University of Northern Iowa
Cedar Falls, IA
University of Northern Iowa is a public university in Cedar Falls, Iowa, a small city, with 7,529 undergraduates. Education is its signature field: 25% of its bachelor's degrees, about six times its share across the colleges we cover. 68% of students finish within six years, and former students who are working earn a median of $55,177 ten years after starting.
University of Northern Iowa admitted 4,638 of 4,913 applicants for the fall 2023 entering class (94.4%).
- Acceptance rate
- 94.4%
- Fall 2023 class
- In-state tuition
- $9,936
- $21,712 out of state
- Paid after aid
- $15,901
- Average, students with aid
- ACT, middle 50%
- 20–26
Every figure on this page is published by the college or a federal survey, compiled by GoodGoblin, and carries the source it came from. They describe the fall 2023 entering class, a read on the school, not a prediction about any one applicant.
What University of Northern Iowa is known for
Measured by the 2,302 bachelor's degrees it awarded in 2022–23, and what its graduates went on to earn.
Education
25.2%
of its bachelor's degrees: about six times the 3.9% share across the colleges we cover.
- Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Levels and Methods41317.9% of degrees$45,885About the $47,382 national median
- Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Subject Areas1446.3% of degrees$50,144About the $51,389 national median
- Finance and Financial Management Services1255.4% of degrees$81,172About the $83,343 national median
- Business Administration, Management and Operations1205.2% of degrees$74,838+10% vs $68,257 nationally
- Psychology1185.1% of degrees$53,829+6% vs $50,706 nationally
- Management Sciences and Quantitative Methods934.0% of degreesToo few graduates to publish
Source: the College Scorecard (U.S. Department of Education), field-of-study data. Degrees are bachelor's degrees awarded in 2022–23. Earnings are the median for 2017–18 and 2018–19 graduates, in 2024 dollars, working and not enrolled, four years after graduating. Shares across the colleges we cover count every bachelor's degree at the colleges with a page here.
The place
Where it is, how big it is, and how students live.
Setting
Small city
Cedar Falls, IA
Undergraduates
7,529
Fall 2024
Type
Public
Master's university, larger programs
Living on campus
A quarter to half
of undergraduates live on campus
Students per faculty member
18 to 1
Fall 2024
International students
1%
of undergraduates, fall 2024
Source: the College Scorecard (U.S. Department of Education), including the Carnegie Classification and the federal locale code it publishes.
What stands out at University of Northern Iowa
Three things University of Northern Iowa published, ranked by how much each could change what you actually do, not by how impressive it looks. Every one describes a class that has already enrolled.
The admit rate rose from 81% to 94% between fall 2018 and fall 2023.
Both ends are measured rates for classes that have already enrolled: a rate that moved, not a forecast. The fall 2023 figure is the one at the top of this page.
Source: the federal IPEDS survey, fall 2018 to fall 2023
1% of the enrolled class sent an SAT.
The SAT band on this page describes that share of the class, not all of it. Another 46% sent an ACT. University of Northern Iowa files test scores under “considered”.
Source: the federal IPEDS survey, fall 2023
Families paid $15,901 on average after aid.
Averaged across students who received federal aid: the price after grants and scholarships, not the sticker price.
Source: the College Scorecard
Every figure, in full
The same measured fields on every one of these pages. Nothing is filled in where the school published nothing.
Acceptance rate
94.4%
4,638 admitted of 4,913 applicants
Source: the federal IPEDS survey, fall 2023
SAT, middle 50%
Reading 460–580Math 400–630
Source: the federal IPEDS survey, fall 2023
ACT, middle 50%
20–26
Source: the federal IPEDS survey, fall 2023
Enrolled students who sent an SAT
1%
Counted per test: a student may send both.
Source: the federal IPEDS survey, fall 2023
Enrolled students who sent an ACT
46%
Counted per test: a student may send both.
Source: the federal IPEDS survey, fall 2023
Where do you actually stand at University of Northern Iowa?
The figures on this page describe a class that already enrolled. GoodGoblin reads them against your own transcript, scores, activities and budget, then builds the balanced list, the essay plan and the deadline calendar around what it finds.
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What University of Northern Iowa costs
The published price first, then what students who received aid actually paid, by family income.
In-state tuition and fees for 2024–25 were $9,936 ($21,712 out of state), and the full in-state cost of attendance, with housing, food and books, was $22,278. After grants and scholarships, students who received financial aid paid $15,901 a year on average.
In-state tuition and fees
$9,936
2024–25 school year
Out-of-state tuition and fees
$21,712
2024–25 school year
Full cost, in state
$22,278
Tuition, fees, housing, food and books
Paid after aid
$15,901
Average, students who received aid
What students paid, by family income
Each bar is that figure as a share of the $22,278 full cost.
- Under $30k$10,863Typical public university: $10,013
- $30k–$48k$11,751Typical public university: $10,847
- $48k–$75k$14,099Typical public university: $13,703
- $75k–$110k$17,740Typical public university: $17,979
- Over $110k$18,706Typical public university: $22,475
Source: the federal College Scorecard. Tuition and cost of attendance are for the 2024–25 school year; colleges usually raise them each year. What students paid is the average net price for first-year students who received federal financial aid. Typical public university: the median across the 338 public universities on GoodGoblin, for in-state students, compiled by GoodGoblin from the same federal data.
Where it leads
Who finishes, who stays, and what they earn and owe afterwards.
Finish within six years
68%
Our colleges' median: 63%
Return for a second year
82%
Our colleges' median: 79%
Earnings after 10 years
$55,177
Our colleges' median: $57,440
Median debt at graduation
$19,691
Our colleges' median: $23,725
Source: the College Scorecard (U.S. Department of Education). Six-year completion describes students who started in fall 2018; second-year return describes students who started in fall 2023; earnings describe students who started in 2009–10 and 2010–11, measured in 2020 and 2021, in 2022 dollars; debt describes federal loans of students who graduated in fiscal years 2020 and 2021. Medians are across the 1,034 colleges with a page here.
How the rate has moved
Two measured admit rates from the federal survey, the years apart it reports them. A rate that moved, not a forecast.
Between fall 2018 and fall 2023 the admit rate rose from 81% to 94%.
What University of Northern Iowa says it weighs
The school's own words, from the form it fills in every year. Ranked as it ranks them.
- Course rigorrequired
Source: the federal IPEDS survey, fall 2023
- GPArequired
Source: the federal IPEDS survey, fall 2023
- Test scoresconsidered
Source: the federal IPEDS survey, fall 2023
Not considered
- Essay
Source: the federal IPEDS survey, fall 2023
- Recommendations
Source: the federal IPEDS survey, fall 2023
- Class rank
Source: the federal IPEDS survey, fall 2023
- Legacy
Source: the federal IPEDS survey, fall 2023
Published deadlines
Each date is read from the college's own materials and re-checked on a schedule.
- Rolling AdmissionJuly 29, 2027
Verified July 12, 2026
More colleges on the record
Each of these pages carries the same measured figures and sources.
Other colleges in Iowa
Closest acceptance rates in the same state.
Colleges with a similar acceptance rate
Closest acceptance rates anywhere in the country.
The GoodGoblin College Data Report: five findings counted across 1,034 colleges ›
Build the list this school belongs on.
The figures on this page describe a class that already enrolled. GoodGoblin reads them against your own transcript, scores, activities and budget, then builds the balanced list, the essay plan and the deadline calendar around what it finds.
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