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2022 Best Value Colleges for Design & Applied Arts in Iowa (With Aid)

11 Ranked Colleges
524 Degrees Awarded
$18,400 Avg Net Price*
Best Value Design Schools in Iowa For Those Getting Aid

When pursuing a degree in today’s world, students have many different options to choose from. At College Factual, we’re committed to helping you make that decision by providing information such as that found in our “Best Value Design Schools in Iowa For Those Getting Aid” ranking.

In 2019-2020, 36,854 people earned their degree in design and applied arts, making the major the 34th most popular in the United States. In 2017-2018, design and applied arts graduates who were awarded their degree in 2015-2017, earned an average of $29,542 and had an average of $27,114 in loans still to pay off.

Across Iowa, there were 524 design and applied arts graduates with average earnings and debt of $33,460 and $23,539 respectively.

This year’s “Best Value Design Schools in Iowa For Those Getting Aid” ranking analyzed 11 colleges that offered a degree in design and applied arts. The schools that top this list are recognized because they have great design and applied arts programs and cost less that schools of similar quality.

Some of the factors we look at when determining these rankings are overall quality of the design and applied arts program at the school and the cost of the school after aid is awarded among other things. For more information, check out our ranking methodology.

More Ways to Rank Design & Applied Arts Schools

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 Design Schools in Iowa For Those Getting Aid” list to help you make the college decision.

You can create your own custom comparison that focuses on the factors most important to you using our tool, College Combat. If you’re torn between two schools, you can use it to help you see how they stack up against one another. Bookmark it so you can compare any new schools that might interest you.

Best Value Design Schools in Iowa For Those Getting Aid

The following schools top our list of the Best Best Value Design Schools in Iowa For Those Getting Aid.

Top 11 Best Value Colleges for Design & Applied Arts in Iowa (With Aid)

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Iowa State University. The school came in at #1 for the Best Value Design Schools in Iowa For Those Getting Aid. Iowa State is located in Ames, Iowa and, has a large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 252 ’s design degrees to qualified students.

Iowa State not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #1 on our “Best Design & Applied Arts Schools in Iowa” list. The yearly cost to attend Iowa State University is $15,496 for Iowa Design students with aid.

Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 89%. The student loan default rate at the school is 3.3%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Read full report on Design & Applied Arts at Iowa State

Out of the 11 schools in the Best Value Design Schools in Iowa For Those Getting Aid that were part of this year’s ranking, Des Moines Area Community College landed the #2 spot on the list. DMACC is a large public school situated in Ankeny, Iowa. It awarded 98 ’s design degrees in 2019-2020.

DMACC also made our “Best Design & Applied Arts Schools in Iowa” list, coming in at #7. The yearly cost to attend Des Moines Area Community College is $10,076 for iowa design students with aid.

Read full report on Design & Applied Arts at Des Moines Area Community College

#3

Kirkwood Community College

Cedar Rapids, Iowa

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Kirkwood Community College. It ranked #3 on our 2022 Best Value Design Schools in Iowa For Those Getting Aid list. Kirkwood Community College is a public institution located in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. The school has a fairly large population, and it awarded 13 ’s degrees in 2019-2020.

In addition to being on our iowa design students with aid list, Kirkwood Community College has also earned the #9 rank in our “Best Design & Applied Arts Schools in Iowa” ranking. It costs about $10,939 for Iowa Design students with aid per year to attend Kirkwood Community College.

Read more about Design & Applied Arts at Kirkwood Community College

#4

University of Northern Iowa

Cedar Falls, Iowa

Out of the 11 schools in the Best Value Design Schools in Iowa For Those Getting Aid that were part of this year’s ranking, University of Northern Iowa landed the #4 spot on the list. UNI is a medium-sized school located in Cedar Falls, Iowa that handed out 36 ’s design degrees in 2019-2020.

In addition to being on our iowa design students with aid list, UNI has also earned the #4 rank in our “Best Design & Applied Arts Schools in Iowa” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for University of Northern Iowa is $15,620 for Iowa Design students with aid.

Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 86%. The student loan default rate at the school is 3.6%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Read full report on Design & Applied Arts at UNI

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Western Iowa Tech Community College. The school came in at #5 for the Best Value Design Schools in Iowa For Those Getting Aid. Western Iowa Tech Community College is located in Sioux City, Iowa and, has a medium-sized student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 25 ’s design degrees to qualified students.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at Western Iowa Tech Community College, the school also landed the #10 spot in our “Best Design & Applied Arts Schools in Iowa” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for Western Iowa Tech Community College is $7,201 for iowa design students with aid.

Full Western Iowa Tech Community College Design & Applied Arts Report

Iowa Central Community College did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Design Schools in Iowa For Those Getting Aid ranking, coming in at #6. Located in Fort Dodge, Iowa, this small public school awarded 5 degrees to qualified ’s design students in 2019-2020.

Iowa Central Community College did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #11 on our “Best Design & Applied Arts Schools in Iowa” list. The yearly cost to attend Iowa Central Community College is $10,102 for Iowa Design students with aid.

Read more about Design & Applied Arts at Iowa Central Community College

#7

Luther College

Decorah, Iowa

Luther College came in at #7 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Design Schools in Iowa For Those Getting Aid ranking. This small school is located in Decorah, Iowa, and it awarded 3 ’s design degrees in 2019-2020.

Luther also made our “Best Design & Applied Arts Schools in Iowa” list, coming in at #2. The yearly cost to attend Luther College is $23,620 for Iowa Design students with aid.

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 more about Design & Applied Arts at Luther College

#8

Grand View University

Des Moines, Iowa

Grand View University landed the #8 spot on the 2022 Best Value Design Schools in Iowa For Those Getting Aid ranking. Grand View University is a small private not-for-profit school situated in Des Moines, Iowa. It awarded 12 ’s design degrees in 2019-2020.

Grand View University also made our “Best Design & Applied Arts Schools in Iowa” list, coming in at #6. The estimated yearly cost for Grand View University is $19,826 for iowa design students with aid.

Read more about Design & Applied Arts at Grand View University

#9

Clarke University

Dubuque, Iowa

Clarke University did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Design Schools in Iowa For Those Getting Aid ranking, coming in at #9. Located in Dubuque, Iowa, this small private not-for-profit school handed out 2 degrees to qualified ’s design students in 2019-2020.

Clarke not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #5 on our “Best Design & Applied Arts Schools in Iowa” list. It costs about $34,204 for iowa design students with aid per year to attend Clarke.

With a student-to-faculty ratio of 8 to 1, it’s easy to see that the school is committed to helping their undergraduates succeed. 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 Clarke University Design & Applied Arts Report

#10

Drake University

Des Moines, Iowa

Drake University came in at #10 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Design Schools in Iowa For Those Getting Aid ranking. Des Moines, Iowa is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out ’s design degrees to 7 students in 2019-2020.

In addition to being on our iowa design students with aid list, Drake has also earned the #3 rank in our “Best Design & Applied Arts Schools in Iowa” ranking. The yearly cost to attend Drake University is $29,432 for Iowa Design students with aid.

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%. 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.

Read full report on Design & Applied Arts at Drake

#11

Saint Ambrose University

Davenport, Iowa

Saint Ambrose University landed the #11 spot on the 2022 Best Value Design Schools in Iowa For Those Getting Aid ranking. Located in Davenport, Iowa, this small private not-for-profit school handed out 6 diplomas to qualified ’s design students in 2019-2020.

St. Ambrose University also made our “Best Design & Applied Arts Schools in Iowa” list, coming in at #8. The yearly cost to attend St. Ambrose University is $26,204 for Iowa Design students with aid.

Read full report on Design & Applied Arts at St. Ambrose University

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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