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2024 Best Education Schools in Iowa

20 Colleges in Iowa
3,517 Education Degrees Awarded
$40,708 Avg Early-Career Salary
If you plan on majoring in education, you won't be alone since the degree program is ranked #4 in the country in terms of popularity. As a result, there are many college that offer the degree, making your choice of school a hard one.

For its 2024 ranking, College Factual looked at 20 schools in Iowa to determine which ones were the best for education students pursuing a degree. Combined, these schools handed out 3,517 degrees in education to qualified students.

Jump to one of the following sections: * Degree-Level Rankings

Choosing a Great Education School

Best Education Schools in Iowa Your choice of education school matters, so we have put together these rankings to help you make your decision. We derive our Best Overall Education School rankings by rolling up our degree-level rankings after weighting them by the number of degrees awarded at each school.

You may want to choose one of the degree levels below to find the schools of most interest to you.

Pick Your Education Degree Level

Associate Degrees in Education
Bachelor's Degrees in Education
Master's Degrees in Education
Doctor's Degrees in Education

Since picking the right college can be one of the most important decisions of your life, we've developed the Best Education Schools in Iowa ranking, along with many other major-related rankings, to help you make that decision. If you'd like to restrict your choices to just one part of the country, you can filter this list by location.

In addition to our rankings, you can take two colleges and compare them based on the criteria that matters most to you in our unique tool, College Combat. Test it out when you get a chance! You may also want to bookmark the link and share it with others who are trying to make the college decision.

If you want to learn more about how we derive our rankings, see College Factual's Methodology.


 

Best Schools for Education in Iowa

If you aren't interested in a particular degree level and want to know which schools are the overall best at delivering an education for the education degrees they offer, see the list below.

10 Top Iowa Schools in Education

1
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
674 Education Degrees Awarded
$44,167 Median Starting Salary

It's hard to beat University of Northern Iowa if you wish to pursue a degree in education. Located in the city of Cedar Falls, UNI is a public university with a moderately-sized student population. A Best Colleges rank of #199 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means UNI is a great university overall.

There were about 674 education students who graduated with this degree at UNI in the most recent data year. Those education students who get their degree from University of Northern Iowa earn $3,459 more than the average education graduate.

More information about a degree in education from University of Northern Iowa

2
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
447 Education Degrees Awarded
7.2% Growth in Graduates

Every student who is interested in education has to check out Iowa State University. Located in the small city of Ames, Iowa State is a public university with a very large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #75 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means Iowa State is a great university overall.

There were roughly 447 education students who graduated with this degree at Iowa State in the most recent year we have data available. Students who graduate with their degree from the education program state that they receive average early career wages of $42,166.

More information about a degree in education from Iowa State University

3
Iowa crest
University of Iowa
Iowa City, IA
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
395 Education Degrees Awarded
$44,360 Median Starting Salary

It is difficult to beat University of Iowa if you want to pursue a degree in education. Iowa is a fairly large public university located in the small city of Iowa City. A Best Colleges rank of #84 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means Iowa is a great university overall.

There were about 395 education students who graduated with this degree at Iowa in the most recent year we have data available. Those education students who get their degree from University of Iowa receive $3,652 more than the typical education graduate.

More information about a degree in education from University of Iowa

4
Drake crest
Drake University
Des Moines, IA
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
267 Education Degrees Awarded
$51,034 Median Starting Salary

Drake University is one of the finest schools in the country for getting a degree in education. Located in the city of Des Moines, Drake is a private not-for-profit university with a small student population. A Best Colleges rank of #224 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means Drake is a great university overall.

There were roughly 267 education students who graduated with this degree at Drake in the most recent data year. Education degree recipients from Drake University receive an earnings boost of about $10,326 over the average earnings of education graduates.

More information about a degree in education from Drake University

5
NWC crest
Northwestern College
Orange City, IA
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
182 Education Degrees Awarded
16.5% Growth in Graduates

Located in the town of Orange City, NWC is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population. A Best Colleges rank of #493 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means NWC is a great college overall.

There were roughly 182 education students who graduated with this degree at NWC in the most recent year we have data available. Those education students who get their degree from Northwestern College make $6,868 more than the average education grad.

More information about a degree in education from Northwestern College

6
Dordt crest
Dordt University
Sioux Center, IA
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
133 Education Degrees Awarded
$33,652 Median Starting Salary

Located in the town of Sioux Center, Dordt is a private not-for-profit university with a small student population. A Best Colleges rank of #428 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means Dordt is a great university overall.

There were approximately 133 education students who graduated with this degree at Dordt in the most recent data year. Students who receive their degree from the education program make about $33,652 in the first couple years of working.

More information about a degree in education from Dordt University

7
Wartburg crest
Wartburg College
Waverly, IA
Bachelor's Degree Highest Degree Type
36 Education Degrees Awarded
$39,574 Median Starting Salary

Located in the distant town of Waverly, Wartburg is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population. This college ranks 15th out of 40 schools for overall quality in the state of Iowa.

There were about 36 education students who graduated with this degree at Wartburg in the most recent data year. Graduates who receive their degree from the education program earn about $39,574 in their early career salary.

More information about a degree in education from Wartburg College

8
Morningside crest
Morningside College
Sioux City, IA
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
314 Education Degrees Awarded
$48,286 Median Starting Salary

Located in the small city of Sioux City, Morningside is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population. A Best Colleges rank of #438 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means Morningside is a great college overall.

There were approximately 314 education students who graduated with this degree at Morningside in the most recent data year. Degree recipients from the education degree program at Morningside College earn $7,579 above the standard college grad in this field shortly after graduation.

More information about a degree in education from Morningside College

9
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
41 Education Degrees Awarded
7.3% Growth in Graduates

Located in the city of Davenport, St. Ambrose University is a private not-for-profit university with a small student population. A Best Colleges rank of #441 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means St. Ambrose University is a great university overall.

There were roughly 41 education students who graduated with this degree at St. Ambrose University in the most recent year we have data available. Those education students who get their degree from Saint Ambrose University make $5,142 more than the standard education student.

More information about a degree in education from Saint Ambrose University

10
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
182 Education Degrees Awarded
$37,058 Median Starting Salary

Located in the rural area of Fayette, UIU is a private not-for-profit university with a small student population. This university ranks 17th out of 40 schools for overall quality in the state of Iowa.

There were roughly 182 education students who graduated with this degree at UIU in the most recent year we have data available. After graduating, education degree recipients typically earn around $37,058 at the beginning of their careers.

More information about a degree in education from Upper Iowa University


 

Best Education Colleges in the Plains States Region

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

State Colleges Degrees Awarded
Kansas 38 4,511
Minnesota 38 8,358
South Dakota 38 1,043
Missouri 38 7,228
Nebraska 36 3,897
North Dakota 35 1,234

View All Rankings >

Education Majors to Study

Major Annual Graduates
Teacher Education Grade Specific 1,609
Teacher Education Subject Specific 719
Educational Administration 340
General Education 226
Student Counseling 191
Special Education 180
Curriculum & Instruction 129
Teaching English or French 48
Other Education 31
Educational Assessment 25

View All Education Related Majors >

Notes and References

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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