Two Of The Best Community Colleges In America Are In Iowa

A couple of Iowa community colleges have found themselves at the top of a list of the best community colleges in America. Two years ago, one of these colleges was one spot away from being the best but has taken a little stumble since. We would consider them being towards the top since they are in the top 40 out of more than 650 community colleges

With the 2024-2025 school year right around the corner, most people are enrolled in a university or community college to study. But if you're looking to save some money and get a really good education out of the deal, you might want to look towards Sheldon, IA.

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Sheldon is home to Northwest Iowa Community College, also known as the 26th community college in America.

You could also look at Mason City where the 37th-best community college in America is located and called North Iowa Area Community College.

How Two Iowa Community Colleges Are Some Of The Best In America

Every year, a study is conducted by WalletHub that ranks community colleges across the U.S., and around the same time every year, those results get released. In 2022, Northwest Iowa Community College in Sheldon, IA was named the 2nd-best community college in the U.S.

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In 2023, Northwest Iowa Community College (NCC) dropped one spot to be named the 3rd-best community college in America. In 2024, now they are at 26th.

Northwest Iowa Community College

NCC makes it in the top 30 this year because of the three key dimensions WalletHub uses to compare 653 schools from the list of member institutions in the American Association of Community Colleges, NCC ranks very well in each.

For this year's list, this is how Northwest Iowa Community College ranked in those three categories to make them drop slightly compared to 2023, but remain in the top 30 best community colleges in America:

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Cost & Financing - #417
Education Outcomes - #252
Career Outcomes - #7

Congrats to Northwest Iowa Community College on making the top 30 and congrats to another Iowa school for being in the top 40.

Other Iowa Community Colleges Make The List

NCC wasn't the only Iowa community college to land on this list. North Iowa Area Community College in Mason City had a huge jump from 140th to 37th! 11 other colleges in Iowa were on this year's list, but not all of them made it on the "good" side of this list.

Here are the other Iowa community colleges and where they ranked:

26th - Northwest Iowa Community College
37th - North Iowa Area Community College
108th - Iowa Lakes Community College
128th - Indian Hills Community College
143rd - Kirkwood Community College
144th - Iowa Central Community College
155th - Southeastern Community College - Burlington, IA
189th - Hawkeye Community College
207th - Iowa Western Community College
217th - Western Iowa Tech Community College
247th - Northeast Iowa Community College
390th - Eastern Iowa Community College District
431st - Marshalltown Community College

Source: WalletHub

It's hard to see all of the schools in Iowa and Illinois. See the full list and more details here.

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Stacker compiled a list of the counties with the highest unemployment in Iowa using data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Counties are ranked by unemployment rate in November 2023.

Gallery Credit: Stacker

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Winter season in the Quad Cities means cold temperatures, heavy snow, and slick roads. Hopefully, you won't ever need to tap into your winter emergency kit, but it's better to have one in your car than to be unprepared. Make sure you have these essential items in your car before winter arrives in the Quad Cities.

Gallery Credit: Connor Kenney/Townsquare Media Quad Cities

Filed Under: best community colleges, Iowa

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