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2022 Best Value Colleges for Social Work in Iowa (With Aid)

11 Ranked Colleges
465 Degrees Awarded
$21,000 Avg Net Price*
Best Value Social Work Schools in Iowa For Those Getting Aid

It’s not easy to decide which college to attend when there so many options available for students. College Factual has developed its “Best Value Social Work Schools in Iowa For Those Getting Aid” ranking as one item you can use to help make this decision.

In 2019-2020, 57,618 people earned their degree in social work, making the major the 12th most popular in the United States. In 2017-2018, social work graduates who were awarded their degree in 2015-2017, earned an average of $36,459 and had an average of $30,084 in loans still to pay off.

Across Iowa, there were 465 social work graduates with average earnings and debt of $36,950 and $28,476 respectively.

This year’s “Best Value Social Work Schools in Iowa For Those Getting Aid” ranking looked at 11 colleges that offer degrees in a bachelor’s in social work. Not only do the schools that top this list have excellent social work 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 social work program at the school. Check out our ranking methodology for more information.

One Size Does Not Fit All

The social work school you choose to invest your time and money in matters. To help you make the decision that is right for you, we’ve developed a number of major-specific rankings, including this list of “Best Value Social Work Schools in Iowa For Those Getting Aid”.

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. Test it out by comparing your favorite schools against others you are considering, or bookmark the tool so you can experiment with it later.

Best Value Social Work Schools in Iowa For Those Getting Aid

The following schools top our list of the Best Best Value Social Work Schools in Iowa For Those Getting Aid.

Top 11 Best Value Colleges for Social Work in Iowa (With Aid)

#1

University of Northern Iowa

Cedar Falls, Iowa

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of Northern Iowa. It ranked #1 on our 2022 Best Value Social Work Schools in Iowa For Those Getting Aid list. Located in Cedar Falls, Iowa, this medium-sized public school handed out 103 degrees to qualified ’s social work students in 2019-2020.

UNI also took the #2 spot in our “Best Social Work Schools in Iowa” ranking. It costs about $15,620 for iowa social work students with aid per year to attend University of Northern Iowa.

The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 86%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. 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%.

Read full report on Social Work at UNI

#2

University of Iowa

Iowa City, Iowa

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend University of Iowa. The school came in at #2 for the Best Value Social Work Schools in Iowa For Those Getting Aid. Iowa City, Iowa is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out ’s social work degrees to 164 students in 2019-2020.

Iowa also made our “Best Social Work Schools in Iowa” list, coming in at #5. It costs about $19,145 for Iowa Social Work students with aid per year to attend Iowa.

Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 88%. The student loan default rate at the school is 3.5%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Full University of Iowa Social Work Report

#3

Loras College

Dubuque, Iowa

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Loras College. It ranked #3 on our 2022 Best Value Social Work Schools in Iowa For Those Getting Aid list. This small school is located in Dubuque, Iowa, and it awarded 19 ’s social work degrees in 2019-2020.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at Loras, the school also landed the #1 spot in our “Best Social Work Schools in Iowa” ranking. It costs about $20,676 for Iowa Social Work students with aid per year to attend Loras.

The student loan default rate at the school is 3.2%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Read full report on Social Work at Loras

#4

Briar Cliff University

Sioux City, Iowa

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Briar Cliff University. It ranked #4 on our 2022 Best Value Social Work Schools in Iowa For Those Getting Aid list. Briar Cliff University is a small private not-for-profit school situated in Sioux City, Iowa. It awarded 42 ’s social work degrees in 2019-2020.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at Briar Cliff, the school also landed the #4 spot in our “Best Social Work Schools in Iowa” ranking. The yearly cost to attend Briar Cliff University is $20,604 for iowa social work students with aid.

Read full report on Social Work at Briar Cliff

#5

Buena Vista University

Storm Lake, Iowa

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Buena Vista University. The school came in at #5 for the Best Value Social Work Schools in Iowa For Those Getting Aid. Buena Vista University is a small private not-for-profit school situated in Storm Lake, Iowa. It awarded 7 ’s social work degrees in 2019-2020.

BVU not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #9 on our “Best Social Work Schools in Iowa” list. The estimated yearly cost for Buena Vista University is $17,544 for iowa social work students with aid.

The impressive student-to-faculty ratio of 10 to 1 means that students may have more opportunities to work more closely with their professors than they would at other schools.

Read more about Social Work at Buena Vista University

#6

Grand View University

Des Moines, Iowa

Grand View University did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Social Work Schools in Iowa For Those Getting Aid ranking, coming in at #6. Des Moines, Iowa is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out ’s social work degrees to 15 students in 2019-2020.

Grand View University also made our “Best Social Work Schools in Iowa” list, coming in at #11. It costs about $19,826 for Iowa Social Work students with aid per year to attend Grand View University.

Read full report on Social Work at Grand View University

#7

Luther College

Decorah, Iowa

Luther College came in at #7 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Social Work Schools in Iowa For Those Getting Aid ranking. Luther College is a private not-for-profit institution located in Decorah, Iowa. The school has a small population, and it awarded 12 ’s degrees in 2019-2020.

Luther did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #3 on our “Best Social Work Schools in Iowa” list. The yearly cost to attend Luther College is $23,620 for iowa social work students with aid.

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 more about Social Work at Luther

#8

Wartburg College

Waverly, Iowa

Wartburg College ranked #8 on this year’s Best Value Social Work Schools in Iowa For Those Getting Aid list. Located in Waverly, Iowa, this small private not-for-profit school handed out 9 diplomas to qualified ’s social work students in 2019-2020.

Wartburg also took the #8 spot in our “Best Social Work Schools in Iowa” ranking. The yearly cost to attend Wartburg College is $21,787 for Iowa Social Work students with aid.

The student loan default rate at the school is 4.6%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Full Wartburg Social Work Report

#9

Mount Mercy University

Cedar Rapids, Iowa

With a ranking of #9, Mount Mercy University did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Social Work Schools in Iowa For Those Getting Aid list. Mount Mercy University is a small school located in Cedar Rapids, Iowa that handed out 11 ’s social work degrees in 2019-2020.

Mount Mercy not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #6 on our “Best Social Work Schools in Iowa” list. It costs about $20,857 for Iowa Social Work students with aid per year to attend Mount Mercy.

The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 4.3%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Read more about Social Work at Mount Mercy University

#10

Dordt University

Sioux Center, Iowa

Dordt University came in at #10 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Social Work Schools in Iowa For Those Getting Aid ranking. Dordt University is a small private not-for-profit school situated in Sioux Center, Iowa. It awarded 14 ’s social work degrees in 2019-2020.

Dordt did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #7 on our “Best Social Work Schools in Iowa” list. The estimated yearly cost for Dordt University is $25,102 for iowa social work students with aid.

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

Read more about Social Work at Dordt University

#11

Saint Ambrose University

Davenport, Iowa

Saint Ambrose University did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Social Work Schools in Iowa For Those Getting Aid ranking, coming in at #11. This small school is located in Davenport, Iowa, and it awarded 20 ’s social work degrees in 2019-2020.

St. Ambrose University not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #10 on our “Best Social Work Schools in Iowa” list. It costs about $26,204 for Iowa Social Work students with aid per year to attend Saint Ambrose University.

Read more about Social Work at Saint Ambrose University

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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