Upper Iowa University

Private · Moderately Selective · IA

Photo: Sheila Miller (Public domain)

School data & stats

TypePrivate

LocationIA · Midwest

SettingRural

Undergrads1,994

Student:faculty25:1

Outcomes

4-yr grad rate25%

6-yr grad rate33.9%

Drop-out rate32.3%

Study abroad—

Cost

In-state tuition$19k

Out-of-state tuition$19k

Application fee—

Community

Racial diversity40.8%

Gender diversity58.9%

International3.9%

Identity—

Overview

Upper Iowa University, based in the small town of Fayette, pairs a traditional residential campus with a long-running distance-education operation — the university has served working adults and military students through off-campus centers and online programs for decades, making it as much a distance-learning institution as a residential one.

Academics

Business and education are Upper Iowa's core program areas, offered in parallel through both the traditional Fayette campus and the university's extensive network of off-site and online delivery, giving working adults a genuine alternative path to the same degrees traditional students pursue on campus.

Getting in

Admission is accessible, and the review process differs meaningfully depending on whether an applicant is entering the traditional residential program or one of the adult-oriented off-campus and online tracks.

Worth knowing

The scale of Upper Iowa's off-campus and online operation is unusual for a school this size — a prospective student should understand that a large share of the student body is not on the Fayette campus at all, which shapes the residential social experience differently than enrollment numbers alone would suggest.

uiu.edu ↗

Admissions

Acceptance rate96.5%

Enrolled mid-50%ACT 17–23

Test policyoptional

Rec letters—

Deadlines (2026–27 cycle)

AdmissionRolling

Applying