About
Inspiring students for generations
Here are a few nuggets about the College of Education:
- We anchor the largest teacher education program in Iowa
- We offer the most sought-after major, elementary education, and minor, social and emotional learning, at UNI
- Our recreation, tourism and nonprofit leadership major connects education with health, well-being, human services and community.
- We are comprehensive, with the only active doctoral program at UNI.
Overall, we’re five departments, four centers of excellence and student-focused faculty and staff with one shared goal that drives us every day: your success.
Education for All
Respect for what each of us brings to the classroom, to campus and to our communities is paramount as we welcome you. Across our programs, we’re preparing you for and ensuring experiences that have you ready to lead and engage diverse and inclusive classrooms, communities and organizations of the future where everyone belongs. We reach out and connect through longstanding events. Through dialogue and reflection with students, faculty, staff and peers, we continue to listen, learn and grow.
The College of Education combines welcoming, passionate faculty and staff with the rigor of academic excellence our students deserve. Our team knows their disciplines and cares deeply about their students. There is nothing better than seeing our graduates cross the finish line, diploma in hand, and ready for the world ahead of them.
Inspiring Students for Generations
At the very core of University of Northern Iowa is teacher education. We began as a Normal School, a public training school for teachers, in 1876. We grew from a set of departments into a full-fledged College of Education in 1970 as UNI evolved into a leading regional comprehensive university.
As the anchor of the Teacher Education program, our college confers about 60 percent of teaching degrees at UNI. We’re with you from beginning to end, from laying the foundational coursework to overseeing your field experience and pathway to licensure.
Our roots included physical education teaching and eventually degrees and expertise that shared a focus on health, wellness and community. As many of those programs become part of the new School for Health and Human Sciences in the College of Social and Behavioral Sciences, we continue our connection to community and well-being with recreation, tourism and nonprofit leadership programming.
From every strand of the College of Education, leaders have emerged — in the classroom, in board offices, in higher education, in health care. In communities large and small, from the Cedar Valley to across the world. For generations.
Program Excellence
- Master's programs in education recognized in 2023-24 U.S. News & World Report's "Best Graduate Schools" rankings. Includes 11 on campus, hybrid and online programs led by College of Education faculty.
- Online master's in education programs among the top 20 percent in the 2024 U.S. News & World rankings (8 of 10 programs led by COE faculty).
Programs are offered in conjunction with Online & Distance Education and the Graduate College.
Dedicated to Your Dreams
The College of Education is a place where you can find your future, with the help of:
- Student-centered faculty who bring both expertise and experience
- Professional undergraduate advising team here for you every step of the way
- A strong emphasis on hands-on, applied experience and engagement
- Learning environments for today’s students, from the technology-rich Schindler Education Center to the multiple labs, training and clinical space of the Human Performance Center and Wellness and Recreation Center