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Best Nursing Basic Certificate Schools in Iowa

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2023 Best Nursing Basic Certificate Schools in Iowa

6 Schools Ranked
$5,839 Avg Tuition & Fees*

Today's nursing students have lots of options to pick from when considering higher education opportunities. You're no longer limited to schools in your local area, either, since online programs are becoming more prevalent. Also there are many trade schools and bpptcamp that offer short-term programs that open up more career options.

Along with in-depth profiles of schools and the programs they offer, Nursing Degree Search has created the Best Nursing Basic Certificate Schools in Iowa to help you in your search for the best school for you. Our analysis looked at 6 schools in Iowa to see which basic certificate programs offered the best educational experiences for nursing students. Factors related to overall quality of the school, post-graduation earnings, average student debt, and more accumulated were considered when coming up with this list.

View our full ranking methodology.

Top Nursing Basic Certificate Schools in Iowa

Learn more about these excellent schools below:

$5,971 Average Tuition & Fees

Our analysis found North Iowa Area Community College to be the best school for nursing students who want to pursue a basic certificate in Iowa.

Full-time students from Iowa pay an average of $5,971 in tuition and fees if they choose to attend North Iowa Area Community College. Those students who come from outside the state pay an average of $8,547.

North Iowa Area Community College is one of the schools on our list that is primarily online. Each undergraduate student at the school took at least one class online.

Full North Iowa Area Community College Report

$4,802 Average Tuition & Fees

The excellent basic certificate programs at Western Iowa Tech Community College helped the school earn the #2 place on this year’s ranking of the best nursing schools in Iowa.

In-state students pay an average of $4,802 in tuition and fees if they attend Western Iowa Tech Community College full time. Out-of-state students pay an average of $4,826.

You may have the opportunity to take online classes at Western Iowa Tech Community College. In 2019-2020 about 53% of the undergraduate students at the school chose to take one or more online courses.

Read full report on Western Iowa Tech Community College

Out of the 6 schools in Iowa that were part of this year’s ranking, Des Moines Area Community College landed the # 3 spot on the list.

Depending on your major, you may be able to take online classes at DMACC. In fact, around 63% of the undergraduate population registered for at least one online class in 2019-2020.

Full Des Moines Area Community College Report

#4

Iowa Central Community College

Fort Dodge, Iowa
$6,000 Average Tuition & Fees

A rank of #4 on this year’s list means Iowa Central Community College is a great place for nursing students working on their basic certificate.

Students from Iowa who attend Iowa Central Community College full time pay an average of $6,000 in tuition and fees. Those students who come from outside the state pay an average of $8,650.

Depending on your major, you may be able to take online classes at Iowa Central Community College. To give an idea of how popular online courses are at the school, 33% of undergraduates took at least one course online in 2019-2020.

Read full report on Iowa Central Community College

#5

Southeastern Community College

West Burlington, Iowa
$6,090 Average Tuition & Fees

The excellent basic certificate programs at Southeastern Community College helped the school earn the #5 place on this year’s ranking of the best nursing schools in Iowa.

The average in-state tuition and fees for students at Southeastern Community College is $6,090. Out-of-state students pay an average of $6,240.

Southeastern Community College does have options available for those who want to take online classes. You will need to check with the school to see if they are available for your specific major. In fact, around 49% of the undergraduate population registered for at least one online class in 2019-2020.

Read full report on Southeastern Community College

#6

Iowa Western Community College

Council Bluffs, Iowa
$6,330 Average Tuition & Fees

Iowa Western Community College landed the #6 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best basic certificate nursing programs.

Full-time students from Iowa pay an average of $6,330 in tuition and fees if they choose to attend Iowa Western Community College. Out-of-state students pay an average of $6,480.

Some students may be able to take online classes at Iowa Western Community College. During the 2019-2020 year, about 75% of the undergraduates at the school took at least one online course.

Read full report on Iowa Western Community College

Best Nursing Basic Certificate Schools in the Plains States Region

View Best Nursing Basic Certificate Schools Nationwide >

Notes and References

Footnotes

*These averages are for the top 6 schools only.

References

  • Read more about our ranking methodology.
  • 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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