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2023 Most Well Attended Engineering Major

1,203 Ranked Colleges
198,468 Degrees Awarded
$35,800 Avg Cost*
Most Well Attended Engineering Major

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 “Most Well Attended Engineering Major” ranking is part of that endeavor.

Engineering is one of the most popular majors in the nation, ranking 7th of all the majors we analyze. In 2020-2021, 198,468 degrees were awarded to students with this major. In 2019-2020, engineering graduates who were awarded their degree in 2017-2019, earned an average of $68,653 and had an average of $23,855 in loans still to pay off.

This year’s “Most Well Attended Engineering Major” ranking analyzed 1,203 colleges that offered a degree in engineering. To top this list, a school must have a successful engineering program that graduates more students in the field than other colleges that offer the same major.

Check out our ranking methodology for more information.

More Ways to Rank Engineering Schools

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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 “Most Well Attended Engineering Major” list to help you make the college decision.

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. 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.

Most Well Attended Engineering Major

The colleges and universities below are the best for engineering students.

1

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Georgia Institute of Technology - Main Campus. It ranked #1 on our 2023 Most Well Attended Engineering Major list. Atlanta, Georgia is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out ’s engineering degrees to 3,407 students in 2020-2021.

With a freshman retention rate of 97%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 0.9%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Read more about Engineering at Georgia Institute of Technology - Main Campus

2
Purdue crest
Purdue University - Main Campus
West Lafayette, Indiana

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Purdue University - Main Campus. It ranked #2 on our 2023 Most Well Attended Engineering Major list. West Lafayette, Indiana is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out ’s engineering degrees to 3,177 students in 2020-2021.

The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 1.7%, 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%.

Read full report on Engineering at Purdue University - Main Campus

3

Out of the 1,203 schools in the Most Well Attended Engineering Major that were part of this year’s ranking, Texas A&M University - College Station landed the #3 spot on the list. College Station, Texas is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out ’s engineering degrees to 3,306 students in 2020-2021.

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 2.2%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Full Texas A&M University - College Station Engineering Report

4
Northeastern crest
Northeastern University
Boston, Massachusetts

Out of the 1,203 schools in the Most Well Attended Engineering Major that were part of this year’s ranking, Northeastern University landed the #4 spot on the list. Northeastern is a large private not-for-profit school situated in Boston, Massachusetts. It awarded 2,819 ’s engineering degrees in 2020-2021.

The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 97%, 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 1.5%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Full Northeastern Engineering Report

5

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend University of Michigan - Ann Arbor. The school came in at #5 for the Most Well Attended Engineering Major. University of Michigan - Ann Arbor is a public institution located in Ann Arbor, Michigan. The school has a large population, and it awarded 2,789 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.

The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 1.3%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 96%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.

Read full report on Engineering at University of Michigan - Ann Arbor

6

University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign did quite well in the 2023 Most Well Attended Engineering Major ranking, coming in at #6. Champaign, Illinois is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out ’s engineering degrees to 2,695 students in 2020-2021.

Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 94%. 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%.

Read full report on Engineering at University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

7
NC State crest
North Carolina State University
Raleigh, North Carolina

North Carolina State University ranked #7 on this year’s Most Well Attended Engineering Major list. North Carolina State University is located in Raleigh, North Carolina and, has a large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 2,631 ’s engineering degrees to qualified students.

The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 2.0%, 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 94%.

Full North Carolina State University Engineering Report

8

Arizona State University - Tempe did quite well in the 2023 Most Well Attended Engineering Major ranking, coming in at #8. Arizona State University - Tempe is a public institution located in Tempe, Arizona. The school has a large population, and it awarded 2,566 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.

The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 4.5%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 86%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.

Full Arizona State University - Tempe Engineering Report

9

Ohio State University - Main Campus came in at #9 in this year’s edition of the Most Well Attended Engineering Major ranking. Ohio State is a large public school situated in Columbus, Ohio. It awarded 2,359 ’s engineering degrees in 2020-2021.

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%. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 94%.

Full Ohio State University - Main Campus Engineering Report

10
Virginia Tech crest
Virginia Tech
Blacksburg, Virginia

Virginia Tech ranked #10 on this year’s Most Well Attended Engineering Major list. This large school is located in Blacksburg, Virginia, and it awarded 2,227 ’s engineering degrees in 2020-2021.

