2022 Best Value Bachelor’s Degree Colleges for Materials Engineering (Income $0-$30k) 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. Our mission at College Factual is to arm you with as much information as we can to help you make that decision. Our “Best Value Materials Engineering Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Plains States Region For Those Making $0-$30k” ranking is one tool we have developed to help in this regard.

Materials Engineering is the 150th most popular major in the country with 3,485 degrees awarded in 2019-2020. In 2017-2018, materials engineering graduates who were awarded their degree in 2015-2017, earned an average of $63,129 and had an average of $23,918 in loans still to pay off.

Across the Plains States region, there were 154 materials engineering graduates with average earnings and debt of $60,767 and $25,422 respectively. At the bachelor’s degree level specifically, there were 123 materials engineering graduates with average earnings and debt of $39,786 and $25,576 respectively.

For this year’s “Best Value Materials Engineering Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Plains States Region For Those Making $0-$30k” ranking, we looked at 3 colleges that offer a degree in materials engineering. The schools that top this list are recognized because they have great materials engineering programs and cost less that schools of similar quality.

To come up with these rankings, we looked at factors such as the cost to attend the school after aid is awarded and overall quality of the materials engineering program at the school. Check out our ranking methodology for more information.

More Ways to Rank Materials Engineering Schools

Since the program you select can have a significant impact on your future, we’ve developed a number of rankings, including this “Best Value Materials Engineering Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Plains States Region For Those Making $0-$30k” list, to help you choose the best school for you.

One of our other unique offerings is College Combat. This tool lets you build your own customized comparisons utilizing the factors that are most important to you. We encourage you to try it out and pit your favorite colleges and universities head to head! If you don’t have time right now, you can bookmark it for later.

Best Value Materials Engineering Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Plains States Region For Those Making $0-$30k

The following schools top our list of the Best Best Value Materials Engineering Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Plains States Region For Those Making $0-$30k.

Top 3 Best Value Bachelor’s Degree Colleges for Materials Engineering (Income $0-$30k) in the Plains States Region

#1

University of Minnesota - Twin Cities

Minneapolis, Minnesota

#2 in overall quality

$7,266 Average Net Price

$61,218 Average Early-Career Earnings

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend University of Minnesota - Twin Cities. The school came in at #1 for the Best Value Materials Engineering Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Plains States Region For Those Making $0-$30k. UMN Twin Cities is a large school located in Minneapolis, Minnesota that handed out 50 bachelors’s materials engineering degrees in 2019-2020.

In addition to being on our plains states region bachelor’s degree materials engineering students whose families make $0-$30k list, UMN Twin Cities has also earned the #2 rank in our “Best Materials Engineering Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region” ranking. The yearly cost to attend UMN Twin Cities is $7,266 for Plains States Region Bachelor’s Degree Materials Engineering students whose families make $0-$30k.

The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 2.2%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. With a freshman retention rate of 93%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its students.

Read full report on Materials Engineering at UMN Twin Cities

#2

Iowa State University

Ames, Iowa

#1 in overall quality

$10,054 Average Net Price

$67,101 Average Early-Career Earnings

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Iowa State University. The school came in at #2 for the Best Value Materials Engineering Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Plains States Region For Those Making $0-$30k. Iowa State is a public institution located in Ames, Iowa. The school has a large population, and it awarded 55 bachelors’s degrees in 2019-2020.

Iowa State did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #1 on our “Best Materials Engineering Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region” list. The estimated yearly cost for Iowa State is $10,054 for plains states region bachelor’s degree materials engineering students whose families make $0-$30k.

Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 89%. The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 3.3%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Full Iowa State Materials Engineering Report

#3

Winona State University

Winona, Minnesota

#3 in overall quality

$12,381 Average Net Price

$66,401 Average Early-Career Earnings

Out of the 3 schools in the Best Value Materials Engineering Schools for a Bachelor’s in the Plains States Region For Those Making $0-$30k that were part of this year’s ranking, Winona State University landed the #3 spot on the list. Winona, Minnesota is the setting for this medium-sized institution of higher learning. The public school handed out bachelors’s materials engineering degrees to 18 students in 2019-2020.

In addition to being on our plains states region bachelor’s degree materials engineering students whose families make $0-$30k list, Winona State has also earned the #3 rank in our “Best Materials Engineering Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Plains States Region” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for Winona State is $12,381 for plains states region bachelor’s degree materials engineering students whose families make $0-$30k.

The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 3.4%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Read full report on Materials Engineering at Winona State University

• Best Value Bachelor’s Degree Colleges for Materials Engineering (Income $0-$30k)

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.

Credits

• Credit for the banner image above goes to Panoramedia.

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