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West Lafayette, IN · Mechanical engineering

Mechanical engineering at Purdue

Purdue graduates about 478 mechanical engineering majors a year, 6% of its graduating class. That puts it 11th of 332 schools we score for mechanical engineering, a standout program at 87 out of 100. Its current catalog lists 94 undergraduate courses in the field, more than 96% of the schools we've counted. Graduates in the major earn a median $103,000 four years out, 1.11× what the same major pays nationally. Research spending in the field runs about $69 million a year, a rough guide to how many labs and projects undergraduates can join.

87/100Standout#11 of 332 for mechanical engineering →
Graduates a year4786% of the class
Courses in the catalog94more than 96% of schools
Median pay 4 years out$103,0001.11× the same major nationally
Research in the field$69Ma year, NSF
Admit rate50%whole school
SAT middle 50%1200–1470whole school

Around Purdue

A shot of the Purdue University campus as seen from the top floor of Meredith So
Purdue University campus from top floor of Meredith South residence hallPhoto: Shocksingularity · CC0 · source
500px provided description: A small plane on approach to land at Purdue Universi
Flying Into The Sunset (198923043)Photo: Jesse Collins · CC BY 3.0 · source
This is a pymol view that shows the entire structure of the GDP-Mannose 4, 6-Deh
Pymol viewPhoto: Ctrob22 · CC BY-SA 4.0 · source
A rainbow over 3rd Street in West Lafayette, Indiana near the Honors College Res
Rainbow Over Third StreetPhoto: JMoga11 · CC BY-SA 4.0 · source

Where mechanical engineering happens

Buildings on campus that fit the field: Purdue Technology and Aerospace, Birck Nanotechnology Center, Convergence Center for Innovation and Collaboration (CONV), Hampton Hall of Civil Engineering (HAMP), Morgan J. Burke Boilermaker Aquatic Center, Forney Hall of Chemical Engineering (FRNY), Mechanical Engineering (ME), Agricultural and Biological Engineering (ABE), Martin C. Jischke Hall of Biomedical Engineering, ADM Agricultural Innovation Center, Potter Engineering Center (POTR), Electrical Engineering (EE).

Named buildings on the campus map: Academic 209 · Dorm 75 · Athletics 12 · Student housing 9 · Dining 4 · Arts 4.

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Nearby in the mechanical engineering ranking

  1. University of Michigan–Ann Arbor 90
  2. Tufts University 89
  3. Lehigh University 88
  4. Johns Hopkins University 88
  5. The University of Texas–Austin 87
  6. Columbia University 87
  7. Duke University 87
  8. Stanford University 87

Other strong majors at Purdue

How the score works

The score is out of 100 and compares Purdue with every school we score in mechanical engineering. It weighs the school's overall strength; how many students graduate in the major and what share of the class they are; research spending in the field (NSF); early pay against the same major nationally; how many courses the catalog lists; and test scores. 80+ is a standout program, 65+ strong, 45+ solid. Sources: US Department of Education (College Scorecard, IPEDS), NSF HERD, each school's current course catalog, OpenStreetMap and Wikimedia Commons.

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