Acceptance Rate and Application Statistics
The following table compares the admission related statistics including number of applicants, admitted, and enrolled between best schools in Iowa. The average acceptance rate of best schools in Iowa is 73.84% and the average admission yield (enrollment rate) is 22.29%.
Grinnell College has the tighest (lowest) acceptance rate of 14.51% and University of Northern Iowa has the highest yield (enrollment rate) of 31.10% among best schools in Iowa. The numbers in parenthesis() in below table represent the number and rate by gender (men/women). The statistics is based on the latest data from IPEDS, U.S. Department of Education for academic year 2024-2025.
| Rank | Name | Applicants | Admitted | Enrolled | Acceptance Rate | Enrollment Rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Grinnell College | 9,758 (5,048/4,421) | 1,416 (637/725) | 438 (211/211) | 15% (13%/16%) | 31% (33%/5%) |
| 2 | Drake University | 9,873 (4,466/5,380) | 6,304 (2,564/3,729) | 618 (240/378) | 64% (57%/69%) | 10% (9%/7%) |
| 3 | Iowa State University | 23,095 (11,855/11,240) | 20,475 (10,534/9,941) | 5,906 (3,218/2,688) | 89% (89%/88%) | 29% (31%/24%) |
| 4 | Luther College | 2,632 (1,561/1,069) | 1,883 (1,080/802) | 375 (206/169) | 72% (69%/75%) | 20% (19%/16%) |
| 5 | University of Iowa | 27,770 (11,808/15,897) | 23,222 (9,537/13,638) | 5,208 (2,089/3,083) | 84% (81%/86%) | 22% (22%/19%) |
| 6 | Simpson College | 2,046 (979/1,029) | 1,764 (827/904) | 381 (210/166) | 86% (84%/88%) | 22% (25%/16%) |
| 7 | University of Northern Iowa | 5,360 (2,009/3,349) | 4,971 (1,848/3,122) | 1,546 (555/991) | 93% (92%/93%) | 31% (30%/30%) |
| 8 | Central College | 1,706 (943/754) | 1,470 (821/643) | 309 (177/131) | 86% (87%/85%) | 21% (22%/17%) |
| 9 | Coe College | 8,633 (3,984/4,461) | 5,529 (2,229/3,165) | 303 (168/128) | 64% (56%/71%) | 5% (8%/3%) |
| 10 | Wartburg College | 3,203 (1,693/1,509) | 2,429 (1,218/1,211) | 402 (232/170) | 76% (72%/80%) | 17% (19%/11%) |
| Average | 9,408 (4,435/4,435) | 6,946 (3,130/3,788) | 1,549 (731/812) | 73.84% (70.6%/85.4%) | 22.29% (23.3%/21.4%) | |
SAT Scores Comparison
The average SAT score of best schools in Iowa is 1215. By subject, the average score of the SAT EBRW(Evidence-based Reading and Writing) is 608 and the average SAT Math score is 607.
Grinnell College has the highest SAT scores of 1,490 and Wartburg College has the lowest SAT scores of 1,030 among best schools in Iowa. The following table compares SAT Scores between best schools in Iowa for the academic year 2024-2025.
| Rank | Name | Submit%* (Submit#**) | SAT Total | Evidence-Based Reading and Writing | Math |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Grinnell College | 29% (129) | 1490 | 730 | 760 |
| 2 | Drake University | 5% (30) | 1300 | 630 | 670 |
| 3 | Iowa State University | 13% (791) | 1250 | 620 | 630 |
| 4 | Luther College | 9% (33) | 1215 | 610 | 605 |
| 5 | University of Iowa | 19% (964) | 1230 | 620 | 610 |
| 6 | Simpson College | Test Scores are considered (not required), but no data is available/reported. | |||
| 7 | University of Northern Iowa | 2% (25) | 1170 | 590 | 580 |
| 8 | Central College | 3% (8) | 1100 | 550 | 550 |
| 9 | Coe College | 9% (28) | 1150 | 580 | 570 |
| 10 | Wartburg College | 3% (13) | 1030 | 540 | 490 |
| Average | 10.22% | 1215 | 608 | 607 | |
ACT Scores Comparison
The average ACT score of best schools in Iowa is 26. By subject, the average ACT English score is 25 and the ACT math score is 25.
