Despite the challenges of navigating a pandemic, our students continue to excel. As the latest cohort of Hawkeyes prepares to graduate, we celebrate their accomplishments.
Top majors, minors, and certificates

These are the most popular areas of study among spring 2021 undergraduate degree applicants.

Top 3 majors

  • Finance
  • Business Analytics and Information Systems
  • Enterprise Leadership

Top 3 minors

  • Psychology
  • Human Relations
  • Spanish

Top 3 certificates

  • Entrepreneurial Management
  • Event Management
  • Sustainability

This spring, some 5,300 University of Iowa undergraduate, graduate, and professional students will receive degrees under extraordinary circumstances. With the coronavirus pandemic continuing to upend traditional educational practices across campus and the country, the 2020–21 academic year has been a challenge.

For more than a year, students have made sacrifices to maintain health and safety—taking online courses, wearing face masks, and being mindful of social distance. Through it all, however, Hawkeyes have persisted and excelled. A graduating biomedical engineering student is a 2021 Rhodes Scholar. A biochemistry major was named one of only 17 Churchill scholars in the nation, while two other undergraduates, a math major and a biomedical engineering major, became Goldwater scholars.

Hawkeyes persevered outside the classroom as well. Note the student-run Daily Iowan, which earned “Newspaper of the Year” honors in Iowa, or the top-ranked wrestling team, which won a national championship. In the fight against COVID-19, student interns helped senior citizens schedule vaccine appointments, while students in pharmacy and nursing volunteered with vaccine rollout, especially in rural parts of the state.

Coming together for the greater good—that’s the Hawkeye Way. As yet another semester during the pandemic comes to a close, we can count on one thing: Our graduates leave campus full of exciting potential and promise.

If you or a loved one is graduating this spring, find ceremony information at the UI Commencement website.

3,714
undergraduate degree applicants
1,589
graduate and professional degree applicants
14%
Undergraduates with multiple majors
3.22
Average undergraduate cumulative GPA
18%
undergraduates who identify as first-generation
58
Graduating students who identify as veterans
23%
graduating students who identify as a member of a minority group
63
age of the oldest degree applicant
18
age of the youngest degree applicant
Iowa counties
77
Iowa counties represented
41
U.S. states and territories represented
World map
65
countries represented, including the U.S.
747
degrees in medicine, health care, and public health
214
degrees in education
136
degrees in law
2,437
degrees in science, technology, engineering, and math
1,439
degrees in business
book icon
980
degrees in the arts and humanities

Because the final number of graduates will not be available until just before ceremonies begin, these statistics pertain to degree applicants.

 

What are previous grads doing?

Of the Hawkeyes who graduated in the 2019–20 academic year …

  • 93% found a job, continued their education, or are not seeking employment
  • Their median salary is $50,000
  • 23% chose to continue their education

These are our latest stats and they come from a survey of graduates completed six to seven months after graduation. More about Hawkeye grads and student outcomes is available at the Pomerantz Career Center

We can’t wait to celebrate the achievements of our spring 2021 grads. Get all the details about our virtual commencement ceremonies and the in-person celebrations on the Pentacrest and in Kinnick.

Produced by the University of Iowa Office of Strategic Communication