25 Best Colleges for Chemical Engineering 2020
These are the best 25 colleges that offer a bachelor's degree in chemical engineering, based on median salary one year after graduation. Rice University is ranked #1 with a salary of $80,100. Chemical engineering majors at Rice also had the lowest median debt on the list, at $9,367. Graduates of second-ranked Texas A&M University-College Station had a median salary of $79,900.
Tuition, median salaries, and median debt were reported by the U.S. Department of Education in November 2019. View our methodology for more details about these rankings or read more about the top-ranked schools.
| School | Annual Tuition | Median Debt | Median Salary |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rice University | $54,960 | $9,367 | $80,100 |
| Texas A&M University - College Station | $40,139 | $16,285 | $79,900 |
| The University of Texas at Austin | $41,070 | $19,154 | $78,400 |
| Massachusetts Institute of Technology | $57,986 | $10,878 | $78,200 |
| Cornell University | $63,200 | $13,538 | $77,500 |
| Bucknell University | $61,746 | $27,000 | $76,200 |
| Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology | $54,602 | $27,000 | $75,900 |
| Northwestern University | $63,468 | $15,332 | $75,700 |
| Louisiana State University | $28,631 | $22,500 | $75,600 |
| University of Arkansas | $27,410 | $16,560 | $74,300 |
| Mississippi State University | $25,444 | $22,000 | $74,200 |
| Wayne State University | $31,364 | $23,714 | $73,400 |
| Auburn University | $32,960 | $23,145 | $73,100 |
| Carnegie Mellon University | $61,344 | $27,000 | $73,100 |
| Brigham Young University | $6,304 | $9,698 | $72,800 |
| Lehigh University | $59,930 | $25,244 | $72,800 |
| University of California - Berkeley | $44,467 | $12,189 | $72,700 |
| University of Michigan - Ann Arbor | $55,334 | $19,000 | $72,500 |
| Clemson University | $39,502 | $21,798 | $72,400 |
| University of Notre Dame | $60,301 | $19,000 | $72,200 |
| University of Louisville | $28,866 | $21,424 | $71,800 |
| Texas Tech University | $24,122 | $28,000 | $71,700 |
| Georgia Institute of Technology | $32,876 | $25,622 | $71,500 |
| University of Toledo | $21,380 | $23,540 | $71,400 |
2020 Best Colleges Highlights
Learn more about the top colleges for a Bachelor's in Chemical Engineering degree. You can also read student reviews of each school by clicking on the stars. Although student reviews were not used as a ranking factor in this list, we provide ratings and reviews so students can consider the experience of alumni in their decision-making process.
Rice University offers a Bachelor of Science in Chemical Engineering that requires 132 credit hours, including 96 to 100 credits of required courses and the balance in electives. Students may choose the breadth option for their program, or one of five specializations.
The biotechnology/bioengineering specialization focuses on understanding biological processes and their interrelationship with biotechnology. The civil and environmental engineering specialization focuses on transport processes via water or air and how to design pollution abatement systems. The materials science specialization focuses on understanding the mechanics of fluids and solids. The applied mathematics specialization focuses on mathematics and computational tools that are used for simulating and designing chemical engineering products. The sustainability/energy specialization focuses on addressing issues in the energy industry.
The breadth option offers a broader approach than the specializations and is useful for those students who may be progressing to further professional studies in medicine, law or business.
The Artie McFerrin Department of Chemical Engineering at Texas A&M University College Station is one of the largest such programs in the country. The school offers a Bachelor of Science in Chemical Engineering, and each year about 130 students graduate with this degree. They receive starting salaries of about $72,000 per year for their first job. Students who take advantage of their internship and co-op programs attain real-world industry experience prior to graduation.
All engineering students take the same curriculum in freshman year. Once a student has fulfilled the entry-level requirements, they then apply for one of the school’s 20 engineering programs, including this BS in Chemical Engineering. Chemical Engineering students develop skills and knowledge so that they can design processes and products in a variety of industries including waste abatement, semiconductor manufacturing, pharmaceuticals, and biotechnology. The curriculum includes chemistry, physics, mathematics, engineering and the social sciences with a culminating design project.
The University of Texas at Austin offers a Bachelor of Science in Chemical Engineering. Graduates of this program are ready to apply the science and engineering fundamentals learned to solve real-world problems in industry, government, and research related to processes and products that utilize molecular change.
The curriculum for the Bachelor of Science in Chemical Engineering program includes three categories of classes: lower-division courses in the major, upper-division courses in the major and other required courses. Required courses address a variety of topics and skills including independent inquiry, quantitative reasoning, ethics, global cultures, cultural diversity in the US and writing.
Because chemical engineering is such a broad area in the engineering field, each student is required to complete one or two areas of emphasis as well. These areas are process systems/product engineering, materials engineering, environmental engineering, biochemical/biomedical engineering, energy technologies, and engineering economics/business leadership.
The Massachusetts Institute of Technology offers a Bachelor of Science in Chemical Engineering that prepares students for a broad range of opportunities in the chemical engineering field. The curriculum includes required subjects such as thermodynamics, fluid mechanics and differential equations as well as social science and communications coursework. A senior capstone project is also required.
Students may choose to focus their work in one of eight concentration areas: biomedical, energy, engineering computation, environmental, manufacturing design, materials process and design, process data analytics, or society, engineering and ethics.
Graduates will be prepared to solve complex engineering problems by applying engineering and scientific principles as well as to work effectively in a professional team and to express ideas clearly in both written and verbal forms. They will be ready to work in fields such as nanotechnology, surface science, colloids/polymers, energy, and biotechnology.
Cornell University offers a Bachelor of Science in Chemical Engineering through the Robert Frederick Smith School of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering. The curriculum includes coursework to develop chemical engineering analytical tools, to analyze units of chemical processes and to design chemical processes while considering financial, safety and environmental factors. Students may choose to complete an area of emphasis, such as applied mathematics, biomedical engineering, biotechnology, chemical processes, big data analytics, economic analysis, energy, environmental quality or food science.
Graduates will be prepared to enter a variety of industries like semiconductors, pharmaceuticals, energy or pollution abatement. Career guidance is offered by both the Engineering Career Center and the Cornell University Career Services Center. From resume writing to mock interviews to career fairs, these services help students gain confidence in attaining that critical first job after graduation. Internships are available during the summer of sophomore and junior years to gain real-world experience prior to graduation.