2023 Best Value ME Schools in Pennsylvania For Those Getting Aid
14
Ranked Colleges
2,232
Degrees Awarded
$30,500
Avg Net Price*
With all of the options students have for higher education today, it can be tough to choose which direction to take. One of our goals at College Factual is to give you as much information as we can - such as our “Best Value ME Schools in Pennsylvania For Those Getting Aid” ranking - to help you make that decision.
In 2020-2021, 46,178 people earned their degree in mechanical engineering, making the major the 21st most popular in the United States. In 2019-2020, mechanical engineering graduates who were awarded their degree in 2017-2019, earned an average of $69,007 and had an average of $23,944 in loans still to pay off.
Across Pennsylvania, there were 2,232 mechanical engineering graduates with average earnings and debt of $71,068 and $25,287 respectively.
For this year’s “Best Value ME Schools in Pennsylvania For Those Getting Aid” ranking, we looked at 14 colleges that offer a degree in mechanical engineering. Not only do the schools that top this list have excellent mechanical 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 mechanical engineering program at the school and the cost of the school after aid is awarded among other things. 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 in Pennsylvania For Those Getting Aid”.
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. 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 in Pennsylvania For Those Getting Aid
The colleges and universities below are the best for pennsylvania me students with aid.
Top 14 Best Value Colleges for Mechanical Engineering in Pennsylvania (With Aid)
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend University of Pennsylvania. The school came in at #1 for the Best Value ME Schools in Pennsylvania For Those Getting Aid. UPenn is a private not-for-profit institution located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The school has a large population, and it awarded 147 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.
UPenn did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #1 on our “Best Mechanical Engineering Schools in Pennsylvania” list. It costs about $25,046 for pennsylvania me students with aid per year to attend UPenn.
The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 95%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 0.9%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. With a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 6 to 1, it’s easy to see that the school is committed to helping their undergraduates succeed.
Read full report on Mechanical Engineering at UPenn
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of Pittsburgh - Pittsburgh Campus. It ranked #2 on our 2023 Best Value ME Schools in Pennsylvania For Those Getting Aid list. This large school is located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and it awarded 236 ’s ME degrees in 2020-2021.
Pitt also made our “Best Mechanical Engineering Schools in Pennsylvania” list, coming in at #5. It costs about $27,058 for pennsylvania me students with aid per year to attend University of Pittsburgh - Pittsburgh Campus.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 2.9%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 93%.
Full Pitt Mechanical Engineering Report
Out of the 14 schools in the Best Value ME Schools in Pennsylvania For Those Getting Aid that were part of this year’s ranking, Lehigh University landed the #3 spot on the list. Lehigh University is a medium-sized private not-for-profit school situated in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. It awarded 130 ’s ME degrees in 2020-2021.
Lehigh not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #3 on our “Best Mechanical Engineering Schools in Pennsylvania” list. It costs about $34,384 for Pennsylvania ME students with aid per year to attend Lehigh University.
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. With a freshman retention rate of 91%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students. 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%.
Read full report on Mechanical Engineering at Lehigh
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Carnegie Mellon University. It ranked #4 on our 2023 Best Value ME Schools in Pennsylvania For Those Getting Aid list. Carnegie Mellon University is a fairly large private not-for-profit school situated in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. It awarded 298 ’s ME degrees in 2020-2021.
Carnegie Mellon did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #2 on our “Best Mechanical Engineering Schools in Pennsylvania” list. The yearly cost to attend Carnegie Mellon University is $36,775 for pennsylvania me students with aid.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 0.7% 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 96%. Since the school has a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 5 to 1, those pursuing a degree will have more opportunities to interact with their professors.
Read full report on Mechanical Engineering at Carnegie Mellon University
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Temple University. It ranked #5 on our 2023 Best Value ME Schools in Pennsylvania For Those Getting Aid list. Philadelphia, Pennsylvania is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out ’s ME degrees to 110 students in 2020-2021.
In addition to being on our pennsylvania me students with aid list, Temple has also earned the #9 rank in our “Best Mechanical Engineering Schools in Pennsylvania” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for Temple is $23,888 for Pennsylvania ME students with aid.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 3.5%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 87%.
Full Temple Mechanical Engineering Report
University of Pittsburgh - Johnstown landed the #6 spot on the 2023 Best Value ME Schools in Pennsylvania For Those Getting Aid ranking. Pitt Johnstown is a public institution located in Johnstown, Pennsylvania. The school has a small population, and it awarded 46 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.
