2023 Best Value Social Work Bachelor's Degree Schools in Iowa
Highlighting Quality Schools With More Affordable Pricing
Finding the Best Social Work Bachelor's Degree School for You
In 2020-2021, 553 degrees and certificates were awarded to social work students who went to a Iowa college or university. This makes it the #18 most popular major in the state.
There are so many programs in today's world that it can tough to figure out which one is the right one 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.
To help you arm yourself with the information you need to make your decision, Course Advisor has developed this Best Value Social Work Bachelor's Degree Schools in Iowa ranking. Our analysis looked at 9 schools in Iowa to see which bachelor's degree programs offered the best value experiences for social work students with the aim of identifying those quality schools that are more affordable than some of their counterparts.
This ranking is not just a list of inexpensive schools. We also consider each school's quality, since we believe a low-quality school may not be a 'bargain' at any price. 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.
For nationwide and regional rankings, we use out-of-state tuition and fees in our calculations. For statewide rankings, we use average in-state tuition and fees.
Best Iowa Schools for Affordable Quality for a Bachelor's in Social Work
Our 2023 rankings named University of Northern Iowa the best value school in Iowa for social work students working on their bachelor’s degree. Located in the city of Cedar Falls, UNI is a public school with a medium-sized student population.
In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at UNI are $9,053 per year. Social Work majors at UNI take out an average of $23,267 in student loans while working on their Bachelor's Degree. This translates to an average monthly loan payment of $147, based on a 10-year repayment plan.
UNI also took the #5 spot in our Best Social Work Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Iowa rankings.
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You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend University of Iowa. The school came in at #2 on this year’s Best Value Social Work Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Iowa list. Located in the small city of Iowa City, Iowa is a public college with a very large student population.
Iowa undergraduate students pay an average of $9,942 in in-state tuition and fees each year. After completing their Bachelor's Degree, social work graduates from Iowa carry an average student debtload of $25,372.
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You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Loras College. It ranked #3 on our 2023 Best Value Social Work Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Iowa list. Located in the small city of Dubuque, Loras is a private not-for-profit school with a small student population.
In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Loras are $35,268 per year.
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You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend Mount Mercy University. The school came in at #4 on this year’s Best Value Social Work Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Iowa list. Located in the midsize city of Cedar Rapids, Mount Mercy is a private not-for-profit school with a small student population.
The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at Mount Mercy are $36,540 a year. The average amount in student loans that social work majors at Mount Mercy take out while working on their Bachelor's Degree is $31,797.
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You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Grand View University. It ranked #5 on our 2023 Best Value Social Work Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Iowa list. Grand View University is a small private not-for-profit school located in the midsize city of Des Moines.
In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Grand View University are $30,954 per year.
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Saint Ambrose University came in at #6 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Social Work Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Iowa ranking. Located in the city of Davenport, St. Ambrose University is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population.
St. Ambrose University undergraduate students pay an average of $33,570 in in-state tuition and fees each year.
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Briar Cliff University ranked #7 on this year’s Best Value Social Work Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Iowa list. Briar Cliff is a small private not-for-profit school located in the small city of Sioux City.
Briar Cliff undergraduate students pay an average of $33,998 in in-state tuition and fees each year.
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Luther College landed the #8 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value bachelor’s degree social work programs. Luther is a small private not-for-profit school located in the town of Decorah.
The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at Luther are $46,760 a year.
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Clarke University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for social work students to get a bachelor’s degree. It came in at #9 on the list. Located in the small city of Dubuque, Clarke is a private not-for-profit school with a fairly small student population.
Clarke undergraduate students pay an average of $36,870 in in-state tuition and fees each year.
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Request InformationBest Value Social Work Colleges in the Plains States Region
Explore all the Best Value Social Work Colleges in the Plains States Area or other specific states within that region.
| State | Degrees Awarded |
|---|---|
| Missouri | 924 |
| Minnesota | 2,131 |
| Kansas | 623 |
| Nebraska | 262 |
| North Dakota | 258 |
| South Dakota | 20 |
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Majors Related to Social Work
Social Work is one of 5 different types of programs to choose from.
Most Popular Majors Related to Social Work
| Related Major | Annual Graduates |
|---|---|
| Public Administration | 16,905 |
| Human Services | 13,238 |
| Public Policy | 6,430 |
| Community Organization & Advocacy | 3,096 |
| Other Public Administration | 588 |
Notes and References
*These averages are for the top 9 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 Army Medicine.
More about our data sources and methodologies.