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Best Value Materials Engineering Schools in the Great Lakes Region

2023 Best Value Materials Engineering Schools in the Great Lakes Region

Identifying Quality Schools at More Affordable Prices

15 Colleges
$40,556 Avg Tuition & Fees*
$69,386 Avg Salary

Finding the Best Materials Engineering School for You

Out of all the majors we analyze each year, materials engineering was ranked #158 in the country. In fact 3,415 degrees and certificates were handed out in 2020-2021.

With all the programs available today, it can be tough to choose which one is the best for you. You're no longer limited to schools in your local area, either, since online programs are becoming more prevalent. Or you may find the programs at a trade school to be a better alternative for you.

The Best Value Materials Engineering Schools in the Great Lakes Region ranking is one of many tools that Course Advisor has developed to help you make your educational decision. Our analysis looked at 15 schools in the Great Lakes Region to see which programs offered the best value experiences for materials engineering students with the aim of identifying those quality schools that are more affordable than some of their counterparts.

Our ranking of value is based on the quality of a program as defined in our per sticker price dollar. More specifically, we discount our quality score by the published tuition and fees charged by a school. This gives the cost per unit of quality for each college. The value is determined by how much quality your dollar buys.

In our regional and nationwide rankings, out-of-state tution and fees are used in our calculations. Average in-state tuition and fees are used for our statewide rankings.

Top 10 Best Materials Engineering Schools

#1

University of Dayton

Dayton, OH

Our 2023 rankings named University of Dayton the best value school in the Great Lakes Region for materials engineering students. Located in the midsize city of Dayton, UDayton is a private not-for-profit college with a fairly large student population.

The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at UDayton are $44,890 a year.

In addition to its great value ranking, UDayton is in the top 15% of all schools on our Best Materials Engineering Schools in the Great Lakes Region list.

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#2

Purdue University - Main Campus

West Lafayette, IN

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend Purdue University - Main Campus. The school came in at #2 on this year’s Best Value Materials Engineering Schools in the Great Lakes Region list. Located in the small city of West Lafayette, Purdue is a public college with a very large student population.

The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at Purdue are $28,794 a year. After completing their degree, materials engineering graduates from Purdue carry an average student debtload of $18,125.

Purdue excels when it comes to quality. It’s ranked in the top 5% of all schools on our Best Materials Engineering Schools in the Great Lakes Region list.

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You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend University of Wisconsin - Madison. The school came in at #3 on this year’s Best Value Materials Engineering Schools in the Great Lakes Region list. Located in the city of Madison, UW - Madison is a public college with a very large student population.

The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at UW - Madison are $38,608 a year. After completing their degree, materials engineering graduates from UW - Madison carry an average student debtload of $26,535.

As a testament to the quality of education it offers, UW - Madison also is in the top 5% of our Best Materials Engineering Schools in the Great Lakes Region ranking.

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You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend Michigan Technological University. The school came in at #4 on this year’s Best Value Materials Engineering Schools in the Great Lakes Region list. Michigan Tech is a medium-sized public school located in the town of Houghton.

Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Michigan Tech are $39,723 per year. While working on their degree, materials engineering majors at Michigan Tech accumulate an average of around $26,750 in student debt.

As a testament to the quality of education it offers, Michigan Tech also is in the top 5% of our Best Materials Engineering Schools in the Great Lakes Region ranking.

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The excellent programs at University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign helped the school earn the #5 place on this year’s ranking of the best materials engineering schools in the Great Lakes Region . Located in the city of Champaign, UIUC is a public school with a fairly large student population.

Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at UIUC are $37,632 per year. While working on their degree, materials engineering majors at UIUC accumulate an average of around $21,000 in student debt. The average monthly payment of a loan this size is about $453, assuming that the borrower is on a 10-year repayment plan.

UIUC also claimed a spot on our Best Materials Engineering Schools in the Great Lakes Region list. It’s in the top 5% of all schools in this category.

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$21,475 Average Tuition & Fees

University of Wisconsin - Milwaukee ranked #6 on this year’s Best Value Materials Engineering Schools in the Great Lakes Region list. Located in the large city of Milwaukee, UWM is a public school with a very large student population.

The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at UWM are $21,475 a year. The average amount in student loans that materials engineering majors at UWM take out is $27,125.

Full Materials Engineering at University of Wisconsin - Milwaukee Report

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Ohio State University - Main Campus ranked #7 on this year’s Best Value Materials Engineering Schools in the Great Lakes Region list. Located in the city of Columbus, Ohio State is a public college with a very large student population.

The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at Ohio State are $35,019 a year. The average amount in student loans that materials engineering majors at Ohio State take out is $23,421.

Ohio State excels when it comes to quality. It’s ranked in the top 15% of all schools on our Best Materials Engineering Schools in the Great Lakes Region list.

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#8

Michigan State University

East Lansing, MI

Michigan State University came in at #8 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Materials Engineering Schools in the Great Lakes Region ranking. Michigan State is a very large public school located in the city of East Lansing.

Michigan State undergraduate students pay an average of $41,290 in tuition and fees each year. After completing their degree, materials engineering graduates from Michigan State carry an average student debtload of $24,692.

As a testament to the quality of education it offers, Michigan State also is in the top 10% of our Best Materials Engineering Schools in the Great Lakes Region ranking.

Full Materials Engineering at Michigan State University Report

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$19,252 Average Tuition & Fees

Wright State University - Main Campus landed the #9 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value materials engineering programs. Wright State University - Main Campus is a large public school located in the large suburb of Dayton.

Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Wright State University - Main Campus are $19,252 per year.

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#10

Northwestern University

Evanston, IL

Northwestern University came in at #10 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Materials Engineering Schools in the Great Lakes Region ranking. Located in the small city of Evanston, Northwestern is a private not-for-profit school with a fairly large student population.

The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at Northwestern are $60,768 a year.

Northwestern not only placed well in our value ranking, but it is also #2 on our Best Materials Engineering Schools in the Great Lakes Region list.

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Best Materials Engineering Colleges by State

Explore the best materials engineering schools for a specific state in the Great Lakes region.

State Degrees Awarded
Michigan 183
Ohio 179
Illinois 203
Indiana 98
Wisconsin 77

One of 40 majors within the area of study, materials engineering has other similar majors worth exploring.

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 15 schools only.

  • 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).
  • Credit for the banner image above goes to Panoramedia.

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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