Iowa

Schools In Iowa – Accredited

Known more widely for its endless cornfields, Iowa is actually home to many renowned colleges and universities. The state has three public universities (The University of Iowa, Northern Iowa University, and Iowa State University). Each of these offers degree programs ranging from Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees to Doctoral degrees, and each one of these schools offers fully online programs as well. Iowa is also home to many other accredited degree-granting institutions, many of them universities, and a good number of the Bachelor-degree-only colleges.

Many of the colleges and universities in Iowa are ranked in the top of U.S. News and World Report’s regular college ranking lists. Among the top schools are Buena Vista University, Clark University, Dordt College, Drake University, Loras College, Morningside College and The University of Northern Iowa.

Each of these comes in the top 30 for schools in the Midwest. All of these schools offer a top-notch education, high amounts of academic rigor, and an extremely varied academic program for those seeking degrees in many different fields of study.

The state has many different institutions of higher learning beyond just public and private institutions. For those looking for somewhat of an alternative education beyond just a typical 4-year institution or university, there are both community colleges and private, religiously-focused schools. Iowa’s community college scene is vast, with colleges stretched across the state, and several community colleges working jointly to serve students in a wider area. For these seeking more religious study, Iowa is also home to many religious schools, several which are highly ranked, including Mount Mercy University and St. Ambrose University.

Although the top 3 colleges in Iowa are private institutions (Grinnell College, Drake University and Luther College), the state’s flagship schools are also highly ranked within the state. Iowa State University and the University of Iowa each comes in the top 5 on various ranked lists for the state. Because both schools are in the state’s public university system, both are not only cheaper to attend than the top 3 private institutions, but also have a wider range of programs available for students across the state. As with most colleges, out-of-state students wishing to attend these schools can expect to pay more money than residents. Between the two, Iowa State University offers a lower cost to out-of-state students (around $19,000), as opposed to The University of Iowa (around $27,000).

Iowa – Traditional Colleges

AIB College of Business

• Site – www.aib.edu
• Phone – 800-343-6738
• Admissions – clineg@aib.edu
• Financial Aid – wilsont@aib.edu

Briar Cliff College

• Site – www.briarcliff.edu
• Phone – 712-279-1628
• Admissions – admissions@briarcliff.edu
• Financial Aid – robert.piechota@briarcliff.edu

Buena Vista University

• Site – www.bvu.edu
• Phone – 800-383-9600
• Admissions – admissions@bvu.edu
• Financial Aid – financialaid@bvu.edu

Central College

• Site – www.central.edu
• Phone – 877-462-3687
• Admissions – admissions@central.edu
• Financial Aid – finaid@central.edu

Clarke College

• Site – www.clarke.edu
• Photo – 800-383-2345
• Admissions – admissions@clarke.edu
• Financial Aid – admissions@clarke.edu

Coe College

• Site – www.coe.edu
• Phone – 877-CALLCOE
• Admissions – admission@coe.edu
• Financial Aid – financialaid@coe.edu

Cornell College

• Site – www.cornellcollege.edu
• Phone – 800-747-1112
• Admissions – cornell-admissions@cornellcollege.edu
• Financial Aid – financial_assistance@cornellcollege.edu

Dordt College

• Site – www.dordt.edu
• Phone – 800-343-6738
• Admissions – admissions@dordt.edu
• Financial Aid – quentin@dordt.edu

Drake University

• Site – www.choose.drake.edu
• Phone – 800-44-DRAKE
• Admissions – admission@drake.edu
• Financial Aid – financialaid@drake.edu

Graceland University

• Site – www.graceland.edu
• Phone – 800-346-9208
• Admissions – washburn@graceland.edu
• Financial Aid – washburn@graceland.edu

Grand View College

• Site – www.gvc.edu
• Phone – 800-444-6083
• Admissions – admissions@gvc.edu
• Financial Aid – finaid@gvc.edu

Grinnell College

• Site – www.iastate.edu
• Phone – 800-247-0113
• Admissions – askgrin@grinnell.edu
• Financial Aid – finaid@grinnell.edu

