2022 Best Value Colleges for Engineering (Income $30-$48k) in South Dakota

When it comes to choosing a college, students have a lot of options - but not all of them are good. College Factual was founded, in part, to help students make the decision as to what would be the best school for them. Our “Best Value Engineering Schools in South Dakota For Those Making $30-$48k” ranking is part of that endeavor.

In 2019-2020, 200,458 engineering students received their degree, making the major the 6th most popular in the country. In 2017-2018, engineering graduates who were awarded their degree in 2015-2017, earned an average of $64,888 and had an average of $23,564 in loans still to pay off.

Across South Dakota, there were 627 engineering graduates with average earnings and debt of $0 and $0 respectively.

This year’s “Best Value Engineering Schools in South Dakota For Those Making $30-$48k” ranking looked at 2 colleges that offer degrees in a bachelor’s in engineering. Not only do the schools that top this list have excellent engineering programs, but they also 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 engineering program at the school. Check out our ranking methodology for more information.

One Size Does Not Fit All

Since picking the right college can be one of the most important decisions of your life, we’ve developed the “Best Value Engineering Schools in South Dakota For Those Making $30-$48k” ranking, along with many other major-related rankings, to help you make that decision.

We’ve created a tool called College Combat that lets you create your own customized comparisons based on the factors that matter the most to you. Test it out when you get a chance! You may also want to bookmark the link and share it with others who are trying to make the college decision.

Best Value Engineering Schools in South Dakota For Those Making $30-$48k

The following schools top our list of the Best Best Value Engineering Schools in South Dakota For Those Making $30-$48k.

Top 2 Best Value Colleges for Engineering (Income $30-$48k) in South Dakota

#1

South Dakota State University

Brookings, South Dakota

#1 in overall quality

$16,273 Average Net Price

$42,425 Average Early-Career Earnings

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend South Dakota State University. The school came in at #1 for the Best Value Engineering Schools in South Dakota For Those Making $30-$48k. South Dakota State is a fairly large public school situated in Brookings, South Dakota. It awarded 206 ’s engineering degrees in 2019-2020.

South Dakota State also took the #1 spot in our “Best Engineering Schools in South Dakota” ranking. The yearly cost to attend South Dakota State is $16,273 for South Dakota Engineering students whose families make $30-$48k.

The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 3.8%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Read more about Engineering at South Dakota State University

#2

South Dakota School of Mines and Technology

Rapid City, South Dakota

#2 in overall quality

$16,644 Average Net Price

$62,300 Average Early-Career Earnings

Out of the 2 schools in the Best Value Engineering Schools in South Dakota For Those Making $30-$48k that were part of this year’s ranking, South Dakota School of Mines and Technology landed the #2 spot on the list. SD Mines is located in Rapid City, South Dakota and, has a small student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 413 ’s engineering degrees to qualified students.

SD Mines not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #2 on our “Best Engineering Schools in South Dakota” list. The yearly cost to attend South Dakota School of Mines and Technology is $16,644 for South Dakota Engineering students whose families make $30-$48k.

The student loan default rate at the school is 4.8%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Read more about Engineering at South Dakota School of Mines and Technology

• Best Value Colleges for Engineering (Income $30-$48k) in the Plains States Region
• Best Value Colleges for Engineering (Income $30-$48k)

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 Petty Officer 3rd Class Declan Barnes.

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