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Chemical Engineering Degree

158 schools compared · Average earnings $72,288/yr

Students study the design and optimization of chemical processes for manufacturing pharmaceuticals, fuels, plastics, food products, and industrial chemicals at scale. Graduates typically pursue careers in oil and gas, pharmaceutical manufacturing, semiconductor fabrication, food processing, and environmental engineering. Chemical engineering consistently ranks among the highest-paying engineering disciplines at both entry and mid-career levels.

What Chemical Engineering Graduates Do

Your degree prepares you to manipulate matter at a molecular level to create valuable products. Early in your career as a chemical engineer, you might spend your days optimizing processes at a semiconductor fab, developing new polymers for a consumer goods company, or ensuring safety protocols at an oil refinery. A related path in bioengineering could have you designing artificial organs or developing new drug delivery systems.

With experience, you’ll progress from executing technical tasks to leading them. Many chemical engineers move into management, where you’ll oversee entire projects, manage budgets, and guide teams of other engineers. AI will be your partner in this work, automating routine simulations and data analysis. This won't eliminate your job, but it will change it; the focus will shift from performing calculations to interpreting AI-driven results and making critical judgments. While core chemical engineering roles see modest growth, related fields like bioengineering and university teaching are expanding more quickly, offering alternative paths for your expertise.

Schools Offering

158

Avg Grad Earnings

$72,288/yr

Avg DegreeOutlook Score

68/100

AI Automation Risk

High

54% task exposure

Common Career Paths

Where Chemical Engineering graduates typically work, ranked by salary. Salary ranges show 25th–75th percentile spread. This field has roughly 30,300 combined openings per year.

Career Path	Salary Range	Openings/yr	Growth	AI Risk
Architectural and engineering managers	$167,740 $135K$207K	14,500	+3.8%	41%
Chemical engineers	$121,860 $96K$152K	1,100	+2.6%	46%
Engineers, all other	$117,750 $86K$153K	9,300	+2.1%	46%
Bioengineers and biomedical engineers	$106,950 $87K$134K	1,300	+5.2%	59%
Engineering teachers, postsecondary	$106,120 $80K$136K	4,100	+8.1%	50%

Architectural and engineering managers

$167,740

$135K $207K

14,500 openings/yr +3.8% growth 41% AI risk

Chemical engineers

$121,860

$96K $152K

1,100 openings/yr +2.6% growth 46% AI risk

Engineers, all other

$117,750

$86K $153K

9,300 openings/yr +2.1% growth 46% AI risk

Bioengineers and biomedical engineers

$106,950

$87K $134K

1,300 openings/yr +5.2% growth 59% AI risk

Engineering teachers, postsecondary

$106,120

$80K $136K

4,100 openings/yr +8.1% growth 50% AI risk

Source: BLS Occupational Employment & Wage Statistics, May 2024. Salary range shows 25th–median–75th percentile (national).

Best Schools for Chemical Engineering

Top 20 of 158 schools ranked by DegreeOutlook Score. Click any row for full AI scenario analysis and earnings projections.

