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2022 Best Value ME Schools for a Master’s in Illinois For Those Making $48-$75k

8 Ranked Colleges
281 Degrees Awarded
$26,800 Avg Grad Tuition & Fees*
Best Value ME Schools for a Master's in Illinois 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 was founded, in part, to help students make the decision as to what would be the best school for them. Our “Best Value ME Schools for a Master’s in Illinois For Those Making $48-$75k” ranking is part of that endeavor.

In 2019-2020, 47,598 people earned their degree in mechanical engineering, making the major the 20th most popular in the United States. In 2017-2018, mechanical engineering graduates who were awarded their degree in 2015-2017, earned an average of $64,495 and had an average of $23,104 in loans still to pay off.

Across Illinois, there were 1,232 mechanical engineering graduates with average earnings and debt of $62,288 and $21,821 respectively. At the master’s degree level specifically, there were 281 mechanical engineering graduates with average earnings and debt of $57,267 and $46,814 respectively.

This year’s “Best Value ME Schools for a Master’s in Illinois For Those Making $48-$75k” ranking looked at 8 colleges that offer degrees in a bachelor’s in mechanical engineering. This ranking identifies schools with high-quality mechanical engineering 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 mechanical engineering program at the school and the cost to attend the school once aid has been awarded. For more information, check out our ranking methodology.

One Size Does Not Fit All

The me 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 ME Schools for a Master’s in Illinois For Those Making $48-$75k”.

In addition to College Factual’s rankings, you may want to take a look at College Combat, our unique tool that lets you pit your favorite schools head-to-head and compare how they rate on factors that most interest you. If you’re torn between two schools, you can use it to help you see how they stack up against one another. Bookmark it so you can compare any new schools that might interest you.

Best Value ME Schools for a Master’s in Illinois For Those Making $48-$75k

The following schools top our list of the Best Best Value ME Schools for a Master’s in Illinois For Those Making $48-$75k.

Top 8 Best Value Master’s Degree Colleges for Mechanical Engineering (Income $48-$75k) in Illinois

#1

Northwestern University

Evanston, Illinois

Out of the 8 schools in the Best Value ME Schools for a Master’s in Illinois For Those Making $48-$75k that were part of this year’s ranking, Northwestern University landed the #1 spot on the list. Northwestern is located in Evanston, Illinois and, has a large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 40 masters’s ME degrees to qualified students.

Northwestern also made our “Best Mechanical Engineering Master’s Degree Schools in Illinois” list, coming in at #1. Although you might pay more or less depending on your area of study, average graduate tuition and fees at Northwestern University are $56,567.

Read more about Mechanical Engineering at Northwestern University

Out of the 8 schools in the Best Value ME Schools for a Master’s in Illinois For Those Making $48-$75k that were part of this year’s ranking, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign landed the #2 spot on the list. Located in Champaign, Illinois, this large public school handed out 70 diplomas to qualified masters’s ME students in 2019-2020.

UIUC also took the #2 spot in our “Best Mechanical Engineering Master’s Degree Schools in Illinois” ranking. Although you might pay more or less depending on your area of study, average graduate tuition and fees at UIUC are $30,083.

Read more about Mechanical Engineering at UIUC

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of Illinois at Chicago. It ranked #3 on our 2022 Best Value ME Schools for a Master’s in Illinois For Those Making $48-$75k list. UIC is a large public school situated in Chicago, Illinois. It awarded 59 masters’s ME degrees in 2019-2020.

UIC also made our “Best Mechanical Engineering Master’s Degree Schools in Illinois” list, coming in at #4. Average graduate tuition and fees at University of Illinois at Chicago are $27,036, but you may pay more or less depending on your major.

Read more about Mechanical Engineering at UIC

#4

Northern Illinois University

Dekalb, Illinois

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Northern Illinois University. It ranked #4 on our 2022 Best Value ME Schools for a Master’s in Illinois For Those Making $48-$75k list. This fairly large school is located in Dekalb, Illinois, and it awarded 18 masters’s ME degrees in 2019-2020.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at NIU, the school also landed the #6 spot in our “Best Mechanical Engineering Master’s Degree Schools in Illinois” ranking. Average graduate tuition and fees at Northern Illinois University are $11,086, but you may pay more or less depending on your major.

Read full report on Mechanical Engineering at Northern Illinois University

Out of the 8 schools in the Best Value ME Schools for a Master’s in Illinois For Those Making $48-$75k that were part of this year’s ranking, Southern Illinois University Edwardsville landed the #5 spot on the list. Located in Edwardsville, Illinois, this fairly large public school awarded 4 degrees to qualified masters’s ME students in 2019-2020.

SIUE did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #0 on our “Best Mechanical Engineering Master’s Degree Schools in Illinois” list. Average graduate tuition and fees at SIUE are $9,300, but some majors have different tuition rates.

Read full report on Mechanical Engineering at SIUE

#7 in overall quality

Southern Illinois University Carbondale did quite well in the 2022 Best Value ME Schools for a Master’s in Illinois For Those Making $48-$75k ranking, coming in at #6. This fairly large school is located in Carbondale, Illinois, and it awarded 7 masters’s ME degrees in 2019-2020.

SIUC also made our “Best Mechanical Engineering Master’s Degree Schools in Illinois” list, coming in at #7. Although you might pay more or less depending on your area of study, average graduate tuition and fees at SIUC are $32,928.

Full SIUC Mechanical Engineering Report

Illinois Institute of Technology came in at #7 in this year’s edition of the Best Value ME Schools for a Master’s in Illinois For Those Making $48-$75k ranking. Illinois Institute of Technology is located in Chicago, Illinois and, has a medium-sized student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 72 masters’s ME degrees to qualified students.

Illinois Tech did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #3 on our “Best Mechanical Engineering Master’s Degree Schools in Illinois” list. Average graduate tuition and fees at Illinois Tech are $30,695, but you may pay more or less depending on your major.

Read full report on Mechanical Engineering at Illinois Institute of Technology

#8

Bradley University

Peoria, Illinois
#5 in overall quality

Bradley University did quite well in the 2022 Best Value ME Schools for a Master’s in Illinois For Those Making $48-$75k ranking, coming in at #8. Located in Peoria, Illinois, this medium-sized private not-for-profit school awarded 11 degrees to qualified masters’s ME students in 2019-2020.

Bradley did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #5 on our “Best Mechanical Engineering Master’s Degree Schools in Illinois” list. Average graduate tuition and fees at Bradley University are $17,040, but some majors have different tuition rates.

Read more about Mechanical Engineering at Bradley

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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.

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