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2022 Best Value Social Sciences Schools for a Bachelor’s in Iowa For Those Making $0-$30k

13 Ranked Colleges
1,540 Degrees Awarded
$16,200 Avg Net Price*
Best Value Social Sciences Schools for a Bachelor's in Iowa For Those Making $0-$30k

When it comes to choosing a college, students have a lot of options - but not all of them are good. One of our goals at College Factual is to give you as much information as we can - such as our “Best Value Social Sciences Schools for a Bachelor’s in Iowa For Those Making $0-$30k” ranking - to help you make that decision.

In 2019-2020, 205,726 social sciences students received their degree, making the major the 5th most popular in the country. In 2017-2018, social sciences graduates who were awarded their degree in 2015-2017, earned an average of $34,801 and had an average of $23,466 in loans still to pay off.

Across Iowa, there were 1,610 social sciences graduates with average earnings and debt of $34,613 and $22,174 respectively. At the bachelor’s degree level specifically, there were 1,540 social sciences graduates with average earnings and debt of $39,922 and $25,876 respectively.

For this year’s “Best Value Social Sciences Schools for a Bachelor’s in Iowa For Those Making $0-$30k” ranking, we looked at 13 colleges that offer a degree in social sciences. The schools that top this list are recognized because they have great social sciences programs and cost less that schools of similar quality.

Some of the factors we look at when determining these rankings are overall quality of the social sciences program at the school and the cost of the school after aid is awarded among other things. For more information, check out our ranking methodology.

One Size Does Not Fit All

When choosing the right school for you, it’s important to arm yourself with all the facts you can. To that end, we’ve created a number of major-specific rankings, including this “Best Value Social Sciences Schools for a Bachelor’s in Iowa For Those Making $0-$30k” list to help you make the college decision.

One of our other unique offerings is College Combat. This tool lets you build your own customized comparisons utilizing the factors that are most important 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 Social Sciences Schools for a Bachelor’s in Iowa For Those Making $0-$30k

The following schools top our list of the Best Best Value Social Sciences Schools for a Bachelor’s in Iowa For Those Making $0-$30k.

Top 13 Best Value Bachelor’s Degree Colleges for Social Sciences (Income $0-$30k) in Iowa

#2 in overall quality

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Iowa State University. The school came in at #1 for the Best Value Social Sciences Schools for a Bachelor’s in Iowa For Those Making $0-$30k. Located in Ames, Iowa, this large public school awarded 209 diplomas to qualified bachelors’s social sciences students in 2019-2020.

Iowa State not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #2 on our “Best Social Sciences Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Iowa” list. The estimated yearly cost for Iowa State is $10,054 for iowa bachelor’s degree social sciences students whose families make $0-$30k.

The low student loan default rate of 3.3% 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%. With a freshman retention rate of 89%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students.

Full Iowa State Social Sciences Report

#2

Grinnell College

Grinnell, Iowa
#1 in overall quality

Out of the 13 schools in the Best Value Social Sciences Schools for a Bachelor’s in Iowa For Those Making $0-$30k that were part of this year’s ranking, Grinnell College landed the #2 spot on the list. Grinnell, Iowa is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out bachelors’s social sciences degrees to 129 students in 2019-2020.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at Grinnell, the school also landed the #1 spot in our “Best Social Sciences Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Iowa” ranking. The yearly cost to attend Grinnell is $11,945 for iowa bachelor’s degree social sciences students whose families make $0-$30k.

The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 2.6%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. With a student-to-faculty ratio of 8 to 1, it’s easy to see that the school is committed to helping their undergraduates succeed.

Full Grinnell College Social Sciences Report

#3

University of Northern Iowa

Cedar Falls, Iowa
#5 in overall quality

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of Northern Iowa. It ranked #3 on our 2022 Best Value Social Sciences Schools for a Bachelor’s in Iowa For Those Making $0-$30k list. This medium-sized school is located in Cedar Falls, Iowa, and it awarded 151 bachelors’s social sciences degrees in 2019-2020.

UNI did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #5 on our “Best Social Sciences Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Iowa” list. The yearly cost to attend University of Northern Iowa is $10,757 for Iowa Bachelor’s Degree Social Sciences students whose families make $0-$30k.

The student loan default rate at the school is 3.6%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. With a freshman retention rate of 86%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students.

Read more about Social Sciences at UNI

#4

University of Iowa

Iowa City, Iowa
#4 in overall quality

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend University of Iowa. The school came in at #4 for the Best Value Social Sciences Schools for a Bachelor’s in Iowa For Those Making $0-$30k. University of Iowa is a large public school situated in Iowa City, Iowa. It awarded 571 bachelors’s social sciences degrees in 2019-2020.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at Iowa, the school also landed the #4 spot in our “Best Social Sciences Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Iowa” ranking. The yearly cost to attend University of Iowa is $12,975 for Iowa Bachelor’s Degree Social Sciences students whose families make $0-$30k.

The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 3.5%, 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 students.

Read full report on Social Sciences at Iowa

#5

Coe College

Cedar Rapids, Iowa
#10 in overall quality

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Coe College. The school came in at #5 for the Best Value Social Sciences Schools for a Bachelor’s in Iowa For Those Making $0-$30k. Coe College is located in Cedar Rapids, Iowa and, has a small student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 42 bachelors’s social sciences degrees to qualified students.

Coe also took the #10 spot in our “Best Social Sciences Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Iowa” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for Coe College is $14,590 for iowa bachelor’s degree social sciences students whose families make $0-$30k.

