University of Iowa

Iowa City, IA · founded 1847 · 32,000 students · public research university · Big Ten Conference

Known for: A premier public research university celebrated as a top-tier writing and creative arts institution, home to the world-renowned Iowa Writers' Workshop and a leading medical center.

Rankings

U.S. News national: #93
QS World: #401
Times Higher Education: #201
ARWU Shanghai: #151
Forbes: #142

Top programmes

Creative Writing
Nursing
Business
Medicine
Law
Audiology & Speech Pathology

Notable alumni

Tennessee Williams — Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright ('A Streetcar Named Desire')
Flannery O'Connor — Influential American short-story writer
John Irving — Acclaimed novelist ('The World According to Garp')
Gene Wilder — Actor and comedian ('Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory')
Ashton Kutcher — Actor, producer, and venture capitalist
George Gallup — Founder of the Gallup poll
Tom Brokaw — Former NBC Nightly News anchor
Mary Beth Tinker — Free speech activist, plaintiff in 'Tinker v. Des Moines'

Traditions

Iowa Writers' Workshop readings
Homecoming 'Hawkapella'
The 'Iowa Wave' at Kinnick Stadium (to UI Stead Family Children's Hospital)
Fryfest

If University of Iowa were…

As a food: Iowa pork tenderloin sandwich — Like this Midwest staple that's both substantial and surprisingly sophisticated when done well, Iowa combines heartland practicality with world-class literary refinement.
As an athlete: Luka Dončić — Like the Slovenian basketball prodigy whose creative passing and court vision redefine the game, Iowa's Writers' Workshop has revolutionized American literature through innovative storytelling techniques.
As a person alive today: Florence Pugh — Like the actress who balances blockbuster films with intimate character studies, Iowa maintains both Big Ten sports spectacle and the quiet intensity of its legendary writing programs.
As a historical figure: Walt Whitman — Like the poet who celebrated American diversity while revolutionizing verse, Iowa embraces both heartland values and avant-garde literary experimentation in equal measure.
As a movie or TV show: The French Dispatch — Like Wes Anderson's love letter to literary journalism and artistic eccentrics, Iowa cultivates a community where creative writing is treated with the seriousness of a professional craft.
As a US president: Herbert Hoover — Like the Iowa-born president who combined engineering pragmatism with humanitarian ideals, Iowa balances practical Midwestern values with ambitious artistic and medical enterprises.
As a city: Prague — Like the city that transformed from medieval fortress to literary capital, Iowa City evolved from frontier outpost to UNESCO City of Literature while retaining its intimate scale.
As an element: Mercury — Like mercury—fluid yet dense, capable of carrying creative ideas while conducting serious literary电流—Iowa's writing programs flow between experimental forms and substantive storytelling traditions.
As a car: 1991 Volvo 240 Wagon — Reliable Swedish transport beloved by poets, NPR listeners, and cross-country runners. Home to the Iowa Writers' Workshop (most prestigious MFA in America) and a Big Ten athletics program, Iowa City balances literary pre

Campus life

Iowa City is a UNESCO City of Literature, offering a vibrant, intellectual, and artsy atmosphere intertwined with Big Ten sports spirit. Social life balances a strong literary and arts scene with lively downtown bars and Hawkeye football game days.

The film, scored

This profile answers “if University of Iowa were a movie or TV show?” with The French Dispatch (2021). Like Wes Anderson's love letter to literary journalism and artistic eccentrics, Iowa cultivates a community where creative writing is treated with the seriousness of a professional craft. It sits in the 45th percentile on rankquant, which re-centres every critic score on the reviewer who gave it, so a percentile means position against peers rather than a raw star average. The full film & TV catalogue ranks the rest the same way.