Colleges in Iowa With the Highest Graduate Earnings
Graduate earnings are bunched together in Iowa. The 27 four-year colleges we rank range only from $48,353 to $69,866, just $21,513 apart.
The median college sits at $58,837, within a few percent of the national median of $59,403. Private nonprofit colleges (24) have a median of $58,605 and public colleges (3) a median of $68,277, and the typical net price across the list is $22,601.
University of Iowa ranks first at $69,866, ahead of Mercy College of Health Sciences ($68,691) and Iowa State University ($68,277).
How this list is built
A college appears here only if it meets every condition below.
- Colleges considered
- All 4-year colleges (public, private nonprofit and for-profit)
- Ranked by earnings after 4 years, highest first. Ties are broken by larger undergraduate enrollment, then by name.
- Main campuses only, with at least 60% of core data fields reported
- Main campus located in Iowa
- At least 500 undergraduate students enrolled (fall 2024)
- A reported earnings after 4 years value (schools without one are not ranked)
- This page is published only when at least 15 schools qualify; Iowa has 27
- Data period
- Earnings: median earnings four years after completing, measured in 2022 and 2023 for the 2017-18 and 2018-19 cohorts, in 2024 dollars.
- Net price: average for students receiving aid, academic year 2023-24.
- Graduate debt: median federal loan debt of completers, pooled 2020 and 2021 cohorts.
- Graduation rate: first-time, full-time students who started in fall 2018 (4-year) or fall 2021 (2-year), finishing within 150% of normal time.
- Enrollment: undergraduate students, fall 2024.
- Source: U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard, June 2026 release.
Showing all 27 qualifying schools. Select a column heading to re-sort the table.
| 1 | University of Iowa Iowa City, IA Public · 4-year | $69,866 | $22,531 | $22,500 | 74% | 22,264 |
| 2 | Mercy College of Health Sciences Des Moines, IA Private nonprofit · 4-year | $68,691 | $26,924 | $14,745 | 56% | 867 |
| 3 | Iowa State University Ames, IA Public · 4-year | $68,277 | $18,589 | $22,869 | 75% | 25,367 |
| 4 | Waldorf University Forest City, IA Private nonprofit · 4-year | $67,834 | $19,693 | $18,752 | 24% | 1,827 |
| 5 | Saint Ambrose University Davenport, IA Private nonprofit · 4-year | $67,026 | $24,691 | $25,000 | 62% | 1,916 |
| 6 | Drake University Des Moines, IA Private nonprofit · 4-year | $65,232 | $29,127 | $23,000 | 76% | 2,543 |
| 7 | Graceland University-Lamoni Lamoni, IA Private nonprofit · 4-year | $63,607 | $18,504 | $21,212 | 40% | 798 |
| 8 | Morningside University Sioux City, IA Private nonprofit · 4-year | $61,955 | $31,320 | $26,028 | 52% | 1,163 |
| 9 | Mount Mercy University Cedar Rapids, IA Private nonprofit · 4-year | $61,330 | $20,168 | $23,699 | 57% | 1,107 |
| 10 | Briar Cliff University Sioux City, IA Private nonprofit · 4-year | $61,163 | $23,907 | $23,250 | 48% | 624 |
| 11 | University of Dubuque Dubuque, IA Private nonprofit · 4-year | $59,598 | $23,386 | $25,750 | 41% | 1,440 |
| 12 | Clarke University Dubuque, IA Private nonprofit · 4-year | $59,490 | $24,479 | $26,717 | 56% | 742 |
| 13 | Grinnell College Grinnell, IA Private nonprofit · 4-year | $58,955 | $17,648 | $17,500 | 88% | 1,729 |
| 14 | Upper Iowa University Fayette, IA Private nonprofit · 4-year | $58,837 | $20,942 | $25,000 | 38% | 1,994 |
| 15 | Wartburg College Waverly, IA Private nonprofit · 4-year | $58,373 | $32,908 | $27,000 | 66% | 1,452 |
| 16 | Dordt University Sioux Center, IA Private nonprofit · 4-year | $57,567 | $25,807 | $21,500 | 68% | 1,597 |
| 17 | Grand View University Des Moines, IA Private nonprofit · 4-year | $57,521 | $21,774 | $22,500 | 55% | 1,486 |
| 18 | Coe College Cedar Rapids, IA Private nonprofit · 4-year | $57,133 | $18,745 | $27,000 | 62% | 1,164 |
| 19 | Simpson College Indianola, IA Private nonprofit · 4-year | $56,509 | $21,936 | $26,000 | 64% | 1,227 |
| 20 | Loras College Dubuque, IA Private nonprofit · 4-year | $55,860 | $20,716 | $26,000 | 69% | 1,083 |
| 21 | Central College Pella, IA Private nonprofit · 4-year | $55,693 | $23,377 | $26,984 | 68% | 1,070 |
| 22 | Northwestern College Orange City, IA Private nonprofit · 4-year | $55,312 | $25,907 | $23,249 | 65% | 1,175 |
| 23 | Luther College Decorah, IA Private nonprofit · 4-year | $55,033 | $23,097 | $27,000 | 73% | 1,379 |
| 24 | University of Northern Iowa Cedar Falls, IA Public · 4-year | $54,830 | $15,901 | $19,691 | 68% | 7,529 |
| 25 | William Penn University Oskaloosa, IA Private nonprofit · 4-year | $53,878 | $22,601 | $22,415 | 31% | 1,301 |
| 26 | Buena Vista University Storm Lake, IA Private nonprofit · 4-year | $50,318 | $18,846 | $25,000 | 54% | 1,366 |
| 27 | Cornell College Mount Vernon, IA Private nonprofit · 4-year | $48,353 | $23,634 | $27,000 | 67% | 1,086 |
How to compare these colleges
High earnings partly reflect who enrolls and what they study: engineering, nursing and business programs usually pay more than education or the arts, so a school with strong health or technical programs can top the list. Read the earnings next to net price, debt and graduation rate, because earnings count only people who finished, and four years after graduation is early in a career.
Guides worth reading first
More lists for Iowa
Cheapest colleges in Iowa
28 schools
Best value colleges in Iowa
24 schools
Most affordable private colleges in Iowa
25 schools
Same list in nearby states
Highest graduate earnings in Illinois
50 schools
Highest graduate earnings in Missouri
38 schools
Highest graduate earnings in Minnesota
36 schools
All 40 colleges in Iowa See the national version of this ranking