Find Schools

Study Area & Zipcode

Natural Resources & Conservation

Find Schools Near

2022 Best Value Natural Resources & Conservation Schools for a Bachelor’s in Iowa

6 Ranked Colleges
323 Degrees Awarded
$22,700 Avg Net Price*
Best Value Natural Resources & Conservation Schools for a Bachelor's in Iowa

Students have lots of options to chooose from today when trying to decide which college to attend. 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 Natural Resources & Conservation Schools for a Bachelor’s in Iowa” ranking is one tool we have developed to help in this regard.

In 2019-2020, 30,341 people earned their degree in natural resources and conservation, making the major the 26th most popular in the United States. In 2017-2018, natural resources and conservation graduates who were awarded their degree in 2015-2017, earned an average of $33,196 and had an average of $25,077 in loans still to pay off.

Across Iowa, there were 396 natural resources and conservation graduates with average earnings and debt of $46,789 and $39,796 respectively. At the bachelor’s degree level specifically, there were 323 natural resources and conservation graduates with average earnings and debt of $39,922 and $25,876 respectively.

This year’s “Best Value Natural Resources & Conservation Schools for a Bachelor’s in Iowa” ranking looked at 6 colleges that offer degrees in a bachelor’s in natural resources and conservation. Not only do the schools that top this list have excellent natural resources and conservation programs, but they also cost less that schools of similar quality.

To come up with these rankings, we looked at factors such as the cost to attend the school after aid is awarded and overall quality of the natural resources and conservation program at the school. Check out our ranking methodology for more information.

One Size Does Not Fit All

The natural resources & conservation school you choose to invest your time and money in matters. To help you make the decision that is right for you, we’ve developed a number of major-specific rankings, including this list of “Best Value Natural Resources & Conservation Schools for a Bachelor’s in Iowa”.

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 Natural Resources & Conservation Schools for a Bachelor’s in Iowa

The colleges and universities below are the best for iowa bachelor’s degree natural resources & conservation students.

Top 6 Best Value Bachelor’s Degree Colleges for Natural Resources & Conservation in Iowa

#1 in overall quality

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Iowa State University. It ranked #1 on our 2022 Best Value Natural Resources & Conservation Schools for a Bachelor’s in Iowa list. Ames, Iowa is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out bachelors’s natural resources and conservation degrees to 118 students in 2019-2020.

Iowa State also made our “Best Natural Resources & Conservation Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Iowa” list, coming in at #1. The yearly cost to attend Iowa State is $15,496 for iowa bachelor’s degree natural resources & conservation students.

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%. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 89%.

Read more about Natural Resources & Conservation at Iowa State

#2

University of Iowa

Iowa City, Iowa
#3 in overall quality

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of Iowa. It ranked #2 on our 2022 Best Value Natural Resources & Conservation Schools for a Bachelor’s in Iowa list. Iowa is located in Iowa City, Iowa and, has a large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 68 bachelors’s natural resources and conservation degrees to qualified students.

Iowa also made our “Best Natural Resources & Conservation Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Iowa” list, coming in at #3. It costs about $19,145 for iowa bachelor’s degree natural resources & conservation students per year to attend Iowa.

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%. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 88%.

Read full report on Natural Resources & Conservation at Iowa

#3

Upper Iowa University

Fayette, Iowa
#5 in overall quality

Out of the 6 schools in the Best Value Natural Resources & Conservation Schools for a Bachelor’s in Iowa that were part of this year’s ranking, Upper Iowa University landed the #3 spot on the list. Upper Iowa University is a small school located in Fayette, Iowa that handed out 23 bachelors’s natural resources and conservation degrees in 2019-2020.

UIU not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #5 on our “Best Natural Resources & Conservation Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Iowa” list. The yearly cost to attend UIU is $21,624 for iowa bachelor’s degree natural resources & conservation students.

Read full report on Natural Resources & Conservation at UIU

#4

University of Dubuque

Dubuque, Iowa
#6 in overall quality

Out of the 6 schools in the Best Value Natural Resources & Conservation Schools for a Bachelor’s in Iowa that were part of this year’s ranking, University of Dubuque landed the #4 spot on the list. University of Dubuque is located in Dubuque, Iowa and, has a small student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 5 bachelors’s natural resources and conservation degrees to qualified students.

UD did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #6 on our “Best Natural Resources & Conservation Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Iowa” list. The yearly cost to attend UD is $26,748 for iowa bachelor’s degree natural resources & conservation students.

Read more about Natural Resources & Conservation at UD

#5

Drake University

Des Moines, Iowa
#2 in overall quality

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Drake University. It ranked #5 on our 2022 Best Value Natural Resources & Conservation Schools for a Bachelor’s in Iowa list. Drake is a private not-for-profit institution located in Des Moines, Iowa. The school has a small population, and it awarded 27 bachelors’s degrees in 2019-2020.

Drake not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #2 on our “Best Natural Resources & Conservation Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Iowa” list. The estimated yearly cost for Drake is $29,432 for Iowa Bachelor’s Degree Natural Resources & Conservation students.

Since the school has a student-to-faculty ratio of 10 to 1, those pursuing a degree will have more opportunities to interact with their professors. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 86%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The low student loan default rate of 2.2% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%.

Read full report on Natural Resources & Conservation at Drake University

#6

Luther College

Decorah, Iowa
#4 in overall quality

Luther College landed the #6 spot on the 2022 Best Value Natural Resources & Conservation Schools for a Bachelor’s in Iowa ranking. Located in Decorah, Iowa, this small private not-for-profit school handed out 13 degrees to qualified bachelors’s natural resources and conservation students in 2019-2020.

Luther not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #4 on our “Best Natural Resources & Conservation Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Iowa” list. The estimated yearly cost for Luther College is $23,620 for Iowa Bachelor’s Degree Natural Resources & Conservation students.

The student loan default rate at the school is 2.2%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Read full report on Natural Resources & Conservation at Luther

Switch to a Different Ranking Method

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 Lynn Betts.

Featured Environment / Natural Resources Schools

Find Schools Near You