As an MSU Denver Online student, you receive all benefits of in-person students, including 24/7 tutoring and mental health support, plus dedicated Success Coaches for your online journey.
Declare a fully online major and you can get up to $1000 per semester in scholarships that are not need based.
MSU Denver courses are designed with your career in mind and we offer internship and job placement assistance unique to your situation.
Sometimes your goals do not fit neatly inside a single major. MSU Denver’s online Individualized Degree Program is for students who want to design a custom major when existing programs do not match their interests or when they have a lot of previous credits and need a flexible, intentional way to finish a bachelor’s degree.
Through the Individualized Degree Program (IDP), you work with an IDP specialist to review the courses you have already completed, talk through your experience and goals, and map out possible paths to graduation. Together with a faculty advisor, you design a coherent plan of study that draws on courses from across the university so your degree reflects the skills and knowledge you actually want and need.
This is a self directed, academically rigorous option, not a shortcut. IDP students are active partners in shaping their education, write a formal degree proposal for approval, and complete a culminating senior experience or capstone. If you are motivated to take ownership of your learning, want a multidisciplinary or “general studies plus” path that still has clear focus, and are ready to finish what you started, this program is built for you.
The Individualized Degree Program is ideal if you are ready to take an active role in designing your education and finishing a bachelor’s degree that truly fits your goals. Instead of choosing a single existing major, you work with an IDP specialist and faculty advisor to build a focused, interdisciplinary plan of study that uses your previous credits wisely.
This program might be a good fit for you if you:
IDP students are often working adults and other nontraditional students who bring rich experience to their studies. If you are ready to partner with faculty and advisors to shape a customized degree and see it through, this program is designed with you in mind.
First step: Talk with an Individualized Degree Program specialist about your goals and completed credits. Meet with an IDP Specialist.
Prefer to talk by phone? Call 303-615-0525 to connect with the Center for Individualized Learning.
IDP graduate Anna Sanchez designed a major called Working with Underserved Populations that combined her interests in conservation, community work and social justice. After finishing her degree, she was able to gain experience across several fields and ultimately land her dream job working with underrepresented communities in conservation. Anna credits the IDP program with giving her the flexibility to explore her interests and the structure to turn them into a focused degree that opened real career doors.
Start your free application in a few minutes and usually get your admission decision within a few days.
Apply to MSU Denver Online NowAt many universities this kind of option is called a general studies degree. At MSU Denver, the Individualized Degree Program fills that role but with more structure and guidance. Every Individualized Degree Program major is a little different, because it is built around a theme that fits your goals. Working with an IDP specialist and faculty advisor, you choose courses from across MSU Denver to create a focused plan of study instead of a random mix of classes.
Some students design degrees that blend their work experience with new academic interests. Others build a path in an emerging or cross disciplinary field that does not yet exist as a catalog major. For example, IDP students have created majors such as:
You can also choose from faculty designed IDP majors if you prefer a ready made framework, such as Educational Studies, B.A., Social Documentary, B.A. or a flexible General Studies style IDP major. An IDP specialist will help you decide whether a fully custom degree or a faculty designed option is the best fit for your interests and the credits you already have.
Low in-state tuition, reduced tuition for western states, scholarships exclusive to online majors, and flexibility to take as many or few classes as you want, all make MSU Denver the affordable online choice.
As low as $315.20 /credit*
Example: 12 credits – $4,703.36 total including tuition & fees.
*Colorado Opportunity Fund (COF) reduces per-credit costs for eligible Colorado residents.
As low as $646.80 /credit
Example: 12 credits – $7761.60 total including tuition & fees.
Western Undergraduate Exchange (WUE) and Roadrunner Interstate Tuition (RIT) reduce nonresident costs for certain states.
Declare a fully online major and you may qualify for up to $1,000 per semester (fall/spring). No separate scholarship application is required.
Learn more about eligibility and how it works.
Exclusively online students save over $100 per semester in fees compared to on-campus students.
See detailed tuition and fee information:
Undergraduate Tuition & Fees.
Figures shown are example 2025–26 rates.
Most applicants are admitted, and you will usually receive your admission decision within a few days.
Want to see how your credits may apply before you apply? Use Transferology to check how your previous classes may count toward your degree.
You are typically eligible for admission if you have a 2.0 or higher unweighted high school GPA, are 20 or older with a high school diploma or GED, or have 24 or more transferable college credits.
Let us know more about you and we’ll send you information about online programs, timelines and more.
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