2023 Best Value Colleges for Environmental Engineering in the Great Lakes Region
13
Ranked Colleges
456
Degrees Awarded
$19,700
Avg Net Price*
When pursuing a degree in today’s world, students have many different options to choose from. College Factual was founded, in part, to help students make the decision as to what would be the best school for them. Our “Best Value Environmental Engineering Schools in the Great Lakes Region” ranking is part of that endeavor.
Environmental Engineering is the 173rd most popular major in the country with 2,759 degrees awarded in 2020-2021. In 2019-2020, environmental engineering graduates who were awarded their degree in 2017-2019, earned an average of $57,215 and had an average of $24,744 in loans still to pay off.
Across the Great Lakes region, there were 456 environmental engineering graduates with average earnings and debt of $59,618 and $22,728 respectively.
For this year’s “Best Value Environmental Engineering Schools in the Great Lakes Region” ranking, we looked at 13 colleges that offer a degree in environmental engineering. Not only do the schools that top this list have excellent environmental 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 environmental engineering program at the school and the cost of the school after aid is awarded among other things. See our ranking methodology to learn more.
One Size Does Not Fit All
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 Environmental Engineering Schools in the Great Lakes Region” list to help you make the college decision.
To further help you make the college decision, we’ve developed a unique tool called College Combat that allows you to compare schools based on the factors that matter the most to you. When you have some time, check it out - you may want to bookmark the link so you don’t forget it.
Best Value Environmental Engineering Schools in the Great Lakes Region
The colleges and universities below are the best for great lakes region environmental engineering students.
Top 13 Best Value Colleges for Environmental Engineering in the Great Lakes Region
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Purdue University - Main Campus. The school came in at #1 for the Best Value Environmental Engineering Schools in the Great Lakes Region. Purdue University - Main Campus is a public institution located in West Lafayette, Indiana. The school has a large population, and it awarded 66 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.
Purdue also made our “Best Environmental Engineering Schools in the Great Lakes Region” list, coming in at #2. It costs about $13,377 for great lakes region environmental engineering students per year to attend Purdue.
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%. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 93%.
Read full report on Environmental Engineering at Purdue University - Main Campus
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend University of Wisconsin - Platteville. The school came in at #2 for the Best Value Environmental Engineering Schools in the Great Lakes Region. This medium-sized school is located in Platteville, Wisconsin, and it awarded 25 ’s environmental engineering degrees in 2020-2021.
UW - Platteville also took the #12 spot in our “Best Environmental Engineering Schools in the Great Lakes Region” ranking. The yearly cost to attend UW - Platteville is $14,565 for Great Lakes Region Environmental Engineering students.
Read more about Environmental Engineering at UW - Platteville
Out of the 13 schools in the Best Value Environmental Engineering Schools in the Great Lakes Region that were part of this year’s ranking, University of Cincinnati - Main Campus landed the #3 spot on the list. University of Cincinnati - Main Campus is a public institution located in Cincinnati, Ohio. The school has a large population, and it awarded 42 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.
UC also made our “Best Environmental Engineering Schools in the Great Lakes Region” list, coming in at #7. It costs about $22,415 for Great Lakes Region Environmental Engineering students per year to attend University of Cincinnati - Main Campus.
The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 88%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 4.7%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Read full report on Environmental Engineering at University of Cincinnati - Main Campus
Out of the 13 schools in the Best Value Environmental Engineering Schools in the Great Lakes Region that were part of this year’s ranking, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign landed the #4 spot on the list. Located in Champaign, Illinois, this large public school awarded 41 degrees to qualified ’s environmental engineering students in 2020-2021.
In addition to being on our great lakes region environmental engineering students list, UIUC has also earned the #5 rank in our “Best Environmental Engineering Schools in the Great Lakes Region” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for UIUC is $14,321 for great lakes region environmental engineering students.
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 2.3%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Full University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign Environmental Engineering Report
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend University of Toledo. The school came in at #5 for the Best Value Environmental Engineering Schools in the Great Lakes Region. University of Toledo is a public institution located in Toledo, Ohio. The school has a fairly large population, and it awarded 11 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.
As a testament to the quality of education offered at University of Toledo, the school also landed the #13 spot in our “Best Environmental Engineering Schools in the Great Lakes Region” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for University of Toledo is $17,312 for great lakes region environmental engineering students.
Read more about Environmental Engineering at University of Toledo
Michigan Technological University came in at #6 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Environmental Engineering Schools in the Great Lakes Region ranking. Located in Houghton, Michigan, this medium-sized public school handed out 37 diplomas to qualified ’s environmental engineering students in 2020-2021.
