Boulder tagged for smart folks and life before and after graduation

Combine a beautiful setting and friendly people with an entrepreneurial with a major university and you get one of the smartest cities in the nation – perhaps because graduates of that university fall in love with the city itself.


Web magazine The Daily Beast recently named Boulder No. 1 on its list of America’s Brainiest Metros.

According to the magazine, America’s Brainiest Metros are a mix of large metros with a significant presence of technology and knowledge-based businesses and the nation’s premiere college and university towns. The presence of a major research university is one of the most decisive variables.

While noting that Boulder is known as a liberal enclave, the magazine touted the University of Colorado as “top notch” and home to some of the nation’s best science programs. It also recognized that Boulder is the base for several science research centers.

But it also has plenty of recreational opportunities that not only bring students to CU, but convince them to stay after graduation.

According to Liveability.com, Boulder ranks fifth on its Top 10 College Towns: Great Cities for School and Life After Graduation.

Liveability.com says besides CU, Boulder also offers its students and graduates “mountains and eye-catching scenery.” The average age of its residents is just 29, and it has more than 36,000 acres of open space, where students can test their skills in hiking, mountain biking or climbing. Boulder residents also have relatively short trips to hit the slopes at Eldora Mountain Ski Resort to ski, snowboard or snowshoe, and plenty of hot spots in town where they can warm up or shop and socialize.

Here’s a look at the top five in The Daily Beasts’ Brainiest Metros: