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Best Value Nursing Associate Degree Schools in Iowa

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2023 Best Value Nursing Associate Degree Schools in Iowa

Highlighting Quality Schools With More Affordable Pricing

17 Colleges
$7,079 Avg Tuition & Fees*
$57,601 Avg Salary

Finding the Best Nursing Associate Degree School for You

Out of the majors we analyze each year, nursing was the most popular one in Iowa. In total, 2,966 people earned a degree or certificate in the field from a school in Iowa.

When it comes to higher education, there are a lot of options for healthcare students. As online education oppotunities continue to grow, you're not restricted to just schools in your local area anymore. Even some of the 'big name' schools are offering online courses. Also, there are a number of trade schools with offerings that you might find attractive.

To assist you in seeing some of the education options that are available to you, Healthcare Degree Search has created its Best Value Nursing Associate Degree Schools in Iowa ranking. Our analysis looked at 17 schools in Iowa to see which associate degree programs offered the best value experiences for nursing students with the aim of identifying those quality schools that are more affordable than some of their counterparts.

When determining this ranking, we place a high emphasis on the school's quality as well as its sticker price. Even though a college may be affordable, it may not offer value. Specifically, our score for quality is discounted by the published tuition and fees charged by the given college. This gives the cost per unit of quality for each college. The more quality your dollar buys, the better the value.

Our calculations use out-of-state tuition and fees in our nationwide and regional rankings. For statewide rankings, we use average in-state tuition and fees.

2023 Best Value Nursing Associate Degree Schools in Iowa

The colleges and universities below are the best value schools for nursing majors pursuing a associate degree.

Top 10 Best Nursing Associate Degree Schools

Our 2023 rankings named Western Iowa Tech Community College the best value school in Iowa for nursing students working on their associate degree. Western Iowa Tech Community College is a medium-sized public school located in the small city of Sioux City.

In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Western Iowa Tech Community College are $4,802 per year. After completing their Associate Degree, nursing graduates from Western Iowa Tech Community College carry an average student debtload of $24,421.

Read full report on Nursing at Western Iowa Tech Community College

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Northeast Iowa Community College. It ranked #2 on our 2023 Best Value Nursing Associate Degree Schools in Iowa list. NICC is a small public school located in the rural area of Calmar.

The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at NICC are $6,120 a year.

In addition to its best value ranking, and one of the reasons why the school is on the list, NICC is ranked #1 for overall quality for nursing in Iowa.

Full Nursing at Northeast Iowa Community College Report

The excellent associate degree programs at Des Moines Area Community College helped the school earn the #3 place on this year’s ranking of the best value nursing schools in Iowa. Located in the large suburb of Ankeny, DMACC is a public school with a fairly large student population.

The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at DMACC are $5,220 a year. While working on their Associate Degree, nursing majors at DMACC accumulate an average of around $23,473 in student debt.

Full Nursing at Des Moines Area Community College Report

Out of the 17 schools in Iowa that were part of this year’s ranking, Eastern Iowa Community College District landed the # 4 spot on the list. Eastern Iowa Community Colleges is a moderately-sized public school located in the medium-sized city of Davenport.

Eastern Iowa Community Colleges undergraduate students pay an average of $4,396 in in-state tuition and fees each year. After completing their Associate Degree, nursing graduates from Eastern Iowa Community Colleges carry an average student debtload of $27,563.

Full Nursing at Eastern Iowa Community College District Report

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Indian Hills Community College. It ranked #5 on our 2023 Best Value Nursing Associate Degree Schools in Iowa list. IHCC is a small public school located in the remote town of Ottumwa.

In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at IHCC are $4,560 per year. The average amount in student loans that nursing majors at IHCC take out while working on their Associate Degree is $23,432.

Read full report on Nursing at Indian Hills Community College

#6

Kirkwood Community College

Cedar Rapids, IA

Kirkwood Community College landed the #6 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value associate degree nursing programs. Located in the city of Cedar Rapids, Kirkwood Community College is a public college with a fairly large student population.

