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Upper Iowa University: Rankings, Admissions, Cost & Majors

Fair Price Value for Your Money
96% Acceptance Rate
6% Student Loan Default Rate

Upper Iowa University is a private not-for-profit institution in Fayette, Iowa enrolling 1,994 undergraduates. It accepts 96% of applicants and has an on-time graduation rate of 34%, near the national average of 33%. College Factual ranks it #1,641 of 5,159 colleges nationwide in its 2027 Best Colleges ranking (top 32%), and its Value for Your Money analysis rates it a Fair Price.

Source: IPEDS 2025; College Scorecard July 2026; College Factual rankings 2027. Data as of: July 2026.

How Is Upper Iowa University Ranked?

Upper Iowa University ranks #1,641 of 5,159 colleges nationwide in College Factual’s 2027 Best Colleges ranking, placing it in the top 32%.

#1,641 Best Colleges in Nation
#40 Best Colleges in IA
Upper Iowa University ranking badge

2027 Rankings

In its yearly rankings, College Factual analyzes over 2,000 colleges and universities to determine which ones are the best in a variety of categories, such as overall value, quality, diversity, which schools are the best for each major, and much more.

Overall Quality

UIU is ranked #1,641 out of 5,159 schools in the nation for overall quality on College Factual’s 2027 Best Colleges list.

UIU also holds the #40 spot on the Best Colleges in Iowa ranking.

See all of the rankings for Upper Iowa University.

Is It Hard to Get Into Upper Iowa University?

96% Acceptance Rate
97% Of Accepted Are Women
2% Submit SAT Scores

Acceptance Rate

With an acceptance rate of 96%, Upper Iowa University is easier to get into than many other schools. But that doesn’t mean you can slack off on your application. Make sure to treat this school like any other when submitting requested materials and documents.

Average Test Scores

UIU received ACT scores from 13% of accepted students. When looking at the 25th through the 75th percentile, ACT Composite scores ranged between 17 and 23.

ACT Composite Scores for Upper Iowa University  ( 17 to 23 )
1
36

Learn more about Upper Iowa University admissions.

What Is the Student-to-Faculty Ratio at Upper Iowa University?

25 to 1 Student to Faculty
100% Full Time Teachers

Student to Faculty Ratio

At Upper Iowa University, the student to faculty ratio is 25 to 1. Compared to the national average of 15 to 1, this is somewhat high. This could mean that class sizes may be larger than they are at other colleges or universities or that professors may be required to teach more classes.

Percent of Full-Time Faculty

Another measure that is often used to estimate how much access students will have to their professors is how many faculty members are full-time. The idea here is that part-time faculty tend to spend less time on campus, so they may not be as available to students as full-timers.

The full-time faculty percentage at Upper Iowa University is 100%. This is higher than the national average of 47%.

Full-Time Faculty Percent  100 out of 100
0
100

What Are the Graduation and Retention Rates at Upper Iowa University?

68% Freshmen Retention
34% On-Time Graduation Rate

Freshmen Retention Rate

The freshmen retention rate tells us what percentage of first-year, full-time students choose to continue on to their sophomore year at a particular school. The rate at Upper Iowa University is 68%, which is about average when compared to the national rate of 68%.

Freshmen Retention Rate  68 out of 100
0
100

Graduation Rate

The on-time graduation rate is the percent of first-time, full-time students who get their bachelor’s degree within four years. At UIU this rate is 34%, which is about average when compared to the national rate of 33.3%.

On-Time Graduation Rate  34 out of 100
0
100

Find out more about the retention and graduation rates at Upper Iowa University.

How Diverse Is Upper Iowa University?

1,994 Undergraduate Students
26.3% Racial-Ethnic Minorities*
50.5% Percent Women

In the current academic year, there are 1,994 undergraduates at UIU.

Get more detailed information on the diversity at Upper Iowa University.

How Much Does Upper Iowa University Cost?

$17,140 Net Price
40% Take Out Loans
$34,148 Total Student Loans

The overall average net price of UIU is $17,140. The affordability of the school largely depends on your financial need since net price varies by income group. See the table below for the net price for different income groups.

Net Price by Income Group for UIU

$0-30 K $30K-48K $48-75 $75-110K $110K +
$17,715 $22,774 $18,720 $20,041 $23,805

The net price is calculated by adding tuition, room, board and other costs and subtracting financial aid. Note that the net price is typically less than the published price for a school. For more information on the sticker price of UIU, see our tuition and fees and room and board pages.

Student Loan Debt

While almost two-thirds of students nationwide take out loans to pay for college, the percentage may be quite different for the school you plan on attending. At UIU, approximately 40% of students took out student loans averaging $8,537 a year. That adds up to $34,148 over four years for those students. The student loan default rate is 6.3%. Although this is lower than the national default rate of 10.1%, you’ll still want to keep this in mind when taking out student loans. Get more details about paying for Upper Iowa University.

How Much Do Upper Iowa University Graduates Earn?

$52,766 Avg Salary of Grads
High Earnings Boost

Although some majors pay more than others, students who graduate from Upper Iowa University with a bachelor’s degree go on to jobs where they make an average salary of $52,766 in their early years. This is right on par with the average college graduate’s salary of $49,219 per year. Also, graduates in your major field may make more. Average Salary for Upper Iowa University Graduates

See which majors at Upper Iowa University make the most money.

Where Is Upper Iowa University Located?

Iowa State
1,994 Undergraduate Students
Rural Campus Setting

Upper Iowa University is an private not-for-profit institution situated in Fayette, Iowa. Students who love country life may enjoy the rural location of UIU. Get more details about the location of Upper Iowa University.

Location of Upper Iowa University

Get in touch with Upper Iowa University are given below.

Contact Details
Address: 605 Washington St, Fayette, IA 52142-1857
Phone: 5634255200
Website: www.uiu.edu
Wikipedia: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Upper_Iowa_University

What Majors Does Upper Iowa University Offer?

17 Majors With Completions
2,348 Undergraduate Degrees

In the latest year of available data, students from 17 majors graduated from Upper Iowa University. The following table lists the most popular undergraduate majors along with the average salary graduates from those majors make.

Most Popular Majors Completions Average Salary of Graduates
Multi-Disciplinary Studies 1,174 NA
Business Administration & Management 240 $53,078
Teacher Education Grade Specific 128 $37,288
General Psychology 107 $34,665
Teacher Education Subject Specific 69 $36,828
Special Education 54 NA
Nursing 54 $55,887
Accounting 51 $50,483
Liberal Arts General Studies 50 NA
Human Resource Management 47 $47,896

Learn more about the majors offered at Upper Iowa University along with which ones have the highest average starting salaries.

Does UIU Offer Online Classes?

151% Take At Least One Class Online
112% Take All Classes Online

3,011 students took at least one online class at Upper Iowa University.

Online learning options are becoming more and more popular at American colleges and universities. Online classes are great for students who have busy schedules or for those who just want to study on their own time.

Learn more about online learning at Upper Iowa University.

Curious how schools stack up against UIU? Match them up using College Combat, a free interactive tool for comparing colleges on the features you care about.

Notes and References

Footnotes

*The racial-ethnic minorities count is calculated by taking the total number of students and subtracting white students, international students, and students whose race/ethnicity was unknown. This number is then divided by the total number of students at the school to obtain the racial-ethnic minorities percentage.

References

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