BestOnlineCollege.org is an advertising-supported website. Many of the school and program listings that appear on this site are from partners who compensate us, and this compensation may affect how, where, and in what order listings appear (such as featured placements). This compensation does not influence our editorial content, evaluations, or rankings, which are determined independently using publicly available data. We do not review or feature every school or program available in the marketplace. Our goal is to provide accurate, unbiased information so you can make informed decisions. Read our full Advertiser Disclosure.
Best Industrial Design Schools Near Dubuque, IA (2026)
Updated September 5, 2026BLS dataCollege ScorecardOn this page
Dubuque, Iowa is home to about 59,271 residents. Median household income is $64,985 (Census ACS 2023, 5-year). About 33.6% of adults 25+ hold a bachelor’s degree or higher. In the Dubuque, IA metro area, the top-earning industrial design-related role is Architectural and Engineering Managers at a median $149,300 annually (BLS OEWS, May 2025).
Closest Industrial Design Schools to Dubuque
The accredited institutions listed below are the closest in our directory that offer industrial design programs near Dubuque, ranked by BOC Score and straight-line distance from Dubuque city center. The list is rebuilt from federal IPEDS data on every site update.
How We Rank Schools
Every school list on this site is ordered by the BOC Score, computed from the most
recent school-level data published by the U.S. Department of Education (College Scorecard and IPEDS).
To qualify, a school must be currently operating and accredited by an agency recognized by the
U.S. Department of Education. Each eligible school is then scored on five measures, percentile-ranked
against schools at the same credential level:
BOCSCORE
Graduation rate 30%
Median earnings, 10 years after entry 25%
Average net price (lower is better) 20%
Retention rate 15%
Fully online availability 10%
Schools without enough outcome data appear after ranked schools, without a score.
On this page, schools are ordered by distance from Dubuque.
Advertising never affects these rankings. Read the full methodology.
BOC
Ranked by BOC Score — U.S. Dept. of Education outcome data. Advertising never affects rankings.
Source: IPEDS / College Scorecard (2023 cohort). Browse all Iowa schools on the Iowa industrial design page.
Industrial Design Wages Near Dubuque
Dubuque is part of the Dubuque, IA metro area (BLS area code 20220). Where MSA-level wages are published, the table below shows MSA medians; otherwise it falls back to Iowa statewide.
Occupation
Median Wage
Source
COL-Adjusted (US=100)
Commercial and Industrial Designers
$64,690
Dubuque, IA
$74,101
Industrial Engineers
$109,040
Dubuque, IA
$124,903
Graphic Designers
$48,620
Dubuque, IA
$55,693
Mechanical Drafters
$57,440
Dubuque, IA
$65,796
Interior Designers
$58,040
IA statewide
$66,483
Architectural and Engineering Managers
$149,300
Dubuque, IA
$171,019
Set and Exhibit Designers
$50,640
IA statewide
$58,007
Mechanical Engineers
$97,700
IA statewide
$111,913
Source: BLS, May 2025 Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics publishes wage data at the metro (MSA) and state level – not by individual city.
Dubuque at a Glance
Metric
Value
Source
Population
59,271
Census ACS 2023 5-yr (B01003)
Median household income
$64,985
Census ACS 2023 5-yr (B19013)
Adults 25+ with bachelor’s+
33.6%
Census ACS 2023 5-yr (B15003)
Regional Price Parity (US=100)
87.3 (below U.S. average)
BEA RPP 2024
Other Dubuque-Area Cities With Industrial Design Programs
What are the highest-paying industrial design roles near Dubuque?
Based on BLS OEWS May 2025 wage data, the top-paying industrial design-related roles near Dubuque are: Architectural and Engineering Managers ($149,300), Industrial Engineers ($109,040), Mechanical Engineers ($97,700). These reflect MSA-level medians where published, with Iowa statewide fallback for occupations not reported at the metro level.
Should I look at programs in Clinton instead of Dubuque?
Clinton, IA is 51.3 miles from Dubuque and has its own set of local industrial design programs – see the city’s page. For online programs, distance matters less; for hybrid or in-person formats, comparing both can help.
Is Dubuque an affordable place to study industrial design?
Dubuque’s median household income of $64,985 (Census ACS 2023) is one input. Online programs let students stay in Dubuque while attending lower-cost out-of-state schools, and Iowa public universities often offer reduced in-state online tuition.
How do I verify a program is accredited?
Confirm institutional accreditation via the U.S. Department of Education database (U.S. Dept. of Education database), and check for any program-specific accreditation listed by the school.
Data verified: September 5, 2026.
Salary, employment, and tuition figures on this page are sourced from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (OEWS May 2025; Employment Projections 2024–2034) and the U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard (2023 cohort). The source agency and data year are cited inline with every statistic.
