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2022 Best Value Public Administration & Social Service Schools for a Bachelor’s in Iowa For Those Getting Aid

11 Ranked Colleges
476 Degrees Awarded
$20,600 Avg Net Price*
Best Value Public Administration & Social Service Schools for a Bachelor's in Iowa For Those Getting Aid

When pursuing a degree in today’s world, students have many different options to choose from. College Factual was founded, in part, to help students make the decision as to what would be the best school for them. Our “Best Value Public Administration & Social Service Schools for a Bachelor’s in Iowa For Those Getting Aid” ranking is part of that endeavor.

Public Administration & Social Service is the 14th most popular major in the country with 97,666 degrees awarded in 2019-2020. In 2017-2018, public administration and social service graduates who were awarded their degree in 2015-2017, earned an average of $39,142 and had an average of $32,304 in loans still to pay off.

Across Iowa, there were 855 public administration and social service graduates with average earnings and debt of $35,059 and $32,142 respectively. At the bachelor’s degree level specifically, there were 476 public administration and social service graduates with average earnings and debt of $39,922 and $25,876 respectively.

This year’s “Best Value Public Administration & Social Service Schools for a Bachelor’s in Iowa For Those Getting Aid” ranking analyzed 11 colleges that offered a degree in public administration and social service. Not only do the schools that top this list have excellent public administration and social service 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 public administration and social service program at the school. See our ranking methodology to learn more.

One Size Does Not Fit All

When choosing the right school for you, it’s important to arm yourself with all the facts you can. To that end, we’ve created a number of major-specific rankings, including this “Best Value Public Administration & Social Service Schools for a Bachelor’s in Iowa For Those Getting Aid” list to help you make the college decision.

We’ve created a tool called College Combat that lets you create your own customized comparisons based on the factors that matter the most to you. We encourage you to try it out and pit your favorite colleges and universities head to head! If you don’t have time right now, you can bookmark it for later.

Best Value Public Administration & Social Service Schools for a Bachelor’s in Iowa For Those Getting Aid

The following schools top our list of the Best Best Value Public Administration & Social Service Schools for a Bachelor’s in Iowa For Those Getting Aid.

Top 11 Best Value Bachelor’s Degree Colleges for Public Administration & Social Service in Iowa (With Aid)

#1

University of Northern Iowa

Cedar Falls, Iowa
#1 in overall quality

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of Northern Iowa. It ranked #1 on our 2022 Best Value Public Administration & Social Service Schools for a Bachelor’s in Iowa For Those Getting Aid list. University of Northern Iowa is a medium-sized school located in Cedar Falls, Iowa that handed out 83 bachelors’s public administration and social service degrees in 2019-2020.

UNI also took the #1 spot in our “Best Public Administration & Social Service Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Iowa” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for University of Northern Iowa is $15,620 for Iowa Bachelor’s Degree Public Administration & Social Service students with aid.

The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 3.6%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 86%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.

Full University of Northern Iowa Public Administration & Social Service Report

#2

University of Iowa

Iowa City, Iowa
#2 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 Public Administration & Social Service Schools for a Bachelor’s in Iowa For Those Getting Aid list. Iowa is a public institution located in Iowa City, Iowa. The school has a large population, and it awarded 54 bachelors’s degrees in 2019-2020.

In addition to being on our iowa bachelor’s degree public administration & social service students with aid list, Iowa has also earned the #2 rank in our “Best Public Administration & Social Service Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Iowa” ranking. It costs about $19,145 for Iowa Bachelor’s Degree Public Administration & Social Service students with aid per year to attend Iowa.

The low student loan default rate of 3.5% 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%. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 88%.

Full Iowa Public Administration & Social Service Report

#3

Loras College

Dubuque, Iowa
#3 in overall quality

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Loras College. It ranked #3 on our 2022 Best Value Public Administration & Social Service Schools for a Bachelor’s in Iowa For Those Getting Aid list. Dubuque, Iowa is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out bachelors’s public administration and social service degrees to 19 students in 2019-2020.

Loras not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #3 on our “Best Public Administration & Social Service Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Iowa” list. The estimated yearly cost for Loras College is $20,676 for iowa bachelor’s degree public administration & social service students with aid.

The student loan default rate at the school is 3.2%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Full Loras Public Administration & Social Service Report

#4

Briar Cliff University

Sioux City, Iowa
#5 in overall quality

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Briar Cliff University. It ranked #4 on our 2022 Best Value Public Administration & Social Service Schools for a Bachelor’s in Iowa For Those Getting Aid list. Sioux City, Iowa is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out bachelors’s public administration and social service degrees to 42 students in 2019-2020.

