by our College Data Analytics Team
With all of the options students have for higher education today, it can be tough to choose which direction to take. At College Factual, we’re committed to helping you make that decision by providing information such as that found in our “Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on AE Major” ranking.
In 2020-2021, 1,472 people earned their degree in agricultural engineering, making the major the 204th most popular in the United States. In 2019-2020, agricultural engineering graduates who were awarded their degree in 2017-2019, earned an average of $57,068 and had an average of $23,086 in loans still to pay off.
At the doctor’s degree level specifically, there were 128 agricultural engineering graduates with average earnings and debt of $75,260 and $0 respectively.
For this year’s “Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on AE Major” ranking, we looked at 27 colleges that offer a degree in agricultural engineering. The colleges and universities that top this list are recognized because their agricultural engineering program is one of the largest majors offered at the school.
For more information, check out our ranking methodology.
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 “Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on AE Major” list to help you make the college decision.
In addition to our rankings, you can take two colleges and compare them based on the criteria that matters most to you in our unique tool, College Combat. When you have some time, check it out - you may want to bookmark the link so you don’t forget it.
The following schools top our list of the Best “Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on AE Major”.
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Washington State University. The school came in at #1 for the Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on AE Major. Located in Pullman, Washington, this large public school awarded 17 degrees to qualified doctorate’s AE students in 2020-2021.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 3.3%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Out of the 27 schools in the Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on AE Major that were part of this year’s ranking, Purdue University - Main Campus landed the #2 spot on the list. Purdue is a large school located in West Lafayette, Indiana that handed out 16 doctorate’s AE degrees in 2020-2021.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 1.7%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 93%.
Out of the 27 schools in the Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on AE Major that were part of this year’s ranking, University of Hawaii at Manoa landed the #3 spot on the list. Located in Honolulu, Hawaii, this fairly large public school awarded 5 degrees to qualified doctorate’s AE students in 2020-2021.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 3.5% 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%.
Out of the 27 schools in the Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on AE Major that were part of this year’s ranking, University of Maryland - College Park landed the #4 spot on the list. UMCP is a large public school situated in College Park, Maryland. It awarded 12 doctorate’s AE degrees in 2020-2021.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 1.8% 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%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 95%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.
Full University of Maryland - College Park Agricultural Engineering Report
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Iowa State University. It ranked #5 on our 2023 Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on AE Major list. Iowa State University is a public institution located in Ames, Iowa. The school has a large population, and it awarded 7 doctorate’s degrees in 2020-2021.
With a freshman retention rate of 89%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students. The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 2.4%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Read more about Agricultural Engineering at Iowa State University
With a ranking of #6, Kansas State University did quite well on the 2023 Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on AE Major list. K -State is a public institution located in Manhattan, Kansas. The school has a large population, and it awarded 4 doctorate’s degrees in 2020-2021.
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%. With a freshman retention rate of 87%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students.
Read full report on Agricultural Engineering at Kansas State University
North Dakota State University - Main Campus did quite well in the 2023 Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on AE Major ranking, coming in at #7. North Dakota State University - Main Campus is located in Fargo, North Dakota and, has a fairly large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 2 doctorate’s AE degrees to qualified students.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 2.6%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Read full report on Agricultural Engineering at North Dakota State University - Main Campus
Virginia Tech did quite well in the 2023 Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on AE Major ranking, coming in at #8. Virginia Tech is a large school located in Blacksburg, Virginia that handed out 6 doctorate’s AE degrees in 2020-2021.
The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 93%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The low undergrad student loan default rate of 1.2% 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%.
University of California - Davis ranked #9 on this year’s Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on AE Major list. University of California - Davis is a large public school situated in Davis, California. It awarded 7 doctorate’s AE degrees in 2020-2021.
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%. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 93%.
Texas A&M University - College Station landed the #10 spot on the 2023 Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on AE Major ranking. Texas A&M University - College Station is a public institution located in College Station, Texas. The school has a large population, and it awarded 10 doctorate’s degrees in 2020-2021.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 2.2%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 94%.
Read full report on Agricultural Engineering at Texas A&M College Station
University of Kentucky did quite well in the 2023 Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on AE Major ranking, coming in at #11. This large school is located in Lexington, Kentucky, and it awarded 4 doctorate’s AE degrees in 2020-2021.
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 4.3%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Read more about Agricultural Engineering at University of Kentucky
With a ranking of #12, University of Florida did quite well on the 2023 Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on AE Major list. University of Florida is a large school located in Gainesville, Florida that handed out 8 doctorate’s AE degrees in 2020-2021.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 97%. The low undergrad student loan default rate of 1.7% 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%.
