2023 Best Industrial Engineering Schools
Finding the Best Industrial Engineering School for You
In 2020-2021, 9,072 people earned a degree or certificate in industrial engineering, making the major the #87 most popular in the United States.
There are so many programs in today's world that it can tough to figure out which one is the right one for you. Along with traditional schools that require in-person attendence, you can attend one of many reputable online schools. Some programs even offer a hybrid experience. Alternatively, you may choose a trade school that prepares you to enter the workforce with knowledge in a specific field.
To assist you in seeing some of the education options that are available to you, Course Advisor has created its Best Industrial Engineering Schools ranking. Our analysis looked at 105 schools in the United States to see which programs offered the best educational experiences for students.
View our full ranking methodology.
2023 Best Industrial Engineering Schools in the United States
The colleges and universities below are the best for IE majors pursuing a .
Top 15% Best Industrial Engineering Schools
Our 2023 rankings named Northwestern University the best school in the United States for industrial engineering students. Northwestern is a fairly large private not-for-profit school located in the small city of Evanston.
On average, IE graduates from Northwestern take out $17,831 in student loans while working on their degree.
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The excellent programs at Georgia Institute of Technology - Main Campus helped the school earn the #2 place on this year’s ranking of the best industrial engineering schools in the United States. Located in the large city of Atlanta, Georgia Tech is a public school with a very large student population.
While working on their degree, IE majors at Georgia Tech accumulate an average of around $23,500 in student debt. This translates to an average monthly loan payment of $373, based on a 10-year repayment plan.
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The excellent programs at University of Michigan - Ann Arbor helped the school earn the #3 place on this year’s ranking of the best industrial engineering schools in the United States. U-M is a fairly large public school located in the medium-sized city of Ann Arbor.
While working on their degree, IE majors at U-M accumulate an average of around $20,000 in student debt.
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Out of the 105 schools in the United States that were part of this year’s ranking, Kettering University landed the # 4 spot on the list. Located in the small city of Flint, Kettering is a private not-for-profit school with a small student population.
IE majors at Kettering take out an average of $31,000 in student loans while working on their egree.
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The excellent programs at University of Wisconsin - Madison helped the school earn the #5 place on this year’s ranking of the best industrial engineering schools in the United States. UW - Madison is a very large public school located in the city of Madison.
After completing their degree, IE graduates from UW - Madison carry an average student debtload of $20,500.
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Virginia Tech did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best schools for industrial engineering students. It came in at #6 on the list. Located in the city of Blacksburg, Virginia Tech is a public college with a very large student population.
After completing their degree, IE graduates from Virginia Tech carry an average student debtload of $24,000. This translates to an average monthly loan payment of $504, based on a 10-year repayment plan.
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With a ranking of #7, Lehigh University did quite well on this year’s best schools for industrial engineering students. Lehigh is a medium-sized private not-for-profit school located in the small city of Bethlehem.
On average, IE graduates from Lehigh take out $22,115 in student loans while working on their degree.
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The University of Texas at Austin landed the #8 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best industrial engineering programs. UT Austin is a very large public school located in the city of Austin.
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Purdue University - Main Campus did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best schools for industrial engineering students. It came in at #9 on the list. Purdue is a fairly large public school located in the city of West Lafayette.
The average amount in student loans that IE majors at Purdue take out is $19,750. Assuming that a graduate chooses a 10-year repayment plan, the average monthly loan payment is $367.
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California Polytechnic State University - San Luis Obispo landed the #10 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best industrial engineering programs. Cal Poly San Luis Obispo is a very large public school located in the small suburb of San Luis Obispo.
While working on their degree, IE majors at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo accumulate an average of around $21,846 in student debt. The average monthly payment of a loan this size is about $498, assuming that the borrower is on a 10-year repayment plan.
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University of Washington - Seattle Campus came in at #11 in this year’s edition of the Best Industrial Engineering Schools ranking. Located in the city of Seattle, UW Seattle is a public school with a fairly large student population.
The average amount in student loans that IE majors at UW Seattle take out is $18,138.
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Texas A&M University - College Station did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best schools for industrial engineering students. It came in at #12 on the list. Located in the city of College Station, Texas A&M College Station is a public college with a very large student population.
The average amount in student loans that IE majors at Texas A&M College Station take out is $20,500. The average monthly payment of a loan this size is about $328, assuming that the borrower is on a 10-year repayment plan.
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University of Southern California came in at #13 in this year’s edition of the Best Industrial Engineering Schools ranking. Located in the city of Los Angeles, USC is a private not-for-profit college with a fairly large student population.
IE majors at USC take out an average of $21,500 in student loans while working on their egree.
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Columbia University in the City of New York came in at #14 in this year’s edition of the Best Industrial Engineering Schools ranking. Located in the city of New York, Columbia is a private not-for-profit school with a fairly large student population.
Full Industrial Engineering at Columbia University in the City of New York Report
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University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign came in at #15 in this year’s edition of the Best Industrial Engineering Schools ranking. UIUC is a very large public school located in the small city of Champaign.
On average, IE graduates from UIUC take out $19,000 in student loans while working on their degree.
Full Industrial Engineering at University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign Report
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These are some additional schools worth mentioning that are also great but just didn't quite make the cut to earn our top Best Industrial Engineering Schools award.
| Rank | College | Location |
|---|---|---|
| 16 | University of Pittsburgh - Pittsburgh Campus | Pittsburgh, PA |
| 17 | North Carolina State University | Raleigh, NC |
| 18 | Clemson University | Clemson, SC |
| 19 | Iowa State University | Ames, IA |
| 20 | Ohio State University - Main Campus | Columbus, OH |
| 21 | Auburn University | Auburn, AL |
Industrial Engineering by Region
View the Best Industrial Engineering Schools for a specific region near you.
| Region |
|---|
| Southeast |
| New England |
| Rocky Mountains |
| Plains States |
| Middle Atlantic |
| Far Western US |
| Southwest |
| Great Lakes |
More Industrial Engineering Rankings
Rankings in Majors Related to IE
One of 40 majors within the area of study, industrial engineering has other similar majors worth exploring.
Majors Similar to IE
| Related Major | Annual Graduates |
|---|---|
| Mechanical Engineering | 46,178 |
| Electrical Engineering | 28,844 |
| Civil Engineering | 21,388 |
| Computer Engineering | 17,987 |
| Chemical Engineering | 12,917 |
Notes and References
*These averages are for the top 25 schools only.
- Read more about our ranking methodology.
- The Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) from the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), a branch of the U.S. Department of Education (DOE) serves as the core of the rest of our data about colleges.
- Some other college data, including much of the graduate earnings data, comes from the U.S. Department of Education’s (College Scorecard).
More about our data sources and methodologies.
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