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Best Urban Planning Schools Near Mason City, IA (2026)
Updated September 5, 2026BLS dataCollege ScorecardOn this page
Mason City, Iowa has 2 accredited schools offering urban planning programs. Mason City has a population of about 27,135. Median household income is $62,369 (Census ACS 2023, 5-year). About 21.3% of adults 25+ hold a bachelor’s degree or higher. In Iowa, the top-earning urban planning-related role is Managers, All Other at a median $128,080 annually (BLS, May 2025).
Closest Urban Planning Schools to Mason City
The accredited institutions listed below are the closest in our directory that offer urban planning programs near Mason City, ranked by BOC Score and straight-line distance from Mason City 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 Mason City.
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 urban planning page.
Urban Planning Wages Near Mason City
Occupation
Median Annual Wage (Iowa, statewide)
Urban and Regional Planners
$79,100
Environmental Scientists and Specialists, Including Health
$78,780
Surveyors
$77,090
Geographers
N/A
Social and Community Service Managers
$65,940
Management Analysts
$85,530
Cartographers and Photogrammetrists
$84,570
Managers, All Other
$128,080
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.
Mason City at a Glance
Metric
Value
Source
Population
27,135
Census ACS 2023 5-yr (B01003)
Median household income
$62,369
Census ACS 2023 5-yr (B19013)
Adults 25+ with bachelor’s+
21.3%
Census ACS 2023 5-yr (B15003)
Other Mason City-Area Cities With Urban Planning Programs
How many accredited urban planning schools are near Mason City, IA?
Our directory has 2 accredited schools offering urban planning programs near Mason City. The closest is Minnesota State University-Mankato in Mankato, MN (79.7 miles), and the farthest of the schools shown is Iowa State University (80.8 miles). 2 of the highlighted schools are flagged as offering distance education.
What are the highest-paying urban planning roles in Iowa?
Based on BLS May 2025 state wage data, the top-paying urban planning-related roles in Iowa are: Managers, All Other ($128,080), Management Analysts ($85,530), Cartographers and Photogrammetrists ($84,570). Wages for Mason City workers will track these statewide medians, adjusted for local cost of living.
Should I look at programs in Austin instead of Mason City?
Austin, MN is 37.9 miles from Mason City and has its own set of local urban planning programs – see the city’s page. For online programs, distance matters less; for hybrid or in-person formats, comparing both can help.
Is Mason City an affordable place to study urban planning?
Mason City’s median household income of $62,369 (Census ACS 2023) is one input. Online programs let students stay in Mason City 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.
