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Best Nursing Bachelor's Degree Schools in Iowa

2023 Best Nursing Bachelor's Degree Schools in Iowa

19 Colleges
$64,238 Avg Salary
$28,730 Avg Student Debt

Finding the Best Nursing Bachelor's Degree School for You

In 2020-2021, nursing students earned 2,966 degrees and certificates from an Iowa school, making the subject the 3rd in the state.

Today's students have lots of options to pick from when considering higher education opportunities. Along with traditional schools that require in-person attendence, you can attend one of many reputable online schools. Some programs even offer a hybrid experience. Alternatively, you may choose a trade school that prepares you to enter the workforce with knowledge in a specific field.

To help you arm yourself with the information you need to make your decision, Course Advisor has developed this Best Nursing Bachelor's Degree Schools in Iowa ranking. Our analysis looked at 19 schools in Iowa to see which bachelor's degree programs offered the best educational experiences for students. To come up with a school's ranking, we analyzed numerous factors related to post-graduation wages, the quality of education offered by the school, average accumulated student debt, and more.

View our full ranking methodology.

2023 Best Nursing Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Iowa

The colleges and universities below are the best for nursing majors pursuing a bachelor's degree.

Top 10 Best Nursing Bachelor's Degree Schools

#1

St Luke's College

Sioux City, IA

Our analysis found St Luke’s College to be the best school for nursing students who want to pursue a bachelor’s degree in Iowa. St Luke's College is a fairly small private not-for-profit school located in the small city of Sioux City.

After completing their Bachelor's Degree, nursing graduates from St Luke's College carry an average student debtload of $31,663.

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#2

Luther College

Decorah, IA

Out of the 19 schools in Iowa that were part of this year’s ranking, Luther College landed the # 2 spot on the list. Luther is a small private not-for-profit school located in the town of Decorah.

After completing their Bachelor's Degree, nursing graduates from Luther carry an average student debtload of $24,995.

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#3

Northwestern College

Orange City, IA

A rank of #3 on this year’s list means Northwestern College is a great place for nursing students working on their bachelor’s degree. Located in the town of Orange City, NWC is a private not-for-profit school with a small student population.

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#4

University of Iowa

Iowa City, IA

A rank of #4 on this year’s list means University of Iowa is a great place for nursing students working on their bachelor’s degree. Located in the city of Iowa City, Iowa is a public school with a fairly large student population.

After completing their Bachelor's Degree, nursing graduates from Iowa carry an average student debtload of $25,295. When it comes time to repay the loan, graduates who are on a 10-year repayment plan pay an average monthly payment of $221.

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A rank of #5 on this year’s list means Mercy College of Health Sciences is a great place for nursing students working on their bachelor’s degree. Located in the city of Des Moines, Mercy College of Health Sciences is a private not-for-profit school with a fairly small student population.

After completing their Bachelor's Degree, nursing graduates from Mercy College of Health Sciences carry an average student debtload of $32,347. The average monthly payment of a loan this size is about $330, assuming that the borrower is on a 10-year repayment plan.

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#6

Dordt University

Sioux Center, IA

Dordt University landed the #6 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best bachelor’s degree nursing programs. Located in the town of Sioux Center, Dordt is a private not-for-profit school with a small student population.

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#7

Saint Ambrose University

Davenport, IA

Saint Ambrose University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for nursing students to get a bachelor’s degree. It came in at #7 on the list. Located in the medium-sized city of Davenport, St. Ambrose University is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population.

Nursing majors at St. Ambrose University take out an average of $28,729 in student loans while working on their Bachelor's Degree. When it comes time to repay the loan, graduates who are on a 10-year repayment plan pay an average monthly payment of $500.

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#8

Upper Iowa University

Fayette, IA

Upper Iowa University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for nursing students to get a bachelor’s degree. It came in at #8 on the list. Located in the remote area of Fayette, UIU is a private not-for-profit school with a small student population.

Nursing majors at UIU take out an average of $34,722 in student loans while working on their Bachelor's Degree.

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Iowa State University landed the #9 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best bachelor’s degree nursing programs. Iowa State is a very large public school located in the city of Ames.

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#10

Allen College

Waterloo, IA

Allen College landed the #10 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best bachelor’s degree nursing programs. Allen College is a fairly small private not-for-profit school located in the city of Waterloo.

On average, nursing graduates from Allen College take out $28,861 in student loans while working on their Bachelor's Degree. Assuming that a graduate chooses a 10-year repayment plan, the average monthly loan payment is $242.

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Best Nursing Colleges in the Plains States Region

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

State Degrees Awarded
Missouri 6,840
Minnesota 14,890
Kansas 2,633
Nebraska 1,908
North Dakota 976
South Dakota 1,022

One of 30 majors within the area of study, nursing has other similar majors worth exploring.

Majors Similar to Nursing

Related Major Annual Graduates
Health & Medical Administrative Services 89,359
Allied Health & Medical Assisting Services 84,492
Practical Nursing & Nursing Assistants 84,274
Allied Health Professions 82,308
Public Health 40,596

Notes and References

*These averages are for the top 19 schools only.

  • Read more about our ranking methodology.
  • 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 Aleksahgabrielle.

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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