Iowa colleges see tuition aid programs pay off with increased enrollment

by Brooklyn Draisey, Iowa Capital Dispatch
September 30, 2025

Some of Iowa’s private universities are touting increasingly large and diverse student bodies as enrollment numbers for the 2025 fall semester are confirmed, statistics college officials attribute to their efforts to subdue sticker shock and ensure all students feel welcome.

Universities from Orange City to Des Moines and Sioux Center to Sioux City saw growth in enrollment this fall, including Drake University, Northwestern College, Dordt University, Buena Vista University and Morningside University.

Morningside University beat last year’s numbers and its own expectations for enrollment this fall, breaking 400 when the goal was to top 350. This was a surprise to Interim Vice President for Enrollment Management Steph Peters, who said the university wasn’t alone in seeing dips in interest the previous year due to problems with the rollout of the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, or FAFSA.

After hearing from families who were leaving Morningside off their college decision lists due to uncertainty around how much they’d be expected to pay, Peters said the Sioux City university worked to expand Access to MSide, a program which provides financial aid to students based on their residency and Pell Grant eligibility.

“It puts a lot of concerns at ease if you know out the gate that your tuition is going to be covered, and you really just kind of have those auxiliary fees then to come up with,” Peters said. “If nothing else, it helped us have a conversation with those families.”

Tuition aid, access draw student interest

Other colleges and universities across the U.S. have implemented programs aimed at covering some or all of tuition for certain groups, Peters said, having seen them pop up more frequently over the past two years.

Drake University last November launched two initiatives that cover 100% of tuition after other financial aid is factored in. One is for students hoping to earn a bachelor’s degree and the other is for its two-year programs housed in the John Dee Bright College.

Joel Johnson, Drake University dean of admission, said these efforts have helped to grow interest in the university from both in and outside of the state. According to a news release from the university, Drake’s first-year students for four-year degrees increased by nearly 11% this fall to 653 students and enrollment in the John Dee Bright College saw its enrollment increase by close to one-third.

The Des Moines institution’s incoming class also reached a “33.2% level of diversity,” the release stated, which Johnson said relates to ethnic diversity and mirrors levels of diversity in the U.S. Johnson holds an educational doctorate in higher education leadership and organizational studies from Bay Path University.

When asked whether comments made by Drake University President Marty Martin in the spring reaffirming the college’s commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion in the face of state actions to limit such activity had any impact on enrollment this fall, Johnson said he didn’t believe so and pointed to the tuition programs as having generated interest in the college.

“We’ve been very intentional about making sure that we can be accessible to all people across, you know, not just the state of Iowa, but obviously across the nation as well,” Johnson said.

Some families did have questions about potential impacts on the institution from state and federal shifts relating to higher education, including directives for universities to shut down diversity, equity and inclusion programs and offices.

Dealing with “the current federal rhetoric” and quick, but sometimes uncertain, changes made at the national level has been a challenge, Johnson said, as it adds more noise to an already difficult time for students trying to figure out which college would be best to attend and how to make that happen.

Drake is an adaptable university that will be able to handle shifts coming its way, Johnson said.

“It’s just … an environmental factor that is frustrating because it’s out of our control, like we could do everything right, they can see that Drake as a great fit for them, but something in the political ether could just change the narrative, and they’ll say, ‘Maybe not,’” Johnson said.

Preparing for further competition

Only a month or so into the 2025-2026 school year, Peters said Morningside is already offering prospective students tools to predict whether they’ll qualify for the university’s tuition saving programs. The Sioux City university has partnered with an Student Aid Index, or SAI, estimator to allow families to input their information and learn how much aid they could potentially receive.

Peters said this was a helpful tool in allowing families to get an early jump on their college decision process before the FAFSA was released. The U.S. Department of Education announced the launch of the FAFSA Sept. 24, its earliest release date in the form’s history.

Over her nearly 25 years working at Morningside, Peters said she’s seen how the competition between colleges has changed from private universities only having to worry about other private institutions to all colleges competing against each other. It’s not an unhealthy competition, she said, there are just more options now for students to choose from and have more reasons to compare different kinds of higher education.

It’s not just other schools that Iowa universities are competing against, Johnson said, but all of the other distractions in young people’s lives as well. Marketing has become more important than ever as social media and other technology keep students’ attention, but once that attention has been drawn toward Drake, Johnson said it’s not so hard to generate interest.

“I’m happy with the things that we’re doing and putting in place so that families … don’t have to initially eliminate right away (based on) the sticker shock,” Peters said. “That’s what we have combated for years and years, and I think that we’re making some good inroads as far as that goes in showing families that we are a possibility.”

Iowa Capital Dispatch is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Iowa Capital Dispatch maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Kathie Obradovich for questions: info@iowacapitaldispatch.com.