About UNI

The University of Northern Iowa (UNI) is a public university in Cedar Falls, Iowa. For more than 120 years, the University of Northern Iowa has fostered a premier learning and teaching environment. While emphasizing undergraduate education, UNI offers graduate programs at the master’s, specialist’s and doctoral levels.

UNI offers nearly 160 majors, minors and areas of study across the colleges of Business Administration, Education, Health and Human Sciences, Humanities and Fine Arts, Natural Sciences, Social and Behavioral Sciences and Graduate College.

The University of Northern Iowa was once again ranked No.2 among the Midwest's Top Public Schools by U.S. News & World Report, continuing a two-decade tradition of excellence. The 2026 U.S. News Best Colleges rankings had UNI at No. 10 overall for regional universities in the Midwest.  UNI was also named the best public college in Iowa for getting a job with a 94% job placement rate.

UNI recently announced its Neighboring State Rate, a bold initiative allowing new undergraduate students from Iowa’s neighboring states to receive in-state tuition, saving those students approximately $12,000 a year.

The David W. Wilson College of Business continues its long streak of being named a Best Business School by the Princeton Review for nearly two decades. 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 6% of business schools worldwide. This year UNI’s accounting program also made Wilson College of Business the first business school in the world to undergo an accelerated path toward supplemental accounting accreditation.

In 2024, UNI launched a standalone Bachelor of Science in Nursing program to supply the Iowa workforce with more health care professionals. UNI’s third nursing cohort, comprised of 62 students, recently began their studies, bringing the number of BSN students up to 107, exceeding initial projections and quadrupling since its inception.

UNI is also helping meet Iowa’s need for more qualified engineers. Students enrolled in one of UNI’s nine engineering-focused majors get hands-on experience from UNI’s newly-renovated Applied Engineering Building.  An education from UNI can set you up for future success—no matter what your ultimate goals are.  

UNI continues to be widely recognized for its esteemed reputation in teacher education. Nearly 11,000 active Iowa educators and administrators 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 public universities nationwide that offer bachelor’s degrees in teacher education.

Students love our perfect-sized campus and nationally recognized academic offerings. As a teaching-focused university, UNI's faculty and staff put students first.  The enrollment at UNI continues to hover right around the 10,000 students mark.