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2023 Best Value Trade School Bachelor's Degree Schools in Iowa
Identifying High-Quality Schools With More Affordable Pricing
When it comes to higher education, there are a lot of options for trade school students. With more and more schools offering online options, you could even register for a great program on the other side of the country.
To help you arm yourself with the information you need to make your decision, Trade College Search has developed this Best Value Trade School Bachelor's Degree Schools in Iowa ranking. This report analyzed 15 schools in Iowa to see which ones offered the best value bachelor's degree programs for trade school students. The goal was to highlight schools with more affordable prices than others offering similar quality experiences.
This ranking is not just a list of inexpensive schools. We also consider each school's quality, since we believe a low-quality school may not be a 'bargain' at any price. More specifically, we discount our quality score by the published tuition and fees charged by a school. This gives the cost per unit of quality for each college. The value is determined by how much quality your dollar buys.
For nationwide and regional rankings, we use out-of-state tuition and fees in our calculations. Average in-state tuition and fees are used for our statewide rankings.
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Top Value Trade Bachelor's Degree Schools in Iowa
Learn more about these excellent schools below:
Our analysis found Iowa State University to be the best value school for trade school students who want to pursue a bachelor’s degree in Iowa. Iowa State is a public institution located in Ames, Iowa. The school has a large population, and it awarded 6,795 bachelor’s degrees in 2021-2022.
The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate students at Iowa State are $26,617 a year. On average, bachelor’s degree students take out $20,682 in loans while pursuing their degree.
One thing to take note of is that Iowa State does offer online classes in some areas. In 2020-2021 about 57% of the undergraduate students at the school chose to take one or more online courses.
Iowa State not only placed well in our value ranking, but it is also #2 on our Best Bachelor’s Degree Trade Schools in Iowa list.
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of Northern Iowa. It ranked #2 on our 2023 Best Value Trade School Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Iowa list. University of Northern Iowa is a medium-sized public school located in Cedar Falls, Iowa that handed out 2,246 bachelor’s degrees in 2021-2022.
The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate students at UNI are $20,565 a year. By the time they get their bachelor’s degree, students from this school have racked up an average of $19,029 in student loans.
Depending on your major, you may be able to take online classes at UNI. To give an idea of how popular online courses are at the school, 54% of undergraduates took at least one course online in 2020-2021.
In addition to its best value ranking, and one of the reasons why the school is on the list, UNI is ranked #3 for overall quality in Iowa.
Out of the 15 schools in Iowa that were part of this year’s value ranking, University of Iowa landed the # 3 spot on the list. This large public school is located in Iowa City, Iowa, and it awarded 5,533 bachelor’s degrees in 2021-2022.
Iowa undergraduate students pay an average of $32,316 in tuition and fees each year. Bachelor’s Degree recipients from this school accumulate an average of $21,787 in student debt by the time they complete their degree.
Online courses are available at Iowa, but you will need to check with the school to see if they are available for your field of interest. During the 2020-2021 year, about 62% of the undergraduates at the school took at least one online course.
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend Waldorf University. The school came in at #4 on this year’s Best Value Trade School Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Iowa list. This small private for-profit school is located in Forest City, Iowa, and it awarded 592 bachelor’s degrees in 2021-2022.
The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate students at Waldorf are $24,526 a year. Bachelor’s Degree recipients from this school accumulate an average of $22,767 in student debt by the time they complete their degree.
Depending on your major, you may be able to take online classes at Waldorf. In fact, around 69% of the undergraduate population registered for at least one online class in 2020-2021.
Waldorf did well in our overall quality rankings, too. It placed #1 on our Best Bachelor’s Degree Trade Schools in Iowa list.
A rank of #5 on this year’s list means Northwestern College is a great place for trade school students working on their bachelor’s degree who want the most bang for their educational buck. Orange City, Iowa is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out bachelor’s degrees to 259 students in 2021-2022.
NWC undergraduate students pay an average of $34,250 in tuition and fees each year. Bachelor’s Degree recipients from this school accumulate an average of $19,468 in student debt by the time they complete their degree.
NWC does offer online classes for certain degree levels. Of all the undergraduates enrolled at the school during the 2020-2021 academic year, around 23% took at least some of their classes online.
NWC also took the #4 spot in our Best Bachelor’s Degree Trade Schools in Iowa rankings.
With a ranking of #6, Upper Iowa University did quite well on this year’s best value schools for trade school students working on their bachelor’s degree. Fayette, Iowa is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out bachelor’s degrees to 1,004 students in 2021-2022.
Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at UIU are $33,639 per year. On average, bachelor’s degree students take out $26,492 in loans while pursuing their degree.
