2026 Best Value Materials Engineering Schools in Ohio
[Materials Engineering](/majors/engineering/materials-engineering/) degree programs vary widely in price and payoff across the country. The best values balance affordable tuition against strong post-graduation earnings.
For its 2026 best-value ranking, College Factual looked at 5 schools to find the best return on investment for materials engineering students.
What’s on this page:
2026 Best Value Materials Engineering Schools in Ohio
If you want to know which schools deliver the best value for the materials engineering degrees they offer, see the list below.
Best Value Materials Engineering Schools
Ohio State University Main Campus tops our 2026 list of the best value materials engineering schools in Ohio. Ohio State University Main Campus is a very large public school located in the city of Columbus. Students from in state pay about $13,244 in tuition and fees, with out-of-state students paying around $40,022. Students borrow a median of $19,500 to complete the materials engineering program here. Soon after graduation, materials engineering degree recipients from Ohio State University Main Campus generally make around $70,371. Set against $19,500 in median debt, that is a healthy payoff. Ohio State University Main Campus admits about 61% of applicants.
University Of Dayton came in at #2 on our 2026 list of the best value materials engineering schools. Set in the city of Dayton, University Of Dayton is a large private not-for-profit institution. Students from in state pay about $49,140 in tuition and fees. Materials Engineering graduates carry a median of $25,033 in student loans. Early-career materials engineering graduates make about $56,077. That is a strong return on a $25,033 median debt. The acceptance rate is 65%.
Case Western Reserve University is a great value for students pursuing a degree in materials engineering, landing the #3 spot this year. Set in the city of Cleveland, Case Western Reserve University is a large private not-for-profit institution. The average in-state cost of tuition and fees is $66,608. Materials Engineering graduates carry a median of $25,106 in student loans. Early-career materials engineering graduates make about $74,459. Set against $25,106 in median debt, that is a healthy payoff. The acceptance rate is 36%.
Notes and References
The ranking above is published by College Factual (MF_RANKING_2025), 2026 edition. The methodology weighs the cost of a degree against the earnings graduates go on to achieve, drawn primarily from the U.S. Department of Education (IPEDS and College Scorecard).
Ranking method: College Major Best Value · 5 schools evaluated.
*Averages shown above reflect the top 3 ranked schools only.
- 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).
More about our data sources and methodologies.
