Find Schools

Study Area & Zipcode

Engineering & Applied Physics

Find Schools Near

2022 Best Value Bachelor’s Degree Colleges for Engineering & Applied Physics (Income $48-$75k) in the Great Lakes Region

14 Ranked Colleges
214 Degrees Awarded
Best Value Applied Physics Schools for a Bachelor's in the Great Lakes Region For Those Making $48-$75k

It’s not easy to decide which college to attend when there so many options available for students. College Factual has developed its “Best Value Applied Physics Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Great Lakes Region For Those Making $48-$75k” ranking as one item you can use to help make this decision.

Engineering & Applied Physics is the 440th most popular major in the country with 941 degrees awarded in 2019-2020.

Across the Great Lakes region, there were 309 engineering and applied physics graduates with average earnings and debt of $0 and $0 respectively. At the bachelor’s degree level specifically, there were 214 engineering and applied physics graduates with average earnings and debt of $39,075 and $25,381 respectively.

This year’s “Best Value Applied Physics Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Great Lakes Region For Those Making $48-$75k” ranking looked at 14 colleges that offer degrees in a bachelor’s in engineering and applied physics. This ranking identifies schools with high-quality engineering and applied physics programs that also have a lower cost than schools of similar quality.

When determining these rankings, we looked at things such as overall quality of the engineering and applied physics program at the school and the cost to attend the school once aid has been awarded. Check out our ranking methodology for more information.

One Size Does Not Fit All

The applied physics school you choose to invest your time and money in matters. To help you make the decision that is right for you, we’ve developed a number of major-specific rankings, including this list of “Best Value Applied Physics Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Great Lakes Region For Those Making $48-$75k”.

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. We encourage you to try it out and pit your favorite colleges and universities head to head! If you don’t have time right now, you can bookmark it for later.

Best Value Applied Physics Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Great Lakes Region For Those Making $48-$75k

The colleges and universities below are the best for great lakes region bachelor’s degree applied physics students whose families make $48-$75k.

Top 14 Best Value Bachelor’s Degree Colleges for Engineering & Applied Physics (Income $48-$75k) in the Great Lakes Region

#1 in overall quality

Out of the 14 schools in the Best Value Applied Physics Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Great Lakes Region For Those Making $48-$75k that were part of this year’s ranking, University of Michigan - Ann Arbor landed the #1 spot on the list. U-M is located in Ann Arbor, Michigan and, has a large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 16 bachelors’s applied physics degrees to qualified students.

U-M not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #1 on our “Best Engineering & Applied Physics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region” list. The yearly cost to attend University of Michigan - Ann Arbor is $10,028 for great lakes region bachelor’s degree applied physics students whose families make $48-$75k.

The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 96%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The low 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%.

Read more about Engineering & Applied Physics at University of Michigan - Ann Arbor

#2 in overall quality

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. The school came in at #2 for the Best Value Applied Physics Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Great Lakes Region For Those Making $48-$75k. University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign is a public institution located in Champaign, Illinois. The school has a large population, and it awarded 77 bachelors’s degrees in 2019-2020.

UIUC also made our “Best Engineering & Applied Physics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region” list, coming in at #2. The estimated yearly cost for University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign is $13,351 for great lakes region bachelor’s degree applied physics students whose families make $48-$75k.

The low student loan default rate of 2.4% 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 students.

Full UIUC Engineering & Applied Physics Report

#6 in overall quality

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of Wisconsin - Madison. It ranked #3 on our 2022 Best Value Applied Physics Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Great Lakes Region For Those Making $48-$75k list. University of Wisconsin - Madison is a large school located in Madison, Wisconsin that handed out 3 bachelors’s applied physics degrees in 2019-2020.

UW - Madison did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #6 on our “Best Engineering & Applied Physics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region” list. The yearly cost to attend University of Wisconsin - Madison is $13,227 for Great Lakes Region Bachelor’s Degree Applied Physics students whose families make $48-$75k.

The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 0.8%, 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 95%.

Read more about Engineering & Applied Physics at University of Wisconsin - Madison

#7 in overall quality

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Ohio State University - Main Campus. It ranked #4 on our 2022 Best Value Applied Physics Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Great Lakes Region For Those Making $48-$75k list. This large school is located in Columbus, Ohio, and it awarded 22 bachelors’s applied physics degrees in 2019-2020.

