North Iowa Area Community College

Best Community Colleges: North Iowa Area Community College (IA)

North Iowa Area Community College (NIACC), a two-year community college located in Mason City, Iowa, serves the North Iowa region. North Iowa Area Community College was founded in 1918 as the first public two-year college in Iowa.

Annual enrollment at North Iowa is 3700, with 56% enrolled in transfer programs and 44% in Career/Vocational programs.

Among first-time, full-time degree-seeking students at NIACC, 42% graduate within 3 years and another 20% transfer prior to graduation.

NIACC has more than 40 articulation agreements with 4-year colleges and universities and almost all of the school’s career/vocational programs are transferable.

The community college has a notably low tuition, compared to other community colleges, colleges and universities in the region. Additionally, NIACC offers an “Extreme Makeover: College Edition” contest annually, where two lucky students win an entire year of education at NIACC for free, including textbooks and other resources.

NIACC Career & Technical graduates have a 95% placement rate while 91% of NIACC graduates continue to live and work in North Iowa.

NIACC’s John Pappajohn Entrepreneurial Center is a major source of entrepreneurial support for local residents and the community in reaching their potential. The center has assisted in 127 new local business starts and 300+ new statewide starts.

The junior college has a strong intercollegiate athletics program – with more than 250 students involved — including men’s baseball, basketball, wrestling, golf, cross country, soccer and track & field; and women’s basketball, softball, cross country, volleyball, golf and track & field. For example, NIACC claimed the 2013 Region XI baseball title.

The NIACC Performing Arts & Leadership Series offers a variety of shows, entertaining ~16,000 people each year. Online classes and a continuing education program provide learning to more than 3000 participants annually.

The Aspen Institute listed North Iowa Area Community College among the top 10% of all U.S. community colleges in 2013. The college ranked #14 in the CNN Money listing of top community colleges in 2012.