The following table compares ACT Scores between best schools in Iowa for academic year 2024-2025.
| Rank | Name | Submit%* (Submit#**) | Composite | English | Math |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Grinnell College | 21% (92) | 33 | 34 | 31 |
| 2 | Drake University | 18% (108) | 27 | 26 | 26 |
| 3 | Iowa State University | 46% (2,698) | 24 | 23 | 25 |
| 4 | Luther College | 17% (65) | 25 | 24 | 25 |
| 5 | University of Iowa | 57% (2,949) | 24 | 23 | 24 |
| 6 | Simpson College | 2% (6) | 32 | 33 | 29 |
| 7 | University of Northern Iowa | 43% (670) | 22 | 21 | 20 |
| 8 | Central College | 42% (131) | 23 | 21 | 23 |
| 9 | Coe College | 25% (76) | 26 | 25 | 25 |
| 10 | Wartburg College | 24% (98) | 23 | 22 | 24 |
| Average | 29.50% | 26 | 25 | 25 | |
*Number of first-time degree/certificate-seeking students submitting SAT scores.
**Percent of first-time degree/certificate-seeking students submitting SAT scores.
Application Requirements
The following table list and compare the requirements when applying best schools in Iowa based on academic year 2024-2025 data.
| Rank | Name | HS GPA | HS Rank | HS Record | Prep. Program | Rec. | Compe. | SAT/ACT | TOEFL |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Grinnell College | ✓ | ✓ | ✔ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✔ |
| 2 | Drake University | ✔ | ✗ | ✔ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✔ |
| 3 | Iowa State University | ✔ | ✓ | ✔ | ✔ | ✗ | ✗ | ✓ | ✔ |
| 4 | Luther College | ✔ | ✓ | ✔ | ✓ | ✓ | ✗ | ✓ | ✔ |
| 5 | University of Iowa | ✔ | ✓ | ✔ | ✔ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✔ |
| 6 | Simpson College | ✔ | ✓ | ✔ | ✔ | ✓ | ✗ | ✓ | ✔ |
| 7 | University of Northern Iowa | ✔ | ✗ | ✔ | ✔ | ✗ | ✗ | ✓ | ✗ |
| 8 | Central College | ✔ | ✓ | ✔ | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ | ✓ | ✔ |
| 9 | Coe College | ✔ | ✓ | ✔ | ✓ | ✓ | ✗ | ✓ | ✔ |
| 10 | Wartburg College | ✔ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✔ |
✔: Required △: Considered but not Required ✔: Recommended ✗: Neither Required nor Recommended
- HS GPA: High School or Secondary School GPA
- HS Rank: High School or Secondary School Rank
- HS Record: High School or Secondary School Record
- Prep. Program: Completion of College Preparatory Program
- Rec.: Recommendations
- Comp.: Formal demonstration of competencies (e.g., portfolios, certificates of mastery, assessment instruments)
The ranking data is provided by CollegeEvaluator. We compare the schools that ranked top 10 in Iowaand in top 500 ranking for all colleges and universities in United States.
Top Colleges By Subject
- Tightest Schools To Admit (Lowest Acceptance Rate)
- Affordable Schools To Admit (Highest Acceptance Rate)
- Most Favored Schools (Highest Yield)
- Colleges with Low Yield
- Expensive Colleges (Highest Tuition & Fees)
- Inexpensive Colleges (Lowest Tuition & Fees)
- Colleges with Most Students
- Colleges with Least Students
- Colleges with Most Online Students
- Colleges with Least Online Students
- Colleges with Highest Graduation Rates
- Colleges with Lowest Graduation Rates
- Low Student to Faculty Ratio
- High Student to Faculty Ratio
*Number of first-time degree/certificate-seeking students submitting SAT scores.
**Percent of first-time degree/certificate-seeking students submitting SAT scores.