In addition to being on our great lakes region environmental engineering students list, Michigan Tech has also earned the #6 rank in our “Best Environmental Engineering Schools in the Great Lakes Region” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for Michigan Tech is $15,384 for great lakes region environmental engineering students.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 1.9%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. With a freshman retention rate of 86%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students.
Read more about Environmental Engineering at Michigan Technological University
Illinois Institute of Technology did quite well in the 2023 Best Value Environmental Engineering Schools in the Great Lakes Region ranking, coming in at #7. Illinois Tech is a medium-sized school located in Chicago, Illinois that handed out 10 ’s environmental engineering degrees in 2020-2021.
As a testament to the quality of education offered at Illinois Tech, the school also landed the #11 spot in our “Best Environmental Engineering Schools in the Great Lakes Region” ranking. The yearly cost to attend Illinois Institute of Technology is $23,772 for Great Lakes Region Environmental Engineering students.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 1.9%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. The impressive undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 10 to 1 means that students may have more opportunities to work more closely with their professors than they would at other schools. With a freshman retention rate of 87%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students.
Read more about Environmental Engineering at Illinois Tech
Ohio State University - Main Campus did quite well in the 2023 Best Value Environmental Engineering Schools in the Great Lakes Region ranking, coming in at #8. Ohio State is a large public school situated in Columbus, Ohio. It awarded 29 ’s environmental engineering degrees in 2020-2021.
Ohio State also made our “Best Environmental Engineering Schools in the Great Lakes Region” list, coming in at #10. The yearly cost to attend Ohio State University - Main Campus is $16,845 for Great Lakes Region Environmental Engineering students.
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%. 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 full report on Environmental Engineering at Ohio State
With a ranking of #9, Michigan State University did quite well on the 2023 Best Value Environmental Engineering Schools in the Great Lakes Region list. East Lansing, Michigan is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out ’s environmental engineering degrees to 9 students in 2020-2021.
As a testament to the quality of education offered at Michigan State, the school also landed the #8 spot in our “Best Environmental Engineering Schools in the Great Lakes Region” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for Michigan State University is $19,058 for Great Lakes Region Environmental Engineering students.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 2.6%, 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 91%.
Full Michigan State University Environmental Engineering Report
Marquette University came in at #10 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Environmental Engineering Schools in the Great Lakes Region ranking. Marquette is located in Milwaukee, Wisconsin and, has a fairly large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 11 ’s environmental engineering degrees to qualified students.
Marquette not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #9 on our “Best Environmental Engineering Schools in the Great Lakes Region” list. The estimated yearly cost for Marquette is $30,380 for great lakes region environmental engineering students.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 88%. 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%.
Read more about Environmental Engineering at Marquette
University of Michigan - Ann Arbor landed the #11 spot on the 2023 Best Value Environmental Engineering Schools in the Great Lakes Region ranking. U-M is a large school located in Ann Arbor, Michigan that handed out 76 ’s environmental engineering degrees in 2020-2021.
U-M also took the #1 spot in our “Best Environmental Engineering Schools in the Great Lakes Region” ranking. The yearly cost to attend U-M is $14,878 for great lakes region environmental 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%. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 96%.
Read more about Environmental Engineering at University of Michigan - Ann Arbor
University of Notre Dame did quite well in the 2023 Best Value Environmental Engineering Schools in the Great Lakes Region ranking, coming in at #12. University of Notre Dame is a fairly large school located in Notre Dame, Indiana that handed out 17 ’s environmental engineering degrees in 2020-2021.
Notre Dame also took the #4 spot in our “Best Environmental Engineering Schools in the Great Lakes Region” ranking. The yearly cost to attend University of Notre Dame is $31,101 for Great Lakes Region Environmental Engineering students.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 97%. The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 0.7%, which is much lower than the national rate of 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.
Read more about Environmental Engineering at Notre Dame
Northwestern University came in at #13 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Environmental Engineering Schools in the Great Lakes Region ranking. Northwestern University is a large school located in Evanston, Illinois that handed out 12 ’s environmental engineering degrees in 2020-2021.
Northwestern not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #3 on our “Best Environmental Engineering Schools in the Great Lakes Region” list. It costs about $23,279 for great lakes region environmental engineering students per year to attend Northwestern University.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 0.6% 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%. The undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 6 to 1 is a sign that students will have more opportunities to engage with their professors one-on-one. With a freshman retention rate of 97%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students.
Read more about Environmental Engineering at Northwestern University
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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
- *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.
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