CEDAR FALLS, Iowa - The University of Northern Iowa continues to solidify its reputation as a premier institution for developing talented professionals in Iowa. UNI has once again been ranked No. 2 on U.S. News & World Report's 2025 list of Best Regional Public Universities in the Midwest, marking many years of holding this prestigious position. This consistent recognition underscores UNI’s ongoing commitment to academic excellence and student success.

To compile the rankings, U.S. News & World World Report evaluated nearly 1,500 colleges and universities on up to 17 measures of academic quality and places an emphasis on social mobility and outcomes for graduating college students.

“It’s always an honor to be recognized for the quality of education we offer at the University of Northern Iowa,” said Pete Moris, director of University Relations at UNI. “Our faculty and staff are continually innovating to improve that experience for our students. The consistency of our U.S. News & World Report rankings proves that to be true once again.”

UNI received notable rankings in other categories on the 2025 Best Colleges list, including No. 3 in Best Colleges for Veterans - Regional Universities and No. 11 in Regional Universities (Midwest). UNI shows its support for veterans in a variety of ways such as allowing veterans to earn college-level credits for courses and experiences they have taken in their branch of service. UNI hosts an annual Suicide Prevention and PTSD Awareness Conference and regularly hosts Green Zone Training to inform faculty and staff on the experience of military-affiliated learners. 

Also in this year’s rankings, UNI earned a badge-eligible ranking for Best Undergraduate Business. This year, the David W. Wilson College of Business continued its long streak of being named a Best Business School by the Princeton Review for more than a decade. The Wilson College of Business is accredited by the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business International, a distinction that can be boasted by fewer than 5% of business schools worldwide. As of this summer, UNI is now offering its Master of Business Administration fully online, making a Wilson College of Business education more accessible to working professionals.

UNI continues to be widely recognized for its esteemed reputation in teacher education. More than 10,000 educators can trace their roots back to UNI, actively teaching in all 99 counties in Iowa and 99% of Iowa school districts. UNI is in the top 1% of teacher education programs nationwide in terms of size and quality.

In addition to these signature programs, UNI is constantly expanding its offerings to match the demands of the workforce. Just this fall, UNI launched its standalone Bachelor of Science in Nursing program to supply the Iowa workforce with more health care professionals. UNI can also boast three new engineering programs: a Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering Technology, a Bachelor of Science in Materials Science & Engineering, and a Bachelor of Science in Materials Science Engineering Technology.  

The hard work of the UNI community has paid off in two consecutive years of enrollment growth, the first time the university has seen back-to-back growth since 2009 and 2010. With a total of 9,283 students, UNI’s 2024 enrollment is up by 2.9% compared to 2023 and 3.7% from 2022.