Iowa School Counselor
Iowa school counselors work with students from pre-K through 12th grade. The state projects about 360 job openings a year from 2024 to 2034, and the May 2025 median wage is $56,540. You’ll need a master’s from an approved school counselor program, mandatory reporter training, and a license from Iowa’s Board of Educational Examiners. Two in-state programs hold CACREP accreditation.
Iowa Links
Iowa has about 3,690 people working as school, career, and college counselors and advisors, according to May 2025 BLS data. Counselors here work in districts that range from large Des Moines suburbs to small rural schools where one counselor might be the only support professional in the building.
What School Counselors Do in Iowa
Think about a sophomore who’s been showing up to school distracted and withdrawn for two weeks. Her grades are slipping in three classes, and two teachers have flagged it independently. Her school counselor is the one who pulls those threads together, meeting with her, reaching out to her parents, and connecting her with more support before things escalate. That’s the job in its clearest form.
Iowa school counselors work across academic, personal-social, and career development. At the elementary level, they build early coping skills and help spot students who need extra academic or behavioral support. In middle school, they’re handling the social pressures of early adolescence, including peer conflict, identity questions, and the jump from elementary school structure to something more demanding. At the high school level, counselors help students work through college applications, dual enrollment, financial aid timelines, and plans after graduation.
Iowa adds a layer of structured career work. Under the Individual Career and Academic Plan, or ICAP, each district has to make sure every student reviews and revises a career and academic plan every year from 8th grade through graduation. ICAP isn’t the counselor’s job alone, but district teams responsible for career and academic planning typically include school counselors, administrators, teachers, and other staff. For the counselor, that often means tracking student goals, connecting coursework to career interests, and making sure seniors know how to complete the FAFSA before they graduate.
Iowa school counselors also work within the Iowa School Counseling Framework, the Iowa Department of Education’s model for school counseling programs. It’s built on the ASCA National Model and was updated in fall 2025 to reflect the model’s fifth edition. If you’re exploring school counseling master’s programs, it helps to know how licensing works first. Iowa school counselors are licensed through the Iowa Board of Educational Examiners (BOEE). Applicants may qualify through a school counselor endorsement on an Iowa teaching license or through an Initial Professional Service License, depending on their preparation and credentials. Iowa has separate K-8 and 5-12 endorsements. The certification guide linked above covers both routes.
Job Outlook in Iowa
Iowa projects about 360 openings a year for school counselors from 2024 to 2034. Most of those come from counselors retiring or leaving the field rather than from new positions. Employment in the occupation is projected to grow 10.8% over that period, compared with 3.5% for the occupation across the U.S. over the same 2024-2034 window.
State rules set a staffing floor. Since July 1, 2007, every Iowa school district has had to employ at least one licensed school counselor and work toward a goal of one counselor for every 350 students. The American School Counselor Association recommends a tighter 1:250 ratio, and actual caseloads in Iowa vary widely by district. Rural districts are often harder to staff, which can mean the counselor takes on a wider range of duties.
If you’re looking at school counselor jobs in Iowa, check which license level each posting asks for. Many districts hire specifically for K-8 or 5-12 Professional School Counselor roles.
School Counselor Salary in Iowa
The median wage for school counselors in Iowa was $56,540 in May 2025, about $7,790 below the national median of $64,330. These BLS figures cover educational, guidance, and career counselors and advisors, a group that also includes college advisors, so treat them as a guide to school pay rather than an exact match. Among the six largest metro areas for this work, medians range from $50,260 in Ames to $59,850 in Iowa City.
| Percentile | Annual Salary |
|---|---|
| 10th | $43,470 |
| 25th | $48,310 |
| Median (50th) | $56,540 |
| 75th | $65,820 |
| 90th | $77,110 |
| Metro Area | Median Salary |
|---|---|
| Iowa City, IA | $59,850 |
| Cedar Rapids, IA | $58,800 |
| Des Moines-West Des Moines, IA | $57,580 |
| Davenport-Moline-Rock Island, IA-IL | $57,360 |
| Waterloo-Cedar Falls, IA | $53,220 |
| Ames, IA | $50,260 |
CACREP-Accredited School Counseling Programs in Iowa
Two Iowa universities hold CACREP accreditation for a school counseling master’s. They’re listed by 2023 graduate count, which measures size, not quality.
| Institution | City | Degree | Accredited Through | Master’s Graduates (2023) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| The University of Iowa | Iowa City | M.A. | October 31, 2028 | 9 |
| University of Northern Iowa | Cedar Falls | M.A. | March 31, 2031 | 9 |
CACREP accreditation is separate from Iowa state approval. Students should confirm that their chosen program meets Iowa Board of Educational Examiners licensing requirements.
The Iowa Department of Education also lists state-approved school counseling programs that aren’t CACREP-accredited, so check its current list if you’re comparing options.
How this table was built. Every program here is CACREP-accredited as a School Counseling program, verified against the CACREP register on September 30, 2026. Any program whose CACREP status shows a teach-out, closure, show-cause or withdrawal is excluded, because a reader cannot reliably enroll in it. Programs are ordered by the number of master’s graduates each university reported to the federal IPEDS survey for 2023 under CIP code 13.1101, which measures size, not quality. That count covers the whole university, so a school running more than one school counseling master’s program reports them together, and a low count can mean some graduates are reported under a different code. Treat the order as a rough guide to size rather than a ranking. Programs with the same count are listed alphabetically. CACREP accreditation is not the same as state approval: check the Iowa requirements for school counselor certification before you enroll.
Iowa now starts career planning in 5th grade
Starting with the 2025-2026 school year, HF 316 requires Iowa school districts to teach career planning and pathways in grades 5 and 6, followed by career exploration and development in grades 7 and 8. The point is to give students a head start on the career and academic plan they begin in 8th grade. For a new counselor, especially at the elementary or middle level, career lessons are now part of the job well before high school.
- Steady openings: Iowa projects about 360 school counselor openings a year from 2024 to 2034, with employment growth of 10.8% against 3.5% nationally over the same period.
- A counselor in every district: State rules have required a licensed school counselor in every district since 2007, with a goal of one for every 350 students.
- Career planning starts early: ICAP plans begin in 8th grade, and HF 316 adds career lessons starting in 5th grade in 2025-2026.
- Pay: The May 2025 median is $56,540 statewide, with Iowa City the highest metro at $59,850.
- Two accredited programs: The University of Iowa and the University of Northern Iowa both offer CACREP-accredited master’s degrees in school counseling.
Comparing the two Iowa programs, or working out whether you need a teaching license first? The step-by-step guide covers both licensing routes, fieldwork, and timing.
