Best Instructional Design Schools Near Council Bluffs, IA

Updated September 5, 2026 BLS data College Scorecard On this page

Council Bluffs, Iowa has 5 accredited schools offering instructional design programs, with tuition ranging from $9,903 to $23,531 per year for indexed programs. Council Bluffs has a population of about 62,564. Median household income is $64,092 (Census ACS 2023, 5-year). About 21.7% of adults 25+ hold a bachelor’s degree or higher. In the Omaha, NE-IA metro area, the top-earning instructional design-related role is Training and Development Managers at a median $105,710 annually (BLS OEWS, May 2025).

Closest Instructional Design Schools to Council Bluffs

The accredited institutions listed below are the closest in our directory that offer instructional design programs near Council Bluffs, ranked by BOC Score and straight-line distance from Council Bluffs 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:

  • 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 Council Bluffs. Advertising never affects these rankings. Read the full methodology.

Ranked by BOC Score — U.S. Dept. of Education outcome data. Advertising never affects rankings.

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#1

Buena Vista University

Storm Lake, IA 102.6 miles from Council Bluffs
  • 4 year
  • Offers a fully online program
54.9 BOC Score
Graduation rate 62%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry $49,156
Avg net price $18,846/yr
TuitionContact school for pricing
Contact
Key stats
  • Retention rate: 76%
  • Programs offered: 59

Source:IPEDSCollege Scorecard

#2

Iowa State University

Ames, IA 126.2 miles from Council Bluffs
  • 4 year
  • Offers a fully online program
76.9 BOC Score
Graduation rate 74%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry $63,386
Avg net price $18,589/yr
TuitionContact school for pricing
Contact
Key stats
  • Retention rate: 88%
  • Programs offered: 169

Source:IPEDSCollege Scorecard

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#3

Waldorf University

Forest City, IA 179.9 miles from Council Bluffs
  • 4 year
  • Offers a fully online program
  • Accredited
36.8 BOC Score
Acceptance rate 77%
Graduation rate 24%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry $51,165
Avg net price $19,693/yr
Tuition
In‑state$25,978
Out‑of‑state$25,978
Contact
Key stats
  • Retention rate: 48%
  • Programs offered: 30

Source:Accreditor: Higher Learning CommissionIPEDSCollege Scorecard

#4

University of Northern Iowa

Cedar Falls, IA 195.6 miles from Council Bluffs
  • 4 year
  • Offers a fully online program
  • Accredited
68.9 BOC Score
Acceptance rate 93%
Graduation rate 68%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry $55,177
Avg net price $15,901/yr
Tuition
In‑state$9,936
Out‑of‑state$21,712
Contact
Key stats
  • Retention rate: 83%
  • Programs offered: 116

Source:Accreditor: Higher Learning CommissionIPEDSCollege Scorecard

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Source: IPEDS / College Scorecard (2023 cohort). Browse all Iowa schools on the Iowa instructional design page.

Instructional Design Wages Near Council Bluffs

Council Bluffs is part of the Omaha, NE-IA metro area (BLS area code 36540). 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)
Instructional Coordinators $79,150 Omaha, NE-IA $86,126
Training and Development Specialists $66,310 Omaha, NE-IA $72,155
Training and Development Managers $105,710 Omaha, NE-IA $115,027
Education Teachers, Postsecondary $75,920 Omaha, NE-IA $82,612
Educational Instruction and Library Workers, All Other $32,680 Omaha, NE-IA $35,560
Education Administrators, Postsecondary $97,620 Omaha, NE-IA $106,224
Farm and Home Management Educators $42,360 Omaha, NE-IA $46,094
Graphic Designers $58,020 Omaha, NE-IA $63,134

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.

Council Bluffs at a Glance

Metric Value Source
Population 62,564 Census ACS 2023 5-yr (B01003)
Median household income $64,092 Census ACS 2023 5-yr (B19013)
Adults 25+ with bachelor’s+ 21.7% Census ACS 2023 5-yr (B15003)
Regional Price Parity (US=100) 91.9 (below U.S. average) BEA RPP 2024

Other Council Bluffs-Area Cities With Instructional Design Programs

Frequently Asked Questions

How many accredited instructional design schools are near Council Bluffs, IA?

Our directory has 5 accredited schools offering instructional design programs near Council Bluffs. The closest is Bellevue University in Bellevue, NE (6.9 miles), and the farthest of the schools shown is Northwest Missouri State University (79.4 miles). 5 of the highlighted schools are flagged as offering distance education.

What are the highest-paying instructional design roles near Council Bluffs?

Based on BLS OEWS May 2025 wage data, the top-paying instructional design-related roles near Council Bluffs are: Training and Development Managers ($105,710), Education Administrators, Postsecondary ($97,620), Instructional Coordinators ($79,150). 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 Bellevue instead of Council Bluffs?

Bellevue, NE is 7.2 miles from Council Bluffs and has its own set of local instructional design programs – see the city’s page. For online programs, distance matters less; for hybrid or in-person formats, comparing both can help.

Is Council Bluffs an affordable place to study instructional design?

Council Bluffs’s median household income of $64,092 (Census ACS 2023) is one input. Online programs let students stay in Council Bluffs 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.

Learn More About Instructional Design Programs

Other Programs Available in Council Bluffs

Compare every accredited online degree program with city-level data for Council Bluffs:

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.

Back to Best Instructional Design Schools in Iowa (2026)