#	School	DW Score	Earnings	ROI
1	Lamar University Beaumont, TX	77 74–78	$87,284/yr	30.8x
2	University of Florida Gainesville, FL	77 74–78	$87,164/yr	40.0x
3	The University of Texas at Austin Austin, TX	76 73–77	$87,365/yr	22.7x
4	Texas A & M University-College Station College Station, TX	76 73–77	$86,176/yr	22.6x
5	University of Houston Houston, TX	76 73–77	$84,468/yr	24.5x
6	Oklahoma State University-Main Campus Stillwater, OK	76 73–77	$82,466/yr	24.9x
7	North Carolina State University at Raleigh Raleigh, NC	76 73–77	$81,492/yr	28.1x
8	Brigham Young University Provo, UT	76 73–77	$77,565/yr	41.2x
9	University of Wisconsin-Madison Madison, WI	75 72–77	$85,945/yr	21.8x
10	Georgia Institute of Technology-Main Campus Atlanta, GA	75 72–76	$85,847/yr	20.6x
11	Auburn University Auburn, AL	75 72–76	$82,217/yr	20.5x
12	University of California-Berkeley Berkeley, CA	75 72–77	$81,553/yr	20.3x
13	Purdue University-Main Campus West Lafayette, IN	75 72–76	$81,105/yr	22.8x
14	North Carolina A & T State University Greensboro, NC	75 72–76	$78,323/yr	31.3x
15	Mississippi State University Mississippi State, MS	75 72–77	$78,183/yr	25.6x
16	Kansas State University Manhattan, KS	75 72–76	$77,492/yr	23.2x
17	University of Arkansas Fayetteville, AR	75 72–76	$75,102/yr	25.0x
18	University of Maryland-College Park College Park, MD	74 71–75	$81,777/yr	19.1x
19	University of Nebraska-Lincoln Lincoln, NE	74 71–75	$79,603/yr	21.0x
20	Arizona State University Campus Immersion Tempe, AZ	74 71–76	$78,813/yr	20.2x
21	University of Oklahoma-Norman Campus Norman, OK	74 71–75	$77,751/yr	22.6x
22	Iowa State University Ames, IA	74 71–75	$76,184/yr	21.9x
23	New Mexico State University-Main Campus Las Cruces, NM	74 71–75	$75,766/yr	26.4x
24	Louisiana State University and Agricultural & Mechanical College Baton Rouge, LA	74 72–76	$74,786/yr	22.3x
25	University of Utah Salt Lake City, UT	74 71–75	$73,841/yr	24.5x
26	Stony Brook University Stony Brook, NY	74 71–75	$72,868/yr	22.8x
27	South Dakota School of Mines and Technology Rapid City, SD	74 72–75	$72,785/yr	23.6x
28	Florida State University Tallahassee, FL	74 72–76	$70,797/yr	42.4x
29	California State Polytechnic University-Pomona Pomona, CA	74 72–75	$69,009/yr	33.8x
30	University of Toledo Toledo, OH	73 70–75	$79,750/yr	18.4x
31	University of California-Santa Barbara Santa Barbara, CA	73 70–74	$79,737/yr	16.4x
32	Texas Tech University Lubbock, TX	73 71–75	$77,586/yr	19.3x
33	Ohio State University-Main Campus Columbus, OH	73 70–74	$77,455/yr	17.9x
34	University of California-Los Angeles Los Angeles, CA	73 71–75	$76,680/yr	18.1x
35	University of Idaho Moscow, ID	73 71–75	$75,915/yr	23.4x
36	University of South Carolina-Columbia Columbia, SC	73 70–74	$75,680/yr	18.7x
37	University of Iowa Iowa City, IA	73 70–74	$75,340/yr	19.7x
38	University of North Dakota Grand Forks, ND	73 70–74	$73,112/yr	20.1x
39	University of South Florida Tampa, FL	73 71–74	$70,659/yr	31.9x
40	West Virginia University Institute of Technology Beckley, WV	73 71–74	$69,875/yr	26.8x
41	Ohio University-Eastern Campus Saint Clairsville, OH	73 71–74	$67,322/yr	34.7x
42	Ohio University-Chillicothe Campus Chillicothe, OH	73 71–74	$67,322/yr	34.7x
43	Ohio University-Southern Campus Ironton, OH	73 71–74	$67,322/yr	34.7x
44	Ohio University-Lancaster Campus Lancaster, OH	73 71–74	$67,322/yr	34.7x
45	Ohio University-Zanesville Campus Zanesville, OH	73 71–74	$67,322/yr	34.7x
46	University of Virginia-Main Campus Charlottesville, VA	72 68–73	$85,772/yr	12.8x
47	Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University Blacksburg, VA	72 69–74	$82,382/yr	15.0x
48	University of Cincinnati-Main Campus Cincinnati, OH	72 69–74	$82,372/yr	16.1x
