2022 Best Value Colleges for Area Studies (Income $0-$30k) in Iowa

When it comes to choosing a college, students have a lot of options - but not all of them are good. Our mission at College Factual is to arm you with as much information as we can to help you make that decision. Our “Best Value Area Studies Schools in Iowa For Those Making $0-$30k” ranking is one tool we have developed to help in this regard.

Area Studies is the 106th most popular major in the country with 6,820 degrees awarded in 2019-2020. In 2017-2018, area studies graduates who were awarded their degree in 2015-2017, earned an average of $33,734 and had an average of $23,024 in loans still to pay off.

Across Iowa, there were 62 area studies graduates with average earnings and debt of $0 and $23,250 respectively.

For this year’s “Best Value Area Studies Schools in Iowa For Those Making $0-$30k” ranking, we looked at 2 colleges that offer a degree in area studies. This ranking identifies schools with high-quality area studies programs that also have a lower cost than schools of similar quality.

When determining these rankings, we looked at things such as overall quality of the area studies program at the school and the cost to attend the school once aid has been awarded. See our ranking methodology to learn more.

One Size Does Not Fit All

Since picking the right college can be one of the most important decisions of your life, we’ve developed the “Best Value Area Studies Schools in Iowa For Those Making $0-$30k” ranking, along with many other major-related rankings, to help you make that decision.

To further help you make the college decision, we’ve developed a unique tool called College Combat that allows you to compare schools based on the factors that matter the most to you. Test it out when you get a chance! You may also want to bookmark the link and share it with others who are trying to make the college decision.

Best Value Area Studies Schools in Iowa For Those Making $0-$30k

The following schools top our list of the Best Best Value Area Studies Schools in Iowa For Those Making $0-$30k.

Top 2 Best Value Colleges for Area Studies (Income $0-$30k) in Iowa

#1

Iowa State University

Ames, Iowa

#2 in overall quality

$10,054 Average Net Price

$46,410 Average Early-Career Earnings

Out of the 2 schools in the Best Value Area Studies Schools in Iowa For Those Making $0-$30k that were part of this year’s ranking, Iowa State University landed the #1 spot on the list. Iowa State University is a large school located in Ames, Iowa that handed out 14 ’s area studies degrees in 2019-2020.

Iowa State also made our “Best Area Studies Schools in Iowa” list, coming in at #2. The estimated yearly cost for Iowa State University is $10,054 for iowa area studies students whose families make $0-$30k.

Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 89%. The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 3.3%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Read full report on Area Studies at Iowa State University

#2

University of Iowa

Iowa City, Iowa

#1 in overall quality

$12,975 Average Net Price

$44,594 Average Early-Career Earnings

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of Iowa. It ranked #2 on our 2022 Best Value Area Studies Schools in Iowa For Those Making $0-$30k list. Iowa is a large public school situated in Iowa City, Iowa. It awarded 38 ’s area studies degrees in 2019-2020.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at Iowa, the school also landed the #1 spot in our “Best Area Studies Schools in Iowa” ranking. It costs about $12,975 for iowa area studies students whose families make $0-$30k per year to attend University of Iowa.

Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 88%. The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 3.5%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Read full report on Area Studies at University of Iowa

• Best Value Colleges for Area Studies (Income $0-$30k) in the Plains States Region
• Best Value Colleges for Area Studies (Income $0-$30k)

Notes and References

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%.

Read more about our data sources and methodologies

Footnotes

• *Average salary, average net price, and average tuition and fees are for the top schools only.
• Some schools otherwise deserving of recognition may have been removed from this ranking in the event that new data identified post-publication warranted it, or at the request of the school.

Credits

• Credit for the banner image above goes to Karl Udo Gerth.

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