The first junior college in Iowa was established in the Mason City schools in 1918. The state of Iowa now serves as home to a number of community colleges. These two-year public institutions offer programs at a low cost per credit to help students prepare to enter traditional four-year colleges or universities or to begin a technical or vocational career. Iowa community colleges, which are located throughout the state, grant degrees, certificates and diplomas in areas that can lead to employment in some of the occupations (health care and computer sciences, for example) that, according to the U.S. Department of Labor, will be the fastest growing from 2006 through 2016.
There are 28 community colleges located throughout the state of Iowa (18 public colleges and 10 private colleges), educating 151,904 college students.
Community colleges in Iowa: one of the largest and well-liked college is Des Moines Area Community College with 9,508 full time college students and an in-state tuition list price of $4,170. Iowa Lakes Community College is one of the most costly community school in Iowa with an in-state tuition of $4,960.
On average, how much does it costs to attend community college in Iowa? For Iowa community colleges, the state's average tuition is about $4,903 per year for in-state college students and $5,783 for out-of-state students. For private community colleges in the state, the typical yearly tuition is roughly $14,883 per year