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College Opportunity Fund (COF)

What is the College Opportunity Fund (COF)?

The College Opportunity Fund (COF) is a tuition discount provided by the State of Colorado that may significantly reduce your out-of-pocket tuition cost.

 

Special Message for Military, Veteran, and High School Concurrent Programs

High school concurrent programs require COF to achieve 100% tuition payment. Please check your student bill to make sure COF is listed.
 
Select military, veteran programs, VR&E programs may require COF to achieve 100% tuition payment. See requirements for your program below.

All steps must be completed and COF must be applied before the deadline each semester. Please see FAQ for details.

How much can COF reduce my tuition?

The COF amount currently provides a discount of $116 per credit hour. This amount is subject to change by the State of Colorado every year. Eligible students are granted up to 145 discounted credit hours toward an undergraduate degree.

Example Savings Per Semester

The COF discount for 2026-2027 is $116 per credit hour. 

 

Colorado Opportunity Fund (COF) - Discount Examples

Student Status

Enrolled Semester Hours

Example Semester Savings
Half-Time Student
Enrolled in 6 credit hours
$696 per semester
($116 x 6 hours)
Full-Time Student
Enrolled in 12 credit hours
$1392 per semester
($116 x 12 hours)

 

Who is Eligible?

 If you have questions about your eligibility, please contact COF@pikespeak.edu.

Your Responsibility

It is the student's responsibility to complete the steps below and ensure that COF has applied for the semester before the COF deadlines.

High School Concurrent program students and certain military/veteran/VR&E students must use COF to achieve 100% tuition assistance. Please check with your program contact for additional details.

Eligibility by Student Type

Information by Military Benefit

Eligibility by Student Type

  • High School concurrent students are eligible for COF - regardless of your residency or lawful presence status.
  • Pikes Peak State College's High School Programs requires students to apply and authorize COF to achieve 100% tuition payment.
    • If they decide not utilize COF, participating high-school students will be responsible for the amount that COF would have cover.

  • You must have resident status with PPSC.
  • Please provide a copy of your permanent resident green card to COF@pikespeak.edu 

  • You must have resident status with PPSC.
  • Please provide a copy of your DACA card to COF@pikespeak.edu

  • You must have resident status with PPSC, attended a Colorado high school for at least 1 year and graduated or received a GED from that school.
  • Please provide a copy of your high school transcript and your 10-digit State Assigned Student ID number, available from your school,
    to COF@pikespeak.edu.

Information by Military Benefit

Unless you have selected a Lifetime Authorization to use COF with Pikes Peak State College, you must choose to authorize or decline the use of COF for each term. This will help prevent any unpaid balance on your student account.

  • If you choose to Authorize the use of COF, those funds will apply a tuition discount. VA will be billed for the remaining tuition and fees (for applicable courses).  
  • If you choose to Decline the use of COF, VA will be billed for the full tuition and fees (for applicable courses). Your COF funds will then remain available to use in the future.

Unless you have selected a Lifetime Authorization to use COF with Pikes Peak State College, you must choose to authorize or decline the use of COF for each term. This will help prevent any unpaid balance on your student account.

  • If you choose to Authorize the use of COF, those funds will apply a tuition discount. You are responsible to pay your remaining tuition and fees directly to the school using VA education benefit payments or other funds. 
  • If you choose to Decline the use of COF, you are responsible to pay your full tuition and fees directly to the school using VA education benefit payments or other funds. Your COF funds will then remain available to use in the future.

You are required to apply for and authorize the use of COF per Veterans Readiness and Employment policy.

  • If you choose to Authorize the use of COF, your tuition is reduced to the Resident Rate with COF. This is the amount DoD Tuition Assistance will pay.
  • If you choose to Decline the use of COF, you will be responsible for paying any remaining tuition owed to Pikes Peak State College. Your COF funds will then remain available to use in the future.
  • The Tuition Assistance pays for your tuition only. You are responsible for any fees from Pikes Peak State College.

For more assistance understanding your education benefits in conjunction with COF, please email mvp@pikespeak.edu.

How to Apply and Authorize COF Funds

Student Painting

1. Register for Classes

  • COF cannot apply unless we knows how many credit hours you're taking.
  • If you change your schedule, your COF discount will dynamically adjust as you adjust your schedule.
    • Once the state begins to disburse COF funds - the discount may take 3-5 business days to reflect on your student billing account.
    • Please see our FAQ for COF disbursement dates.
 Lightbulk graphicNeed Help Selecting Classes? Schedule an advising appointment to get academic guidance.
Register for Classes

2. Apply for COF

  • Apply for COF
  • When creating the COF account, do not use nicknames or alternative information. Information should match your PPSC admission application.
  • If you do not have a Social Security number or choose not to use it, you will be assigned a number at the end of the COF application. Please provide that number to COF@pikespeak.edu

 Lightbulk graphicTip! You only have to make a COF account once. The system will tell you if you already have an account.
Apply for COF Funds
COF LOGO
Student working at Computer

3. Authorize COF

You must be registered for classes before you can authorize COF.

  1. Log in to myPIKESPEAK.
  2. Select Student Finance, then select College Opportunity Fund (COF).
  3. Select the correct term (semester) and click Continue.
  4. Select your COF authorization option, then click Submit.

We strongly recommend selecting the Lifetime option. Choosing the lifetime authorization option means you will not need to authorize COF again for future eligible terms unless you choose to change your authorization.

Important: If you see a blank screen after selecting College Opportunity Fund (COF), you are likely not yet registered for classes for the selected term. Register for your classes first, then return to Student Finance and repeat the steps above.

Authorize COF in your Student Portal

How to Check Your COF Authorization Status

You can check your COF authorization status through your MYPIKESPEAK portal.

  1. Log in to your MYPIKESPEAK portal.
  2. Select Registration Self-Service, then click OPEN REGISTRATION DASHBOARD.
  3. Select View COF Stipend History to view your COF authorization information.

Important: The View COF Stipend History option will only appear after you have registered for at least one class and authorized COF. If you do not see this option, make sure you have registered for classes and completed the COF authorization process.

students talking at Rampart Range Campus
Student Thinking

Still Have Questions?

Please check out our Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) page for information about COF deadlines and other questions.
Visit our Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) page