by our College Data Analytics Team
[Chemical Engineering](/majors/engineering/chemical-engineering/) graduates earn very different salaries depending on where they study. The highest-paying schools turn a chemical engineering degree into the strongest early-career earnings.
For its 2026 highest-paid-graduates ranking, College Factual looked at 4 schools to find where chemical engineering graduates earn the most.
What’s on this page:
Below are the schools whose chemical engineering graduates go on to earn the most.
Leading the list is Vanderbilt University, our #1 for chemical engineering graduate salaries in Tennessee. Vanderbilt University is a private not-for-profit school located in the city of Nashville. After graduating, chemical engineering degree recipients from Vanderbilt University typically earn about $105,943 annually.
Strong graduate earnings at The University Of Tennessee earned it the #2 place for chemical engineering. Located in the city of Knoxville, The University Of Tennessee is a public institution. Students who complete the chemical engineering program here go on to a median salary of roughly $89,398.
Strong graduate earnings at Tennessee Technological University earned it the #3 place for chemical engineering. Tennessee Technological University is a public school located in the town of Cookeville. Chemical Engineering graduates of Tennessee Technological University earn a median of about $86,320 a year early in their careers.
The University Of Tennessee At Chattanooga produces some of the highest-paid graduates in chemical engineering, landing the #4 spot this year. The University Of Tennessee At Chattanooga is a public school located in the city of Chattanooga. After graduating, chemical engineering degree recipients from The University Of Tennessee At Chattanooga typically earn about $89,153 annually.
This ranking is produced by College Factual, 2026 edition. The methodology measures the salaries chemical engineering graduates go on to earn early in their careers, drawn primarily from the U.S. Department of Education (College Scorecard field-of-study earnings and IPEDS).
Ranking method: College Major Earnings · 4 schools evaluated.
*Salary figures reflect median early-career earnings (about 5 years after graduation) and may vary by how long a person takes to complete their degree.
More about our data sources and methodologies.