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2022 Best Value Materials Engineering Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Far Western US Region For Those Making $0-$30k

12 Ranked Colleges
277 Degrees Awarded
$8,600 Avg Net Price*
Best Value Materials Engineering Schools for a Bachelor's in the Far Western US Region For Those Making $0-$30k

Students have lots of options to chooose from today when trying to decide which college to attend. College Factual has developed its “Best Value Materials Engineering Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Far Western US Region For Those Making $0-$30k” ranking as one item you can use to help make this decision.

Materials Engineering is the 150th most popular major in the country with 3,485 degrees awarded in 2019-2020. In 2017-2018, materials engineering graduates who were awarded their degree in 2015-2017, earned an average of $63,129 and had an average of $23,918 in loans still to pay off.

Across the Far Western US region, there were 677 materials engineering graduates with average earnings and debt of $65,400 and $17,784 respectively. At the bachelor’s degree level specifically, there were 277 materials engineering graduates with average earnings and debt of $38,083 and $22,209 respectively.

For this year’s “Best Value Materials Engineering Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Far Western US Region For Those Making $0-$30k” ranking, we looked at 12 colleges that offer a degree in materials engineering. Not only do the schools that top this list have excellent materials engineering programs, but they also cost less that schools of similar quality.

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

More Ways to Rank Materials Engineering Schools

The materials engineering 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 Materials Engineering Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Far Western US Region For Those Making $0-$30k”.

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. Go ahead and give it a try, or bookmark the link so you can check it out later.

Best Value Materials Engineering Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Far Western US Region For Those Making $0-$30k

The following schools top our list of the Best Best Value Materials Engineering Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Far Western US Region For Those Making $0-$30k.

Top 12 Best Value Bachelor’s Degree Colleges for Materials Engineering (Income $0-$30k) in the Far Western US Region

#1

Stanford University

Stanford, California
#1 in overall quality

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Stanford University. It ranked #1 on our 2022 Best Value Materials Engineering Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Far Western US Region For Those Making $0-$30k list. Located in Stanford, California, this fairly large private not-for-profit school awarded 8 degrees to qualified bachelors’s materials engineering students in 2019-2020.

Stanford not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #1 on our “Best Materials Engineering Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Far Western US Region” list. It costs about $-1,387 for Far Western US Region Bachelor’s Degree Materials Engineering students whose families make $0-$30k per year to attend Stanford. When an average net price is negative, it usually means that the student will receive more financial aid than it costs to attend the school.

The impressive student-to-faculty ratio of 4 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 86%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students. The student loan default rate at the school is 0.5%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Read full report on Materials Engineering at Stanford University

#2

California Institute of Technology

Pasadena, California
#2 in overall quality

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend California Institute of Technology. The school came in at #2 for the Best Value Materials Engineering Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Far Western US Region For Those Making $0-$30k. This small school is located in Pasadena, California, and it awarded 5 bachelors’s materials engineering degrees in 2019-2020.

In addition to being on our far western us region bachelor’s degree materials engineering students whose families make $0-$30k list, Caltech has also earned the #2 rank in our “Best Materials Engineering Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Far Western US Region” ranking. The yearly cost to attend California Institute of Technology is $5,456 for far western us region bachelor’s degree materials engineering students whose families make $0-$30k.

Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 94%. With a student-to-faculty ratio of 3 to 1, it’s easy to see that the school is committed to helping their undergraduates succeed. The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 1.0%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Read full report on Materials Engineering at California Institute of Technology

Out of the 12 schools in the Best Value Materials Engineering Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Far Western US Region For Those Making $0-$30k that were part of this year’s ranking, University of Washington - Seattle Campus landed the #3 spot on the list. University of Washington - Seattle Campus is a large school located in Seattle, Washington that handed out 52 bachelors’s materials engineering degrees in 2019-2020.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at UW Seattle, the school also landed the #5 spot in our “Best Materials Engineering Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Far Western US Region” ranking. The yearly cost to attend University of Washington - Seattle Campus is $7,850 for far western us region bachelor’s degree materials engineering students whose families make $0-$30k.

With a freshman retention rate of 93%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students. The student loan default rate at the school is 2.2%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Full University of Washington - Seattle Campus Materials Engineering Report

#4

University of California - Los Angeles

Los Angeles, California
#4 in overall quality

Out of the 12 schools in the Best Value Materials Engineering Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Far Western US Region For Those Making $0-$30k that were part of this year’s ranking, University of California - Los Angeles landed the #4 spot on the list. This large school is located in Los Angeles, California, and it awarded 23 bachelors’s materials engineering degrees in 2019-2020.

UCLA did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #4 on our “Best Materials Engineering Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Far Western US Region” list. It costs about $8,553 for Far Western US Region Bachelor’s Degree Materials Engineering students whose families make $0-$30k per year to attend UCLA.

Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 96%. The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 1.0%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Read more about Materials Engineering at UCLA

#6 in overall quality

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of California - Irvine. It ranked #5 on our 2022 Best Value Materials Engineering Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Far Western US Region For Those Making $0-$30k list. UC Irvine is a large school located in Irvine, California that handed out 30 bachelors’s materials engineering degrees in 2019-2020.

UC Irvine did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #6 on our “Best Materials Engineering Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Far Western US Region” list. The yearly cost to attend University of California - Irvine is $9,558 for Far Western US Region Bachelor’s Degree Materials Engineering students whose families make $0-$30k.

The low 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%. With a freshman retention rate of 94%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students.

Full University of California - Irvine Materials Engineering Report

California Polytechnic State University - San Luis Obispo came in at #6 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Materials Engineering Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Far Western US Region For Those Making $0-$30k ranking. Located in San Luis Obispo, California, this large public school handed out 38 degrees to qualified bachelors’s materials engineering students in 2019-2020.

Cal Poly San Luis Obispo also made our “Best Materials Engineering Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Far Western US Region” list, coming in at #3. It costs about $12,475 for Far Western US Region Bachelor’s Degree Materials Engineering students whose families make $0-$30k per year to attend California Polytechnic State University - San Luis Obispo.

The low student loan default rate of 1.1% 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 94%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.

Read full report on Materials Engineering at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo

#10 in overall quality

With a ranking of #7, University of California - Riverside did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Materials Engineering Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Far Western US Region For Those Making $0-$30k list. Located in Riverside, California, this large public school handed out 14 diplomas to qualified bachelors’s materials engineering students in 2019-2020.

UCR also made our “Best Materials Engineering Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Far Western US Region” list, coming in at #10. The estimated yearly cost for University of California - Riverside is $8,366 for Far Western US Region Bachelor’s Degree Materials Engineering students whose families make $0-$30k.

The student loan default rate at the school is 2.1%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 91%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.

Read more about Materials Engineering at University of California - Riverside

#8

Washington State University

Pullman, Washington

Washington State University landed the #8 spot on the 2022 Best Value Materials Engineering Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Far Western US Region For Those Making $0-$30k ranking. Wazzu is located in Pullman, Washington and, has a large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 31 bachelors’s materials engineering degrees to qualified students.

Wazzu also made our “Best Materials Engineering Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Far Western US Region” list, coming in at #9. The estimated yearly cost for Wazzu is $9,334 for far western us region bachelor’s degree materials engineering students whose families make $0-$30k.

The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 4.6%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Read full report on Materials Engineering at Wazzu

University of California - Davis did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Materials Engineering Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Far Western US Region For Those Making $0-$30k ranking, coming in at #9. University of California - Davis is a large public school situated in Davis, California. It awarded 38 bachelors’s materials engineering degrees in 2019-2020.

UC Davis also made our “Best Materials Engineering Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Far Western US Region” list, coming in at #8. The yearly cost to attend UC Davis is $9,842 for far western us region bachelor’s degree materials engineering students whose families make $0-$30k.

With a freshman retention rate of 93%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students. The low 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%.

Full UC Davis Materials Engineering Report

#10

San Jose State University

San Jose, California
#7 in overall quality

San Jose State University landed the #10 spot on the 2022 Best Value Materials Engineering Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Far Western US Region For Those Making $0-$30k ranking. Located in San Jose, California, this large public school awarded 22 degrees to qualified bachelors’s materials engineering students in 2019-2020.

San Jose State also made our “Best Materials Engineering Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Far Western US Region” list, coming in at #7. The estimated yearly cost for San Jose State University is $10,940 for Far Western US Region Bachelor’s Degree Materials Engineering students whose families make $0-$30k.

The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 86%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The low student loan default rate of 3.7% 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%.

Full San Jose State University Materials Engineering Report

#11 in overall quality

University of Nevada - Reno came in at #11 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Materials Engineering Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Far Western US Region For Those Making $0-$30k ranking. University of Nevada - Reno is located in Reno, Nevada and, has a large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 9 bachelors’s materials engineering degrees to qualified students.

UNR not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #11 on our “Best Materials Engineering Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Far Western US Region” list. The yearly cost to attend University of Nevada - Reno is $11,587 for Far Western US Region Bachelor’s Degree Materials Engineering students whose families make $0-$30k.

Read full report on Materials Engineering at UNR

#12 in overall quality

University of California - Merced did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Materials Engineering Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Far Western US Region For Those Making $0-$30k ranking, coming in at #12. UC Merced is a medium-sized school located in Merced, California that handed out 7 bachelors’s materials engineering degrees in 2019-2020.

In addition to being on our far western us region bachelor’s degree materials engineering students whose families make $0-$30k list, UC Merced has also earned the #12 rank in our “Best Materials Engineering Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Far Western US Region” ranking. It costs about $10,782 for far western us region bachelor’s degree materials engineering students whose families make $0-$30k per year to attend University of California - Merced.

Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 86%. 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%.

Read full report on Materials Engineering at University of California - Merced

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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

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 Panoramedia.

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