2023 Best Mechanical Engineering Bachelor's Degree Schools
Finding the Best Mechanical Engineering Bachelor's Degree School for You
In 2020-2021, 46,178 people earned a degree or certificate in mechanical engineering, making the major the #21 most popular in the United States.
With all the programs available today, it can be tough to choose which one is the best for you. As online education oppotunities continue to grow, you're not restricted to just schools in your local area anymore. Even some of the 'big name' schools are offering online courses. Also, there are a number of trade schools with offerings that you might find attractive.
To assist you in seeing some of the education options that are available to you, Course Advisor has created its Best Mechanical Engineering Bachelor's Degree Schools ranking. Our analysis looked at 316 schools in the United States to see which bachelor's degree programs offered the best educational experiences for students. Factors related to overall quality of the school, post-graduation earnings, average student debt, and more accumulated were considered when coming up with this list.
View our full ranking methodology.
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2023 Best Mechanical Engineering Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the United States
The colleges and universities below are the best for ME majors pursuing a bachelor's degree.
Top 25 Top Schools for a Bachelor's in Mechanical Engineering
Our analysis found Olin College to be the best school for mechanical engineering students who want to pursue a bachelor’s degree in the United States. Olin College is a fairly small private not-for-profit school located in the suburb of Needham.
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Massachusetts Institute of Technology. It ranked #2 on our 2023 Best Mechanical Engineering Bachelor’s Degree Schools list. MIT is a fairly large private not-for-profit school located in the medium-sized city of Cambridge.
The average amount in student loans that ME majors at MIT take out while working on their Bachelor's Degree is $12,739. This translates to an average monthly loan payment of $535, based on a 10-year repayment plan.
Full Mechanical Engineering at Massachusetts Institute of Technology Report
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of Pennsylvania. It ranked #3 on our 2023 Best Mechanical Engineering Bachelor’s Degree Schools list. Located in the city of Philadelphia, UPenn is a private not-for-profit college with a very large student population.
On average, ME graduates from UPenn take out $14,982 in student loans while working on their Bachelor's Degree.
Full Mechanical Engineering at University of Pennsylvania Report
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend University of Notre Dame. The school came in at #4 on this year’s Best Mechanical Engineering Bachelor’s Degree Schools list. Located in the large suburb of Notre Dame, Notre Dame is a private not-for-profit school with a large student population.
While working on their Bachelor's Degree, ME majors at Notre Dame accumulate an average of around $20,362 in student debt. When it comes time to repay the loan, graduates who are on a 10-year repayment plan pay an average monthly payment of $643.
The excellent bachelor’s degree programs at Duke University helped the school earn the #5 place on this year’s ranking of the best mechanical engineering schools in the United States. Located in the city of Durham, Duke is a private not-for-profit school with a fairly large student population.
Read full report on Mechanical Engineering at Duke University
Rose - Hulman Institute of Technology landed the #6 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best bachelor’s degree mechanical engineering programs. Located in the city of Terre Haute, Rose - Hulman Institute of Technology is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population.
Assuming that a graduate chooses a 10-year repayment plan, the average monthly loan payment is $876.
Read full report on Mechanical Engineering at Rose - Hulman Institute of Technology
Harvard University landed the #7 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best bachelor’s degree mechanical engineering programs. Located in the medium-sized city of Cambridge, Harvard is a private not-for-profit school with a fairly large student population.
California State University Maritime Academy came in at #8 in this year’s edition of the Best Mechanical Engineering Bachelor’s Degree Schools ranking. Cal Maritime is a small public school located in the medium-sized city of Vallejo.
The average amount in student loans that ME majors at Cal Maritime take out while working on their Bachelor's Degree is $29,280.
Read full report on Mechanical Engineering at California State University Maritime Academy
Northwestern University came in at #9 in this year’s edition of the Best Mechanical Engineering Bachelor’s Degree Schools ranking. Located in the small city of Evanston, Northwestern is a private not-for-profit school with a fairly large student population.
Full Mechanical Engineering at Northwestern University Report
Kettering University came in at #10 in this year’s edition of the Best Mechanical Engineering Bachelor’s Degree Schools ranking. Kettering is a small private not-for-profit school located in the city of Flint.
The average monthly payment of a loan this size is about $313, assuming that the borrower is on a 10-year repayment plan.
Read full report on Mechanical Engineering at Kettering University
Rice University came in at #11 in this year’s edition of the Best Mechanical Engineering Bachelor’s Degree Schools ranking. Located in the city of Houston, Rice is a private not-for-profit college with a medium-sized student population.
University of Michigan - Ann Arbor did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for mechanical engineering students to get a bachelor’s degree. It came in at #12 on the list. Located in the city of Ann Arbor, U-M is a public college with a very large student population.
ME majors at U-M take out an average of $18,590 in student loans while working on their Bachelor's Degree. When it comes time to repay the loan, graduates who are on a 10-year repayment plan pay an average monthly payment of $434.
Cornell University ranked #13 on this year’s Best Mechanical Engineering Bachelor’s Degree Schools list. Located in the small city of Ithaca, Cornell is a private not-for-profit college with a very large student population.
The University of Texas at Austin came in at #14 in this year’s edition of the Best Mechanical Engineering Bachelor’s Degree Schools ranking. Located in the large city of Austin, UT Austin is a public college with a very large student population.
The average amount in student loans that ME majors at UT Austin take out while working on their Bachelor's Degree is $19,278. For students who choose a 10-year repayment plan, the average monthly student loan payment is $367.
