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Best Value Special Education Schools in Iowa

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2023 Best Value Special Education Schools in Iowa

Identifying Quality Schools at More Affordable Prices

10 Colleges
$25,905 Avg Tuition & Fees*
$51,893 Avg Salary

Finding the Best Special Education School for You

In 2020-2021, 180 degrees and certificates were awarded to special education students who went to a Iowa college or university. This makes it the #65 most popular major in the state.

With all the programs available today, it can be tough to choose which one is the best for you. 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.

The Best Value Special Education Schools in Iowa ranking is one of many tools that Course Advisor has developed to help you make your educational decision. Our analysis looked at 10 schools in Iowa to see which programs offered the best value experiences for special ed 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. More specifically, we discount our quality score by the published tuition and fees charged by a school. This gives the cost per unit of quality for each college. The value is determined by how much quality your dollar buys.

In our regional and nationwide rankings, out-of-state tution and fees are used in our calculations. Average in-state tuition and fees are used for our statewide rankings.

2023 Best Value Special Education Schools in Iowa

The colleges and universities below are the best value schools for special ed majors pursuing a .

Top 10 Best Special Education Schools

#1

Northwestern College

Orange City, IA
$33,590 Average Tuition & Fees

Our 2023 rankings named Northwestern College the best value school in Iowa for special education students. NWC is a small private not-for-profit school located in the distant town of Orange City.

The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at NWC are $33,590 a year.

NWC not only placed well in our value ranking, but it is also #1 on our Best Special Education Schools in Iowa list.

Read More…

#2

Morningside College

Sioux City, IA
$35,270 Average Tuition & Fees

The excellent programs at Morningside College helped the school earn the #2 place on this year’s ranking of the best special education schools in Iowa. Morningside is a small private not-for-profit school located in the city of Sioux City.

In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Morningside are $35,270 per year.

Read More…

#3

University of Northern Iowa

Cedar Falls, IA
$9,053 Average Tuition & Fees

The excellent programs at University of Northern Iowa helped the school earn the #3 place on this year’s ranking of the best special education schools in Iowa. UNI is a moderately-sized public school located in the small city of Cedar Falls.

UNI undergraduate students pay an average of $9,053 in in-state tuition and fees each year.

UNI did well in our overall quality rankings, too. It placed #5 on our Best Special Education Schools in Iowa list.

Full Special Education at University of Northern Iowa Report

#4

Buena Vista University

Storm Lake, IA
$37,518 Average Tuition & Fees

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend Buena Vista University. The school came in at #4 on this year’s Best Value Special Education Schools in Iowa list. BVU is a small private not-for-profit school located in the remote town of Storm Lake.

In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at BVU are $37,518 per year.

Full Special Education at Buena Vista University Report

#5

Mount Mercy University

Cedar Rapids, IA
$36,540 Average Tuition & Fees

Out of the 10 schools in Iowa that were part of this year’s ranking, Mount Mercy University landed the # 5 spot on the list. Mount Mercy is a small private not-for-profit school located in the medium-sized city of Cedar Rapids.

The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at Mount Mercy are $36,540 a year.

Full Special Education at Mount Mercy University Report

#6

University of Iowa

Iowa City, IA
$9,942 Average Tuition & Fees

With a ranking of #6, University of Iowa did quite well on this year’s best value schools for special education students. Iowa is a very large public school located in the city of Iowa City.

In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Iowa are $9,942 per year.

As a testament to the quality of education it offers, Iowa also is in the top 20% of our Best Special Education Schools in Iowa ranking.

Full Special Education at University of Iowa Report

$9,634 Average Tuition & Fees

With a ranking of #7, Iowa State University did quite well on this year’s best value schools for special education students. Located in the small city of Ames, Iowa State is a public college with a very large student population.

In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Iowa State are $9,634 per year.

Iowa State also made our Best Special Education Schools in Iowa list, coming in at #4.

Full Special Education at Iowa State University Report

$31,920 Average Tuition & Fees

Graceland University - Lamoni did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best value schools for special education students. It came in at #8 on the list. Located in the rural area of Lamoni, Graceland Lamoni is a private not-for-profit school with a small student population.

In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Graceland Lamoni are $31,920 per year.

Read full report on Special Education at Graceland University - Lamoni

#9

Upper Iowa University

Fayette, IA
$33,609 Average Tuition & Fees

Upper Iowa University landed the #9 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value special education programs. UIU is a small private not-for-profit school located in the remote area of Fayette.

UIU undergraduate students pay an average of $33,609 in in-state tuition and fees each year.

Full Special Education at Upper Iowa University Report

#10

Dordt University

Sioux Center, IA
$33,590 Average Tuition & Fees

With a ranking of #10, Dordt University did quite well on this year’s best value schools for special education students. Dordt is a small private not-for-profit school located in the remote town of Sioux Center.

The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at Dordt are $33,590 a year.

Read full report on Special Education at Dordt University

Best Value Special Education Colleges in the Plains States Region

Explore all the Best Value Special Education Colleges in the Plains States Area or other specific states within that region.

State Degrees Awarded
Missouri 539
Minnesota 846
Kansas 444
Nebraska 362
North Dakota 186
South Dakota 94

Special Education is one of 14 different types of programs to choose from.

Related Major Annual Graduates
Teacher Education Grade Specific 110,226
Educational Administration 46,469
Teacher Education Subject Specific 43,297
General Education 29,810
Curriculum & Instruction 19,832

Notes and References

*These averages are for the top 10 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 woodleywonderworks.

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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