49	University of Maine Orono, ME	72 69–73	$78,838/yr	16.6x
50	University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign Champaign, IL	72 70–74	$77,440/yr	15.8x
51	Oregon State University-Cascades Campus Bend, OR	72 70–73	$71,618/yr	18.1x
52	University of South Alabama Mobile, AL	72 70–73	$71,116/yr	21.7x
53	University of Louisville Louisville, KY	72 70–73	$70,675/yr	18.1x
54	University of Colorado Boulder Boulder, CO	72 70–73	$70,359/yr	16.5x
55	West Virginia University Morgantown, WV	72 70–73	$69,875/yr	22.3x
56	The University of Alabama Tuscaloosa, AL	72 70–73	$69,809/yr	19.4x
57	University of Louisiana at Lafayette Lafayette, LA	72 70–73	$63,886/yr	23.3x
58	University of Delaware Newark, DE	71 68–72	$80,564/yr	13.7x
59	University of Michigan-Ann Arbor Ann Arbor, MI	71 68–72	$79,551/yr	13.5x
60	Michigan State University East Lansing, MI	71 68–72	$79,023/yr	14.0x
61	Missouri University of Science and Technology Rolla, MO	71 68–72	$78,369/yr	14.8x
62	University of Massachusetts-Lowell Lowell, MA	71 68–72	$77,380/yr	14.1x
63	The University of Tennessee-Knoxville Knoxville, TN	71 68–72	$76,302/yr	15.6x
64	Clemson University Clemson, SC	71 69–73	$75,951/yr	14.9x
65	University of Arizona Tucson, AZ	71 69–73	$73,479/yr	16.6x
66	University of Akron Main Campus Akron, OH	71 69–73	$71,873/yr	17.3x
67	Oregon State University Corvallis, OR	71 69–73	$71,618/yr	16.8x
68	Wayne State University Detroit, MI	71 69–73	$71,373/yr	16.6x
69	University of California-Davis Davis, CA	71 69–73	$68,337/yr	16.9x
70	University at Buffalo Buffalo, NY	71 69–72	$67,873/yr	19.5x
71	University of Washington-Seattle Campus Seattle, WA	71 69–72	$67,624/yr	18.1x
72	University of Maryland-Baltimore County Baltimore, MD	71 69–72	$66,023/yr	18.0x
73	University of Nevada-Reno Reno, NV	71 69–72	$64,039/yr	23.0x
74	University of New Mexico-Main Campus Albuquerque, NM	71 70–73	$62,907/yr	26.7x
75	Virginia Commonwealth University Richmond, VA	70 67–71	$79,721/yr	13.0x
76	Miami University-Oxford Oxford, OH	70 67–71	$77,542/yr	12.7x
77	University of Minnesota-Twin Cities Minneapolis, MN	70 68–72	$73,245/yr	14.3x
78	University of Pittsburgh-Johnstown Johnstown, PA	70 68–72	$73,072/yr	14.9x
79	University of Missouri-Columbia Columbia, MO	70 68–71	$69,950/yr	15.2x
80	Washington State University Pullman, WA	70 68–71	$69,820/yr	16.0x
81	Youngstown State University Youngstown, OH	70 68–71	$69,609/yr	18.2x
82	Colorado State University-Fort Collins Fort Collins, CO	70 68–71	$62,468/yr	17.9x
83	Montana State University Bozeman, MT	70 69–71	$62,206/yr	24.5x
84	Michigan Technological University Houghton, MI	69 66–71	$80,193/yr	11.9x
85	University of Rhode Island Kingston, RI	69 66–70	$75,406/yr	12.6x
86	University of Massachusetts-Amherst Amherst, MA	69 67–70	$72,514/yr	13.0x
87	Cleveland State University Cleveland, OH	69 67–70	$69,043/yr	15.7x
88	University of California-Riverside Riverside, CA	69 67–70	$68,245/yr	15.0x
89	CUNY City College New York, NY	69 67–70	$67,450/yr	22.4x
90	Ohio University-Main Campus Athens, OH	69 67–70	$67,322/yr	15.0x
91	University of Minnesota-Duluth Duluth, MN	69 67–70	$67,152/yr	14.9x
92	University of Kansas Lawrence, KS	69 67–70	$63,870/yr	17.5x
93	Tennessee Technological University Cookeville, TN	69 68–71	$60,300/yr	20.4x
94	Prairie View A & M University Prairie View, TX	69 68–71	$58,627/yr	19.6x
95	The University of Tennessee-Chattanooga Chattanooga, TN	69 68–71	$57,952/yr	21.0x
96	University of California-Irvine Irvine, CA	69 68–70	$57,540/yr	17.0x
97	Texas A & M University-Kingsville Kingsville, TX	69 68–71	$55,622/yr	22.4x
98	University of New Hampshire-Main Campus Durham, NH	68 66–70	$71,599/yr	12.1x
