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Loras College is located on a campus of approximately sixty acres on one of Dubuque’s highest hills, overlooking the Mississippi River at the junction of the states of Iowa, Illinois and Wisconsin. The picturesque city of Dubuque traces its origins to the days of Julien Dubuque, a French-Canadian miner, who worked the lead mines of the area together with the Native Americans from 1783 until his death in 1810. The campus is situated in a residential district, ten blocks from the center of the downtown area. Loras College was founded in 1839 by the Most Reverend Mathias Loras, first bishop of Dubuque. From this time of its founding until 1934, the college devoted its faculty and facilities to its undergraduate program leading to the bachelor’s degree. From 1934 until 1963, the Catholic University of America conducted a Midwest Branch of graduate studies on the Loras campus. Loras College furnished the facilities and was financially responsible for the program while the Catholic University of America controlled and staffed the program and granted the degrees. The program, leading to the Master of Arts degree, was undertaken in response to the growing need for study beyond the baccalaureate degree in the usual academic disciplines and in the fields of study not usually included in an undergraduate curriculum.
In 1963 the Catholic University of America discontinued its branch programs. Realizing the need in the locale for study beyond the baccalaureate degree, Loras decided to continue the graduate program in the same fields in which the Catholic University had conducted graduate studies.
Loras College is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission. The Iowa State Department of Education has granted approval to the School Counseling program at Loras College. The Loras College Athletic Training program is accredited through the Commission on Accreditation of Athletic Training Education (CAATE) through the 2028-2029 academic year. The program’s status is in good standing with the CAATE.
The Graduate programs are offered on the Loras campus in a hybrid format throughout the year, or online (distance education). In addition to students enrolled in degree programs, non-degree and licensure coursework is offered for students who do not intend to obtain a degree, but who wish graduate study for personal and professional development.
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