The Baptist Convention of Iowa founded Central University of Iowa in 1853 and it officially opened on October 8, 1854. The first class totaled 37 people. Central was a Baptist institution until 1916, when it was transferred to the control of the Reformed Church in America. 

Majorly obsessed with your future. Central offers dozens of academic programs in the sciences, social sciences, arts and humanities. In 2018, the college celebrated its first graduates from its new engineering program. The college also has several professional programs and more than a dozen pre-professional tracks including dentistry, health, pharmacy, law, medicine, nursing, athletic training, public health and more.

At Central College you have the opportunity to engage in collaborative research, scholarship and creative inquiry. This high-impact experience allows you to engage more deeply with your chosen discipline resulting in new creative works, exciting discoveries and the answer to applied problems.