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Most Popular Mechanical Engineering Bachelor's Degree Schools in Illinois

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2023 Most Popular Mechanical Engineering Bachelor's Degree Schools in Illinois

10 Colleges
$64,776 Avg Salary
$23,989 Avg Student Debt

Finding the Best Mechanical Engineering Bachelor's Degree School for You

In 2020-2021, 1,183 degrees and certificates were awarded to mechanical engineering students who went to a Illinois college or university. This makes it the #31 most popular major in the state.

Today's students have lots of options to pick from when considering higher education opportunities. You can choose a traditional brick and mortar school, or with the growth of online education, you can attend a school half-way across the country without even leaving your house. Also there are many trade schools that offer short-term programs that open up more career options.

The Most Popular Mechanical Engineering Bachelor's Degree Schools in Illinois ranking is one of many tools that Course Advisor has developed to help you make your educational decision. Our analysis looked at 10 schools in Illinois to see which bachelor's degree programs were the most popular for students. To create this ranking we looked at how many students graduated from the Mechanical Engineering program at each school on the list.

The colleges and universities below are the most popular for ME majors pursuing a bachelor's degree.

Our analysis found University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign to be the most popular school for mechanical engineering students who want to pursue a bachelor’s degree in Illinois. UIUC is a fairly large public school located in the small city of Champaign.

Women make up 21% of the ME majors at the school.

For students who choose a 10-year repayment plan, the average monthly student loan payment is $500.

Read full report on Mechanical Engineering at University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of Illinois at Chicago. It ranked #2 on our 2023 Most Popular Mechanical Engineering Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Illinois list. Located in the large city of Chicago, UIC is a public college with a fairly large student population.

Of the 155 students majoring in ME at UIC, 86% are male and 14% are female.

While working on their Bachelor's Degree, ME majors at UIC accumulate an average of around $21,638 in student debt. This translates to an average monthly loan payment of $207, based on a 10-year repayment plan.

Full Mechanical Engineering at University of Illinois at Chicago Report

The in-demand bachelor’s degree programs at Northern Illinois University helped the school earn the #3 place on this year’s ranking of the most popular mechanical engineering schools in Illinois. Located in the suburb of Dekalb, NIU is a public school with a large student population.

Women make up 6% of the ME majors at the school.

ME majors at NIU take out an average of $27,219 in student loans while working on their Bachelor's Degree. This translates to an average monthly loan payment of $192, based on a 10-year repayment plan.

Read More…

Out of the 10 schools in Illinois that were part of this year’s ranking, Illinois Institute of Technology landed the # 4 spot on the list. Illinois Tech is a medium-sized private not-for-profit school located in the large city of Chicago.

Of the 87 students majoring in ME at Illinois Tech, 69% are male and 31% are female.

After completing their Bachelor's Degree, ME graduates from Illinois Tech carry an average student debt load of $24,824.

Read full report on Mechanical Engineering at Illinois Institute of Technology

#5

Bradley University

Peoria, IL

The in-demand bachelor’s degree programs at Bradley University helped the school earn the #5 place on this year’s ranking of the most popular mechanical engineering schools in Illinois. Bradley is a medium-sized private not-for-profit school located in the city of Peoria.

Women make up 14% of the ME majors at the school.

Read More…

#6

Northwestern University

Evanston, IL

Northwestern University landed the #6 spot in the 2023 rankings for the most popular bachelor’s degree mechanical engineering programs. Northwestern is a very large private not-for-profit school located in the city of Evanston.

About 20% of the students majoring in ME at the school are women while 80% are male.

Read full report on Mechanical Engineering at Northwestern University

With a ranking of #7, Southern Illinois University Edwardsville did quite well on this year’s most popular schools for mechanical engineering students working on their bachelor’s degree. Located in the suburb of Edwardsville, SIUE is a public school with a large student population.

Of the 61 students majoring in ME at SIUE, 95% are male and 5% are female.

While working on their Bachelor's Degree, ME majors at SIUE accumulate an average of around $22,299 in student debt. Assuming that a graduate chooses a 10-year repayment plan, the average monthly loan payment is $231.

Full Mechanical Engineering at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville Report

Southern Illinois University Carbondale landed the #8 spot in the 2023 rankings for the most popular bachelor’s degree mechanical engineering programs. Located in the city of Carbondale, SIUC is a public school with a fairly large student population.

Women make up 8% of the ME majors at the school.

Read full report on Mechanical Engineering at Southern Illinois University Carbondale

Western Illinois University landed the #9 spot in the 2023 rankings for the most popular bachelor’s degree mechanical engineering programs. WIU is a medium-sized public school located in the remote town of Macomb.

On average, ME graduates from WIU take out $26,203 in student loans while working on their Bachelor's Degree.

Full Mechanical Engineering at Western Illinois University Report

#10

North Park University

Chicago, IL

With a ranking of #10, North Park University did quite well on this year’s most popular schools for mechanical engineering students working on their bachelor’s degree. North Park is a small private not-for-profit school located in the city of Chicago.

Read full report on Mechanical Engineering at North Park University

Best Mechanical Engineering Colleges in the Great Lakes Region

Explore all the Most Popular Mechanical Engineering Colleges in the Great Lakes Area or other specific states within that region.

State Degrees Awarded
Michigan 2,498
Ohio 2,106
Indiana 1,336
Wisconsin 855

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

Majors Similar to ME

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 10 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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