate. Originally from the state of New York, he came t ...

Arthur Lakes Arthur Lakes (December 21, 1844—November 21, 1917) was an American geologist, artist, writer, teacher and Episcopalian minister. He captured much of his geological and palaeontological field work in sketches and watercolours. Lakes is credited ...

, Dr. Paul D. Meyer, Winfield S. Stratton, and Russell K. Volk.

Academics

Mines is organized around 16 academic departments and 14 interdisciplinary programs: Mines began the world's first graduate program in space resources in the fall semester of 2018, offering both master's and PhD degrees.

Rankings

* Tied for 33rd in '' U.S. News & World Reports 2021 "Top Public Schools" in the U.S. * Second in ''U.S. News & World Reports 2021 "Best Engineering Graduate Schools" in the U.S., with the Petroleum Engineering program ranked fourth. * Tied for 83rd in ''U.S. News & World Reports 2021 "Best National Universities Rankings". * Third out of 174 schools ranked in ''

Kiplinger's Personal Finance ''Kiplinger's Personal Finance'' ( ) is an American personal finance magazine published by Kiplinger since 1947. It claims to be the first American personal finance magazine and to deliver "sound, unbiased advice in clear, concise language". It ...

'' magazine's 2019 "Best Values in Public Colleges." * Ninth in "USA Today's Top 10 Engineering Schools 2015".

Admissions

For freshmen entering Fall 2020, Colorado School of Mines received 11,756 applications, accepted 6,240 (53.1%) and enrolled 1,268 (11.1% of those who applied). The middle 50% range of

SAT The SAT ( ) is a standardized test widely used for college admissions in the United States. Since its debut in 1926, its name and scoring have changed several times; originally called the Scholastic Aptitude Test, it was later called the Schol ...

scores for the enrolled freshmen was 620–710 for evidence-based reading, and 640–750 for math, while the ACT Composite range was 27–33. The average

GPA Grading in education is the process of applying standardized measurements for varying levels of achievements in a course. Grades can be assigned as letters (usually A through F), as a range (for example, 1 to 6), as a percentage, or as a numbe ...

was 3.78. Of the incoming class, 21.2% were women.

Traditions

M Climb

Freshmen at the Colorado School of Mines are expected, but not required, to participate in the M Climb during orientation weekend. During this climb, students carry a ten-pound rock brought from their hometown up Mt. Zion. Before ascending up the mountain, students are given colored hard-hats which are spray-painted by members of the Blue Key Honor Society. Along the climb, non-freshmen encourage and heckle the new students with water balloons, silly string, and more, as well as leading the group in learning the Mines' fight song. At the top of the mountain, students place their rock on the "M," a large sign made of rock in the shape of Mines' M logo, and paint the M white using whitewash. On graduation, seniors are invited to take a rock from the M as a keepsake of their time at Mines.

Athletics

Colorado School of Mines was ranked No. 3 Best NCAA D2 school in the U.S. for student-athletes, according to

Next College Student Athlete Next College Student Athlete (NCSA) is a for-profit organization that connects middle and high school student-athletes with college coaches. NCSA teaches middle and high school student-athletes about the college recruiting process. The NCSA At ...

's 2018 NCSA Power Rankings. The NCSA Power Rankings recognize the best colleges and universities in the U.S. for student-athletes.

Notable alumni

File:Gen. James H. Dickinson.jpg,

James H. Dickinson James H. Dickinson is a United States Army general currently serving as the commander of the United States Space Command, previously serving as its deputy commander until assuming his current position in August 2020. He also served as the co ...

currently serving as the commander of the

United States Space Command United States Space Command (USSPACECOM or SPACECOM) is a unified combatant command of the United States Department of Defense, responsible for military operations in outer space, specifically all operations 100 kilometers (62 miles) and grea ...

File:Arden-Bement-at-TTU-tn1.jpg, Arden L. Bement Jr.
former director of the

(NSF) and the

National Institute of Standards and Technology The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) is an agency of the United States Department of Commerce whose mission is to promote American innovation and industrial competitiveness. NIST's activities are organized into physical s ...

(NIST) File:CharlesArthurBanks.jpg, Charles Arthur Banks
17th

Lieutenant Governor of British Columbia The lieutenant governor of British Columbia () is the viceregal representative of the , in the province of British Columbia, Canada. The office of lieutenant governor is an office of the Crown and serves as a representative of the monarchy in ...

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Shane Carwin Western Colorado Mountaineers Shane Bannister Carwin (born January 4, 1975) is an American former mixed martial artist who competed in the Heavyweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). He is a former Interim UFC Hea ...

UFC The Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) is an American mixed martial arts (MMA) promotion company based in Las Vegas, Nevada. It is owned and operated by Zuffa, a wholly owned subsidiary of Endeavor Group Holdings. It is the largest MMA ...

fighter File:Joseph Robert Wright, Jr.jpg, Joseph Robert Wright Jr.
27th Director of the

Office of Management and Budget The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) is the largest office within the Executive Office of the President of the United States (EOP). OMB's most prominent function is to produce the president's budget, but it also examines agency programs, pol ...

File:Wendell Fertig 1963.jpg,

Wendell Fertig Wendell Fertig (December 16, 1900 – March 24, 1975)Brooks 2003, p. 37. was an American civil engineer, in the American-administered Commonwealth of the Philippines, who organized and commanded an American-Filipino guerrilla force on the Jap ...

civil engineer, organized and commanded an American-Filipino guerrilla force on the Japanese-occupied Philippines during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

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Brazilian billionaire businessman and the chairman of the

Votorantim Group Votorantim S.A. is a permanently capitalized investment holding company, with a long-term investment approach. Its portfolio companies operate in 16 countries and in different economic sectors, as building materials, finance, aluminum, clean and r ...

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Purnomo Yusgiantoro Purnomo Yusgiantoro (born 16 June 1951 in Semarang, Central Java) is an Indonesian politician, he is a former secretary-general of OPEC, former Indonesian Minister of Energy for three presidents, and former Minister of Defense in the Second Unite ...

president-secretary general of

OPEC The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC, ) is a cartel of countries. Founded on 14 September 1960 in Baghdad by the first five members (Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, and Venezuela), it has, since 1965, been headquart ...

, former Indonesian Minister of Energy for three presidents, and former Minister of Defense in the

Second United Indonesia Cabinet The Second United Indonesia Cabinet ( id, Kabinet Indonesia Bersatu II) was inaugurated on 22 October 2009, two days after the inauguration of Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono as President of Indonesia for the second term. The cabinet consists of members ...

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George Saunders George Saunders (born December 2, 1958) is an American writer of short stories, essays, novellas, children's books, and novels. His writing has appeared in ''The New Yorker'', '' Harper's'', ''McSweeney's'', and '' GQ''. He also contributed a w ...

Award-winning American writer of short stories, essays, novellas, children's books, and novels. Professor at

Syracuse University Syracuse University (informally 'Cuse or SU) is a Private university, private research university in Syracuse, New York. Established in 1870 with roots in the Methodist Episcopal Church, the university has been nonsectarian since 1920. Locate ...

Notable faculty

References

Informational notes Citations

External links

*
Mines Athletics Website
{{Authority control Public universities and colleges in Colorado Schools of mines in the United States Technological universities in the United States Buildings and structures in Golden, Colorado Education in Jefferson County, Colorado Geology of Colorado Mines in Colorado Educational institutions established in 1874 1874 establishments in Colorado Territory Tourist attractions in Golden, Colorado