Iowa State University

• Site – www.iastate.edu
• Phone – 800-262-3810
• Admissions – admissions@iastate.edu
• Financial Aid – financialaid@iastate.edu

Iowa Wesleyan College

• Site – www.iwc.edu
• Phone – 800-582-2383
• Admissions – admitrwl@iwc.edu
• Financial Aid – finaid@iwc.edu

Loras College

• Site – www.loras.edu
• Phone – 800-245-6727
• Admissions – adms@loras.edu
• Financial Aid – adms@loras.edu

Luther College

• Site – www.luther.edu
• Phone – 800-458-8437
• Admissions – admissions@luther.edu
• Financial Aid – lutherfa@luther.edu

Maharishi University of Management

• Site – www.mum.edu
• Phone – 641-472-1110
• Admissions – admissions@mum.edu
• Financial Aid – Trowe@mum.edu

Morningside College

• Site – www.morningside.edu
• Phone – 800-831-0806
• Admissions – mscadm@chief.morningside.edu
• Financial Aid – gagnon@morningside.edu

Mount Mercy College

• Site – www.mtmercy.edu
• Phone – 800-248-4504
• Admissions – admission@mtmercy.edu
• Financial Aid – admission@mtmercy.edu

Northwestern College

• Site – www.nwciowa.edu
• Phone – 800-747-4757
• Admissions – markb@nwciowa.edu
• Financial Aid – finaid@nwciowa.edu

Saint Ambrose University

• Site – www.sau.edu
• Phone – 800-383-2627
• Admissions – admit@sau.edu
• Financial Aid – admit@sau.edu

University of Dubuque

• Site – www.dbq.edu
• Phone – 563-589-3000
• Admissions – admssns@univ.dbq.edu
• Financial Aid – finaid@dbq.edu

University of Iowa

• Site – www.uiowa.edu
• Phone – 800-553-4692
• Admissions – admissions@uiowa.edu
• Financial Aid – www.uiowa.edu/financial-aid

University of Northern Iowa

• Site – www.uni.edu
• Phone – 319-273 2281
• Admissions – admissions@uni.edu
• Financial Aid – april.schmiesing@uni.edu

Upper Iowa University

• Site – www.uiu.edu
• Phone – 800-553-4150
• Admissions – admission@uiu.edu
• Financial Aid – financialaid@uiu.edu

Waldorf College

• Site – www.waldorf.edu
• Phone – 800-292-1903
• Admissions – admissions@waldorf.edu
• Financial Aid – finaid@waldorf.edu

Wartburg College

• Site – www.wartburg.edu
• Phone – 800-772-2085
• Admissions – admissions@wartburg.edu
• Financial Aid – admissions@wartburg.edu

William Penn University

• Site – www.wmpenn.edu
• Phone – 800-779-7366
• Admissions – admissions@wmpenn.edu
• Financial Aid – peifferc@wmpenn.edu

Community Colleges in Iowa

Des Moines Area Community College

• Site – www.dmacc.edu
• Address – 1100 7th St, Des Moines, IA 50314
• Phone – (515) 244-4226

Ellsworth Community College

• Site – ecc.iavalley.edu
• Address – 1100 College Ave, Iowa Falls, IA 50126
• Phone –  (641) 648-4611

Hawkeye Community College

• Site – www.hawkeyecollege.edu
• Address – 844 W 4th St, Waterloo, IA 50702
• Phone – (319) 296-2320

Indian Hills Community College

• Site – www.indianhills.edu
• Address – 525 Grandview Ave, Ottumwa, IA 52501
• Phone – (641) 683-5111

Iowa Central Community College

• Site – www.iowacentral.edu
• Address – 1 Triton Cir, Fort Dodge, IA 50501
• Phone – (515) 576-0099

Iowa Lakes Community College

• Site – www.iowalakes.edu
• Address – 2240-2298 115th Ave, Algona, IA 50511
• Phone – (515) 295-9455

