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2024 Best Drama & Theater Arts Schools in Iowa

5 Colleges in Iowa
160 Theater Degrees Awarded
$24,277 Avg Early-Career Salary
A degree in drama & theater arts is more popular than many other degrees. In fact, it ranks #59 out of 395 on popularity of all such degrees in the nation. So, you have a fair amount of options to choose from when looking for a school.

For its 2024 ranking, College Factual looked at 5 schools in Iowa to determine which ones were the best for drama & theater arts students pursuing a degree. Combined, these schools handed out 160 degrees in drama & theater arts to qualified students.

What's on this page: * Degree-Level Rankings

Choosing a Great Drama & Theater Arts School

Best Drama & Theater Arts Schools in Iowa Your choice of drama & theater arts school matters, so we have put together these rankings to help you make your decision. In order to come up with a best overall ranking for drama & theater arts schools, we combine our degree-level rankings, weighting them by the number of degrees awarded at each level.

In order to find the schools that are the best fit for you, you may want to filter to one of the degree levels below.

Drama & Theater Arts Rankings by Degree Level

Bachelor's Degrees in Theater
Master's Degrees in Theater

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 Drama & Theater Arts Schools in Iowa list to help you make the college decision. More interested in schools in a specific area of the country? Filter this list by region or state.

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. Go ahead and give it a try, or bookmark the link so you can check it out later.

Read more about College Factual's methodology.

Best Schools for Drama & Theater Arts in Iowa

Although we recommend filtering by degree level first, you can view the list below to see which schools give the educational experience for the theater degree levels they offer.

Top Iowa Schools in Theater

1
Iowa crest
University of Iowa
Iowa City, IA
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
43 Theater Degrees Awarded
$25,923 Median Starting Salary

University of Iowa is one of the finest schools in the country for getting a degree in drama & theater arts. Located in the city of Iowa City, Iowa is a public university with a fairly large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #84 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means Iowa is a great university overall.

There were about 43 drama & theater arts students who graduated with this degree at Iowa in the most recent data year. Students who graduate with their degree from the theater program report average early career wages of $25,923.

More information about a degree in drama & theater arts from University of Iowa

2
Drake crest
Drake University
Des Moines, IA

Drake University is one of the best schools in the United States for getting a degree in drama & theater arts. Drake is a small private not-for-profit university located in the city of Des Moines. This university ranks 5th out of 40 schools for overall quality in the state of Iowa.

There were about 28 drama & theater arts students who graduated with this degree at Drake in the most recent data year. Students who graduate with their degree from the theater program report average early career earnings of $25,357.

More information about a degree in drama & theater arts from Drake University

3
Luther crest
Luther College
Decorah, IA
Bachelor's Degree Highest Degree Type
6th Most Popular In IA
50.0% Growth in Graduates

Every student who is interested in drama & theater arts has to look into Luther College. Located in the remote town of Decorah, Luther is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population. This college ranks 7th out of 40 schools for overall quality in the state of Iowa.

There were about 8 drama & theater arts students who graduated with this degree at Luther in the most recent data year.

More information about a degree in drama & theater arts from Luther College

4
Bachelor's Degree Highest Degree Type
$21,551 Median Starting Salary
$22,092 Median Student Debt

University of Northern Iowa is one of the best schools in the United States for getting a degree in drama & theater arts. UNI is a medium-sized public university located in the small city of Cedar Falls. A Best Colleges rank of #199 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means UNI is a great university overall.

There were approximately 19 drama & theater arts students who graduated with this degree at UNI in the most recent data year. After graduating, theater degree recipients usually make about $21,551 at the beginning of their careers.

More information about a degree in drama & theater arts from University of Northern Iowa

5
Coe crest
Coe College
Cedar Rapids, IA
Bachelor's Degree Highest Degree Type
12th Most Popular In IA

Coe is a small private not-for-profit college located in the city of Cedar Rapids. This college ranks 22nd out of 40 schools for overall quality in the state of Iowa.

There were about 3 drama & theater arts students who graduated with this degree at Coe in the most recent data year.

More information about a degree in drama & theater arts from Coe College

Best Drama & Theater Arts Colleges in the Plains States Region

Explore all the Best Drama & Theater Arts Colleges in the Plains States Area or other specific states within that region.

State Colleges Degrees Awarded
Minnesota 284 231
Missouri 283 289
Kansas 266 95
Nebraska 238 104
North Dakota 210 9
South Dakota 204 32

View All Rankings >

One of 10 majors within the Visual & Performing Arts area of study, Drama & Theater Arts has other similar majors worth exploring.

Theater Focus Areas

Major Annual Graduates
Theater Arts 101
Acting 19
Playwriting & Screenwriting 18
Other Dramatic/Theatre Arts & Stagecraft 13
Theater Design & Technology 9

View All Theater Concentrations >

Related Major Annual Graduates
Design & Applied Arts 545
Fine & Studio Arts 286
Music 227
Film, Video & Photographic Arts 90
General Visual & Performing Arts 28
Dance 28
Other Visual Art 16
Arts & Media Management 4

View All Theater Related Majors >

Notes and References

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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