# List of colleges and universities in Iowa

There are fifty-six colleges and universities in the U.S. state of Iowa that are listed under the Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education. The Iowa Board of Regents, a governing board, oversees the state's three public universities – the University of Iowa, Iowa State University, and the University of Northern Iowa.
With 4,685 students, Drake University is the state's largest private not-for-profit school. The state's oldest post-secondary institution is Loras College, a private Catholic school in Dubuque that was founded in 1839, seven years before Iowa became a state.
The state's only two law schools, the University of Iowa College of Law and Drake University Law School, are both accredited by the American Bar Association. Roy J. and Lucille A. Carver College of Medicine and Des Moines University are the state's two medical schools. The majority of Iowa's post-secondary institutions are accredited by the Higher Learning Commission (HLC). Most are accredited by multiple agencies, such as the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education (CCNE), the National Association of Schools of Music (NASM), and the National League for Nursing (NLNAC).

## Extant institutions

| Institution | Location(s) | Control | Type | Enrollment (fall 2022) | Founded | Accreditation |
| University of Iowa | Iowa City | Public | Research university | 30,015 | 1847 | HLC, ACPE, ABA, ADA, APTA, APA, ASHA, CPE, CAHME, CCNE, CELPA, AANA, CEPH, JRCERT, LCME, NASD, NASM, NAST |
| Iowa State University | Ames | Public | Research university | 29,969 | 1858 | HLC, AAMFT, ADA, APA, AVMA, NASM |
| University of Northern Iowa | Cedar Falls | Public | Master's university | 8,945 | 1876 | HLC, ASHA, NASM |
| Des Moines Area Community College | Ankeny | Public | Associate's college | 21,637 | 1966 | HLC, ABFSE, ADA, NLNAC |
| Eastern Iowa Community Colleges | Davenport | Public | Associate's college | 7,145 | 1965 | HLC |
| Ellsworth Community College | Iowa Falls | Public | Associate's college | 718 | 1890 | HLC |
| Hawkeye Community College | Waterloo | Public | Associate's college | 4,787 | 1966 | HLC, ADA, APTA |
| Indian Hills Community College | Ottumwa | Public | Associate's college | 3,361 | 1969 | HLC, AOTA, APTA, JRCERT |
| Iowa Central Community College | Fort Dodge | Public | Associate's college | 5,058 | 1966 | HLC, ADA, JRCERT, NLNAC |
| Iowa Lakes Community College | Estherville | Public | Associate's college | 1,960 | 1967 | HLC |
| Iowa Western Community College | Council Bluffs | Public | Associate's college | 5,342 | 1966 | HLC, NLNAC, ADA |
| Kirkwood Community College | Cedar Rapids | Public | Associate's college | 12,406 | 1966 | HLC, ADA, AOTA, APTA |
| Marshalltown Community College | Marshalltown | Public | Associate's college | 1,707 | 1927 | HLC, ADA |
| North Iowa Area Community College | Mason City | Public | Associate's college | 2,479 | 1918 | HLC, APTA, NLNAC |
| Northeast Iowa Community College | Calmar | Public | Associate's college | 4,355 | 1967 | HLC |
| Northwest Iowa Community College | Sheldon | Public | Associate's college | 1,811 | 1966 | HLC |
| Southeastern Community College | West Burlington | Public | Associate's college | 2,476 | 1967 | HLC |
| Southwestern Community College | Creston | Public | Associate's college | 1,581 | 1966 | HLC |
| Western Iowa Tech Community College | Sioux City | Public | Associate's college | 5,150 | 1966 | HLC, ADA, APTA, NLNAC |
| Allen College | Waterloo | Private not-for-profit | Special-focus institution | 497 | 1925 | HLC, CCNE, JRCERT, NLNAC |
| Briar Cliff University | Sioux City | Private not-for-profit | Baccalaureate college | 927 | 1930 | HLC, CCNE, NLNAC |
| Buena Vista University | Storm Lake | Private not-for-profit | Baccalaureate college | 1,973 | 1891 | HLC |
| Central College | Pella | Private not-for-profit | Baccalaureate college | 1,169 | 1853 | HLC, NASM |
| Clarke University | Dubuque | Private not-for-profit | Baccalaureate college | 965 | 1843 | HLC, APTA, CCNE, NASM |
| Coe College | Cedar Rapids | Private not-for-profit | Baccalaureate college | 1,264 | 1851 | HLC, CCNE, NASM |
| Cornell College | Mount Vernon | Private not-for-profit | Baccalaureate college | 1,073 | 1853 | HLC |
| Des Moines University | Des Moines | Private not-for-profit | Special-focus institution | 1,527 | 1898 | HLC, AOA, APTA, APMA, CEPH |
| Divine Word College | Epworth | Private not-for-profit | Special-focus institution | 68 | 1931 | HLC |
| Dordt University | Sioux Center | Private not-for-profit | Baccalaureate college | 1,861 | 1955 | HLC, CCNE |
| Drake University | Des Moines | Private not-for-profit | Master's university | 4,685 | 1881 | HLC, ACPE, ABA, NASAD, NASM |
| Emmaus University | Dubuque | Private not-for-profit | Special-focus institution | 206 | 1941 | ABHE, HLC |
| Faith Baptist Bible College and Theological Seminary | Ankeny | Private not-for-profit | Special-focus institution | 448 | 1921 | ABHE, HLC |
| Graceland University | Lamoni | Private not-for-profit | Master's university | 1,237 | 1895 | HLC, TCATE |
| Grand View University | Des Moines | Private not-for-profit | Master's university | 1,827 | 1896 | HLC, CCNE |
| Grinnell College | Grinnell | Private not-for-profit | Baccalaureate college | 1,759 | 1846 | HLC |
| Loras College | Dubuque | Private not-for-profit | Baccalaureate college | 1,319 | 1839 | HLC |
| Luther College | Decorah | Private not-for-profit | Baccalaureate college | 1,610 | 1861 | HLC, CCNE, NASM, TCATE |
| Maharishi International University | Fairfield | Private not-for-profit | Master's university | 2,673 | 1971 | HLC |
| Mercy College of Health Sciences | Des Moines | Private not-for-profit | Special-focus institution | 911 | 1995 | HLC, APTA, CCNE, JRCERT, JRCNMT, NLNAC |
| Morningside University | Sioux City | Private not-for-profit | Baccalaureate college | 2,249 | 1894 | HLC, CCNE, NASM, TCATE |
| Mount Mercy University | Cedar Rapids | Private not-for-profit | Baccalaureate college | 1,526 | 1928 | HLC, CCNE |
| Northwestern College | Orange City | Private not-for-profit | Baccalaureate college | 1,651 | 1882 | HLC, CCNE, TCATE |
| Palmer College of Chiropractic | Davenport | Private not-for-profit | Special-focus institution | 2,178 | 1897 | HLC, CCE |
| Simpson College | Indianola | Private not-for-profit | Baccalaureate college | 1,151 | 1860 | HLC, NASM |
| St. Ambrose University | Davenport | Private not-for-profit | Master's university | 2,747 | 1882 | HLC, AOTA, APTA, CCNE, TCATE |
| St. Luke's College | Sioux City | Private not-for-profit | Special-focus institution | 196 | 1966 | HLC, JRCERT, NLNAC |
| University of Dubuque | Dubuque | Private not-for-profit | Master's university | 1,776 | 1852 | HLC, ATSCA, CCNE |
| Upper Iowa University | Fayette | Private not-for-profit | Master's university | 3,072 | 1857 | HLC, CCNE |
| Wartburg College | Waverly | Private not-for-profit | Baccalaureate college | 1,444 | 1852 | HLC, NASM, NAST |
| Wartburg Theological Seminary | Dubuque | Private not-for-profit | Special-focus institution | 186 | 1854 | ATSCA, HLC |
| William Penn University | Oskaloosa | Private not-for-profit | Baccalaureate college | 1,473 | 1873 | HLC |
| Waldorf University | Forest City | Private for-profit | Baccalaureate college | 2,763 | 1903 | HLC |

