2023 Most Popular Nursing Schools in Iowa
Finding the Best Nursing School for You
Nursing is the most popular major in Iowa with 2,966 degrees and certificates handed out in 2020-2021.
Today's nursing students have lots of options to pick from when considering higher education opportunities. You can choose a traditional brick and mortar school, or with the growth of online education, you can attend a school half-way across the country without even leaving your house. Also there are many trade schools that offer short-term programs that open up more career options.
The Most Popular Nursing Schools in Iowa ranking is one of many tools that Nursing Degree Search has developed to help you make your educational decision. This report analyzed 36 schools in Iowa to see which ones were the most popular programs for nursing students. To create this ranking we looked at how many students graduated from the Nursing program at each school on the list.
2023 Most Popular Nursing Schools in Iowa
The colleges and universities below are the most popular for nursing majors pursuing a .
Top 10 Most Popular Nursing Schools
Our analysis found Mercy College of Health Sciences to be the most popular school for nursing students who want to pursue a degree in Iowa. Mercy College of Health Sciences is a small private not-for-profit school located in the midsize city of Des Moines.
Nursing majors at Mercy College of Health Sciences take out an average of $30,295 in student loans while working on their egree. When it comes time to repay the loan, graduates who are on a 10-year repayment plan pay an average monthly payment of $330.
Full Nursing at Mercy College of Health Sciences Report
Request Information
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of Iowa. It ranked #2 on our 2023 Most Popular Nursing Schools in Iowa list. Iowa is a fairly large public school located in the small city of Iowa City.
On average, nursing graduates from Iowa take out $24,687 in student loans while working on their degree. For students who choose a 10-year repayment plan, the average monthly student loan payment is $221.
Full Nursing at University of Iowa Report
Request Information
A rank of #3 on this year’s list means Graceland University - Lamoni is a great place for nursing students. Located in the remote area of Lamoni, Graceland Lamoni is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population.
The average amount in student loans that nursing majors at Graceland Lamoni take out is $28,584.
Read full report on Nursing at Graceland University - Lamoni
Request Information
Out of the 36 schools in Iowa that were part of this year’s ranking, Allen College landed the # 4 spot on the list. Located in the city of Waterloo, Allen College is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population.
The average amount in student loans that nursing majors at Allen College take out is $30,510. This translates to an average monthly loan payment of $242, based on a 10-year repayment plan.
Full Nursing at Allen College Report
Request Information
Out of the 36 schools in Iowa that were part of this year’s ranking, Des Moines Area Community College landed the # 5 spot on the list. DMACC is a very large public school located in the suburb of Ankeny.
On average, nursing graduates from DMACC take out $20,596 in student loans while working on their degree.
Full Nursing at Des Moines Area Community College Report
Request Information
Iowa Western Community College ranked #6 on this year’s Most Popular Nursing Schools in Iowa list. Iowa Western Community College is a medium-sized public school located in the small city of Council Bluffs.
The average amount in student loans that nursing majors at Iowa Western Community College take out is $25,973.
Full Nursing at Iowa Western Community College Report
Request Information
Upper Iowa University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the most popular schools for nursing students. It came in at #7 on the list. UIU is a small private not-for-profit school located in the remote area of Fayette.
The average amount in student loans that nursing majors at UIU take out is $35,001.
Full Nursing at Upper Iowa University Report
Request Information
With a ranking of #7, Mount Mercy University did quite well on this year’s most popular schools for nursing students. Mount Mercy is a small private not-for-profit school located in the medium-sized city of Cedar Rapids.
Nursing majors at Mount Mercy take out an average of $27,000 in student loans while working on their egree. The average monthly payment of a loan this size is about $289, assuming that the borrower is on a 10-year repayment plan.
Full Nursing at Mount Mercy University Report
Request Information
Kirkwood Community College came in at #9 in this year’s edition of the Most Popular Nursing Schools in Iowa ranking. Kirkwood Community College is a fairly large public school located in the city of Cedar Rapids.
The average amount in student loans that nursing majors at Kirkwood Community College take out is $25,000.
Read full report on Nursing at Kirkwood Community College
Request Information
Saint Ambrose University landed the #10 spot in the 2023 rankings for the most popular nursing programs. St. Ambrose University is a small private not-for-profit school located in the city of Davenport.
After completing their degree, nursing graduates from St. Ambrose University carry an average student debt load of $27,000. For students who choose a 10-year repayment plan, the average monthly student loan payment is $500.
Request InformationBest Nursing Colleges in the Plains States Region
Explore all the Most Popular Nursing Schools in the Plains States Area or other specific states within that region.
State | Degrees Awarded |
---|---|
Minnesota | 14,890 |
South Dakota | 1,022 |
North Dakota | 976 |
Nebraska | 1,908 |
Kansas | 2,633 |
Missouri | 6,840 |
Majors Related to Nursing
Nursing Focus Areas
Majors Similar to Nursing
Related Major | Annual Graduates |
---|---|
Practical Nursing & Nursing Assistants | 84,274 |
Notes and References
*These averages are for the top 25 schools only.
- 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 the rest 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).
- Credit for the banner image above goes to Aleksahgabrielle.
More about our data sources and methodologies.