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2026 Best Value Laboratory Technician Schools in Iowa

[Laboratory Technician](/majors/health-care-professions/clinical-medical-lab-science/laboratory-technician/) degree programs vary widely in price and payoff across the country. The best values balance affordable tuition against strong post-graduation earnings.

For its 2026 best-value ranking, College Factual looked at 6 schools to find the best return on investment for laboratory technician students.

What’s on this page:

• Best Value Laboratory Technician Schools in Iowa

2026 Best Value Laboratory Technician Schools in Iowa

If you want to know which schools deliver the best value for the laboratory technician degrees they offer, see the list below.

Best Value Laboratory Technician Schools

1

Hawkeye Community College
Waterloo, IA

$6,525 In-State Tuition & Fees

$17,001 Avg Student Debt

$42,849 Median Earnings (10yr)

Hawkeye Community College tops our 2026 list of the best value laboratory technician schools in Iowa. Set in the rural area of Waterloo, Hawkeye Community College is a moderately-sized public institution. The average in-state cost of tuition and fees is $6,525, while out-of-state students pay about $6,612. Typical student debt for laboratory technician graduates is $17,001. Early-career laboratory technician graduates make about $41,902. That is a strong return on a $17,001 median debt.

2

Des Moines Area Community College
Ankeny, IA

$5,790 In-State Tuition & Fees

$24,250 Avg Student Debt

$41,018 Median Earnings (10yr)

Students looking for strong value in laboratory technician will find it at Des Moines Area Community College, which ranked #2. Set in the suburb of Ankeny, Des Moines Area Community College is a very large public institution. In-state tuition and fees average $5,790, with out-of-state students paying around $6,690. Students borrow a median of $24,250 to complete the laboratory technician program here. Early-career laboratory technician graduates make about $47,585. Set against $24,250 in median debt, that is a healthy payoff.

View All Laboratory Technician Rankings >

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 · 6 schools evaluated.

*Averages shown above reflect the top 3 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.