Pitt Johnstown also made our “Best Mechanical Engineering Schools in Pennsylvania” list, coming in at #14. The yearly cost to attend Pitt Johnstown is $17,457 for Pennsylvania ME students with aid.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 2.9% 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%.
Read full report on Mechanical Engineering at Pitt Johnstown
Lafayette College did quite well in the 2023 Best Value ME Schools in Pennsylvania For Those Getting Aid ranking, coming in at #7. Lafayette is a small private not-for-profit school situated in Easton, Pennsylvania. It awarded 60 ’s ME degrees in 2020-2021.
As a testament to the quality of education offered at Lafayette, the school also landed the #8 spot in our “Best Mechanical Engineering Schools in Pennsylvania” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for Lafayette College is $32,926 for Pennsylvania ME students with aid.
With a freshman retention rate of 87%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 0.3%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. With a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 9 to 1, it’s easy to see that the school is committed to helping their undergraduates succeed.
Full Lafayette College Mechanical Engineering Report
York College of Pennsylvania landed the #8 spot on the 2023 Best Value ME Schools in Pennsylvania For Those Getting Aid ranking. York College of Pennsylvania is a small school located in York, Pennsylvania that handed out 48 ’s ME degrees in 2020-2021.
YCP also made our “Best Mechanical Engineering Schools in Pennsylvania” list, coming in at #12. It costs about $22,233 for pennsylvania me students with aid per year to attend York College of Pennsylvania.
The undergrad 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 Mechanical Engineering at YCP
Gannon University did quite well in the 2023 Best Value ME Schools in Pennsylvania For Those Getting Aid ranking, coming in at #9. Located in Erie, Pennsylvania, this small private not-for-profit school handed out 27 degrees to qualified ’s ME students in 2020-2021.
In addition to being on our pennsylvania me students with aid list, Gannon has also earned the #13 rank in our “Best Mechanical Engineering Schools in Pennsylvania” ranking. It costs about $22,473 for Pennsylvania ME students with aid per year to attend Gannon University.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 85%. The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 3.1%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Full Gannon Mechanical Engineering Report
Wilkes University ranked #10 on this year’s Best Value ME Schools in Pennsylvania For Those Getting Aid list. Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania is the setting for this medium-sized institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out ’s ME degrees to 45 students in 2020-2021.
Wilkes also made our “Best Mechanical Engineering Schools in Pennsylvania” list, coming in at #11. The estimated yearly cost for Wilkes University is $29,618 for pennsylvania me students with aid.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 3.5%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Read more about Mechanical Engineering at Wilkes
With a ranking of #11, Villanova University did quite well on the 2023 Best Value ME Schools in Pennsylvania For Those Getting Aid list. Villanova University is a private not-for-profit institution located in Villanova, Pennsylvania. The school has a fairly large population, and it awarded 89 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.
Villanova also made our “Best Mechanical Engineering Schools in Pennsylvania” list, coming in at #4. The yearly cost to attend Villanova is $43,577 for pennsylvania me students with aid.
With a freshman retention rate of 96%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students. The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 0.9%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Read full report on Mechanical Engineering at Villanova University
With a ranking of #12, Widener University did quite well on the 2023 Best Value ME Schools in Pennsylvania For Those Getting Aid list. Widener University is a medium-sized private not-for-profit school situated in Chester, Pennsylvania. It awarded 40 ’s ME degrees in 2020-2021.
Widener also took the #10 spot in our “Best Mechanical Engineering Schools in Pennsylvania” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for Widener is $31,792 for pennsylvania me students with aid.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 2.6% 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%.
Full Widener Mechanical Engineering Report
Drexel University came in at #13 in this year’s edition of the Best Value ME Schools in Pennsylvania For Those Getting Aid ranking. Drexel is located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and, has a large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 200 ’s ME degrees to qualified students.
Drexel also made our “Best Mechanical Engineering Schools in Pennsylvania” list, coming in at #7. It costs about $35,963 for pennsylvania me students with aid per year to attend Drexel.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 1.9%, 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 88%.
Full Drexel University Mechanical Engineering Report
Bucknell University landed the #14 spot on the 2023 Best Value ME Schools in Pennsylvania For Those Getting Aid ranking. Bucknell is a small school located in Lewisburg, Pennsylvania that handed out 38 ’s ME degrees in 2020-2021.
Bucknell also took the #6 spot in our “Best Mechanical Engineering Schools in Pennsylvania” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for Bucknell is $43,895 for pennsylvania me students with aid.
The undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 9 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 92%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students. The low undergrad student loan default rate of 0.8% 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 Bucknell University Mechanical Engineering Report
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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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