In addition to being on our great lakes region bachelor’s degree applied physics students whose families make $48-$75k list, Ohio State has also earned the #7 rank in our “Best Engineering & Applied Physics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region” ranking. It costs about $13,982 for great lakes region bachelor’s degree applied physics students whose families make $48-$75k per year to attend Ohio State.

Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 94%. The student loan default rate at the school is 4.4%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Read more about Engineering & Applied Physics at Ohio State University - Main Campus

#5

University of Wisconsin - Platteville

Platteville, Wisconsin
#8 in overall quality

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of Wisconsin - Platteville. It ranked #5 on our 2022 Best Value Applied Physics Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Great Lakes Region For Those Making $48-$75k list. Platteville, Wisconsin is the setting for this medium-sized institution of higher learning. The public school handed out bachelors’s applied physics degrees to 30 students in 2019-2020.

UW - Platteville also took the #8 spot in our “Best Engineering & Applied Physics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region” ranking. It costs about $15,152 for Great Lakes Region Bachelor’s Degree Applied Physics students whose families make $48-$75k per year to attend UW - Platteville.

Read full report on Engineering & Applied Physics at UW - Platteville

#6

Oakland University

Rochester Hills, Michigan
#14 in overall quality

Oakland University landed the #6 spot on the 2022 Best Value Applied Physics Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Great Lakes Region For Those Making $48-$75k ranking. Located in Rochester Hills, Michigan, this fairly large public school handed out 2 diplomas to qualified bachelors’s applied physics students in 2019-2020.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at Oakland, the school also landed the #14 spot in our “Best Engineering & Applied Physics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for Oakland is $10,387 for Great Lakes Region Bachelor’s Degree Applied Physics students whose families make $48-$75k.

Full Oakland Engineering & Applied Physics Report

#12 in overall quality

University of Illinois at Chicago landed the #7 spot on the 2022 Best Value Applied Physics Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Great Lakes Region For Those Making $48-$75k ranking. University of Illinois at Chicago is a public institution located in Chicago, Illinois. The school has a large population, and it awarded 3 bachelors’s degrees in 2019-2020.

UIC also made our “Best Engineering & Applied Physics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region” list, coming in at #12. The estimated yearly cost for University of Illinois at Chicago is $13,683 for Great Lakes Region Bachelor’s Degree Applied Physics students whose families make $48-$75k.

The student loan default rate at the school is 3.4%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Read full report on Engineering & Applied Physics at UIC

#5 in overall quality

Case Western Reserve University landed the #8 spot on the 2022 Best Value Applied Physics Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Great Lakes Region For Those Making $48-$75k ranking. Located in Cleveland, Ohio, this fairly large private not-for-profit school awarded 8 diplomas to qualified bachelors’s applied physics students in 2019-2020.

Case Western not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #5 on our “Best Engineering & Applied Physics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region” list. The yearly cost to attend Case Western Reserve University is $22,236 for great lakes region bachelor’s degree applied physics students whose families make $48-$75k.

The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 1.4%, 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%.

Read more about Engineering & Applied Physics at Case Western Reserve University

#13 in overall quality

Grace College and Theological Seminary did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Applied Physics Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Great Lakes Region For Those Making $48-$75k ranking, coming in at #9. Winona Lake, Indiana is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out bachelors’s applied physics degrees to 7 students in 2019-2020.

Grace College also made our “Best Engineering & Applied Physics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region” list, coming in at #13. The estimated yearly cost for Grace College and Theological Seminary is $20,903 for great lakes region bachelor’s degree applied physics students whose families make $48-$75k.

The low student loan default rate of 4.5% 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%.

Read more about Engineering & Applied Physics at Grace College

#10

Marquette University

Milwaukee, Wisconsin
#9 in overall quality

Marquette University came in at #10 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Applied Physics Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Great Lakes Region For Those Making $48-$75k ranking. This fairly large school is located in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and it awarded 2 bachelors’s applied physics degrees in 2019-2020.

