Iowa State University - College of Agriculture and Life Sciences

Name

Iowa State University - College of Agriculture and Life Sciences

Legal name

Iowa State University of Science and Technology

Website

https://cals.iastate.edu

Company type

Public

Founded year

1858

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Higher Education - Agricultural and Life Sciences

NAICS

Colleges, Universities, and Professional Schools (611310), Educational Services (61), Technical and Trade Schools (61151)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200), Agricultural Services (700), Services-Commercial Physical & Biological Research (8731)

akta.pro industry

PRIMARYEDAHAAAB

Land-Grant Public Research Universities

Education/Higher Education (Colleges & Universities)/Public Research Universities

SECONDARYEDAOAOAO

Sustainable/Regenerative Agriculture & Conservation Practices

Education/Vocational, Technical & Trade Education/Agriculture, Horticulture & Skilled Trades

SECONDARYEDABALAA

Agriculture & Food Production

Education/Corporate Training & Professional Development/Industry-Specific Professional Training (e.g., Healthcare, Manufacturing, Construction)

Keywords

• Agricultural education programs
• Agricultural research services
• Extension and outreach
• Life sciences programs
• Academic degree programs

Headquarters

HQ city

Ames

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices6 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Tuition and State Funding: As a land-grant public university college, primary revenue comes from student tuition and state government appropriations for educational services
2. Research Grants and Contracts: Federal and state grants from agencies including USDA, NSF, DOE, NIH fund research activities. Example: $590,000 USDA NIFA grant for rural well-water research over three years
3. Industry Partnerships and Sponsorships: Industry partners like TerraMax join Iowa Soybean Research Center providing financial support and advisory council participation. Soybean checkoff funds leveraged for research
4. Gifts and Donations: Philanthropic support from alumni and friends for scholarships, programs, and facilities. Example: Robert Walton Sr. endowed scholarship for animal science students

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels9 records

Core offering

Iowa State University's College of Agriculture and Life Sciences delivers undergraduate and graduate degree programs across 26+ majors in agriculture, animal science, food science, agronomy, horticulture, agricultural engineering, and life sciences. The college conducts applied agricultural and life sciences research across multiple research and demonstration farms, and delivers research-based extension education to Iowa farmers and rural communities in all 99 counties through field days, workshops, conservation webinars, and county extension offices.

Product overview

Iowa State University College of Agriculture and Life Sciences (CALS) is an educational institution offering undergraduate and graduate degree programs in agriculture and life sciences disciplines. The college provides research and discovery programs, extension services, and hands-on learning opportunities through research farms and facilities. CALS publishes the STORIES magazine and CALS Online newsletter for alumni and faculty communications.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• STORIES Magazine: College magazine showcasing stories of students, faculty, alumni, research, and extension
• CALS Online
• CARES
• Iowa Learning Farms

Products and services

• Undergraduate Degree Programs

Quantifiable outcome

• Record-breaking enrollment making CALS third largest college of agriculture in the nation
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers5 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered core and strategic.

• U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 14 July 2026USDA National Institute for Food and Agriculture awarded a $590,000 three-year grant to support research on rural well-water quality and engage households dependent on private wells. Part of USDA NIFA Environmental and Natural Resource Economics initiative.
• TerraMaxcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 11 June 2026TerraMax joined the Iowa Soybean Research Center at Iowa State University as an industry partner. A company representative serves on the ISRC's industry advisory council, which provides guidance on research needs and funding priorities. TerraMax provides financial support that is leveraged with soybean checkoff funds from the Iowa Soybean Association.
• Heifer InternationalstrategicStrategic or Co-development Partner · 8 July 2013Partnership agreement between Iowa State University and Heifer International to explore new opportunities and projects to use science to address world hunger and poverty.
• Iowa Soybean AssociationcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerIowa Soybean Association provides soybean checkoff funds that are leveraged with industry partner contributions to support soybean research at the Iowa Soybean Research Center at Iowa State.
• Center for Bioplastics and Biocomposites (CB2)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCB2 is a Center for Crops Utilization Research program at ISU. Selected eight projects to fund for 2017 during advisory board meeting. Received NSF grant for Research Experience for Undergraduates summer program.
• RAPID (Rapid Advancement in Process Intensification Deployment Institute)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerISU researchers managing biorefinery efforts for Manufacturing USA Institute's 10th institute. Robert Brown, director of ISU's Bioeconomy Institute, leads RAPID's Distributed Biorefinery program.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Kansas State University College of Agriculture: Land-grant peer with strong wheat/livestock applied research and Extension programming; comparable mission and producer-facing research portfolio.
• Texas A&M University College of Agriculture and Life Sciences: Largest U.S. land-grant college of agriculture with identical land-grant teaching/research/extension mission and scale; competing for federal grants, top faculty, and prospective students.
• University of Nebraska–Lincoln Institute of Agriculture and Natural Resources: Neighboring land-grant peer with parallel row-crop and livestock applied research, Extension network, and federal grant competition profile.
• North Carolina State University College of Agriculture and Life Sciences: Land-grant peer of comparable size and structure with parallel teaching, research, and Extension functions across diverse commodity areas.
• University of Illinois College of Agricultural, Consumer and Environmental Sciences: Big Ten land-grant neighbor offering parallel undergraduate majors, USDA/NSF-funded research, and county-based extension in a comparable Midwest row-crop region.
• Purdue University College of Agriculture: Big Ten land-grant peer with comparable college of agriculture scale, research portfolio in crop and animal science, and statewide extension reach — directly comparable mission, funding model, and student demographics.
• Michigan State University College of Agriculture and Natural Resources: Land-grant Big Ten peer with parallel academic units, Extension service, and research expenditure profile mirroring CALS structure.
• The Ohio State University College of Food, Agricultural, and Environmental Sciences: Big Ten land-grant peer with parallel departmental structure, extension footprint, applied research centers, and industry partnership flywheel.
• University of Minnesota College of Food, Agricultural and Natural Resource Sciences: Upper-Midwest land-grant peer competing for the same federal grant pool, prospective students, and producer-extension relationships in adjacent commodity markets.
• University of Wisconsin–Madison College of Agricultural and Life Sciences: Land-grant peer with dairy/crop science strengths, statewide extension, and research grant scale directly comparable to Iowa State CALS.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/iastate_cals
• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCh1N2Bhu0636blBPV7r4GDw?view_as=subscriber
• Facebookfacebook.com/IowaStateU.AgLifeSciences
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/iowa-state-university-cals
• Instagraminstagram.com/iastate_cals

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles5 records

Subsidiaries3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Iowa State University - College of Agriculture and Life Sciences