The low undergrad student loan default rate of 1.2% 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 more about Engineering at Virginia Tech

11
UF crest
University of Florida
Gainesville, Florida

University of Florida did quite well in the 2023 Most Well Attended Engineering Major ranking, coming in at #11. University of Florida is a large public school situated in Gainesville, Florida. It awarded 2,403 ’s engineering degrees in 2020-2021.

The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 1.7%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 97%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.

Read more about Engineering at University of Florida

12

University of California - San Diego came in at #12 in this year’s edition of the Most Well Attended Engineering Major ranking. Located in La Jolla, California, this large public school handed out 2,047 degrees to qualified ’s engineering students in 2020-2021.

Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 94%. The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 1.0%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Read full report on Engineering at University of California - San Diego

13

University of California - Berkeley did quite well in the 2023 Most Well Attended Engineering Major ranking, coming in at #13. Berkeley, California is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out ’s engineering degrees to 1,982 students in 2020-2021.

Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 96%. The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 1.8%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Read full report on Engineering at University of California - Berkeley

14

Iowa State University landed the #14 spot on the 2023 Most Well Attended Engineering Major ranking. Located in Ames, Iowa, this large public school handed out 1,913 degrees to qualified ’s engineering students in 2020-2021.

With a freshman retention rate of 89%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 2.4%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Read more about Engineering at Iowa State

15

The University of Texas at Austin did quite well in the 2023 Most Well Attended Engineering Major ranking, coming in at #15. The University of Texas at Austin is located in Austin, Texas and, has a large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 1,960 ’s engineering degrees to qualified students.

With a freshman retention rate of 97%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students. 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 The University of Texas at Austin Engineering Report

16
San Jose State crest
San Jose State University
San Jose, California

San Jose State University did quite well in the 2023 Most Well Attended Engineering Major ranking, coming in at #16. San Jose, California is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out ’s engineering degrees to 1,943 students in 2020-2021.

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%. With a freshman retention rate of 86%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students.

Full San Jose State University Engineering Report

17
USC crest
University of Southern California
Los Angeles, California

University of Southern California came in at #17 in this year’s edition of the Most Well Attended Engineering Major ranking. This large school is located in Los Angeles, California, and it awarded 1,815 ’s engineering degrees in 2020-2021.

The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 1.3%, 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 91%. 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.

Read more about Engineering at USC

18

University of Maryland - College Park landed the #18 spot on the 2023 Most Well Attended Engineering Major ranking. University of Maryland - College Park is a large school located in College Park, Maryland that handed out 1,797 ’s engineering degrees in 2020-2021.

The low undergrad student loan default rate of 1.8% 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%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 95%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.

Read full report on Engineering at UMCP

19

University of Central Florida did quite well in the 2023 Most Well Attended Engineering Major ranking, coming in at #19. Located in Orlando, Florida, this large public school awarded 1,628 diplomas to qualified ’s engineering students in 2020-2021.

Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 92%. 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%.

Read more about Engineering at University of Central Florida

20

University of Washington - Seattle Campus did quite well in the 2023 Most Well Attended Engineering Major ranking, coming in at #20. UW Seattle is a public institution located in Seattle, Washington. The school has a large population, and it awarded 1,594 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.

With a freshman retention rate of 93%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 2.1%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Read more about Engineering at UW Seattle

21
Carnegie Mellon crest
Carnegie Mellon University
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

Carnegie Mellon University did quite well in the 2023 Most Well Attended Engineering Major ranking, coming in at #21. Located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, this fairly large private not-for-profit school awarded 1,592 diplomas to qualified ’s engineering students in 2020-2021.

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%. The undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 5 to 1 is a sign that students will have more opportunities to engage with their professors one-on-one.

Full Carnegie Mellon Engineering Report

22

With a ranking of #22, University of Colorado Boulder did quite well on the 2023 Most Well Attended Engineering Major list. CU - Boulder is located in Boulder, Colorado and, has a large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 1,493 ’s engineering degrees to qualified students.

The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 85%, 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 2.4%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Read full report on Engineering at University of Colorado Boulder

22

University of Wisconsin - Madison landed the #22 spot on the 2023 Most Well Attended Engineering Major ranking. UW - Madison is a public institution located in Madison, Wisconsin. The school has a large population, and it awarded 1,573 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.

