Acceptance Rate and Admission Trends for Iowa Colleges

There are 38 active four-years colleges and universities in Iowa - 3 public and 35 private schools. The 2024 average acceptance rate of the 4-year colleges in Iowa is 77.63% - 88,003 students accepted out of total 115,902.

Compared to the acceptance rate of 10 years ago, the rate becomes higher from 68.08% to 77.63%. The Iowa Colleges' yield, also known as enrollment rate, is 29.29% and the yield is lower than 37.65%, rate of 10 years ago.

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Acceptance Rate Changes

The average acceptance rate over the last 10 years is 72.10% where the current academic year rate is 77.63% at Iowa Colleges. By gender, men students' acceptance rate is 71.23% and women students' rate is 73.38%. The next table and chart illustrate the acceptance rates changes at Iowa Colleges over the past 11 years (2013-2024).

Year	Total	Men	Women
Year	2013-14	68.08%	69.17%	68.92%
2014-15	69.23% 1.15%	67.92% 1.41%	70.33% 1.41%
2015-16	70.08% 0.85%	67.87% 1.41%	71.74% 1.41%
2016-17	67.27% -2.81%	66.75% -3.38%	68.37% -3.38%
2017-18	68.43% 1.16%	68.78% 0.97%	69.34% 0.97%
2018-19	73.15% 4.72%	70.92% 5.19%	74.53% 5.19%
2019-20	69.29% -3.87%	70.86% -5.28%	69.25% -5.28%
2020-21	73.81% 4.52%	71.88% 6.14%	75.40% 6.14%
2021-22	77.39% 3.58%	74.91% 3.98%	79.37% 3.98%
2022-23	78.81% 1.42%	77.12% 1.17%	80.55% 1.17%
2023-24	77.63% -1.18%	77.38% -1.12%	79.43% -1.12%
Average	72.10%	71.23%	73.38%

Iowa Colleges Acceptance Rate Changes Chart

Admission Yield (Enrollment Rate) Changes

The average admission yield of the last 12 years is 31.67% where the current academic year yield is 29.29%. The yield, also known as enrollment rate is the percentage of admitted students who finally enrolled. The following table and chart illustrate the changes in yield at Iowa Colleges from 2013 to 2024.

Year	Total	Men	Women
2013-14	37.65%	36.81%	36.97%
2014-15	39.02% 1.37%	40.57% 1.54%	38.51% 1.54%
2015-16	37.34% -1.68%	37.14% -1.77%	36.74% -1.77%
2016-17	32.88% -4.47%	32.49% -4.57%	32.17% -4.57%
2017-18	31.43% -1.44%	33.77% -3.40%	28.77% -3.40%
2018-19	27.37% -4.07%	27.51% -1.34%	27.43% -1.34%
2019-20	27.02% -0.34%	25.53% -0.50%	26.93% -0.50%
2020-21	29.35% 2.33%	26.53% 2.16%	29.09% 2.16%
2021-22	28.65% -0.70%	28.00% -1.16%	27.92% -1.16%
2022-23	28.38% -0.27%	27.66% 0.65%	28.57% 0.65%
2023-24	29.29% 0.91%	28.22% 0.48%	29.05% 0.48%
Average	31.67%	31.29%	31.11%

Iowa Colleges Yield (Enrollment Rate) Changes Chart

Applicants, Admitted, and Enrolled Headcount Changes

The average number of applicants is 113,317, the average number of admitted is 82,949, and the average number of enrolled students is 20,342 over the last 10 years. The number of applicants to Iowa Colleges increased by 3.26% (3,662 applicants) compared to last year. The following table and chart show the changes of applicants, admitted, and enrolled headcount at Iowa Colleges from 2013 to 2024.

Year	Applicants	Admitted	Enrolled
2013-14	90,323	66,118	19,793
2014-15	102,118 11,795	74,542 1,186	20,979 1,186
2015-16	108,123 6,005	77,115 562	21,541 562
2016-17	119,780 11,657	84,315 312	21,853 312
2017-18	121,096 1,316	87,301 -841	21,012 -841
2018-19	122,458 1,362	88,081 -292	20,720 -292
2019-20	118,845 -3,613	85,561 -815	19,905 -815
2020-21	117,732 -1,113	86,991 -1,022	18,883 -1,022
2021-22	117,873 141	88,215 564	19,447 564
2022-23	112,240 -5,633	86,201 285	19,732 285
2023-24	115,902 3,662	88,003 169	19,901 169
Average	113,317	82,949	20,342

Iowa Colleges Applicants Trends Chart

Most Searched Iowa Colleges (last 30 days)

4-Year Colleges

Cornell College Private, four-years | Mount Vernon
Iowa State University Public, four-years | Ames
University of Iowa Public, four-years | Iowa City
Luther College Private, four-years | Decorah
Grinnell College Private, four-years | Grinnell
William Penn University Private, four-years | Oskaloosa
Loras College Private, four-years | Dubuque
Drake University Private, four-years | Des Moines
Wartburg College Private, four-years | Waverly
Northwestern College Private, four-years | Orange City

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Graduate

University of Iowa Public, four-years | Iowa City
University of Northern Iowa Public, four-years | Cedar Falls
William Penn University Private, four-years | Oskaloosa
Saint Ambrose University Private, four-years | Davenport
Palmer College of Chiropractic Private, four-years | Davenport
Drake University Private, four-years | Des Moines
University of Dubuque Private, four-years | Dubuque
Morningside University Private, four-years | Sioux City
Simpson College Private, four-years | Indianola
Upper Iowa University Private, four-years | Fayette

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Online Schools

Clarke University Private, four-years | Dubuque
Iowa State University Public, four-years | Ames
Des Moines Area Community College Public, 2-4 years | Ankeny
Loras College Private, four-years | Dubuque
William Penn University Private, four-years | Oskaloosa
Briar Cliff University Private, four-years | Sioux City
University of Northern Iowa Public, four-years | Cedar Falls
Des Moines University-Osteopathic Medical Center Private, four-years | West Des Moines
Maharishi International University Private, four-years | Fairfield
Allen College Private, four-years | Waterloo

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Trade Schools

Carlson College of Massage Therapy Private, Less than 2-years | Anamosa
PCI Academy-Ames Private, 2-4 years | Ames
Capri College-Dubuque Private, Less than 2-years | Dubuque
The Salon Professional Academy-Cedar Falls Private, Less than 2-years | Cedar Falls
Capri College-Cedar Rapids Private, Less than 2-years | Cedar Rapids
Aveda Institute-Des Moines Private, 2-4 years | West Des Moines
Capri College-Davenport Private, Less than 2-years | Davenport
American Hair Academy Private, 2-4 years | Mt. Pleasant
Eastern Iowa Community College District Public, 2-4 years | Davenport
Ross College-Davenport Private, 2-4 years | Davenport

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