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

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

When it comes to choosing a college, students have a lot of options - but not all of them are good. 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 Social Work Schools in Iowa For Those Getting Aid” ranking is one tool we have developed to help in this regard.

Social Work is one of the most popular majors in the nation, ranking 8th of all the majors we analyze. In 2019-2020, 56,762 degrees were awarded to students with this major.

Across Iowa, there were 457 social work graduates with average earnings and debt of $0 and $0 respectively.

This year’s “Best Value Social Work Schools in Iowa For Those Getting Aid” ranking analyzed 11 colleges that offered a degree in social work. This ranking identifies schools with high-quality social work programs that also have a lower cost than schools of similar quality.

When determining these rankings, we looked at things such as overall quality of the social work program at the school and the cost to attend the school once aid has been awarded. Check out our ranking methodology for more information.

One Size Does Not Fit All

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

To further help you make the college decision, we’ve developed a unique tool called College Combat that allows you to compare schools 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 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

Out of the 11 schools in the Best Value Social Work Schools in Iowa For Those Getting Aid that were part of this year’s ranking, University of Northern Iowa landed the #1 spot on the list. Located in Cedar Falls, Iowa, this medium-sized public school handed out 103 degrees to qualified ’s social work students in 2019-2020.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at UNI, the school also landed the #2 spot in our “Best Social Work Schools in Iowa” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for UNI is $15,620 for iowa social work students with aid.

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%. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 86%.

Full University of Northern Iowa Social Work Report

#2

University of Iowa

Iowa City, Iowa

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of Iowa. It ranked #2 on our 2022 Best Value Social Work Schools in Iowa For Those Getting Aid list. Located in Iowa City, Iowa, this large public school awarded 156 diplomas to qualified ’s social work students in 2019-2020.

Iowa not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #5 on our “Best Social Work Schools in Iowa” list. It costs about $19,145 for Iowa Social Work students with aid per year to attend University of Iowa.

The low student loan default rate of 3.5% 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%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 88%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.

Read full report on Social Work at Iowa

#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. Loras College is a small school located in Dubuque, Iowa that handed out 19 ’s social work degrees in 2019-2020.

In addition to being on our iowa social work students with aid list, Loras has also earned the #1 rank in our “Best Social Work Schools in Iowa” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for Loras is $20,676 for iowa social work students with aid.

The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 3.2%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Read more about Social Work at Loras

#4

Briar Cliff University

Sioux City, Iowa

Out of the 11 schools in the Best Value Social Work Schools in Iowa For Those Getting Aid that were part of this year’s ranking, Briar Cliff University landed the #4 spot on the list. Located in Sioux City, Iowa, this small private not-for-profit school handed out 42 degrees to qualified ’s social work students in 2019-2020.

Briar Cliff did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #4 on our “Best Social Work Schools in Iowa” list. The estimated yearly cost for Briar Cliff is $20,604 for Iowa Social Work students with aid.

Full Briar Cliff University Social Work Report

#5

Buena Vista University

Storm Lake, Iowa

Out of the 11 schools in the Best Value Social Work Schools in Iowa For Those Getting Aid that were part of this year’s ranking, Buena Vista University landed the #5 spot on the list. BVU is a private not-for-profit institution located in Storm Lake, Iowa. The school has a small population, and it awarded 7 ’s degrees in 2019-2020.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at BVU, the school also landed the #9 spot in our “Best Social Work Schools in Iowa” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for BVU 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 BVU

#6

Grand View University

Des Moines, Iowa

Grand View University ranked #6 on this year’s Best Value Social Work Schools in Iowa For Those Getting Aid list. This small school is located in Des Moines, Iowa, and it awarded 15 ’s social work degrees in 2019-2020.

Grand View University not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #11 on our “Best Social Work Schools in Iowa” list. The estimated yearly cost for Grand View University is $19,826 for iowa social work students with aid.

Read more about Social Work at Grand View University

#7

Luther College

Decorah, Iowa

Luther College ranked #7 on this year’s Best Value Social Work Schools in Iowa For Those Getting Aid list. Decorah, Iowa is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out ’s social work degrees to 12 students in 2019-2020.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at Luther, the school also landed the #3 spot in our “Best Social Work Schools in Iowa” ranking. The yearly cost to attend Luther is $23,620 for Iowa Social Work students with aid.

The student loan default rate at the school is 2.2%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Full Luther College Social Work Report

#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 awarded 9 diplomas to qualified ’s social work students in 2019-2020.

Wartburg also made our “Best Social Work Schools in Iowa” list, coming in at #8. The yearly cost to attend Wartburg College is $21,787 for Iowa Social Work students with aid.

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%.

Full Wartburg College Social Work Report

#9

Mount Mercy University

Cedar Rapids, Iowa

Mount Mercy University did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Social Work Schools in Iowa For Those Getting Aid ranking, coming in at #9. Cedar Rapids, Iowa is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out ’s social work degrees to 11 students in 2019-2020.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at Mount Mercy, the school also landed the #6 spot in our “Best Social Work Schools in Iowa” ranking. The yearly cost to attend Mount Mercy is $20,857 for iowa social work students with aid.

The student loan default rate at the school is 4.3%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Read full report on Social Work at Mount Mercy University

#10

Dordt University

Sioux Center, Iowa

Dordt University ranked #10 on this year’s Best Value Social Work Schools in Iowa For Those Getting Aid list. This small school is located in Sioux Center, Iowa, and it awarded 14 ’s social work degrees in 2019-2020.

In addition to being on our iowa social work students with aid list, Dordt has also earned the #7 rank in our “Best Social Work Schools in Iowa” ranking. The yearly cost to attend Dordt is $25,102 for iowa social work students with aid.

The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 1.8%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Read more about Social Work at Dordt University

#11

Saint Ambrose University

Davenport, Iowa

Saint Ambrose University ranked #11 on this year’s Best Value Social Work Schools in Iowa For Those Getting Aid list. Saint Ambrose University is a private not-for-profit institution located in Davenport, Iowa. The school has a small population, and it awarded 20 ’s degrees in 2019-2020.

In addition to being on our iowa social work students with aid list, St. Ambrose University has also earned the #10 rank in our “Best Social Work Schools in Iowa” ranking. The yearly cost to attend St. Ambrose University is $26,204 for Iowa Social Work students with aid.

Read more about Social Work at St. 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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