One thing to take note of is that UIU does offer online classes in some areas. In 2020-2021 about 73% of the undergraduate students at the school chose to take one or more online courses.
Dordt University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best value places for trade school students to get a bachelor’s degree. It came in at #7 on the list. Located in Sioux Center, Iowa, the small private not-for-profit school awarded 344 diplomas to qualifed bachelor’s degree students in 2021-2022.
The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate students at Dordt are $34,600 a year.
Online courses are available at Dordt, but you will need to check with the school to see if they are available for your field of interest. During the 2020-2021 year, about 28% of the undergraduates at the school took at least one online course.
Graceland University - Lamoni came in at #8 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Trade School Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Iowa ranking. Graceland Lamoni is located in Lamoni, Iowa and has a small student population. In 2021-2022, this school awarded 281 bachelor’s degrees to qualified students.
Graceland Lamoni undergraduate students pay an average of $31,970 in tuition and fees each year. On average, bachelor’s degree students take out $22,242 in loans while pursuing their degree.
One thing to take note of is that Graceland Lamoni does offer online classes in some areas. In fact, around 4% of the undergraduate population registered for at least one online class in 2020-2021.
With a ranking of #9, Morningside College did quite well on this year’s best value schools for trade school students working on their bachelor’s degree. Morningside is a small private not-for-profit school situated in Sioux City, Iowa. It awarded 294 bachelor’s degrees in 2021-2022.
Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Morningside are $36,610 per year. Bachelor’s Degree recipients from this school accumulate an average of $23,887 in student debt by the time they complete their degree.
You may have the opportunity to take online classes at Morningside. In fact, around 5% of the undergraduate population registered for at least one online class in 2020-2021.
Luther College ranked #10 on this year’s Best Value Trade School Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Iowa list. Luther is located in Decorah, Iowa and has a small student population. In 2021-2022, this school awarded 499 bachelor’s degrees to qualified students.
The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate students at Luther are $48,160 a year.
Some students may be able to take online classes at Luther. To give an idea of how popular online courses are at the school, 8% of undergraduates took at least one course online in 2020-2021.
Luther not only placed well in our value ranking, but it is also #5 on our Best Bachelor’s Degree Trade Schools in Iowa list.
Mount Mercy University came in at #11 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Trade School Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Iowa ranking. Located in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, the small private not-for-profit school awarded 438 diplomas to qualifed bachelor’s degree students in 2021-2022.
The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate students at Mount Mercy are $37,606 a year. Bachelor’s Degree recipients from this school accumulate an average of $21,821 in student debt by the time they complete their degree.
Some students may be able to take online classes at Mount Mercy. In 2020-2021 about 25% of the undergraduate students at the school chose to take one or more online courses.
Briar Cliff University landed the #12 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value bachelor’s degree trade school programs. Located in Sioux City, Iowa, the very small private not-for-profit school handed out 183 bachelor’s degree awards in 2021-2022.
Briar Cliff undergraduate students pay an average of $34,095 in tuition and fees each year. By the time they get their bachelor’s degree, students from this school have racked up an average of $21,760 in student loans.
One thing to take note of is that Briar Cliff does offer online classes in some areas. Of all the undergraduates enrolled at the school during the 2020-2021 academic year, around 31% took at least some of their classes online.
University of Dubuque came in at #13 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Trade School Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Iowa ranking. This small private not-for-profit school is located in Dubuque, Iowa, and it awarded 412 bachelor’s degrees in 2021-2022.
UD undergraduate students pay an average of $38,526 in tuition and fees each year. On average, bachelor’s degree students take out $24,525 in loans while pursuing their degree.
Online courses are available at UD, but you will need to check with the school to see if they are available for your field of interest. During the 2020-2021 year, about 13% of the undergraduates at the school took at least one online course.
Clarke University landed the #14 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value bachelor’s degree trade school programs. Located in Dubuque, Iowa, the very small private not-for-profit school handed out 189 bachelor’s degree awards in 2021-2022.
Clarke undergraduate students pay an average of $38,060 in tuition and fees each year. Bachelor’s Degree recipients from this school accumulate an average of $26,471 in student debt by the time they complete their degree.
Depending on your major, you may be able to take online classes at Clarke. During the 2020-2021 year, about 67% of the undergraduates at the school took at least one online course.
Coe College came in at #15 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Trade School Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Iowa ranking. Cedar Rapids, Iowa is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out bachelor’s degrees to 434 students in 2021-2022.
The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate students at Coe are $50,664 a year.
Best Value Trade Bachelor's Degree Schools in the Plains States Region
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Notes and References
Footnotes
*These averages are for the top 15 schools only.
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%.
More about our data sources and methodologies.
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