2023 Best Value Colleges for Materials Engineering in the Far Western US Region
15
Ranked Colleges
662
Degrees Awarded
$15,300
Avg Net Price*
When pursuing a degree in today’s world, students have many different options to choose from. One of our goals at College Factual is to give you as much information as we can - such as our “Best Value Materials Engineering Schools in the Far Western US Region” ranking - to help you make that decision.
In 2020-2021, 3,415 people earned their degree in materials engineering, making the major the 154th most popular in the United States. In 2019-2020, materials engineering graduates who were awarded their degree in 2017-2019, earned an average of $65,007 and had an average of $23,030 in loans still to pay off.
Across the Far Western US region, there were 662 materials engineering graduates with average earnings and debt of $63,013 and $18,338 respectively.
For this year’s “Best Value Materials Engineering Schools in the Far Western US Region” ranking, we looked at 15 colleges that offer a degree in materials engineering. Not only do the schools that top this list have excellent materials engineering programs, but they also cost less that schools of similar quality.
Some of the factors we look at when determining these rankings are overall quality of the materials engineering program at the school and the cost of the school after aid is awarded among other things. For more information, check out our ranking methodology.
More Ways to Rank Materials Engineering Schools
When choosing the right school for you, it’s important to arm yourself with all the facts you can. To that end, we’ve created a number of major-specific rankings, including this “Best Value Materials Engineering Schools in the Far Western US Region” list to help you make the college decision.
We’ve created a tool called College Combat that lets you create your own customized comparisons based on the factors that matter the most to you. Test it out by comparing your favorite schools against others you are considering, or bookmark the tool so you can experiment with it later.
Best Value Materials Engineering Schools in the Far Western US Region
The following schools top our list of the Best Best Value Materials Engineering Schools in the Far Western US Region.
Top 15 Best Value Colleges for Materials Engineering in the Far Western US Region
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend University of California - San Diego. The school came in at #1 for the Best Value Materials Engineering Schools in the Far Western US Region. La Jolla, California is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out ’s materials engineering degrees to 72 students in 2020-2021.
In addition to being on our far western us region materials engineering students list, UCSD has also earned the #3 rank in our “Best Materials Engineering Schools in the Far Western US Region” ranking. It costs about $15,240 for Far Western US Region Materials Engineering students per year to attend University of California - San Diego.
The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 94%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 1.0%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Read more about Materials Engineering at University of California - San Diego
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Washington State University. It ranked #2 on our 2023 Best Value Materials Engineering Schools in the Far Western US Region list. Wazzu is located in Pullman, Washington and, has a large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 43 ’s materials engineering degrees to qualified students.
Wazzu also took the #9 spot in our “Best Materials Engineering Schools in the Far Western US Region” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for Wazzu is $15,300 for Far Western US Region Materials Engineering students.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 3.3%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Full Washington State University Materials Engineering Report
Out of the 15 schools in the Best Value Materials Engineering Schools in the Far Western US Region that were part of this year’s ranking, San Jose State University landed the #3 spot on the list. San Jose State is a public institution located in San Jose, California. The school has a large population, and it awarded 19 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.
As a testament to the quality of education offered at San Jose State, the school also landed the #10 spot in our “Best Materials Engineering Schools in the Far Western US Region” ranking. It costs about $16,542 for Far Western US Region Materials Engineering students per year to attend San Jose State.
The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 86%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 2.9%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Read full report on Materials Engineering at San Jose State University
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of Nevada - Reno. It ranked #4 on our 2023 Best Value Materials Engineering Schools in the Far Western US Region list. This large school is located in Reno, Nevada, and it awarded 16 ’s materials engineering degrees in 2020-2021.
UNR not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #11 on our “Best Materials Engineering Schools in the Far Western US Region” list. It costs about $14,930 for Far Western US Region Materials Engineering students per year to attend UNR.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 4.3%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Read more about Materials Engineering at University of Nevada - Reno
Out of the 15 schools in the Best Value Materials Engineering Schools in the Far Western US Region that were part of this year’s ranking, California State University - Northridge landed the #5 spot on the list. California State University - Northridge is a public institution located in Northridge, California. The school has a large population, and it awarded 10 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.
CSUN did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #15 on our “Best Materials Engineering Schools in the Far Western US Region” list. The estimated yearly cost for California State University - Northridge is $8,523 for far western us region materials engineering students.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 3.7%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Read more about Materials Engineering at California State University - Northridge
California Polytechnic State University - San Luis Obispo landed the #6 spot on the 2023 Best Value Materials Engineering Schools in the Far Western US Region ranking. Located in San Luis Obispo, California, this large public school awarded 41 degrees to qualified ’s materials engineering students in 2020-2021.
In addition to being on our far western us region materials engineering students list, Cal Poly San Luis Obispo has also earned the #8 rank in our “Best Materials Engineering Schools in the Far Western US Region” ranking. The yearly cost to attend Cal Poly San Luis Obispo is $20,677 for far western us region materials engineering students.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 94%. The low undergrad student loan default rate of 0.7% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%.