In addition to being on our iowa bachelor’s degree public administration & social service students with aid list, Briar Cliff has also earned the #5 rank in our “Best Public Administration & Social Service Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Iowa” ranking. It costs about $20,604 for Iowa Bachelor’s Degree Public Administration & Social Service students with aid per year to attend Briar Cliff University.

Read more about Public Administration & Social Service at Briar Cliff

#5

Buena Vista University

Storm Lake, Iowa
#10 in overall quality

Out of the 11 schools in the Best Value Public Administration & Social Service Schools for a Bachelor’s in Iowa For Those Getting Aid that were part of this year’s ranking, Buena Vista University landed the #5 spot on the list. BVU is a private not-for-profit institution located in Storm Lake, Iowa. The school has a small population, and it awarded 8 bachelors’s degrees in 2019-2020.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at BVU, the school also landed the #10 spot in our “Best Public Administration & Social Service Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Iowa” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for BVU is $17,544 for Iowa Bachelor’s Degree Public Administration & Social Service students with aid.

The impressive student-to-faculty ratio of 10 to 1 means that students may have more opportunities to work more closely with their professors than they would at other schools.

Read full report on Public Administration & Social Service at BVU

#6

Grand View University

Des Moines, Iowa
#11 in overall quality

Grand View University came in at #6 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Public Administration & Social Service Schools for a Bachelor’s in Iowa For Those Getting Aid ranking. Located in Des Moines, Iowa, this small private not-for-profit school awarded 47 degrees to qualified bachelors’s public administration and social service students in 2019-2020.

Grand View University not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #11 on our “Best Public Administration & Social Service Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Iowa” list. The estimated yearly cost for Grand View University is $19,826 for Iowa Bachelor’s Degree Public Administration & Social Service students with aid.

Read full report on Public Administration & Social Service at Grand View University

#7

Luther College

Decorah, Iowa
#4 in overall quality

With a ranking of #7, Luther College did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Public Administration & Social Service Schools for a Bachelor’s in Iowa For Those Getting Aid list. Luther is a small private not-for-profit school situated in Decorah, Iowa. It awarded 12 bachelors’s public administration and social service degrees in 2019-2020.

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

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 Public Administration & Social Service at Luther

#8

Wartburg College

Waverly, Iowa
#9 in overall quality

Wartburg College landed the #8 spot on the 2022 Best Value Public Administration & Social Service Schools for a Bachelor’s in Iowa For Those Getting Aid ranking. Wartburg is a small private not-for-profit school situated in Waverly, Iowa. It awarded 9 bachelors’s public administration and social service degrees in 2019-2020.

Wartburg also made our “Best Public Administration & Social Service Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Iowa” list, coming in at #9. The estimated yearly cost for Wartburg College is $21,787 for iowa bachelor’s degree public administration & social service students with aid.

The student loan default rate at the school is 4.6%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Full Wartburg Public Administration & Social Service Report

#9

Mount Mercy University

Cedar Rapids, Iowa
#6 in overall quality

Mount Mercy University came in at #9 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Public Administration & Social Service Schools for a Bachelor’s in Iowa For Those Getting Aid ranking. Mount Mercy is a private not-for-profit institution located in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. The school has a small population, and it awarded 11 bachelors’s degrees in 2019-2020.

Mount Mercy not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #6 on our “Best Public Administration & Social Service Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Iowa” list. The estimated yearly cost for Mount Mercy is $20,857 for Iowa Bachelor’s Degree Public Administration & Social Service students with aid.

The low student loan default rate of 4.3% 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 more about Public Administration & Social Service at Mount Mercy University

#10

Upper Iowa University

Fayette, Iowa
#8 in overall quality

With a ranking of #10, Upper Iowa University did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Public Administration & Social Service Schools for a Bachelor’s in Iowa For Those Getting Aid list. UIU is located in Fayette, Iowa and, has a small student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 109 bachelors’s public administration and social service degrees to qualified students.

UIU also took the #8 spot in our “Best Public Administration & Social Service Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Iowa” ranking. It costs about $21,624 for Iowa Bachelor’s Degree Public Administration & Social Service students with aid per year to attend UIU.

Read full report on Public Administration & Social Service at UIU

#11

Dordt University

Sioux Center, Iowa
#7 in overall quality

Dordt University did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Public Administration & Social Service Schools for a Bachelor’s in Iowa For Those Getting Aid ranking, coming in at #11. Dordt University is a small school located in Sioux Center, Iowa that handed out 17 bachelors’s public administration and social service degrees in 2019-2020.

Dordt also made our “Best Public Administration & Social Service Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Iowa” list, coming in at #7. The estimated yearly cost for Dordt is $25,102 for iowa bachelor’s degree public administration & social service students with aid.

The low student loan default rate of 1.8% 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%.

Full Dordt University Public Administration & Social Service Report

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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.

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