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2024 Best Value Colleges for General Biology in Iowa

12 Ranked Colleges
805 Degrees Awarded
$22,100 Avg Net Price*
Best Value Biology Schools in Iowa

With all of the options students have for higher education today, it can be tough to choose which direction to take. Our mission at College Factual is to arm you with as much information as we can to help you make that decision. Our “Best Value Biology Schools in Iowa” ranking is one tool we have developed to help in this regard.

General Biology is one of the most popular majors in the nation, ranking 5th of all the majors we analyze. In 2020-2021, 107,165 degrees were awarded to students with this major. In 2019-2020, general biology graduates who were awarded their degree in 2017-2019, earned an average of $28,334 and had an average of $23,818 in loans still to pay off.

Across Iowa, there were 805 general biology graduates with average earnings and debt of $28,942 and $25,506 respectively.

For this year’s “Best Value Biology Schools in Iowa” ranking, we looked at 12 colleges that offer a degree in general biology. Not only do the schools that top this list have excellent general biology programs, but they also cost less that schools of similar quality.

To come up with these rankings, we looked at factors such as the cost to attend the school after aid is awarded and overall quality of the general biology program at the school. Check out our ranking methodology for more information.

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Since picking the right college can be one of the most important decisions of your life, we’ve developed the “Best Value Biology Schools in Iowa” ranking, along with many other major-related rankings, to help you make that decision.

We’ve created a tool called College Combat that lets you create your own customized comparisons based on the factors that matter the most to you. If you’re torn between two schools, you can use it to help you see how they stack up against one another. Bookmark it so you can compare any new schools that might interest you.

Best Value Biology Schools in Iowa

The following schools top our list of the Best Best Value Biology Schools in Iowa.

Top 12 Best Value Colleges for General Biology in Iowa

1

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Iowa State University. It ranked #1 on our 2024 Best Value Biology Schools in Iowa list. Located in Ames, Iowa, this large public school awarded 198 diplomas to qualified ’s biology students in 2020-2021.

Iowa State also took the #2 spot in our “Best General Biology Schools in Iowa” ranking. The yearly cost to attend Iowa State is $16,002 for iowa biology students.

The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 2.4%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 88%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.

Full Iowa State University General Biology Report

2
Iowa crest
University of Iowa
Iowa City, Iowa

Out of the 12 schools in the Best Value Biology Schools in Iowa that were part of this year’s ranking, University of Iowa landed the #2 spot on the list. University of Iowa is a large school located in Iowa City, Iowa that handed out 109 ’s biology degrees in 2020-2021.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at Iowa, the school also landed the #1 spot in our “Best General Biology Schools in Iowa” ranking. The yearly cost to attend University of Iowa is $19,401 for Iowa Biology students.

The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 2.2%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. With a freshman retention rate of 88%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students.

Read more about General Biology at Iowa

3
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University of Northern Iowa
Cedar Falls, Iowa

Out of the 12 schools in the Best Value Biology Schools in Iowa that were part of this year’s ranking, University of Northern Iowa landed the #3 spot on the list. Located in Cedar Falls, Iowa, this medium-sized public school awarded 91 diplomas to qualified ’s biology students in 2020-2021.

UNI also made our “Best General Biology Schools in Iowa” list, coming in at #4. It costs about $16,438 for iowa biology students per year to attend University of Northern Iowa.

The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 2.8%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Read full report on General Biology at University of Northern Iowa

4
UIU crest
Upper Iowa University
Fayette, Iowa

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Upper Iowa University. It ranked #4 on our 2024 Best Value Biology Schools in Iowa list. Fayette, Iowa is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out ’s biology degrees to 14 students in 2020-2021.

UIU did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #7 on our “Best General Biology Schools in Iowa” list. The yearly cost to attend UIU is $24,063 for Iowa Biology students.

Read full report on General Biology at Upper Iowa University

5
Grand View University crest
Grand View University
Des Moines, Iowa

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Grand View University. The school came in at #5 for the Best Value Biology Schools in Iowa. This small school is located in Des Moines, Iowa, and it awarded 18 ’s biology degrees in 2020-2021.

