New Iowa State Research Shows Latest On Graduates’ “Brain Drain”

How many college grads are staying in Iowa these days?

It's easy to look back on your college days and wonder how you even did so many classes and so much schoolwork back then.

Now, a new report from Iowa State University has identified 2 types of "brain drain" that are going on with Iowa college graduates.

Iowa on the whole hasn't retained a lot of college grads. In fact, Iowa still loses a higher share of college grads aged 25-29 more than any other Midwest state.

The study spans over 40 years, covering graduates from 1983-2023. Researchers looked at Iowa State University's alumnis' home ZIP codes when they enrolled at the university versus where they were in 2008 and another in 2024.

Two Types Of Moving

• Rural kids are the main ones leaving. 60-80% of people born in rural Iowa move to bigger cities like Chicago, Des Moines, or Minneapolis and don't go back to rural Iowa.
• It doesn't always stay that way. Some Iowa natives who moved off later move back to Iowa in their 40's-50's

For a few years in the study, in the 80's-the 90's, retention rates of Iowa grads were about 10% higher than they were when the research checked in again in 2014.

Why are they coming back? One theory by ISU economics professor Peter Orazem is that the Iowa natives are moving back to the state to raise families because housing is cheaper, there are decent schools, and they're closer to relatives.

Rural Iowa isn't seeing the returns though. The theory behind that being limited job opportunities, especially outside of agriculture, and fewer options in things like healthcare and retirement.

Overall, college grad retention in Iowa has improved over time. In the 2024 survey, over half of ISU grads stayed in Iowa. Professor Orazem thinks that's due to "improved economic conditions" and more job availability.