Marquette did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #9 on our “Best Engineering & Applied Physics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region” list. It costs about $25,492 for great lakes region bachelor’s degree applied physics students whose families make $48-$75k per year to attend Marquette.

Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 88%. The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 1.5%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Read full report on Engineering & Applied Physics at Marquette

#10 in overall quality

Illinois Institute of Technology ranked #11 on this year’s Best Value Applied Physics Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Great Lakes Region For Those Making $48-$75k list. Illinois Tech is a medium-sized private not-for-profit school situated in Chicago, Illinois. It awarded 2 bachelors’s applied physics degrees in 2019-2020.

Illinois Tech also took the #10 spot in our “Best Engineering & Applied Physics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region” ranking. It costs about $22,542 for Great Lakes Region Bachelor’s Degree Applied Physics students whose families make $48-$75k per year to attend Illinois Institute of Technology.

The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 2.9%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. The student-to-faculty ratio of 10 to 1 is a sign that students will have more opportunities to engage with their professors one-on-one. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 87%.

Read full report on Engineering & Applied Physics at Illinois Tech

#11 in overall quality

Miami University - Oxford did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Applied Physics Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Great Lakes Region For Those Making $48-$75k ranking, coming in at #12. This fairly large school is located in Oxford, Ohio, and it awarded 3 bachelors’s applied physics degrees in 2019-2020.

In addition to being on our great lakes region bachelor’s degree applied physics students whose families make $48-$75k list, Miami University - Oxford has also earned the #11 rank in our “Best Engineering & Applied Physics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region” ranking. The yearly cost to attend Miami University - Oxford is $23,232 for Great Lakes Region Bachelor’s Degree Applied Physics students whose families make $48-$75k.

With a freshman retention rate of 88%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students.

Read more about Engineering & Applied Physics at Miami University - Oxford

#13

Kettering University

Flint, Michigan
#4 in overall quality

Kettering University came in at #13 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Applied Physics Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Great Lakes Region For Those Making $48-$75k ranking. This small school is located in Flint, Michigan, and it awarded 8 bachelors’s applied physics degrees in 2019-2020.

Kettering also made our “Best Engineering & Applied Physics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region” list, coming in at #4. The estimated yearly cost for Kettering is $36,664 for great lakes region bachelor’s degree applied physics students whose families make $48-$75k.

The low 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%. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 93%.

Read full report on Engineering & Applied Physics at Kettering University

#3 in overall quality

Rose - Hulman Institute of Technology came in at #14 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Applied Physics Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Great Lakes Region For Those Making $48-$75k ranking. Rose - Hulman Institute of Technology is a small private not-for-profit school situated in Terre Haute, Indiana. It awarded 5 bachelors’s applied physics degrees in 2019-2020.

In addition to being on our great lakes region bachelor’s degree applied physics students whose families make $48-$75k list, Rose - Hulman Institute of Technology has also earned the #3 rank in our “Best Engineering & Applied Physics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region” ranking. The yearly cost to attend Rose - Hulman Institute of Technology is $34,599 for Great Lakes Region Bachelor’s Degree Applied Physics students whose families make $48-$75k.

The student loan default rate at the school is 0.2%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. With a freshman retention rate of 90%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students. Since the school has a student-to-faculty ratio of 10 to 1, those pursuing a degree will have more opportunities to interact with their professors.

Read full report on Engineering & Applied Physics at Rose - Hulman Institute of Technology

Switch to a Different Ranking Method

Notes and References

References

  • The Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) from the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), a branch of the U.S. Department of Education (DOE) serves as the core of our data about colleges.
  • Some other college data, including much of the graduate earnings data, comes from the U.S. Department of Education’s (College Scorecard).
  • Information about the national average student loan default rate is from the U.S. Department of Education and refers to data about the 2016 borrower cohort tracking period for which the cohort default rate (CDR) was 10.1%.

Read more about our data sources and methodologies

Footnotes

  • *Average salary, average net price, and average tuition and fees are for the top schools only.
  • Some schools otherwise deserving of recognition may have been removed from this ranking in the event that new data identified post-publication warranted it, or at the request of the school.

Credits

  • Credit for the banner image above goes to NASA.

Featured Engineering Schools

Find Schools Near You