The student loan default rate at the school is 3.1%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Read full report on Social Sciences at Coe

#6

Wartburg College

Waverly, Iowa
#6 in overall quality

Wartburg College did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Social Sciences Schools for a Bachelor’s in Iowa For Those Making $0-$30k ranking, coming in at #6. Wartburg College is a small private not-for-profit school situated in Waverly, Iowa. It awarded 23 bachelors’s social sciences degrees in 2019-2020.

Wartburg also took the #6 spot in our “Best Social Sciences Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Iowa” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for Wartburg College is $16,334 for iowa bachelor’s degree social sciences students whose families make $0-$30k.

The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 4.6%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Read full report on Social Sciences at Wartburg

#7

Simpson College

Indianola, Iowa
#8 in overall quality

Simpson College did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Social Sciences Schools for a Bachelor’s in Iowa For Those Making $0-$30k ranking, coming in at #7. Simpson College is a small school located in Indianola, Iowa that handed out 23 bachelors’s social sciences degrees in 2019-2020.

In addition to being on our iowa bachelor’s degree social sciences students whose families make $0-$30k list, Simpson College has also earned the #8 rank in our “Best Social Sciences Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Iowa” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for Simpson College is $15,357 for Iowa Bachelor’s Degree Social Sciences students whose families make $0-$30k.

The low student loan default rate of 3.7% 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 full report on Social Sciences at Simpson College

#8

Loras College

Dubuque, Iowa
#7 in overall quality

With a ranking of #8, Loras College did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Social Sciences Schools for a Bachelor’s in Iowa For Those Making $0-$30k list. Located in Dubuque, Iowa, this small private not-for-profit school awarded 36 diplomas to qualified bachelors’s social sciences students in 2019-2020.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at Loras, the school also landed the #7 spot in our “Best Social Sciences Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Iowa” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for Loras College is $16,154 for Iowa Bachelor’s Degree Social Sciences students whose families make $0-$30k.

The low student loan default rate of 3.2% 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%.

Full Loras Social Sciences Report

#9

Central College

Pella, Iowa
#11 in overall quality

Central College came in at #9 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Social Sciences Schools for a Bachelor’s in Iowa For Those Making $0-$30k ranking. This small school is located in Pella, Iowa, and it awarded 41 bachelors’s social sciences degrees in 2019-2020.

Central also made our “Best Social Sciences Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Iowa” list, coming in at #11. The yearly cost to attend Central College is $19,172 for iowa bachelor’s degree social sciences students whose families make $0-$30k.

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

Read full report on Social Sciences at Central

#10

Cornell College

Mount Vernon, Iowa
#12 in overall quality

With a ranking of #10, Cornell College did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Social Sciences Schools for a Bachelor’s in Iowa For Those Making $0-$30k list. Cornell College is a small private not-for-profit school situated in Mount Vernon, Iowa. It awarded 19 bachelors’s social sciences degrees in 2019-2020.

Cornell College also made our “Best Social Sciences Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Iowa” list, coming in at #12. The yearly cost to attend Cornell College is $20,458 for Iowa Bachelor’s Degree Social Sciences students whose families make $0-$30k.

The student loan default rate at the school is 2.7%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Full Cornell College Social Sciences Report

#11

Luther College

Decorah, Iowa
#9 in overall quality

Luther College did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Social Sciences Schools for a Bachelor’s in Iowa For Those Making $0-$30k ranking, coming in at #11. Luther is located in Decorah, Iowa and, has a small student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 29 bachelors’s social sciences degrees to qualified students.

Luther also made our “Best Social Sciences Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Iowa” list, coming in at #9. The estimated yearly cost for Luther is $16,636 for iowa bachelor’s degree social sciences students whose families make $0-$30k.

The low student loan default rate of 2.2% 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 full report on Social Sciences at Luther College

#12

Drake University

Des Moines, Iowa
#3 in overall quality

Drake University came in at #12 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Social Sciences Schools for a Bachelor’s in Iowa For Those Making $0-$30k ranking. Drake University is located in Des Moines, Iowa and, has a small student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 68 bachelors’s social sciences degrees to qualified students.

Drake also made our “Best Social Sciences Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Iowa” list, coming in at #3. The estimated yearly cost for Drake University is $25,212 for Iowa Bachelor’s Degree Social Sciences students whose families make $0-$30k.

Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 86%. The low student loan default rate of 2.2% 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%. Since the school has a student-to-faculty ratio of 10 to 1, those pursuing a degree will have more opportunities to interact with their professors.

Read more about Social Sciences at Drake

#13

Upper Iowa University

Fayette, Iowa
#13 in overall quality

Upper Iowa University did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Social Sciences Schools for a Bachelor’s in Iowa For Those Making $0-$30k ranking, coming in at #13. This small school is located in Fayette, Iowa, and it awarded 85 bachelors’s social sciences degrees in 2019-2020.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at UIU, the school also landed the #13 spot in our “Best Social Sciences Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Iowa” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for UIU is $21,427 for Iowa Bachelor’s Degree Social Sciences students whose families make $0-$30k.

Full UIU Social Sciences Report

Notes and References

References

  • 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%.

Read more about our data sources and methodologies

Footnotes

  • *Average salary, average net price, and average tuition and fees are for the top schools only.
  • Some schools otherwise deserving of recognition may have been removed from this ranking in the event that new data identified post-publication warranted it, or at the request of the school.

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