The College has functioned under several names (St. Raphael Seminary, Mt. St. Bernard, St. Joseph College, Dubuque College and Columbia College), finally adopting its present name during its centennial in 1939. From the time of its founding in 1839, the college has devoted its faculty and facilities to an undergraduate program; it conferred the Bachelor of Arts and Bachelor of Science degrees.

In 1963, when the Catholic University of America decided to discontinue its branch program of graduate study on the Loras campus, Loras College, realizing the growing need to the locale for study beyond the baccalaureate degree, initiated its Graduate Division offering the Master of Arts degree in some fields.

The College became coeducational in the fall of 1971. In 1973, the Associate of Arts and the Associate of Science degrees were introduced. The Division of Community Education was initiated in 1975.

Loras College is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission. In addition, our teacher education program and graduate-level school counseling program are accredited by the Iowa Department of Education. The Council of Social Work Education has accredited the social work major at the baccalaureate level. The Commission on Accreditation of Athletic Training Education (CAATE) has accredited the master of athletic training program and the engineering program is accredited by the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology (ABET).