Best Colleges in Iowa – 38 Colleges and Universities in Iowa Ranked

Known for its pivotal role in our nation’s agriculture production, the state of Iowa has more to offer than just corn and soybeans. The state is known for having a strong public education system, with its three regent universities (University of Iowa, Iowa State University, and University of Northern Iowa) students from around the country travel to Iowa for Big 10 and Big 12 athletics, as well as highly-regarded academic programs of all types.

In addition to the well-known state schools, Iowa has nearly 40 colleges and universities in total. Of those, both Grinnell College and Drake University are highly-ranked private colleges.

From small, private liberal arts colleges to large public universities, the state of Iowa offers a range of college options for students both in and out of state.

Here are all 38 top universities ranking in the state of Iowa:

State Ranking	National Ranking	College	Location	Undergrad Enrollment	4-Year Grad Rate	6-Year Grad Rate	Freshman Retention Rate
1	50	Grinnell College	Grinnell, IA	1,734	86%	90%	94%
2	184	University of Iowa	Iowa City, IA	22,354	47%	70%	86%
3	215	Drake University	Des Moines, IA	3,364	64%	72%	89%
4	221	Iowa State University	Ames, IA	28,893	39%	71%	86%
5	289	Luther College	Decorah, IA	2,385	68%	77%	85%
6	309	Cornell College	Mount Vernon, IA	1,086	66%	71%	83%
7	335	University of Northern Iowa	Cedar Falls, IA	10,142	38%	66%	85%
8	425	Simpson College	Indianola, IA	1,660	58%	67%	82%
9	431	Dordt College	Sioux Center, IA	1,399	63%	65%	84%
10	437	Coe College	Cedar Rapids, IA	1,435	59%	68%	78%
11	538	Central College	Pella, IA	1,411	62%	69%	78%
12	578	Loras College	Dubuque, IA	1,490	51%	66%	81%
13	611	Northwestern College	Orange City, IA	1,205	53%	63%	77%
14	619	Saint Ambrose University	Davenport, IA	2,714	49%	63%	77%
15	645	Wartburg College	Waverly, IA	1,661	60%	65%	74%
16	685	Mount Mercy University	Cedar Rapids, IA	1,444	45%	54%	81%
17	778	Clarke University	Dubuque, IA	949	49%	63%	73%
18	791	Morningside College	Sioux City, IA	1,321	50%	59%	75%
19	861	Emmaus Bible College	Dubuque, IA	216	33%	40%	85%
20	965	Buena Vista University	Storm Lake, IA	2,035	42%	51%	73%
21	1034	Faith Baptist Bible College and Theological Seminary	Ankeny, IA	250	50%	58%	67%
22	1105	Grand View University	Des Moines, IA	2,005	40%	49%	71%
23	1297	Upper Iowa University	Fayette, IA	4,439	23%	41%	67%
24	1359	University of Dubuque	Dubuque, IA	1,775	30%	36%	65%
25	1369	Graceland University-Lamoni	Lamoni, IA	1,594	34%	50%	60%
26	1401	Briar Cliff University	Sioux City, IA	1,041	35%	43%	54%
27	1461	Iowa Wesleyan University	Mount Pleasant, IA	473	19%	30%	58%
28	1504	William Penn University	Oskaloosa, IA	1,698	12%	31%	63%
29	1527	Maharishi University of Management	Fairfield, IA	402	38%	58%	72%
n/a	n/a	Allen College	Waterloo, IA	379	79%	82%	100%
n/a	n/a	AIB College of Business	Des Moines, IA	1,014	(Not reported)	(Not reported)	76%
n/a	n/a	Divine Word College	Epworth, IA	96	9%	27%	64%
n/a	n/a	Mercy College of Health Sciences	Des Moines, IA	774	(Not reported)	(Not reported)	0%
n/a	n/a	Des Moines University-Osteopathic Medical Center	Des Moines, IA	0	(Not reported)	(Not reported)	(Not reported)
n/a	n/a	Palmer College of Chiropractic	Davenport, IA	34	0%	67%	(Not reported)
n/a	n/a	St Luke's College	Sioux City, IA	254	(Not reported)	(Not reported)	(Not reported)
n/a	n/a	Wartburg Theological Seminary	Dubuque, IA	0	(Not reported)	(Not reported)	(Not reported)
n/a	n/a	Shiloh University	Kalona, IA	20	(Not reported)	(Not reported)	(Not reported)