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Best Value Mechanical Engineering Schools in Pennsylvania

2023 Best Value Mechanical Engineering Schools in Pennsylvania

Highlighting Quality Schools With More Affordable Pricing

15 Colleges
$41,535 Avg Tuition & Fees*
$71,068 Avg Salary

Finding the Best Mechanical Engineering School for You

Mechanical Engineering is the #20 most popular major in Pennsylvania with 2,232 degrees and certificates awarded in 2020-2021.

There are so many programs in today's world that it can tough to figure out which one is the right one 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 Value Mechanical Engineering Schools in Pennsylvania ranking. This report analyzed 15 schools in Pennsylvania to see which ones offered the best value programs for ME students. The goal was to highlight schools with more affordable prices than others offering similar quality experiences.

This ranking is not just a list of inexpensive schools. We also consider each school's quality, since we believe a low-quality school may not be a 'bargain' at any price. Specifically, our score for quality is discounted by the published tuition and fees charged by the given college. This gives the cost per unit of quality for each college. The more quality your dollar buys, the better the value.

For nationwide and regional rankings, we use out-of-state tuition and fees in our calculations. For statewide rankings, we use average in-state tuition and fees.

Top 10 Best Mechanical Engineering Schools

$14,352 Average Tuition & Fees

Our 2023 rankings named University of Pittsburgh - Johnstown the best value school in Pennsylvania for mechanical engineering students. Pitt Johnstown is a small public school located in the suburb of Johnstown.

Pitt Johnstown undergraduate students pay an average of $14,352 in in-state tuition and fees each year. While working on their degree, ME majors at Pitt Johnstown accumulate an average of around $27,000 in student debt. For students who choose a 10-year repayment plan, the average monthly student loan payment is $538.

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$13,394 Average Tuition & Fees

Out of the 15 schools in Pennsylvania that were part of this year’s ranking, Shippensburg University of Pennsylvania landed the # 2 spot on the list. Located in the fringe town of Shippensburg, Ship is a public school with a medium-sized student population.

Ship undergraduate students pay an average of $13,394 in in-state tuition and fees each year.

Full Mechanical Engineering at Shippensburg University of Pennsylvania Report

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$20,362 Average Tuition & Fees

The excellent programs at University of Pittsburgh - Pittsburgh Campus helped the school earn the #3 place on this year’s ranking of the best mechanical engineering schools in Pennsylvania. Pitt is a very large public school located in the city of Pittsburgh.

Pitt undergraduate students pay an average of $20,362 in in-state tuition and fees each year. While working on their degree, ME majors at Pitt accumulate an average of around $27,000 in student debt. For students who choose a 10-year repayment plan, the average monthly student loan payment is $538.

Pitt also claimed a spot on our Best Mechanical Engineering Schools in Pennsylvania list. It’s in the top 20% of all schools in this category.

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A rank of #4 on this year’s list means York College of Pennsylvania is a great value for mechanical engineering students. YCP is a small private not-for-profit school located in the suburb of York.

The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at YCP are $22,350 a year. ME majors at YCP take out an average of $27,000 in student loans while working on their egree.

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#5

Temple University

Philadelphia, PA
$17,378 Average Tuition & Fees

The excellent programs at Temple University helped the school earn the #5 place on this year’s ranking of the best mechanical engineering schools in Pennsylvania. Located in the large city of Philadelphia, Temple is a public school with a very large student population.

Temple undergraduate students pay an average of $17,378 in in-state tuition and fees each year. ME majors at Temple take out an average of $26,000 in student loans while working on their egree. For students who choose a 10-year repayment plan, the average monthly student loan payment is $320.

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#6

University of Pennsylvania

Philadelphia, PA
$61,710 Average Tuition & Fees

University of Pennsylvania did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best value schools for mechanical engineering students. It came in at #6 on the list. UPenn is a very large private not-for-profit school located in the city of Philadelphia.

In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at UPenn are $61,710 per year. After completing their degree, ME graduates from UPenn carry an average student debtload of $11,455.

In addition to its best value ranking, and one of the reasons why the school is on the list, UPenn is ranked #3 for overall quality for ME in Pennsylvania.

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#7

Villanova University

Villanova, PA
$59,020 Average Tuition & Fees

Villanova University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best value schools for mechanical engineering students. It came in at #7 on the list. Villanova is a fairly large private not-for-profit school located in the large suburb of Villanova.

In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Villanova are $59,020 per year. The average amount in student loans that ME majors at Villanova take out is $24,562.

Villanova also claimed a spot on our Best Mechanical Engineering Schools in Pennsylvania list. It’s in the top 10% of all schools in this category.

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#8

Lehigh University

Bethlehem, PA
$57,470 Average Tuition & Fees

Lehigh University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best value schools for mechanical engineering students. It came in at #8 on the list. Lehigh is a medium-sized private not-for-profit school located in the small city of Bethlehem.

The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at Lehigh are $57,470 a year. After completing their degree, ME graduates from Lehigh carry an average student debtload of $25,948. This translates to an average monthly loan payment of $633, based on a 10-year repayment plan.

Lehigh excels when it comes to quality. It’s ranked in the top 5% of all schools on our Best Mechanical Engineering Schools in Pennsylvania list.

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#9

Carnegie Mellon University

Pittsburgh, PA
$58,524 Average Tuition & Fees

Carnegie Mellon University ranked #9 on this year’s Best Value Mechanical Engineering Schools in Pennsylvania list. Located in the city of Pittsburgh, Carnegie Mellon is a private not-for-profit college with a large student population.

Carnegie Mellon undergraduate students pay an average of $58,524 in in-state tuition and fees each year. After completing their degree, ME graduates from Carnegie Mellon carry an average student debtload of $22,576.

Carnegie Mellon also took the #2 spot in our Best Mechanical Engineering Schools in Pennsylvania rankings.

Full Mechanical Engineering at Carnegie Mellon University Report

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#10

Lafayette College

Easton, PA
$56,364 Average Tuition & Fees

Lafayette College did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best value schools for mechanical engineering students. It came in at #10 on the list. Located in the suburb of Easton, Lafayette is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population.

In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Lafayette are $56,364 per year. While working on their degree, ME majors at Lafayette accumulate an average of around $19,500 in student debt.

Lafayette also made our Best Mechanical Engineering Schools in Pennsylvania list, coming in at #4.

Full Mechanical Engineering at Lafayette College Report

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Best Value Mechanical Engineering Colleges in the Middle Atlantic Region

Explore all the Best Value Mechanical Engineering Colleges in the Middle Atlantic Area or other specific states within that region.

State Degrees Awarded
New York 2,839
Maryland 807
New Jersey 945
District of Columbia 176
Delaware 135

Mechanical Engineering is one of 40 different types of programs to choose from.

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 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 Michel Villeneuve.

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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