2023 Best Value Colleges for Petroleum Engineering (Income $48-$75k) in the Plains States Region

With all of the options students have for higher education today, it can be tough to choose which direction to take. At College Factual, we’re committed to helping you make that decision by providing information such as that found in our “Best Value Petroleum Engineering Schools in the Plains States Region For Those Making $48-$75k” ranking.

Petroleum Engineering is the 223rd most popular major in the country with 1,256 degrees awarded in 2020-2021. In 2019-2020, petroleum engineering graduates who were awarded their degree in 2017-2019, earned an average of $83,917 and had an average of $25,780 in loans still to pay off.

Across the Plains States region, there were 122 petroleum engineering graduates with average earnings and debt of $78,630 and $26,706 respectively.

This year’s “Best Value Petroleum Engineering Schools in the Plains States Region For Those Making $48-$75k” ranking looked at 3 colleges that offer degrees in a bachelor’s in petroleum engineering. The schools that top this list are recognized because they have great petroleum engineering programs and cost less that schools of similar quality.

Some of the factors we look at when determining these rankings are overall quality of the petroleum 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.

More Ways to Rank Petroleum Engineering Schools

Since picking the right college can be one of the most important decisions of your life, we’ve developed the “Best Value Petroleum Engineering Schools in the Plains States Region For Those Making $48-$75k” ranking, along with many other major-related rankings, to help you make that decision.

You can create your own custom comparison that focuses on the factors most important to you using our tool, College Combat. When you have some time, check it out - you may want to bookmark the link so you don’t forget it.

Best Value Petroleum Engineering Schools in the Plains States Region For Those Making $48-$75k

The following schools top our list of the Best Best Value Petroleum Engineering Schools in the Plains States Region For Those Making $48-$75k.

Top 3 Best Value Colleges for Petroleum Engineering (Income $48-$75k) in the Plains States Region

1

Missouri University of Science and Technology
Rolla, Missouri

#2 in overall quality

$11,656 Average Net Price

$63,979 Average Early-Career Earnings

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Missouri University of Science and Technology. The school came in at #1 for the Best Value Petroleum Engineering Schools in the Plains States Region For Those Making $48-$75k. This medium-sized school is located in Rolla, Missouri, and it awarded 34 ’s petroleum engineering degrees in 2020-2021.

In addition to being on our plains states region petroleum engineering students whose families make $48-$75k list, Missouri University of Science and Technology has also earned the #2 rank in our “Best Petroleum Engineering Schools in the Plains States Region” ranking. The yearly cost to attend Missouri University of Science and Technology is $11,656 for Plains States Region Petroleum Engineering students whose families make $48-$75k.

The low undergrad 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%. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 85%.

Full Missouri University of Science and Technology Petroleum Engineering Report

2

University of North Dakota
Grand Forks, North Dakota

#1 in overall quality

$15,818 Average Net Price

$51,496 Average Early-Career Earnings

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of North Dakota. It ranked #2 on our 2023 Best Value Petroleum Engineering Schools in the Plains States Region For Those Making $48-$75k list. This fairly large school is located in Grand Forks, North Dakota, and it awarded 53 ’s petroleum engineering degrees in 2020-2021.

UND also made our “Best Petroleum Engineering Schools in the Plains States Region” list, coming in at #1. It costs about $15,818 for Plains States Region Petroleum Engineering students whose families make $48-$75k per year to attend UND.

The low undergrad student loan default rate of 2.8% 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%.

Read full report on Petroleum Engineering at UND

3

University of Kansas
Lawrence, Kansas

#3 in overall quality

$18,586 Average Net Price

$50,693 Average Early-Career Earnings

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend University of Kansas. The school came in at #3 for the Best Value Petroleum Engineering Schools in the Plains States Region For Those Making $48-$75k. University of Kansas is located in Lawrence, Kansas and, has a large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 35 ’s petroleum engineering degrees to qualified students.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at KU, the school also landed the #3 spot in our “Best Petroleum Engineering Schools in the Plains States Region” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for University of Kansas is $18,586 for Plains States Region Petroleum Engineering students whose families make $48-$75k.

The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 4.3%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. With a freshman retention rate of 86%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students.

Full University of Kansas Petroleum Engineering Report

• Best Value Colleges for Petroleum Engineering (Income $48-$75k)

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.