2026 Best Value General Genetics Schools in the The Plains States Region
[General Genetics](/majors/biological-biomedical-sciences/genetics/genetics-general/) degree programs vary widely in price and payoff across the country. A high-value program keeps cost low while graduates go on to earn well.
To produce this 2026 ranking, College Factual evaluated 4 schools on the balance of cost and outcomes for general genetics students.
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2026 Best Value General Genetics Schools in the The Plains States Region
Below are the schools that deliver the strongest value in general genetics, balancing cost against outcomes.
Best Value General Genetics Schools
Iowa State University tops our 2026 list of the best value general genetics schools in the The Plains States Region. Iowa State University is a very large public school located in the city of Ames. In-state tuition and fees average $10,787, compared with $28,881 for out-of-state students. Typical student debt for general genetics graduates is $21,631. Early-career general genetics graduates make about $33,330. Set against $21,631 in median debt, that is a healthy payoff. The acceptance rate is 89%.
The strong cost-to-outcome balance at University Of Iowa earned it the #2 place for general genetics. Set in the city of Iowa City, University Of Iowa is a very large public institution. Students from in state pay about $11,283 in tuition and fees, while out-of-state students pay about $33,371. Students borrow a median of $24,463 to complete the general genetics program here. Early-career general genetics graduates make about $57,375. That is a strong return on a $24,463 median debt. Roughly 84% of applicants are accepted.
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Notes and References
The ranking above is published by College Factual (MF_RANKING_2025), 2026 edition. Schools are scored on the balance of cost (tuition and student debt) against student outcomes (post-graduation earnings) — a measure of return on investment, drawn primarily from the U.S. Department of Education (IPEDS and College Scorecard).
Ranking method: College Major Best Value · 4 schools evaluated.
*Averages shown above reflect the top 1 ranked schools only.
- The Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) from the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), a branch of the U.S. Department of Education (DOE), serves as the core of our data about colleges.
- Some other college data, including much of the graduate earnings data, comes from the U.S. Department of Education’s (College Scorecard).
More about our data sources and methodologies.