Iowa Western Community College

• Site –  www.iwcc.edu
• Address – 2700 College Rd, Council Bluffs, IA 51503
• Phone – (712) 325-3200

Kirkwood Community College

• Site – www.kirkwood.edu
• Address – 6301 Kirkwood Blvd SW, Cedar Rapids, IA 52404
• Phone – (319) 398-5411

Marshalltown Community College

• Site – mcc.iavalley.edu
• Address – 3700 S Center St, Marshalltown, IA 50158
• Phone – (641) 752-7106

Muscatine Community College

• Site – www.eicc.edu
• Address – 152 Colorado St, Muscatine, IA 52761
• Phone – (563) 288-6001

North Iowa Area Community College

• Site – www.niacc.edu
• Address – 500 College Dr, Mason City, IA 50401
• Phone – (641) 423-1264

Northeast Iowa Community College

• Site – www.niacc.edu
• Address – 8106-8142 Burds Rd, Peosta, IA 52068
• Phone – (563) 556-5110

Northwest Iowa Community College

• Site – www.nwicc.edu
• Address – 603 W Park St, Sheldon, IA 51201
• Phone – (712) 324-5061

Saint Luke’s College

• Site – stlukescollege.edu
• Address – UnityPoint Health – St. Luke’s, 2720 Stone Park Blvd, Sioux City, IA 51104
• Phone – (712) 279-3149

Scott Community College

• Site – www.eicc.edu
• Address – 500 Belmont Road, Bettendorf, IA 52722
• Phone – (563) 441-4001

Southeastern Community College

• Site – www.scciowa.edu
• Address – 1500 W Agency Rd, West Burlington, IA 52655
• Phone – (319) 752-2731

Southwestern Community College

• Site – www.swcciowa.edu
• Address – 1501 W Townline St, Creston, IA 50801
• Phone – (641) 782-7081

Western Iowa Tech Community College

• Site – www.witcc.edu
• Address – 4647 Stone Ave, Sioux City, IA 51106
• Phone – (712) 274-6400

Vocational, Trade & Career Colleges – Iowa

Cedar Falls

Kaplan University

Cedar Rapids

Capri College

Kaplan University

Capri College

Dubuque

Council Bluffs

Kaplan University

Capri College

Kaplan University

Davenport

Kaplan University

University of Phoenix

Vatterott College

Des Moines

Clinton

Ashford University

Kaplan University

Iowa Online Colleges

Iowa should be considered a leader in the nation when it comes to offering online degree programs. The majority of Iowa’s colleges, universities and community colleges all offer fully-online degree programs and classes, allowing the option of doing the rigorous coursework offered by these schools from the comfort of your own home. Indeed, almost every community college in the state also provides online degree programs, making Iowa one of the friendliest states for prospective students seeking to take courses fully or partially online.

The state’s friendliness to online degree programs is uniquely present in the fact that most of the state’s top-ranked schools all offer online degree programs as well. The website www.collegefactual.com, for example, ranks all colleges in every state, and puts the top 5 Iowa colleges, in order, as Grinnell College, Drake University, Luther College, The University of Iowa and Iowa State University. Of these, only Grinnell College and Luther College, both private institutions, do not offer online programs. Meanwhile, every one of the state’s public institutions, of which there are 3 (Iowa State University, University of Northern Iowa and the University of Iowa), offers a wide range of fully-online degree programs.

Those interested in online-degree programs at Iowa’s public institutions will be greeted with many different and rigorous options available. While Iowa State University only offers one undergraduate degree online, it does offer over 20 Master’s degree programs and 2 PhD programs online. The University of Iowa offers 5 undergraduate and 5 graduate degrees fully online, and The University of Northern Iowa provides students with the option of taking 3 undergraduate and over 20 graduate degrees online.

Iowa’s friendliness to online education puts it in a unique place as a forward-moving state. As online degree programs require the implementation of new and emerging technologies, students can expect that their online degree program professors will be studied and knowledgeable in not only distance learning technologies, but also learning theories related to teaching and learning remotely.