CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa (KCRG) - Maddison Wild is a first generation college graduate.

“I think it really prepared me for my future,” Wild said.

But after graduating from Iowa State University with a degree in Food Sciences in 2019, she no longer saw her future in Iowa. So, she moved to New York City for a job with higher pay.

“I think being able to find entry-level positions that would allow me to progress where I wanted to go, which is working on the corporate side, the opportunities were pretty slim.” Wild said.

Her story is part of a trend known as “brain drain.”

A report from the nonprofit research group Common Sense Institute shows the state had a net loss of more than 3,000 college-educated Iowans in 2023.

That works out to a loss of almost $400,000 in tax revenue per graduate ov

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