The demand for nurse practitioners is ever-increasing, largely due to the increase in healthcare needs, physician shortages, and the higher number of retiring NPs, to name a few.
For Iowa nurses, now proves to be the best time to get into an NP program. According to a report, the demand for NP practitioners is expected to grow by 58% in the year 2030. This is higher than the national average, which is 45%.
While the average base salary of NPs in Iowa is $98,194 as per Indeed, there are cities in Iowa that pay triple the amount. In Waterloo, IA, for example, nurses can earn as much as $303,512 per year.
Whether you’re looking for professional advancement or increased wages, these Iowa NP programs are your ticket to a rewarding and fulfilling APRN career:
Program Overview:
Allen College is a healthcare-focused institution based in Waterloo, Iowa. It was founded in 1925 as the Allen Memorial Hospital and School of Nursing, and while it closed during the Great Depression, it reopened its doors in 1942.
Accredited by the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education (CCNE), Allen College offers a variety of graduate programs. Aspiring nurse practitioners, whether ADN or BSN graduates, may pursue any of its four tracks through its MSN or DNP program. Both are available in a hybrid format.
In the past years, graduates of the nurse practitioner programs scored passing rates ranging from 86.3% to 98.4%.
- BSN to MSN: AGACNP
- BSN to MSN: FNP
- BSN to MSN: PMHNP
- BSN to MSN: PNP (Acute Care)
- RN to DNP: AGACNP
- RN to DNP: FNP
- RN to DNP: PMHNP
- RN to DNP: PNP (Acute Care)
- BSN to DNP: AGACNP
- BSN to DNP: FNP
- BSN to DNP: PMHNP
- BSN to DNP: PNP (Acute Care)
- Post-Graduate Certificate: AGACNP
- Post-Graduate Certificate: FNP
- Post-Graduate Certificate: PMHNP
- Post-Graduate Certificate: PNP (Acute Care)
Program Overview:
Briar Cliff University is a private institution that offers a variety of nursing programs in Sioux City, IO. Accredited by the CCNE, BCU’s online MSN program has been ranked second in the state for the PMHNP track and tenth for the FNP track by nursepractitioneronline.com.
Intelligent.com has also recognized BCU’s NP program as the top 5 program in Iowa. Its MSN programs are listed as the 28th and 29th best in the state, respectively.
BCU’s part-time MSN program can be completed in three years. While the majority of the coursework is done online, students need to go to the campus for six on-site days.
Program Overview:
Clarke University is housed on a 55-acre campus in Dubuque, IA. Established in 1843, the private Catholic university offers nurse practitioner programs that are accredited by the CCNE. In 2015, these programs were ranked as the fifth best in the country by RegisteredNursing.org.
Clarke U’s DNP program has a limited cohort of 20 students per intake, allowing each to get the one-on-one support they need to excel as nurse practitioners. Practicals may be undertaken at a facility in Dubuque or anywhere across the country.
Clarke NP program graduates have posted an average certification exam passing rate of 100%.
Program Overview:
Situated in Lamoni, IA, Graceland is a private university affiliated with the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. Its nursing program was established in 1910 in the Independence, MO campus. Both undergraduate and graduate nursing offerings are approved by the Iowa BON and accredited by the CCNE.
Graceland’s FNP graduates register an average passing rate of 94%.
This year, Online Master’s Degrees has recognized Graceland’s MSN program as one of the best in the country. After all, it features mostly online coursework so students can maintain a work-study balance.
Program Overview:
Morningside University’s Nylen School of Nursing & Health Sciences offers CCNE-accredited programs that unite nursing theory and practice. The flexible, hands-on programs are taught by experienced educators in the classroom, the high-fidelity simulation center, and in clinical institutions.
In 2020, the university’s graduate online nursing programs were ranked 41st in the country by US News & World Report. This is largely due to the flexibility of the program, which students may complete on a part-time or full-time basis.
Morningside’s passing rate for its NP programs averages at 90%.
Program Overview:
The Martin-Herold College of Nursing & Health at Mount Mercy University has been producing competent nurses for over 90 years. Its CCNE-accredited undergraduate and graduate programs are taught by excellent faculty members who combine integrated nursing theory with practice through skills lab classes and real-life immersions.
Nursing Schools Almanac has ranked Mount Mercy as the top 8 Nursing School in Iowa for its reputation, program offerings, and exam pass rates.
Program Overview:
Established in 1898, The UoI College of Nursing is one of the most prestigious schools in the state. All its programs are approved by the Iowa Board of Nursing and accredited by the CCNE.
Recently, the Iowa City-based institution was ranked number 4 in US News & World Report’s list of BSN programs. Its DNP-PNP program was ranked fourth as well, while its AGACNP track clinched seventh place. The FNP program is listed as the top 14 program in the country, while the DNP program as a whole captured the 22nd spot.
Graduates of the AGACNP, AGPCNP, and DNP programs have registered a 100% pass rate in their respective certification exams.
- BSN to DNP: AGACNP
- BSN to DNP: AGPCNP
- BSN to DNP: FNP
- BSN to DNP: PMHNP
- BSN to DNP: PNP (Acute Care)
- BSN to DNP: PNP (Primary Care)
- Post-Graduate Certificate: AGACNP
- Post-Graduate Certificate: AGPCNP
- Post-Graduate Certificate: FNP
- Post-Graduate Certificate: PMHNP
- Post-Graduate Certificate: PNP (Primary Care)
- Post-Graduate Certificate: PNP (Acute Care)