1
Upper Iowa University earned the #1 spot in this year's Most Age-Diverse Colleges ranking in Iowa. On age diversity, it scores 84.5 out of 100. Its racial-ethnic diversity score is 66.7, alongside a 97.5 gender-diversity score.
by our College Data Analytics TeamIf you’re seeking a diverse and multi-faceted college experience, you’ve come to the right place. This list highlights 34 colleges that stand out for their student bodies in Iowa, using our 2026 methodology.
This ranking is based on the range of student ages (the mix of traditional and non-traditional-age students). To arm you with the information you need, College Factual evaluated 34 colleges, drawing primarily on U.S. Department of Education data (IPEDS and College Scorecard). Learn more about our ranking methodology.
Not every student measures diversity the same way. Refine the list by location, or explore the overall, racial-ethnic, gender, economic, and age diversity rankings, or other rankings below.
Ready to build your own comparison? Try our tool College Combat to weigh schools on the factors you care about most.
Explore the leading colleges below:
Upper Iowa University earned the #1 spot in this year's Most Age-Diverse Colleges ranking in Iowa. On age diversity, it scores 84.5 out of 100. Its racial-ethnic diversity score is 66.7, alongside a 97.5 gender-diversity score.
You'll find a welcoming community at Buena Vista University, which ranked #2 this year. On age diversity, it scores 83.6 out of 100. Its racial-ethnic diversity score is 35.1, with a gender-diversity score of 85.4.
You'll find a welcoming community at Morningside University, which ranked #3 this year. Morningside University scores 82.9 out of 100 for age diversity. Racial-ethnic diversity scores 42.9, with a gender-diversity score of 90.0.
Graceland University-Lamoni came in at #4 on this year's Most Age-Diverse Colleges ranking in Iowa. On age diversity, it scores 81.2 out of 100. Its racial-ethnic diversity score is 69.4, alongside a 99.7 gender-diversity score.
You'll find a welcoming community at Mercy College of Health Sciences, which ranked #5 this year. The school's age diversity score is 80.7 out of 100. Racial-ethnic diversity scores 51.1, with a gender-diversity score of 57.1.
Northwestern College came in at #6 in this year's ranking. On age diversity, it scores 78.2 out of 100. Its racial-ethnic diversity score is 42.6, with a gender-diversity score of 95.0.
Briar Cliff University landed the #7 spot in Iowa this year. Briar Cliff University scores 77.7 out of 100 for age diversity. On racial-ethnic diversity it scores 55.6, with a gender-diversity score of 98.2.
Allen College placed #8 among the most age-diverse colleges in Iowa. Allen College scores 75.6 out of 100 for age diversity. On racial-ethnic diversity it scores 39.5, with a gender-diversity score of 51.1.
Kirkwood Community College placed #9 among the most age-diverse colleges in Iowa. Kirkwood Community College scores 72.8 out of 100 for age diversity. Its racial-ethnic diversity score is 52.1, and gender diversity 98.8.
Eastern Iowa Community College District placed #10 among the most age-diverse colleges in Iowa. Eastern Iowa Community College District scores 72.5 out of 100 for age diversity. Racial-ethnic diversity scores 48.2, alongside a 97.6 gender-diversity score.
University of Northern Iowa ranked #11 on our 2026 list of the most age-diverse colleges. On age diversity, it scores 71.9 out of 100. Its racial-ethnic diversity score is 34.8, with a gender-diversity score of 94.3.
Western Iowa Tech Community College came in at #12 in this year's ranking. Western Iowa Tech Community College scores 70.2 out of 100 for age diversity. Racial-ethnic diversity scores 58.0, and gender diversity 95.8.
University of Iowa came in at #13 in this year's ranking. It scores 69.1 out of 100 for age diversity. On racial-ethnic diversity it scores 50.5, alongside a 99.1 gender-diversity score.
Clarke University landed the #14 spot in Iowa this year. On age diversity, it scores 68.8 out of 100. Racial-ethnic diversity scores 63.9, and gender diversity 100.0.
Saint Ambrose University landed the #15 spot in Iowa this year. It scores 67.9 out of 100 for age diversity. Its racial-ethnic diversity score is 50.9, with a gender-diversity score of 97.9.
Hawkeye Community College landed the #16 spot in Iowa this year. The school's age diversity score is 67.4 out of 100. Racial-ethnic diversity scores 41.3, and gender diversity 97.7.
Iowa Western Community College landed the #17 spot in Iowa this year. The school's age diversity score is 65.9 out of 100. Racial-ethnic diversity scores 62.5, alongside a 100.0 gender-diversity score.
Southwestern Community College earned the #18 position in Iowa. It scores 64.9 out of 100 for age diversity. On racial-ethnic diversity it scores 30.3, and gender diversity 95.5.
Capri College, Cedar Rapids came in at #19 in this year's ranking. It scores 63.4 out of 100 for age diversity. Racial-ethnic diversity scores 32.5, with a gender-diversity score of 21.8.
Dordt University ranked #20 on our 2026 list of the most age-diverse colleges. The school's age diversity score is 62.4 out of 100. Racial-ethnic diversity scores 39.2, and gender diversity 99.7.
Iowa Lakes Community College landed the #21 spot in Iowa this year. Iowa Lakes Community College scores 61.4 out of 100 for age diversity. Its racial-ethnic diversity score is 48.9, alongside a 100.0 gender-diversity score.
Palmer College of Chiropractic landed the #22 spot in Iowa this year. On age diversity, it scores 60.2 out of 100. Racial-ethnic diversity scores 43.4, alongside a 99.1 gender-diversity score.
Indian Hills Community College ranked #23 on our 2026 list of the most age-diverse colleges. The school's age diversity score is 60.1 out of 100. On racial-ethnic diversity it scores 44.0, and gender diversity 99.7.
Des Moines Area Community College earned the #24 position in Iowa. Des Moines Area Community College scores 59.8 out of 100 for age diversity. On racial-ethnic diversity it scores 53.1, with a gender-diversity score of 99.4.
North Iowa Area Community College came in at #25 in this year's ranking. On age diversity, it scores 59.6 out of 100. Racial-ethnic diversity scores 34.0, and gender diversity 98.5.
These colleges also placed near the top this year:
*These averages are for the top 25 ranked colleges only.
This ranking is based on the range of student ages (the mix of traditional and non-traditional-age students). The racial-ethnic minorities percentage is calculated by taking the total number of students, subtracting white students, international students, and students whose race/ethnicity is unknown, and dividing by total enrollment.
The ranking above is published by College Factual, 2026 edition.
References
More about our data sources and methodologies.