Grand View University not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #10 on our “Best General Biology Schools in Iowa” list. The estimated yearly cost for Grand View University is $20,469 for iowa biology students.

Full Grand View University General Biology Report

6
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Morningside College
Sioux City, Iowa

Morningside College landed the #6 spot on the 2024 Best Value Biology Schools in Iowa ranking. Morningside is located in Sioux City, Iowa and, has a small student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 30 ’s biology degrees to qualified students.

In addition to being on our iowa biology students list, Morningside has also earned the #8 rank in our “Best General Biology Schools in Iowa” ranking. It costs about $22,350 for iowa biology students per year to attend Morningside College.

The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 4.4%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Full Morningside College General Biology Report

7
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Northwestern College
Orange City, Iowa

Northwestern College did quite well in the 2024 Best Value Biology Schools in Iowa ranking, coming in at #7. NWC is located in Orange City, Iowa and, has a small student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 14 ’s biology degrees to qualified students.

NWC not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #12 on our “Best General Biology Schools in Iowa” list. It costs about $22,410 for Iowa Biology students per year to attend NWC.

The low undergrad student loan default rate of 1.8% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%.

Read more about General Biology at NWC

8
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Luther College
Decorah, Iowa

With a ranking of #8, Luther College did quite well on the 2024 Best Value Biology Schools in Iowa list. This small school is located in Decorah, Iowa, and it awarded 32 ’s biology degrees in 2020-2021.

In addition to being on our iowa biology students list, Luther has also earned the #5 rank in our “Best General Biology Schools in Iowa” ranking. The yearly cost to attend Luther is $25,538 for Iowa Biology students.

The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 1.8%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Full Luther General Biology Report

9
Wartburg crest
Wartburg College
Waverly, Iowa

Wartburg College did quite well in the 2024 Best Value Biology Schools in Iowa ranking, coming in at #9. This small school is located in Waverly, Iowa, and it awarded 26 ’s biology degrees in 2020-2021.

Wartburg also made our “Best General Biology Schools in Iowa” list, coming in at #9. It costs about $22,765 for Iowa Biology students per year to attend Wartburg College.

The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 3.9%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Read more about General Biology at Wartburg

10
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Coe College
Cedar Rapids, Iowa

Coe College ranked #10 on this year’s Best Value Biology Schools in Iowa list. Coe College is a small private not-for-profit school situated in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. It awarded 29 ’s biology degrees in 2020-2021.

Coe not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #6 on our “Best General Biology Schools in Iowa” list. The yearly cost to attend Coe is $20,371 for iowa biology students.

The undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 9 to 1 is a sign that students will have more opportunities to engage with their professors one-on-one. The low undergrad student loan default rate of 2.8% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%.

Read more about General Biology at Coe

11
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Drake University
Des Moines, Iowa

Drake University landed the #11 spot on the 2024 Best Value Biology Schools in Iowa ranking. This small school is located in Des Moines, Iowa, and it awarded 13 ’s biology degrees in 2020-2021.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at Drake, the school also landed the #11 spot in our “Best General Biology Schools in Iowa” ranking. The yearly cost to attend Drake is $29,903 for Iowa Biology students.

The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 1.9%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Full Drake General Biology Report

12
Grinnell crest
Grinnell College
Grinnell, Iowa

Grinnell College did quite well in the 2024 Best Value Biology Schools in Iowa ranking, coming in at #12. Grinnell College is located in Grinnell, Iowa and, has a small student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 38 ’s biology degrees to qualified students.

Grinnell not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #3 on our “Best General Biology Schools in Iowa” list. The yearly cost to attend Grinnell is $25,182 for iowa biology students.

Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 93%. The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 0.3%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. Since the school has a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 9 to 1, those pursuing a degree will have more opportunities to interact with their professors.

Full Grinnell College General Biology Report

Notes and References

References

Read more about our data sources and methodologies

Footnotes

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