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2023 Best Mechanical Engineering Bachelor's Degree Schools in the Southeast Region

63 Colleges in the Southeast Region
8,016 Bachelor's Degrees
$63,385 Avg Early-Career Salary
If you pursue a bachelor's degree in mechanical engineering, you won't be alone. The field of study is the #17 most popular program in the country. This makes choosing the right school a hard decision.

College Factual reviewed 63 schools in the Southeast Region to determine which ones were the best for bachelor's degree seekers in the field of mechanical engineering. When you put them all together, these colleges and universities awarded 8,016 bachelor's degrees in mechanical engineering during the 2020-2021 academic year.

What's on this page: * Our Methodology

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

Best Mechanical Engineering Bachelor's Degree Schools in the Southeast Region The ME bachelor's degree program you select can have a big impact on your future. Important measures of a quality ME program can vary widely even among the top schools. When choosing a school we recommend considering some of the following factors:

Quality Overall Is Important

The overall quality of a bachelor's degree school is important to ensure a good education, not just how well they do in a particular major. To account for this we consider a college's overall Best Colleges ranking which itself looks at a host of various factors like degree completion, educational resources, student body caliber and post-graduation earnings for the school as a whole.

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

The metrics below are just some of the other metrics that we use to determine our rankings.

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

More Ways to Rank Mechanical Engineering Schools

Rankings by Location Check Out Other Locales
More ME Rankings Other Ranking Categories

Since the program you select can have a significant impact on your future, we've developed a number of rankings, including this Best Mechanical Engineering Bachelor's Degree Schools in the Southeast Region list, to help you choose the best school for you.

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 Mechanical Engineering in the Southeast Region

The following list ranks the best colleges and universities for pursuing a bachelor's degree in mechanical engineering.

10 Top Southeast Region Schools for a Bachelor's in ME

1
Duke crest
Duke University
Durham, NC
90 Annual Graduates
$71,314 Median Starting Salary
$12,485 Median Student Debt

Duke University is one of the finest schools in the United States for getting a bachelor's degree in mechanical engineering. Duke is a fairly large private not-for-profit university located in the city of Durham.

Bachelor's recipients from the mechanical engineering major at Duke University make $7,929 more than the typical college grad in this field when they enter the workforce.

More information about a bachelor’s in mechanical engineering from Duke University

2
510 Annual Graduates
$69,872 Median Starting Salary
$26,500 Median Student Debt

Georgia Institute of Technology - Main Campus is a good option for individuals interested in a bachelor's degree in mechanical engineering. Georgia Tech is a fairly large public school located in the city of Atlanta.

Those mechanical engineering students who get their bachelor's degree from Georgia Institute of Technology - Main Campus receive $6,487 more than the average ME grad.

More information about a bachelor’s in mechanical engineering from Georgia Institute of Technology - Main Campus

3
UF crest
University of Florida
Gainesville, FL
373 Annual Graduates
$67,197 Median Starting Salary
$19,250 Median Student Debt

University of Florida is a great decision for individuals pursuing a bachelor's degree in mechanical engineering. UF is a fairly large public university located in the city of Gainesville.

Mechanical Engineering bachelor's degree recipients from University of Florida get an earnings boost of approximately $3,812 above the average income of mechanical engineering majors.

More information about a bachelor’s in mechanical engineering from University of Florida

4
Virginia Tech crest
Virginia Tech
Blacksburg, VA
376 Annual Graduates
$68,574 Median Starting Salary
$24,998 Median Student Debt

It's hard to beat Virginia Tech if you wish to pursue a bachelor's degree in mechanical engineering. Virginia Tech is a fairly large public school located in the city of Blacksburg.

Bachelor's recipients from the mechanical engineering program at Virginia Tech earn $5,189 more than the standard college graduate with the same degree when they enter the workforce.

More information about a bachelor’s in mechanical engineering from Virginia Tech

5
Vanderbilt crest
Vanderbilt University
Nashville, TN
49 Annual Graduates
$69,605 Median Starting Salary
$14,000 Median Student Debt

Located in the large city of Nashville, Vanderbilt is a private not-for-profit university with a large student population.

Those mechanical engineering students who get their bachelor's degree from Vanderbilt University make $6,220 more than the typical ME grad.

More information about a bachelor’s in mechanical engineering from Vanderbilt University

6
Clemson crest
Clemson University
Clemson, SC
288 Annual Graduates
$66,398 Median Starting Salary
$22,899 Median Student Debt

Clemson is a fairly large public university located in the suburb of Clemson.

Bachelor's recipients from the mechanical engineering program at Clemson University earn $3,013 above the standard college grad in this field shortly after graduation.

More information about a bachelor’s in mechanical engineering from Clemson University

7
285 Annual Graduates
$64,232 Median Starting Salary
$23,782 Median Student Debt

Located in the large city of Raleigh, NC State is a public university with a fairly large student population.

Students who graduate with their bachelor's from the ME program state that they receive average early career income of $64,232.

More information about a bachelor’s in mechanical engineering from North Carolina State University

8
Auburn crest
Auburn University
Auburn, AL
252 Annual Graduates
$67,127 Median Starting Salary
$25,000 Median Student Debt

Located in the city of Auburn, Auburn is a public university with a very large student population.

Bachelor's recipients from the mechanical engineering program at Auburn University earn $3,742 above the standard college graduate with the same degree shortly after graduation.

More information about a bachelor’s in mechanical engineering from Auburn University

9
64 Annual Graduates
$66,820 Median Starting Salary
$23,567 Median Student Debt

Located in the small suburb of Charlottesville, University of Virginia is a public university with a fairly large student population.

Those mechanical engineering students who get their bachelor's degree from University of Virginia - Main Campus receive $3,435 more than the average ME grad.

More information about a bachelor’s in mechanical engineering from University of Virginia - Main Campus

10
155 Annual Graduates
$67,222 Median Starting Salary
$23,125 Median Student Debt

UT Knoxville is a very large public university located in the medium-sized city of Knoxville.

Those mechanical engineering students who get their bachelor's degree from The University of Tennessee - Knoxville earn $3,837 more than the typical ME graduate.

More information about a bachelor’s in mechanical engineering from The University of Tennessee - Knoxville

Honorable Mentions

Here are some additional great schools for Mechanical Engineering students in the Southeast Region that almost earned our Best Mechanical Engineering Bachelor's Degree Schools in the Southeast Region award.

Rank College Location
11 The University of Alabama Tuscaloosa, AL
12 Mississippi State University Mississippi State, MS
13 University of South Carolina - Columbia Columbia, SC
14 University of Central Florida Orlando, FL
15 Louisiana State University and Agricultural & Mechanical College Baton Rouge, LA

Best Mechanical Engineering Colleges by State

Explore the best mechanical engineering colleges for a specific state in the Southeast Region .

State Colleges Degrees Awarded
Florida 225 1,787
Georgia 224 1,106
Tennessee 220 538
North Carolina 213 703
Virginia 213 857
South Carolina 195 586
Kentucky 187 330
Alabama 184 922
Louisiana 171 441
Mississippi 169 280
Arkansas 167 274
West Virginia 147 192

View All Rankings >

Mechanical Engineering is one of 40 different types of Engineering programs to choose from.

Related Major Annual Graduates
Civil Engineering 3,589
Electrical Engineering 3,355
Computer Engineering 2,475
Chemical Engineering 2,172
Biomedical Engineering 1,854
Industrial Engineering 1,714
Aerospace & Aeronautical Engineering 1,652
General Engineering 682
Systems Engineering 358
Environmental Engineering 346

Notes and References

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