DecideMyCampus Rankings 2026 · STEM
⚙️ Best Engineering Programs
Best engineering schools ranked by graduate salaries, net price after aid, and graduation rates using verified federal data.
Mechanical EngineerCivil EngineerElectrical EngineerChemical Engineer
Typical salary range: $70k – $140k+
Ranked by:30% Earnings25% Net Cost20% Grad Rate15% Social Mobility10% Retention
| Rank | University | Score /100 | 6yr Earnings | Net Price/yr | Grad Rate | Retention |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Princeton University Princeton, NJ | 78 | $105,000 | $14,000/yr | 98% | 99% |
| 2 | Harvard University Cambridge, MA | 77 | $106,000 | $15,000/yr | 97% | 99% |
| 3 | Massachusetts Institute of Technology Cambridge, MA | 76 | $109,000 | $17,000/yr | 94% | 99% |
| 4 | Stanford University Stanford, CA | 76 | $108,000 | $16,000/yr | 96% | 99% |
| 5 | University of Chicago Chicago, IL | 72 | $103,000 | $21,000/yr | 95% | 99% |
| 6 | University of California-Berkeley Berkeley, CA | 72 | $87,000 | $13,000/yr | 93% | 97% |
| 7 | University of California-Los Angeles Los Angeles, CA | 71 | $82,000 | $13,000/yr | 92% | 97% |
| 8 | University of California-San Diego La Jolla, CA | 70 | $79,000 | $11,000/yr | 87% | 95% |
| 9 | Georgia Institute of Technology Atlanta, GA | 70 | $83,000 | $10,000/yr | 87% | 97% |
| 10 | University of Pennsylvania Philadelphia, PA | 69 | $99,000 | $25,000/yr | 96% | 98% |
| 11 | Dartmouth College Hanover, NH | 69 | $95,000 | $22,000/yr | 95% | 98% |
| 12 | California Institute of Technology Pasadena, CA | 69 | $106,000 | $26,000/yr | 92% | 98% |
| 13 | University of California-Irvine Irvine, CA | 68 | $75,000 | $11,000/yr | 84% | 95% |
| 14 | University of Michigan-Ann Arbor Ann Arbor, MI | 66 | $76,000 | $14,000/yr | 93% | 97% |
| 15 | Georgetown University Washington, DC | 65 | $97,000 | $28,000/yr | 93% | 97% |
| 16 | Northwestern University Evanston, IL | 65 | $94,000 | $28,000/yr | 95% | 97% |
| 17 | University of Washington-Seattle Campus Seattle, WA | 65 | $74,000 | $15,000/yr | 85% | 94% |
| 18 | University of Texas at Austin Austin, TX | 64 | $69,000 | $12,000/yr | 84% | 95% |
| 19 | University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Chapel Hill, NC | 64 | $63,000 | $10,000/yr | 91% | 96% |
| 20 | University of Virginia-Main Campus Charlottesville, VA | 64 | $73,000 | $16,000/yr | 95% | 97% |
| 21 | Northeastern University Boston, MA | 63 | $91,000 | $29,000/yr | 91% | 97% |
| 22 | Cornell University Ithaca, NY | 63 | $90,000 | $29,000/yr | 94% | 97% |
| 23 | University of Wisconsin-Madison Madison, WI | 62 | $67,000 | $14,000/yr | 88% | 95% |
| 24 | Purdue University-Main Campus West Lafayette, IN | 60 | $65,000 | $15,000/yr | 83% | 92% |
| 25 | Texas A&M University-College Station College Station, TX | 60 | $63,000 | $14,000/yr | 83% | 92% |
| 26 | Ohio State University-Main Campus Columbus, OH | 58 | $62,000 | $17,000/yr | 84% | 93% |
| 27 | University of Southern California Los Angeles, CA | 58 | $73,000 | $30,000/yr | 92% | 97% |
| 28 | Villanova University Villanova, PA | 56 | $79,000 | $34,000/yr | 91% | 95% |
| 29 | New York University New York, NY | 55 | $71,000 | $33,000/yr | 88% | 93% |
| 30 | University of Colorado Boulder Boulder, CO | 55 | $62,000 | $18,000/yr | 74% | 87% |
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