2023 Best Value Education Schools in Iowa
Highlighting Quality Schools With More Affordable Pricing
Finding the Best Education School for You
Education is one of the most popular subjects to study in Iowa. With 3,392 degrees and certificates handed out in 2020-2021, it ranked 4th out of all the majors we track in the state.
It's not easy to decide which program to enroll in when you have so many options available. You can choose a traditional brick and mortar school, or with the growth of online education, you can attend a school half-way across the country without even leaving your house. Also there are many trade schools that offer short-term programs that open up more career options.
Along with in-depth profiles of schools and the programs they offer, Course Advisor has created the Best Value Education Schools in Iowa to help you in your search for the best school for you. Our analysis looked at 18 schools in Iowa to see which programs offered the best value experiences for education students with the aim of identifying those quality schools that are more affordable than some of their counterparts.
Our ranking of value is based on the quality of a program as defined in our per sticker price dollar. Specifically, our score for quality is discounted by the published tuition and fees charged by the given college. This gives the cost per unit of quality for each college. The more quality your dollar buys, the better the value.
In our regional and nationwide rankings, out-of-state tution and fees are used in our calculations. For statewide rankings, we use average in-state tuition and fees.
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2023 Best Value Education Schools in Iowa
The following schools top our list of the Best Value Education Colleges.
Top 10 Best Education Schools
Our 2023 rankings named University of Northern Iowa the best value school in Iowa for education students. Located in the small city of Cedar Falls, UNI is a public school with a moderately-sized student population.
The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at UNI are $9,053 a year. On average, education graduates from UNI take out $25,439 in student loans while working on their degree. Assuming that a graduate chooses a 10-year repayment plan, the average monthly loan payment is $197.
UNI did well in our overall quality rankings, too. It placed #5 on our Best Education Schools in Iowa list.
Read full report on Education at University of Northern Iowa
The excellent programs at Northwestern College helped the school earn the #2 place on this year’s ranking of the best education schools in Iowa. Located in the distant town of Orange City, NWC is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population.
The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at NWC are $33,590 a year. After completing their degree, education graduates from NWC carry an average student debtload of $25,995.
NWC not only placed well in our value ranking, but it is also #1 on our Best Education Schools in Iowa list.
The excellent programs at Morningside College helped the school earn the #3 place on this year’s ranking of the best education schools in Iowa. Located in the city of Sioux City, Morningside is a private not-for-profit school with a small student population.
The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at Morningside are $35,270 a year. While working on their degree, education majors at Morningside accumulate an average of around $27,500 in student debt.
The excellent programs at Iowa State University helped the school earn the #4 place on this year’s ranking of the best education schools in Iowa. Iowa State is a very large public school located in the city of Ames.
Iowa State undergraduate students pay an average of $9,634 in in-state tuition and fees each year. The average amount in student loans that education majors at Iowa State take out is $24,433. For students who choose a 10-year repayment plan, the average monthly student loan payment is $206.
Iowa State not only placed well in our value ranking, but it is also #4 on our Best Education Schools in Iowa list.
A rank of #5 on this year’s list means University of Iowa is a great value for education students. Located in the city of Iowa City, Iowa is a public school with a very large student population.
In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Iowa are $9,942 per year. The average amount in student loans that education majors at Iowa take out is $27,000. Assuming that a graduate chooses a 10-year repayment plan, the average monthly loan payment is $326.
As a testament to the quality of education it offers, Iowa also is in the top 20% of our Best Education Schools in Iowa ranking.
Drake University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best value schools for education students. It came in at #6 on the list. Located in the city of Des Moines, Drake is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population.
Drake undergraduate students pay an average of $45,912 in in-state tuition and fees each year. After completing their degree, education graduates from Drake carry an average student debtload of $27,000.
In addition to its best value ranking, and one of the reasons why the school is on the list, Drake is ranked #3 for overall quality for education in Iowa.
Buena Vista University ranked #7 on this year’s Best Value Education Schools in Iowa list. Located in the town of Storm Lake, BVU is a private not-for-profit school with a small student population.
BVU undergraduate students pay an average of $37,518 in in-state tuition and fees each year. After completing their degree, education graduates from BVU carry an average student debtload of $33,959.
Dordt University landed the #8 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value education programs. Located in the remote town of Sioux Center, Dordt is a private not-for-profit school with a small student population.
Dordt undergraduate students pay an average of $33,590 in in-state tuition and fees each year. While working on their degree, education majors at Dordt accumulate an average of around $21,951 in student debt.
Simpson College did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best value schools for education students. It came in at #9 on the list. Located in the town of Indianola, Simpson College is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population.
The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at Simpson College are $44,030 a year. The average amount in student loans that education majors at Simpson College take out is $27,000.
As a testament to the quality of education it offers, Simpson College also is in the top 15% of our Best Education Schools in Iowa ranking.
Loras College came in at #10 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Education Schools in Iowa ranking. Located in the city of Dubuque, Loras is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population.
In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Loras are $35,268 per year. After completing their degree, education graduates from Loras carry an average student debtload of $27,000.
Best Value Education Colleges in the Plains States Region
Explore all the Best Value Education Colleges in the Plains States Area or other specific states within that region.
| State | Degrees Awarded |
|---|---|
| Kansas | 4,776 |
| Minnesota | 9,682 |
| South Dakota | 1,045 |
| Missouri | 7,906 |
| Nebraska | 4,167 |
| North Dakota | 1,291 |
More Education Rankings in Iowa
Majors Related to Education
Education Majors to Study
| Major | Annual Graduates |
|---|---|
| Teacher Education Grade Specific | 110,226 |
| Educational Administration | 46,469 |
| Teacher Education Subject Specific | 43,297 |
| Special Education | 36,792 |
| General Education | 29,810 |
| Curriculum & Instruction | 19,832 |
| Student Counseling | 13,858 |
| Instructional Media Design | 8,695 |
| Teaching English or French | 5,791 |
| Other Education | 4,858 |
| Teaching Assistants | 2,751 |
| Educational Assessment | 2,552 |
| Multilingual Education | 1,910 |
| Education Philosophy | 737 |
| International Education | 293 |
Majors Similar to Education
| Related Major | Annual Graduates |
|---|---|
| Social Sciences | 205,984 |
| Psychology | 195,678 |
| Communication & Journalism | 120,571 |
| Family, Consumer & Human Sciences | 55,820 |
| History | 32,731 |
Notes and References
*These averages are for the top 18 schools only.
- The Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) from the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), a branch of the U.S. Department of Education (DOE) serves as the core of the rest of our data about colleges.
- Some other college data, including much of the graduate earnings data, comes from the U.S. Department of Education’s (College Scorecard).
- Credit for the banner image above goes to Horadrim.
More about our data sources and methodologies.
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