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2024 Best Engineering Schools in the Plains States Region

25 Colleges in the Plains States Region
11,499 Engineering Degrees Awarded
$66,381 Avg Early-Career Salary
If you plan on majoring in engineering, you won't be alone since the degree program is ranked #7 in the country in terms of popularity. So, you have a fair amount of options to choose from when looking for a school.

College Factual reviewed 25 schools in the Plains States Region to determine which ones were the best for degree seekers in the field of engineering. When you put them all together, these colleges and universities awarded 11,499 degrees in engineering during the 2021-2022 academic year.

Jump to one of the following sections: * Degree-Level Rankings

Choosing a Great Engineering School

Best Engineering Schools in the Plains States Region Your choice of engineering school matters, so we have put together these rankings to help you make your decision. We derive our Best Overall Engineering School rankings by rolling up our degree-level rankings after weighting them by the number of degrees awarded at each school.

You may want to choose one of the degree levels below to find the schools of most interest to you.

Engineering Rankings by Degree Level

Associate Degrees in Engineering
Bachelor's Degrees in Engineering
Master's Degrees in Engineering
Doctor's Degrees in Engineering

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 Best Engineering Schools in the Plains States Region list to help you make the college decision. More interested in schools in a specific area of the country? Filter this list by region or state.

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

Read more about College Factual's methodology.

Best Schools for Engineering in the Plains States Region

The schools below may not offer all types of engineering degrees so you may want to filter by degree level first. However, they are great for the degree levels they do offer.

10 Top Plains States Region Schools in Engineering

1
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
601 Engineering Degrees Awarded
$76,341 Median Starting Salary

Washington University in St Louis is one of the best schools in the United States for getting a degree in engineering. Located in the large suburb of Saint Louis, WUSTL is a private not-for-profit university with a large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #17 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means WUSTL is a great university overall.

There were approximately 601 engineering students who graduated with this degree at WUSTL in the most recent year we have data available. Those engineering students who get their degree from Washington University in St Louis receive $9,960 more than the average engineering graduate.

More information about a degree in engineering from Washington University in St Louis

2
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
1,866 Engineering Degrees Awarded
$72,389 Median Starting Salary

Iowa State University is a great choice for students pursuing a degree in engineering. Located in the city of Ames, Iowa State is a public university with a fairly large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #75 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means Iowa State is a great university overall.

There were approximately 1866.0000000000002 engineering students who graduated with this degree at Iowa State in the most recent year we have data available. Degree recipients from the engineering major at Iowa State University earn $6,008 above the standard graduate in this field when they enter the workforce.

More information about a degree in engineering from Iowa State University

3
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
1,156 Engineering Degrees Awarded
$68,938 Median Starting Salary

University of Minnesota - Twin Cities is a great choice for students interested in a degree in engineering. Located in the city of Minneapolis, UMN Twin Cities is a public university with a fairly large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #51 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means UMN Twin Cities is a great university overall.

There were roughly 1156 engineering students who graduated with this degree at UMN Twin Cities in the most recent data year. Degree recipients from the engineering major at University of Minnesota - Twin Cities get $2,557 more than the standard college grad in this field when they enter the workforce.

More information about a degree in engineering from University of Minnesota - Twin Cities

4
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
1,352 Engineering Degrees Awarded
$66,503 Median Starting Salary

Missouri University of Science and Technology is one of the best schools in the country for getting a degree in engineering. Missouri University of Science and Technology is a medium-sized public university located in the remote town of Rolla. A Best Colleges rank of #97 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means Missouri University of Science and Technology is a great university overall.

There were approximately 1352 engineering students who graduated with this degree at Missouri University of Science and Technology in the most recent year we have data available. Soon after graduating, engineering degree recipients usually earn an average of $66,503 in their early careers.

More information about a degree in engineering from Missouri University of Science and Technology

5
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
512 Engineering Degrees Awarded
0.2% Growth in Graduates

Mizzou is a very large public university located in the city of Columbia. A Best Colleges rank of #124 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means Mizzou is a great university overall.

There were approximately 512 engineering students who graduated with this degree at Mizzou in the most recent year we have data available. Soon after graduating, engineering degree recipients usually earn around $66,938 in the first five years of their career.

More information about a degree in engineering from University of Missouri - Columbia

6
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
701 Engineering Degrees Awarded
4.4% Growth in Graduates

UNL is a fairly large public university located in the city of Lincoln. A Best Colleges rank of #138 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means UNL is a great university overall.

There were approximately 701 engineering students who graduated with this degree at UNL in the most recent data year. Engineering degree recipients from University of Nebraska - Lincoln get an earnings boost of around $2,147 over the average earnings of engineering graduates.

More information about a degree in engineering from University of Nebraska - Lincoln

7
Iowa crest
University of Iowa
Iowa City, IA
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
506 Engineering Degrees Awarded
$63,571 Median Starting Salary

Iowa is a fairly large public university located in the small city of Iowa City. A Best Colleges rank of #84 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means Iowa is a great university overall.

There were about 506 engineering students who graduated with this degree at Iowa in the most recent year we have data available. Soon after graduation, engineering degree recipients usually earn around $63,571 in their early careers.

More information about a degree in engineering from University of Iowa

8
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
451 Engineering Degrees Awarded
$65,113 Median Starting Salary

KU is a very large public university located in the small city of Lawrence. A Best Colleges rank of #141 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means KU is a great university overall.

There were approximately 451 engineering students who graduated with this degree at KU in the most recent data year. Students who graduate with their degree from the engineering program state that they receive average early career income of $65,113.

More information about a degree in engineering from University of Kansas

9
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
452 Engineering Degrees Awarded
0.4% Growth in Graduates

North Dakota State University is a large public university located in the midsize city of Fargo. A Best Colleges rank of #242 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means North Dakota State University is a great university overall.

There were approximately 452 engineering students who graduated with this degree at North Dakota State University in the most recent year we have data available. Students who graduate with their degree from the engineering program state that they receive average early career wages of $63,136.

More information about a degree in engineering from North Dakota State University - Main Campus

10
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
419 Engineering Degrees Awarded
10.0% Growth in Graduates

SD Mines is a small public school located in the city of Rapid City.

There were approximately 419 engineering students who graduated with this degree at SD Mines in the most recent year we have data available. After graduation, engineering degree recipients generally earn about $61,253 at the beginning of their careers.

More information about a degree in engineering from South Dakota School of Mines and Technology

Best Engineering Colleges by State

Explore the best engineering schools for a specific state in the Plains States Region .

StateCollegesDegrees Awarded
Kansas381,559
Minnesota382,318
Iowa382,595
South Dakota38546
Missouri383,001
Nebraska36698
North Dakota35785

View All Rankings >

Engineering Majors to Study

MajorAnnual Graduates
Mechanical Engineering2,877
Civil Engineering1,355
Electrical Engineering1,111
Computer Engineering1,012
Chemical Engineering799
Industrial Engineering637
Biomedical Engineering627
General Engineering566
Aerospace & Aeronautical Engineering562
Agricultural Engineering261

View All Engineering Related Majors >

Notes and References

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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