With a freshman retention rate of 95%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 0.9%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Read full report on Engineering at University of Wisconsin - Madison

24
Clemson crest
Clemson University
Clemson, South Carolina

Clemson University did quite well in the 2023 Most Well Attended Engineering Major ranking, coming in at #24. Clemson University is a large school located in Clemson, South Carolina that handed out 1,525 ’s engineering degrees in 2020-2021.

The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 1.7%, which is much lower than the national 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 Engineering at Clemson University

25
University at Buffalo crest
University at Buffalo
Buffalo, New York

University at Buffalo came in at #25 in this year’s edition of the Most Well Attended Engineering Major ranking. University at Buffalo is a public institution located in Buffalo, New York. The school has a large population, and it awarded 1,490 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.

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%. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 87%.

Full University at Buffalo Engineering Report

Rest of the Best 50 in Most Well Attended Engineering Major

Not only did these schools make the top 50 list, but they also landed in the top 15% of this year’s ranking:

26
Cornell crest
Cornell University
Ithaca, New York
27
28
29
30
Auburn crest
Auburn University
Auburn, Alabama
31
32
Oregon State crest
Oregon State University
Corvallis, Oregon
33
34
Johns Hopkins crest
Johns Hopkins University
Baltimore, Maryland
35
36
37
38
Rutgers New Brunswick crest
Rutgers University - New Brunswick
New Brunswick, New Jersey
39
Mines crest
Colorado School of Mines
Golden, Colorado
40
WPI crest
Worcester Polytechnic Institute
Worcester, Massachusetts
41
42
MIT crest
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Cambridge, Massachusetts
43
44
Stanford crest
Stanford University
Stanford, California
45
46
Texas Tech crest
Texas Tech University
Lubbock, Texas
47
48
UA crest
The University of Alabama
Tuscaloosa, Alabama
49
50

Rest of the Top 15% Colleges in Most Well Attended Engineering Major

While not in the ‘top 50’, these schools make the top 15% of this year’s ranking:

Rank College Location
51 Florida International University Miami, FL
52 University of Massachusetts - Lowell Lowell, MA
53 University of Connecticut Storrs, CT
54 Michigan State University East Lansing, MI
55 Stevens Institute of Technology Hoboken, NJ
56 New York University New York, NY
57 University of Pittsburgh - Pittsburgh Campus Pittsburgh, PA
58 University of Houston Houston, TX
59 University of South Florida - Main Campus Tampa, FL
60 Mississippi State University Mississippi State, MS
61 University of Illinois at Chicago Chicago, IL
62 The University of Tennessee - Knoxville Knoxville, TN
63 Drexel University Philadelphia, PA
64 Washington State University Pullman, WA
65 West Virginia University Morgantown, WV
Rank College Location
66 Rochester Institute of Technology Rochester, NY
67 Northwestern University Evanston, IL
68 Boston University Boston, MA
69 California State University - Long Beach Long Beach, CA
70 University of Arizona Tucson, AZ
71 San Diego State University San Diego, CA
72 University of Utah Salt Lake City, UT
73 Louisiana State University and Agricultural & Mechanical College Baton Rouge, LA
74 University of Arkansas Fayetteville, AR
74 University of Virginia - Main Campus Charlottesville, VA
76 University of Oklahoma Norman Campus Norman, OK
77 Oklahoma State University - Main Campus Stillwater, OK
78 Colorado State University - Fort Collins Fort Collins, CO
79 Kennesaw State University Kennesaw, GA
80 The University of Texas at El Paso El Paso, TX
81 University of Puerto Rico - Mayaguez Mayaguez, PR
82 University of California - Riverside Riverside, CA
83 University of Massachusetts Amherst Amherst, MA
84 University of Nebraska - Lincoln Lincoln, NE
85 University of North Carolina at Charlotte Charlotte, NC
86 Washington University in St Louis Saint Louis, MO
86 Stony Brook University Stony Brook, NY
88 Duke University Durham, NC
89 University of Michigan - Dearborn Dearborn, MI
90 Brigham Young University - Provo Provo, UT
Rank College Location
91 University of Nevada - Reno Reno, NV
92 University of Toledo Toledo, OH
93 University of Alabama in Huntsville Huntsville, AL
94 Case Western Reserve University Cleveland, OH
95 California State University - Fullerton Fullerton, CA
96 University of Pennsylvania Philadelphia, PA
97 Illinois Institute of Technology Chicago, IL
98 California State University - Sacramento Sacramento, CA
99 Binghamton University Vestal, NY
100 University of Louisville Louisville, KY
101 University of Kentucky Lexington, KY
102 Kansas State University Manhattan, KS
103 The University of Texas at San Antonio San Antonio, TX
104 University of Iowa Iowa City, IA
105 University of South Carolina - Columbia Columbia, SC
106 Florida Institute of Technology Melbourne, FL
107 The City College of New York New York, NY
108 University of Delaware Newark, DE
108 University of Akron Main Campus Akron, OH
110 University of Wisconsin - Platteville Platteville, WI
111 Lehigh University Bethlehem, PA
111 California State University - Northridge Northridge, CA
113 Oakland University Rochester Hills, MI
114 Wayne State University Detroit, MI
115 Old Dominion University Norfolk, VA
Rank College Location
116 University of Dayton Dayton, OH
117 George Mason University Fairfax, VA
118 Portland State University Portland, OR
119 Montana State University Bozeman, MT
120 University of Kansas Lawrence, KS
121 University of Notre Dame Notre Dame, IN
122 Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University - Daytona Beach Daytona Beach, FL
123 Clarkson University Potsdam, NY
124 University of California - Merced Merced, CA
125 University of Georgia Athens, GA
126 University of Missouri - Columbia Columbia, MO
127 North Dakota State University - Main Campus Fargo, ND
128 Indiana University - Purdue University - Indianapolis Indianapolis, IN
129 University of New Mexico - Main Campus Albuquerque, NM
130 Syracuse University Syracuse, NY
131 Milwaukee School of Engineering Milwaukee, WI
132 Naval Postgraduate School Monterey, CA
133 Santa Clara University Santa Clara, CA
134 Florida State University Tallahassee, FL
135 University of North Texas Denton, TX
136 Georgia Southern University Statesboro, GA
137 Wichita State University Wichita, KS
138 Villanova University Villanova, PA
139 New Mexico State University - Main Campus Las Cruces, NM
140 Florida Atlantic University Boca Raton, FL
Rank College Location
141 Cleveland State University Cleveland, OH
142 Utah State University Logan, UT
143 Kettering University Flint, MI
143 Wright State University - Main Campus Dayton, OH
145 Rowan University Glassboro, NJ
145 University of Rhode Island Kingston, RI
145 University of Alabama at Birmingham Birmingham, AL
148 California State University - Los Angeles Los Angeles, CA
149 George Washington University Washington, DC
150 The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley Edinburg, TX
151 Western Michigan University Kalamazoo, MI
152 Universidad Politecnica de Puerto Rico Hato Rey, PR
153 Tennessee Technological University Cookeville, TN
154 Arizona State University - Skysong Scottsdale, AZ
155 Ohio University - Athens Campus Athens, OH
155 United States Naval Academy Annapolis, MD
157 Rose - Hulman Institute of Technology Terre Haute, IN
158 University of California - Santa Barbara Santa Barbara, CA
159 University of Wisconsin - Milwaukee Milwaukee, WI
159 Southern Methodist University Dallas, TX
161 North Carolina A & T State University Greensboro, NC
162 Wentworth Institute of Technology Boston, MA
163 Rice University Houston, TX
164 South Dakota School of Mines and Technology Rapid City, SD
165 Texas A&M University - Kingsville Kingsville, TX
Rank College Location
166 Temple University Philadelphia, PA
167 University of New Hampshire - Main Campus Durham, NH
168 Princeton University Princeton, NJ
169 University of Miami Coral Gables, FL
170 Virginia Commonwealth University Richmond, VA
171 University of Rochester Rochester, NY
172 University of Maryland - Baltimore County Baltimore, MD
173 Manhattan College Riverdale, NY
174 Marquette University Milwaukee, WI
174 Tufts University Medford, MA
176 University of Minnesota - Duluth Duluth, MN
177 University of North Dakota Grand Forks, ND
178 University of Hawaii at Manoa Honolulu, HI
179 Southern Illinois University Edwardsville Edwardsville, IL
180 Northern Arizona University Flagstaff, AZ
180 Northern Illinois University Dekalb, IL

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Notes and References

References

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