With a ranking of #13, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign did quite well on the 2023 Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on AE Major list. University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign is located in Champaign, Illinois and, has a large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 6 doctorate’s AE degrees to qualified students.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 2.3% 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%. With a freshman retention rate of 94%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students.
South Dakota State University came in at #14 in this year’s edition of the Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on AE Major ranking. South Dakota State is located in Brookings, South Dakota and, has a fairly large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 1 doctorate’s AE degrees to qualified students.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 2.7%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Read more about Agricultural Engineering at South Dakota State
With a ranking of #15, Cornell University did quite well on the 2023 Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on AE Major list. Cornell University is located in Ithaca, New York and, has a large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 3 doctorate’s AE degrees to qualified students.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 0.9% 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%. With a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 9 to 1, it’s easy to see that the school is committed to helping their undergraduates succeed. With a freshman retention rate of 96%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students.
Read full report on Agricultural Engineering at Cornell University
With a ranking of #16, University of Minnesota - Twin Cities did quite well on the 2023 Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on AE Major list. University of Minnesota - Twin Cities is located in Minneapolis, Minnesota and, has a large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 5 doctorate’s AE degrees to qualified students.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 1.7%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 93%.
Read full report on Agricultural Engineering at UMN Twin Cities
Oklahoma State University - Main Campus came in at #17 in this year’s edition of the Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on AE Major ranking. Oklahoma State University - Main Campus is a large school located in Stillwater, Oklahoma that handed out 2 doctorate’s AE degrees in 2020-2021.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 2.7% 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%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 85%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.
North Carolina State University did quite well in the 2023 Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on AE Major ranking, coming in at #18. NC State is a large school located in Raleigh, North Carolina that handed out 2 doctorate’s AE degrees in 2020-2021.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 94%. The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 2.0%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
University of Georgia came in at #19 in this year’s edition of the Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on AE Major ranking. UGA is a large school located in Athens, Georgia that handed out 2 doctorate’s AE degrees in 2020-2021.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 1.9% 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%. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 94%.
Michigan State University came in at #20 in this year’s edition of the Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on AE Major ranking. Michigan State University is a large school located in East Lansing, Michigan that handed out 2 doctorate’s AE degrees in 2020-2021.
With a freshman retention rate of 91%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students. The low undergrad student loan default rate of 2.6% 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 Agricultural Engineering at Michigan State
Clemson University landed the #21 spot on the 2023 Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on AE Major ranking. Clemson is a large public school situated in Clemson, South Carolina. It awarded 1 doctorate’s AE degrees in 2020-2021.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 1.7%, 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 Agricultural Engineering at Clemson University
Ohio State University - Main Campus ranked #22 on this year’s Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on AE Major list. Ohio State University - Main Campus is located in Columbus, Ohio and, has a large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 2 doctorate’s AE degrees to qualified students.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 3.6%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. With a freshman retention rate of 94%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students.
Read more about Agricultural Engineering at Ohio State University - Main Campus
University of Wisconsin - Madison did quite well in the 2023 Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on AE Major ranking, coming in at #23. University of Wisconsin - Madison is a large public school situated in Madison, Wisconsin. It awarded 2 doctorate’s AE degrees in 2020-2021.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 0.9%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 95%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.
University of Arizona ranked #24 on this year’s Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on AE Major list. This large school is located in Tucson, Arizona, and it awarded 0 doctorate’s AE degrees in 2020-2021.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 85%.
Read full report on Agricultural Engineering at University of Arizona
Utah State University landed the #24 spot on the 2023 Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on AE Major ranking. Located in Logan, Utah, this large public school handed out 0 degrees to qualified doctorate’s AE students in 2020-2021.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 3.6%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Oregon State University came in at #24 in this year’s edition of the Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on AE Major ranking. Oregon State University is a large public school situated in Corvallis, Oregon. It awarded 30 doctorate’s AE degrees in 2020-2021.
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%. With a freshman retention rate of 85%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students.
Full Oregon State University Agricultural Engineering Report
The University of Tennessee - Knoxville did quite well in the 2023 Schools for a Doctorate Highly Focused on AE Major ranking, coming in at #24. Knoxville, Tennessee is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out doctorate’s AE degrees to 13 students in 2020-2021.
With a freshman retention rate of 89%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students. The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 3.1%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Read more about our data sources and methodologies