In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Kirkwood Community College are $5,308 per year. On average, nursing graduates from Kirkwood Community College take out $27,483 in student loans while working on their Associate Degree.

Kirkwood Community College not only placed well in our value ranking, but it is also #5 on our Best Nursing Associate Degree Schools in Iowa list.

Full Nursing at Kirkwood Community College Report

With a ranking of #7, Northwest Iowa Community College did quite well on this year’s best value schools for nursing students working on their associate degree. Located in the rural area of Sheldon, Northwest Iowa Community College is a public school with a small student population.

Northwest Iowa Community College undergraduate students pay an average of $6,540 in in-state tuition and fees each year. On average, nursing graduates from Northwest Iowa Community College take out $25,038 in student loans while working on their Associate Degree.

Northwest Iowa Community College not only placed well in our value ranking, but it is also #2 on our Best Nursing Associate Degree Schools in Iowa list.

Full Nursing at Northwest Iowa Community College Report

North Iowa Area Community College did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for nursing students to get a associate degree. It came in at #8 on the list. North Iowa Area Community College is a small public school located in the town of Mason City.

North Iowa Area Community College undergraduate students pay an average of $5,971 in in-state tuition and fees each year. While working on their Associate Degree, nursing majors at North Iowa Area Community College accumulate an average of around $19,728 in student debt.

Read More…

Iowa Central Community College did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for nursing students to get a associate degree. It came in at #9 on the list. Iowa Central Community College is a medium-sized public school located in the remote town of Fort Dodge.

In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Iowa Central Community College are $6,000 per year. After completing their Associate Degree, nursing graduates from Iowa Central Community College carry an average student debtload of $26,954.

Read More…

#10

Hawkeye Community College

Waterloo, IA

Hawkeye Community College came in at #10 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Nursing Associate Degree Schools in Iowa ranking. Located in the small city of Waterloo, Hawkeye Community College is a public school with a medium-sized student population.

In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Hawkeye Community College are $5,977 per year. On average, nursing graduates from Hawkeye Community College take out $28,555 in student loans while working on their Associate Degree.

Hawkeye Community College also made our Best Nursing Associate Degree Schools in Iowa list, coming in at #3.

Read full report on Nursing at Hawkeye Community College

Best Value Nursing Colleges in the Plains States Region

Explore all the Best Value Nursing Schools in the Plains States Area or other specific states within that region.

State Degrees Awarded
Minnesota 14,890
Missouri 6,840
Nebraska 1,908
Kansas 2,633
South Dakota 1,022
North Dakota 976

One of 30 majors within the healthcare area of study, nursing has other similar majors worth exploring.

Nursing Concentrations

Major Annual Graduates
Registered Nursing 266,651
Family Practice Nurse/Nursing 16,104
Nursing Administration 9,838
Nursing Practice 7,992
Other Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing 5,092
Nursing Science 4,600
Psychiatric/Mental Health Nurse/Nursing 2,287
Adult Health Nurse/Nursing 2,021
Nurse Anesthetist 1,936
Public Health/Community Nurse/Nursing 1,883
Critical Care Nursing 773
Geriatric Nurse/Nursing 563
School Nursing 553
Nurse Midwife/Nursing Midwifery 509
Clinical Nurse Leader 444
Clinical Nurse Specialist 419
Perioperative/Operating Room and Surgical Nurse/Nursing 331
Maternal/Child Health and Neonatal Nurse/Nursing 181
Occupational and Environmental Health Nursing 57
Emergency Room/Trauma Nursing 53
Palliative Care Nursing 14
Forensic Nursing 14

Majors Similar to Nursing

Related Major Annual Graduates
Health & Medical Administrative Services 89,359
Allied Health & Medical Assisting Services 84,492
Practical Nursing & Nursing Assistants 84,274
Allied Health Professions 82,308
Public Health 40,596

Notes and References

*These averages are for the top 17 schools only.

  • 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 the rest 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).
  • Credit for the banner image above goes to Aleksahgabrielle.

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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