## Defunct institutions

| Institution | Location(s) | Control | Founded | Closed |
| AIB College of Business | Des Moines | Private | 1921 | 2016 |
| Algona College | Algona | Private | 1868 | 1875 |
| Ashford University | Clinton | Private for-profit | 1918 | 2016 |
| Charles City College | Charles City | Private | 1891 | 1914 (merged into Morningside College) |
| Des Moines University | Des Moines | Private | 1865 | 1929 |
| Grundy College | Grundy Center, Iowa | Private | 1916 | 1934 |
| Highland Park College | Des Moines | Private | 1890 | 1918 (merged with Des Moines College) |
| Iowa Wesleyan University | Mount Pleasant | Private not-for-profit | 1842 | 2023 |
| Kaplan University | various | Private for-profit | 1937 | 2018 |
| Leander Clark College | Toledo | Private | 1857 | 1918 (merged into Coe College) |
| Lenox College | Hopkinton | Private | 1859 | 1944 |
| Marycrest International University | Davenport | Private | 1939 | 2002 |
| Midwestern College | Denison | Private | 1965 | 1970 |
| Ottumwa Heights College | Ottumwa | Private | 1864 | 1980 |
| Parsons College | Fairfield | Private | 1875 | 1973 |
| Sioux Empire College | Hawarden | Public | 1965 | 1985 |
| Tabor College | Tabor | Private | 1853 | 1927 |
| Vatterott College | Des Moines | Private for-profit | 1969 | 2018 |
| Vennard College | University Park | Private | 1910 | 2008 |
| Westmar University | Le Mars | Private | 1890 | 1997 |
| Wilton German English College | Wilton | Private | 1894 | 1904 |

## Key

| Abbreviation | Accrediting agency |
| AAMFT | American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy |
| AANA | American Association of Nurse Anesthetists |
| ABA | American Bar Association |
| ABFSE | American Board of Funeral Service Education |
| ABHE | Association for Biblical Higher Education |
| ABHES | Accrediting Bureau of Health Education Schools |
| ACCSC | Accrediting Commission of Career Schools and Colleges |
| ACICS | Accrediting Council for Independent Colleges and Schools |
| ACPE | Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education |
| ACPE | Association for Clinical Pastoral Education |
| ADA | American Dental Association |
| ADA | American Dietetic Association |
| AOA | American Osteopathic Association |
| AOTA | American Occupational Therapy Association |
| APA | American Psychological Association |
| APMA | American Podiatric Medical Association |
| APTA | American Physical Therapy Association |
| ASHA | American Speech–Language–Hearing Association |
| ATSCA | Association of Theological Schools in the United States and Canada |
| AVMA | American Veterinary Medical Association |
| CAHME | Commission on the Accreditation of Healthcare Management Education |
| CCE | Council on Chiropractic Education |
| CCNE | Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education |
| CELPA | Commission on English Language Program Accreditation |
| CEPH | Council on Education for Public Health |
| JRCERT | Joint Review Committee on Education Programs in Radiologic Technology |
| JRCNMT | Joint Review Committee on Educational Programs in Nuclear Medicine Technology |
| LCME | Liaison Committee on Medical Education |
| NASAD | National Association of Schools of Art and Design |
| NASD | National Association of Schools of Dance |
| NASM | National Association of Schools of Music |
| NAST | National Association of Schools of Theatre |
| HLC | Higher Learning Commission |
| NCATE | National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education |
| NLNAC | National League for Nursing |