Simpson Earns #1 Iowa Ranking from U.S. News & World Report

Simpson College is once again Iowa’s top-ranked college and #5 overall in the recently released 2026 U.S. News & World Report Regional Midwest Rankings. Simpson is also #4 overall for “Best Value” and #12 overall for “Top Performers in Social Mobility” – trumpeting Simpson’s impressive track record in enrolling and graduating economically disadvantaged students.

“Simpson’s consistently strong showing in the U.S. News rankings affirms our enduring commitment to providing transformative experiences for students of all backgrounds,” said Dr. Sue Stuebner, interim president of Simpson College. “We continue to invest in unique experiential learning programs on campus and throughout greater Des Moines, while growing opportunities for student involvement and pursuing major facility enhancements collegewide. It’s an exciting time to be at Simpson.”

U.S. News rankings involve a methodology examining 17 factors, including graduation and retention rates, graduation rate performance and peer assessment.

Earlier this year, Simpson was one of only two private Iowa colleges to earn 4.5 out of 5 stars in Money’s 2025 ratings of “Best Colleges in America.” Additionally, Simpson is #25 nationally in Washington Monthly’s 2025 Bachelor’s Colleges rankings.