Full California Polytechnic State University - San Luis Obispo Materials Engineering Report
University of California - Los Angeles came in at #7 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Materials Engineering Schools in the Far Western US Region ranking. University of California - Los Angeles is a large school located in Los Angeles, California that handed out 76 ’s materials engineering degrees in 2020-2021.
UCLA not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #2 on our “Best Materials Engineering Schools in the Far Western US Region” list. It costs about $15,023 for far western us region materials engineering students per year to attend University of California - Los Angeles.
With a freshman retention rate of 96%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students. The low undergrad student loan default rate of 1.6% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%.
Read full report on Materials Engineering at UCLA
University of Washington - Seattle Campus ranked #8 on this year’s Best Value Materials Engineering Schools in the Far Western US Region list. University of Washington - Seattle Campus is a public institution located in Seattle, Washington. The school has a large population, and it awarded 92 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.
UW Seattle also made our “Best Materials Engineering Schools in the Far Western US Region” list, coming in at #6. The yearly cost to attend University of Washington - Seattle Campus is $12,017 for Far Western US Region Materials Engineering students.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 2.1%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. With a freshman retention rate of 93%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students.
Read full report on Materials Engineering at University of Washington - Seattle Campus
Portland State University landed the #9 spot on the 2023 Best Value Materials Engineering Schools in the Far Western US Region ranking. Located in Portland, Oregon, this large public school awarded 14 diplomas to qualified ’s materials engineering students in 2020-2021.
Portland State University also made our “Best Materials Engineering Schools in the Far Western US Region” list, coming in at #13. It costs about $12,498 for far western us region materials engineering students per year to attend Portland State University.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 4.7% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%.
Read full report on Materials Engineering at Portland State University
University of California - Irvine came in at #10 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Materials Engineering Schools in the Far Western US Region ranking. This large school is located in Irvine, California, and it awarded 59 ’s materials engineering degrees in 2020-2021.
UC Irvine did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #5 on our “Best Materials Engineering Schools in the Far Western US Region” list. The estimated yearly cost for UC Irvine is $12,209 for Far Western US Region Materials Engineering students.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 1.4%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 94%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.
Read more about Materials Engineering at University of California - Irvine
With a ranking of #11, University of California - Davis did quite well on the 2023 Best Value Materials Engineering Schools in the Far Western US Region list. University of California - Davis is a large school located in Davis, California that handed out 53 ’s materials engineering degrees in 2020-2021.
UC Davis not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #7 on our “Best Materials Engineering Schools in the Far Western US Region” list. It costs about $15,768 for far western us region materials engineering students per year to attend University of California - Davis.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 1.5%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 93%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.
Full UC Davis Materials Engineering Report
University of California - Merced ranked #12 on this year’s Best Value Materials Engineering Schools in the Far Western US Region list. University of California - Merced is located in Merced, California and, has a medium-sized student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 20 ’s materials engineering degrees to qualified students.
UC Merced did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #14 on our “Best Materials Engineering Schools in the Far Western US Region” list. It costs about $13,691 for Far Western US Region Materials Engineering students per year to attend University of California - Merced.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 86%. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 2.8%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Read full report on Materials Engineering at University of California - Merced
University of California - Riverside landed the #13 spot on the 2023 Best Value Materials Engineering Schools in the Far Western US Region ranking. UCR is a large school located in Riverside, California that handed out 22 ’s materials engineering degrees in 2020-2021.
UCR not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #12 on our “Best Materials Engineering Schools in the Far Western US Region” list. The estimated yearly cost for UCR is $11,822 for far western us region materials engineering students.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 2.3%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 91%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.
Full UCR Materials Engineering Report
With a ranking of #14, Stanford University did quite well on the 2023 Best Value Materials Engineering Schools in the Far Western US Region list. Stanford, California is the setting for this fairly large institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out ’s materials engineering degrees to 73 students in 2020-2021.
Stanford also took the #1 spot in our “Best Materials Engineering Schools in the Far Western US Region” ranking. It costs about $12,894 for Far Western US Region Materials Engineering students per year to attend Stanford University.
The impressive undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 4 to 1 means that students may have more opportunities to work more closely with their professors than they would at other schools. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 86%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 0.5%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Full Stanford University Materials Engineering Report
University of Southern California landed the #15 spot on the 2023 Best Value Materials Engineering Schools in the Far Western US Region ranking. This large school is located in Los Angeles, California, and it awarded 34 ’s materials engineering degrees in 2020-2021.
USC not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #4 on our “Best Materials Engineering Schools in the Far Western US Region” list. The yearly cost to attend University of Southern California is $32,569 for far western us region materials engineering students.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 1.3% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%. Since the school has a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 9 to 1, those pursuing a degree will have more opportunities to interact with their professors. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 91%.
Read full report on Materials Engineering at USC