Full Mechanical Engineering at The University of Texas at Austin Report
California Polytechnic State University - San Luis Obispo ranked #15 on this year’s Best Mechanical Engineering Bachelor’s Degree Schools list. Located in the suburb of San Luis Obispo, Cal Poly San Luis Obispo is a public school with a very large student population.
ME majors at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo take out an average of $19,650 in student loans while working on their Bachelor's Degree. For students who choose a 10-year repayment plan, the average monthly student loan payment is $418.
Purdue University - Main Campus did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for mechanical engineering students to get a bachelor’s degree. It came in at #16 on the list. Located in the small city of West Lafayette, Purdue is a public school with a very large student population.
For students who choose a 10-year repayment plan, the average monthly student loan payment is $572.
Full Mechanical Engineering at Purdue University - Main Campus Report
Vanderbilt University came in at #17 in this year’s edition of the Best Mechanical Engineering Bachelor’s Degree Schools ranking. Located in the large city of Nashville, Vanderbilt is a private not-for-profit school with a large student population.
ME majors at Vanderbilt take out an average of $13,909 in student loans while working on their Bachelor's Degree.
Read full report on Mechanical Engineering at Vanderbilt University
With a ranking of #18, University of California - Berkeley did quite well on this year’s best schools for mechanical engineering students working on their bachelor’s degree. Located in the midsize city of Berkeley, UC Berkeley is a public college with a very large student population.
The average monthly payment of a loan this size is about $392, assuming that the borrower is on a 10-year repayment plan.
Full Mechanical Engineering at University of California - Berkeley Report
Georgia Institute of Technology - Main Campus did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for mechanical engineering students to get a bachelor’s degree. It came in at #19 on the list. Georgia Tech is a fairly large public school located in the city of Atlanta.
The average amount in student loans that ME majors at Georgia Tech take out while working on their Bachelor's Degree is $24,076. For students who choose a 10-year repayment plan, the average monthly student loan payment is $404.
Stanford University ranked #20 on this year’s Best Mechanical Engineering Bachelor’s Degree Schools list. Stanford is a large private not-for-profit school located in the large suburb of Stanford.
Read full report on Mechanical Engineering at Stanford University
With a ranking of #21, Carnegie Mellon University did quite well on this year’s best schools for mechanical engineering students working on their bachelor’s degree. Carnegie Mellon is a fairly large private not-for-profit school located in the large city of Pittsburgh.
Full Mechanical Engineering at Carnegie Mellon University Report
University of Wisconsin - Stout came in at #22 in this year’s edition of the Best Mechanical Engineering Bachelor’s Degree Schools ranking. UW - Stout is a medium-sized public school located in the town of Menomonie.
While working on their Bachelor's Degree, ME majors at UW - Stout accumulate an average of around $27,238 in student debt.
Lehigh University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for mechanical engineering students to get a bachelor’s degree. It came in at #23 on the list. Located in the small city of Bethlehem, Lehigh is a private not-for-profit school with a moderately-sized student population.
This translates to an average monthly loan payment of $633, based on a 10-year repayment plan.
Bucknell University ranked #24 on this year’s Best Mechanical Engineering Bachelor’s Degree Schools list. Bucknell is a small private not-for-profit school located in the town of Lewisburg.
Read full report on Mechanical Engineering at Bucknell University
Lafayette College came in at #25 in this year’s edition of the Best Mechanical Engineering Bachelor’s Degree Schools ranking. Lafayette is a small private not-for-profit school located in the large suburb of Easton.
Read full report on Mechanical Engineering at Lafayette College
Rest of the Top Best Mechanical Engineering Bachelor's Degree Schools
Additional Noteworthy Schools
Here are some additional great schools for Mechanical Engineering students that almost earned our Best Mechanical Engineering Bachelor's Degree Schools award.
| Rank | College | Location |
|---|---|---|
| 48 | Saint Louis University | Saint Louis, MO |
| 49 | Missouri University of Science and Technology | Rolla, MO |
| 50 | Ohio State University - Main Campus | Columbus, OH |
| 51 | University of California - Santa Barbara | Santa Barbara, CA |
| 52 | Case Western Reserve University | Cleveland, OH |
| 53 | University of Pittsburgh - Pittsburgh Campus | Pittsburgh, PA |
| 54 | Southern Methodist University | Dallas, TX |
| 55 | University of Dayton | Dayton, OH |
| 56 | Iowa State University | Ames, IA |
| 57 | Dunwoody College of Technology | Minneapolis, MN |
| 58 | Grand Valley State University | Allendale, MI |
| 59 | University of Washington - Seattle Campus | Seattle, WA |
| 60 | Lawrence Technological University | Southfield, MI |
| 61 | North Carolina State University | Raleigh, NC |
| 62 | Oakland University | Rochester Hills, MI |
| 63 | Clemson University | Clemson, SC |
Mechanical Engineering by Region
View the Best Mechanical Engineering Bachelor's Degree Schools for a specific region near you.
| Region |
|---|
| Southeast |
| New England |
| Rocky Mountains |
| Plains States |
| Middle Atlantic |
| Far Western US |
| Southwest |
| Great Lakes |
More Mechanical Engineering Rankings
Rankings in Majors Related to ME
One of 40 majors within the area of study, mechanical engineering has other similar majors worth exploring.
Most Popular Related Majors
| Related Major | Annual Graduates |
|---|---|
| Electrical Engineering | 28,844 |
| Civil Engineering | 21,388 |
| Computer Engineering | 17,987 |
| Chemical Engineering | 12,917 |
| Biomedical Engineering | 12,811 |
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).
- Credit for the banner image above goes to Michel Villeneuve.
More about our data sources and methodologies.
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