by our College Data Analytics Team
[Civil Engineering](/majors/engineering/civil-engineering/) graduates earn very different salaries depending on where they study. The highest-paying schools turn a civil engineering degree into the strongest early-career earnings.
To produce this 2026 ranking, College Factual evaluated 6 schools on the early-career earnings of their civil engineering graduates.
What’s on this page:
If you want to know which schools send civil engineering graduates into the highest-paying careers, see the list below.
Our analysis ranked University Of Illinois At Urbana Champaign the top school for civil engineering graduate earnings in Illinois. Located in the city of Champaign, University Of Illinois At Urbana Champaign is a public institution. Early-career civil engineering graduates from University Of Illinois At Urbana Champaign make a median of around $90,751 per year.
Students chasing top earnings in civil engineering will find them at Illinois Institute Of Technology, which ranked #2. Located in the city of Chicago, Illinois Institute Of Technology is a private not-for-profit institution. Students who complete the civil engineering program here go on to a median salary of roughly $84,660.
Strong graduate earnings at Bradley University earned it the #3 place for civil engineering. Located in the city of Peoria, Bradley University is a private not-for-profit institution. After graduating, civil engineering degree recipients from Bradley University typically earn about $82,851 annually.
Students chasing top earnings in civil engineering will find them at University Of Illinois At Chicago, which ranked #4. Located in the city of Chicago, University Of Illinois At Chicago is a public institution. Students who complete the civil engineering program here go on to a median salary of roughly $83,670.
Southern Illinois University Edwardsville produces some of the highest-paid graduates in civil engineering, landing the #5 spot this year. Southern Illinois University Edwardsville is a public school located in the suburb of Edwardsville. Early-career civil engineering graduates from Southern Illinois University Edwardsville make a median of around $83,754 per year.
Southern Illinois University Carbondale ranked #6 on our 2026 list of the highest-paying civil engineering schools. Southern Illinois University Carbondale is a public school located in the town of Carbondale. Students who complete the civil engineering program here go on to a median salary of roughly $78,165.
The ranking above is published by College Factual, 2026 edition. The methodology measures the salaries civil 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 · 6 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.