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2025 Best Civil Engineering Bachelor's Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region

39 Colleges in the Great Lakes Region
1,874 Bachelor's Degrees
$69,059 Avg Early-Career Salary
Ranked #35 in popularity, civil engineering is one of the most sought-after bachelor's degree programs in the nation. This makes choosing the right school a hard decision.

College Factual reviewed 39 schools in the Great Lakes Region to determine which ones were the best for bachelor's degree seekers in the field of civil engineering. When you put them all together, these colleges and universities awarded 1,874 bachelor's degrees in civil engineering during the 2021-2022 academic year.

Jump to one of the following sections: * Our Methodology

Choosing a Great Civil Engineering School for Your Bachelor's Degree

Best Civil Engineering Bachelor's Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region Your choice of civil engineering for getting your bachelor's degree school matters. This section explores some of the factors we include in our ranking and how much they vary depending on the school you select. When choosing a school we recommend considering some of the following factors:

Quality Overall Is Important

A school that excels in educating for a particular major and degree level must be a great school overall as well. To make it into this list a school must rank well in our overall Best Colleges ranking. This ranking considered factors such as graduation rates, overall graduate earnings and other educational resources to identify great colleges and universities.

Average Earnings

To determine the overall quality of a graduate school, one factor we look at is the average early-career salary of those receiving their bachelor's degree from the school. This is because one of the main reasons people pursue their bachelor's degree is to enable themselves to find better-paying positions.

Other Factors We Consider

In addition to the above, you should consider some of the following factors:

Our complete ranking methodology documents in more detail how we consider these factors to identify the best colleges for civil engineering students working on their bachelor's degree.

More Ways to Rank Civil Engineering Schools

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Since picking the right college can be one of the most important decisions of your life, we've developed the Best Civil Engineering Bachelor's Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region ranking, along with many other major-related rankings, to help you make that decision.

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. When you have some time, check it out - you may want to bookmark the link so you don't forget it.

Best Schools for Bachelor’s Students to Study Civil Engineering in the Great Lakes Region

Learn about the top ranked colleges and universities for civil engineering students seeking a a bachelor's degree.

10 Top Great Lakes Region Schools for a Bachelor's in Civil Eng

1
157 Annual Graduates
$73,397 Median Starting Salary
$40,295 Median Student Debt

University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign is one of the best schools in the country for getting a bachelor's degree in civil engineering. Located in the city of Champaign, UIUC is a public university with a fairly large student population.

Those civil engineering students who get their bachelor's degree from University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign receive $4,338 more than the average civil eng graduate.

More information about a bachelor’s in civil engineering from University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

2
16 Annual Graduates

Northwestern University is a good choice for students interested in a bachelor's degree in civil engineering. Northwestern is a very large private not-for-profit university located in the small city of Evanston.More information about a bachelor’s in civil engineering from Northwestern University

3

It's difficult to beat University of Michigan - Ann Arbor if you want to pursue a bachelor's degree in civil engineering. U-M is a very large public university located in the medium-sized city of Ann Arbor.

Soon after graduation, civil eng bachelor's recipients typically earn about $67,764 at the beginning of their careers.

More information about a bachelor’s in civil engineering from University of Michigan - Ann Arbor

4

It is hard to beat University of Notre Dame if you wish to pursue a bachelor's degree in civil engineering. Located in the large suburb of Notre Dame, Notre Dame is a private not-for-profit university with a large student population.

Civil Engineering bachelor's degree recipients from University of Notre Dame receive an earnings boost of around $5,440 over the average income of civil engineering majors.

More information about a bachelor’s in civil engineering from University of Notre Dame

5

Located in the city of Madison, UW - Madison is a public university with a fairly large student population.

Civil Engineering bachelor's degree recipients from University of Wisconsin - Madison earn a boost of around $2,187 over the typical earnings of civil engineering graduates.

More information about a bachelor’s in civil engineering from University of Wisconsin - Madison

6
136 Annual Graduates
$68,031 Median Starting Salary
$16,535 Median Student Debt

Ohio State is a very large public university located in the large city of Columbus.

Students who graduate with their bachelor's from the civil eng program state that they receive average early career earnings of $68,031.

More information about a bachelor’s in civil engineering from Ohio State University - Main Campus

7
173 Annual Graduates
$74,369 Median Starting Salary
$29,766 Median Student Debt

Purdue is a very large public university located in the small city of West Lafayette.

Those civil engineering students who get their bachelor's degree from Purdue University - Main Campus receive $5,310 more than the average civil eng graduate.

More information about a bachelor’s in civil engineering from Purdue University - Main Campus

8
77 Annual Graduates
$70,928 Median Starting Salary
$20,693 Median Student Debt

Located in the town of Houghton, Michigan Tech is a public university with a medium-sized student population.

Students who graduate with their bachelor's from the civil eng program state that they receive average early career wages of $70,928.

More information about a bachelor’s in civil engineering from Michigan Technological University

9
Michigan State crest
Michigan State University
East Lansing, MI
82 Annual Graduates
$72,048 Median Starting Salary
$60,639 Median Student Debt

Located in the small city of East Lansing, Michigan State is a public university with a fairly large student population.

Civil Engineering bachelor's degree recipients from Michigan State University receive an earnings boost of about $2,989 over the typical earnings of civil engineering graduates.

More information about a bachelor’s in civil engineering from Michigan State University

10

Case Western is a fairly large private not-for-profit university located in the large city of Cleveland.

Those civil engineering students who get their bachelor's degree from Case Western Reserve University receive $5,207 more than the average civil eng grad.

More information about a bachelor’s in civil engineering from Case Western Reserve University

Best Civil Engineering Colleges by State

Explore the best civil engineering colleges for a specific state in the Great Lakes Region .

State Colleges Degrees Awarded
Michigan 261 288
Ohio 252 571
Illinois 241 446
Indiana 235 339
Wisconsin 213 339

View All Rankings >

One of 41 majors within the Engineering area of study, Civil Engineering has other similar majors worth exploring.

Civil Eng Focus Areas

Major Annual Graduates
General Civil Engineering 1,865
Structural Engineering 5
Water Resources Engineering 4

Majors Similar to Civil Eng

Related Major Annual Graduates
Mechanical Engineering 6,198
Electrical Engineering 2,664
Computer Engineering 2,544
Chemical Engineering 1,773
Biomedical Engineering 1,354
Industrial Engineering 1,238
Aerospace & Aeronautical Engineering 889
General Engineering 475
Materials Engineering 418
Agricultural Engineering 412

Notes and References

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