2023 Best Master's Degree Schools in Iowa
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. Alternatively, you may choose a trade school or bootcamp that prepares you to enter the workforce with knowledge in a specific field.
To assist you in seeing some of the education options that are available to you, Course Advisor has created its Best Master's Degree Schools in Iowa ranking. Our analysis looked at 21 schools in Iowa to see which master'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.
Featured schools near , edit
Top Master's Degree Schools in Iowa
Learn more about these excellent schools below:
Our 2023 rankings named Drake University the best school in Iowa for students working on their master’s degree.
One thing to take note of is that Drake does offer online graduate classes in some areas. During the 2019-2020 year, about 80% of the graduate students at the school took at least one online course.
A rank of #2 on this year’s list means Northwestern College is a great place for students working on their master’s degree.
NWC does have options available for those who want to take online graduate classes. You will need to check with the school to see if they are available for your specific major. To give an idea of how popular online courses are at the school, 94% of graduates took at least one course online in 2019-2020.
A rank of #3 on this year’s list means Simpson College is a great place for students working on their master’s degree.
One thing to take note of is that Simpson College does offer online graduate classes in some areas. In fact, around 38% of the graduate population registered for at least one online class in 2019-2020.
A rank of #4 on this year’s list means University of Iowa is a great place for students working on their master’s degree.
Iowa does have options available for those who want to take online graduate classes. You will need to check with the school to see if they are available for your specific major. To give an idea of how popular online courses are at the school, 33% of graduates took at least one course online in 2019-2020.
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of Northern Iowa. It ranked #5 on our 2023 Best Master’s Degree Schools in Iowa list.
You may have the opportunity to take online graduate classes at UNI. During the 2019-2020 year, about 67% of the graduate students at the school took at least one online course.
With a ranking of #6, Iowa State University did quite well on this year’s best schools for students working on their master’s degree.
Iowa State does have options available for those who want to take online graduate classes. You will need to check with the school to see if they are available for your specific major. During the 2019-2020 year, about 54% of the graduate students at the school took at least one online course.
Loras College came in at #7 in this year’s edition of the Best Master’s Degree Schools in Iowa ranking.
One thing to take note of is that Loras does offer online graduate classes in some areas. Of all the graduate students enrolled at the school during the 2019-2020 academic year, around 44% took at least some of their classes online.
Buena Vista University ranked #8 on this year’s Best Master’s Degree Schools in Iowa list.
If you are interested in distance education, be sure to check with the school since BVU does offer online graduate classes for certain majors. To give an idea of how popular online courses are at the school, 85% of graduates took at least one course online in 2019-2020.
Saint Ambrose University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for students to get a master’s degree. It came in at #9 on the list.
Depending on your major, you may be able to take online graduate classes at St. Ambrose University. To give an idea of how popular online courses are at the school, 15% of graduates took at least one course online in 2019-2020.
Dordt University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for students to get a master’s degree. It came in at #10 on the list.
Since the graduate programs at Dordt are online, the school is an excellent choice for graduate students who need more flexibility than what is offered at some other schools.
With a ranking of #11, Graceland University - Lamoni did quite well on this year’s best schools for students working on their master’s degree.
Interested in an online degree? Then you definitely want to check out Graceland Lamoni. Every graduate student at the school took at least one class online.
Morningside College landed the #12 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best master’s degree programs.
Morningside is one of the schools on our list that is primarily online. Each graduate student at the school took at least one class online.
Grand View University came in at #13 in this year’s edition of the Best Master’s Degree Schools in Iowa ranking.
One thing to take note of is that Grand View University does offer online graduate classes in some areas. To give an idea of how popular online courses are at the school, 89% of graduates took at least one course online in 2019-2020.
Mount Mercy University ranked #14 on this year’s Best Master’s Degree Schools in Iowa list.
Mount Mercy does offer online graduate classes for certain degree levels. To give an idea of how popular online courses are at the school, 62% of graduates took at least one course online in 2019-2020.
Maharishi International University came in at #15 in this year’s edition of the Best Master’s Degree Schools in Iowa ranking.
One thing to take note of is that MIU does offer online graduate classes in some areas. Of all the graduate students enrolled at the school during the 2019-2020 academic year, around 78% took at least some of their classes online.
Upper Iowa University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for students to get a master’s degree. It came in at #16 on the list.
Online graduate courses are available at UIU, but you will need to check with the school to see if they are available for your field of interest. In fact, around 92% of the graduate population registered for at least one online class in 2019-2020.
University of Dubuque ranked #17 on this year’s Best Master’s Degree Schools in Iowa list.
One thing to take note of is that UD does offer online graduate classes in some areas. Of all the graduate students enrolled at the school during the 2019-2020 academic year, around 27% took at least some of their classes online.
Briar Cliff University landed the #18 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best master’s degree programs.
Briar Cliff does have options available for those who want to take online graduate classes. You will need to check with the school to see if they are available for your specific major. In 2019-2020 about 64% of the graduate students at the school chose to take one or more online courses.
William Penn University landed the #19 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best master’s degree programs.
Online graduate courses are available at William Penn University, but you will need to check with the school to see if they are available for your field of interest. During the 2019-2020 year, about 28% of the graduate students at the school took at least one online course.
Clarke University ranked #20 on this year’s Best Master’s Degree Schools in Iowa list.
You may have the opportunity to take online graduate classes at Clarke. In 2019-2020 about 7% of the graduate students at the school chose to take one or more online courses.
Waldorf University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for students to get a master’s degree. It came in at #21 on the list.
Waldorf is one of the schools on our list that is primarily online. Each graduate student at the school took at least one class online.
Best Master's Degree Schools in the Plains States Region
View Best Master’s Degree Schools Nationwide >
Notes and References
Footnotes
*These averages are for the top 21 schools only.
References
- 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 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).
- Information about the national average student loan default rate is from the U.S. Department of Education and refers to data about the 2016 borrower cohort tracking period for which the cohort default rate (CDR) was 10.1%.
More about our data sources and methodologies.
Featured Schools
Request Info | Southern New Hampshire University You have goals. Southern New Hampshire University can help you get there. Whether you need a bachelor's degree to get into a career or want a master's degree to move up in your current career, SNHU has an online program for you. Find your degree from over 200 online programs. Learn More > |