The University of Iowa: Marks of Distinction

The University of Iowa, the state’s first public institution of higher education, is an internationally renowned university dedicated to cutting-edge innovation and the highest levels of excellence in teaching, research, and service. With 21 programs ranked in the Top 10 among the nation’s public universities, the UI is known for its distinctive leadership in such programs as health care and medical research, education, writing, and the arts. The UI’s quality is reflected in its many achievements, several examples of which are below.

The Writing University

Anchored by the Iowa Writer’s Workshop—the most prestigious creative writing program in the world—“The Writing University” is an initiative that brings together the UI’s many high-quality writing programs. Recent writing distinctions include current Writers’ Workshop faculty member Marilynne Robinson’s 2005 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction and International Writing Program 2006 Visiting Fellow Orhan Pamuk’s Nobel Prize for Literature.

The UI has had ties to more than 40 Pulitzer Prize winners and numerous National Book Award winners. Four recent U.S. Poet Laureates have been graduates of the Writers’ Workshop, which won the National Humanities Medal from the National Endowment for the Humanities in 2003, the first Medal awarded to a university and only the second given to an institution rather than an individual.

World-Class Health Care

World-class health care and medical research are long-standing traditions at The University of Iowa. The University of Iowa Children’s Hospital, part of UI Hospitals and Clinics (Iowa’s only comprehensive medical center), was recently ranked by Child magazine among the top 20 children's hospitals in the nation. The Carver College of Medicine is ranked 13th best in research among public medical schools. Four Howard Hughes Medical Institute Investigators serve on the UI faculty.

Award-Winning Faculty

In 2007, Professor of Otolaryngology Richard Smith was elected to the Institute of Medicine and Professor of Law Herbert Hovenkamp to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. Throughout its history, the UI faculty has boasted numerous memberships in the most prestigious national academies:

19 Institute of Medicine members
17 American Academy of Arts and Sciences members
11 National Academy of Science members
2 National Academy of Engineering members

Professor of Finance Erik Lie has been named one of 2007’s most influential people in the world by Time magazine for his groundbreaking research on executive stock option backdating.

Educating Iowa's Professionals

The University of Iowa educates many of the state’s professionals:

80% of Iowa's dentists
50% of Iowa's physicians
47% of Iowa's pharmacists
40% of Iowa's 4-year BSN nurses
Teachers and administrators in 80% of Iowa's K-12 school districts.

Cutting-Edge Research

UI faculty, staff, and students generated an all-time record $382.2 million in grants and contracts for UI research, education, and service during fiscal year 2007.

Home to the Iowa Testing Programs, the UI College of Education is an international leader in the field of educational testing and measurement. Iowa City has become the site of a thriving testing industry thanks to UI research and expertise.

Athletic Excellence

Todd Lickliter, UI’s new men’s head basketball coach, was named 2007 NCAA Division I Coach of the Year by his peers in the National Association of Basketball Coaches for his work during the 2006-07 academic year as head men’s basketball coach at Butler University.

In 2006, the University of Iowa Hawkeyes was the only football team in the nation to boast three first-team academic all-American players.

Exciting Economic Development

By pursuing innovative public/private partnerships, the UI is at the forefront of state economic development, particularly in the area of the bioeconomy. A recent example is the groundbreaking of the new BioVentures Center at the UI’s Oakdale Research Park in Coralville, a research laboratory and business incubator created as a partnership between the UI, Ryan Companies US, Inc., and National Genecular Institute, Inc. (NGI). The UI’s commitment to economic development and outreach to the state’s business community can be seen through the recent creation of the IOWA Centers for Enterprise, Business and Commercialization Services.

A Forerunner in Conservation

The UI has saved more than $5 million in reduced energy expenditures for the 24-month period ending in June 2007 thanks to one of the most comprehensive Energy Conservation Strategic Plans in the Big Ten.

Great Friends

The UI is the first and only higher education institution in the state to successfully complete a $1 billion fundraising campaign.