99	Rutgers University-New Brunswick New Brunswick, NJ	68 66–70	$67,777/yr	13.2x
100	University of California-San Diego La Jolla, CA	68 67–69	$59,508/yr	15.0x
101	University of Connecticut-Waterbury Campus Waterbury, CT	67 65–68	$68,025/yr	12.3x
102	University of Connecticut-Avery Point Groton, CT	67 65–68	$68,025/yr	12.3x
103	University of Connecticut-Stamford Stamford, CT	67 65–68	$68,025/yr	12.3x
104	University of Connecticut-Hartford Campus Hartford, CT	67 65–68	$68,025/yr	12.3x
105	University of Kentucky Lexington, KY	67 66–69	$65,389/yr	14.8x
106	University of Illinois Chicago Chicago, IL	67 66–68	$58,377/yr	14.8x
107	University of Pittsburgh-Pittsburgh Campus Pittsburgh, PA	66 63–67	$73,072/yr	9.8x
108	Western Michigan University Kalamazoo, MI	66 65–68	$68,632/yr	12.6x
109	University of Puerto Rico-Mayaguez Mayaguez, PR	66 67–67	$47,701/yr	37.8x
110	University of Wyoming Laramie, WY	66 67–67	$46,398/yr	30.7x
111	University of Pennsylvania Philadelphia, PA	65 62–66	$81,721/yr	4.9x
112	Colorado School of Mines Golden, CO	65 64–67	$68,318/yr	10.3x
113	University of Connecticut Storrs, CT	65 63–66	$68,025/yr	10.4x
114	New Jersey Institute of Technology Newark, NJ	65 64–67	$66,617/yr	11.0x
115	California State University-Long Beach Long Beach, CA	65 66–66	$45,164/yr	31.6x
116	Rice University Houston, TX	64 61–65	$87,830/yr	4.1x
117	University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point Stevens Point, WI	64 61–65	$84,047/yr	22.8x
118	Massachusetts Institute of Technology Cambridge, MA	64 61–65	$80,139/yr	4.2x
119	Cornell University Ithaca, NY	63 60–65	$85,578/yr	3.5x
120	University of Notre Dame Notre Dame, IN	63 60–64	$83,377/yr	3.5x
121	Northwestern University Evanston, IL	63 60–64	$80,709/yr	3.6x
122	Lehigh University Bethlehem, PA	62 59–63	$82,435/yr	3.3x
123	Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology Terre Haute, IN	62 59–64	$82,394/yr	3.7x
124	Bucknell University Lewisburg, PA	62 59–63	$80,653/yr	3.3x
125	University of Dayton Dayton, OH	62 59–64	$79,865/yr	4.2x
126	Louisiana Tech University Ruston, LA	62 59–64	$79,157/yr	18.5x
127	University of Mississippi University, MS	62 59–63	$76,685/yr	19.4x
128	Northeastern University Boston, MA	61 58–62	$81,880/yr	3.1x
129	Stevens Institute of Technology Hoboken, NJ	61 58–62	$79,339/yr	3.2x
130	Worcester Polytechnic Institute Worcester, MA	61 58–62	$78,767/yr	3.3x
131	Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute Troy, NY	61 58–63	$78,263/yr	3.3x
132	Drexel University Philadelphia, PA	61 58–62	$77,528/yr	3.3x
133	Tufts University Medford, MA	61 59–63	$75,367/yr	3.3x
134	Trine University Angola, IN	61 59–62	$72,875/yr	5.3x
135	Case Western Reserve University Cleveland, OH	60 57–61	$83,706/yr	2.8x
136	Lafayette College Easton, PA	60 57–61	$79,602/yr	2.9x
137	Vanderbilt University Nashville, TN	60 58–62	$75,639/yr	3.1x
138	Rochester Institute of Technology Rochester, NY	60 57–61	$73,984/yr	3.4x
139	Manhattan College Riverdale, NY	60 58–61	$73,333/yr	3.8x
140	Widener University Chester, PA	60 58–61	$71,160/yr	3.6x
141	Clarkson University Potsdam, NY	59 56–60	$75,887/yr	3.1x
142	Villanova University Villanova, PA	59 56–60	$72,379/yr	2.9x
143	University of Rochester Rochester, NY	59 57–60	$71,028/yr	3.1x
144	University of Southern California Los Angeles, CA	58 56–60	$68,234/yr	2.9x
145	Illinois Institute of Technology Chicago, IL	58 56–59	$64,526/yr	3.6x
146	Florida Institute of Technology Melbourne, FL	58 58–60	$53,145/yr	5.3x
147	New York University New York, NY	57 56–59	$60,392/yr	3.3x
148	Columbia University in the City of New York New York, NY	57 57–59	$55,154/yr	3.3x
149	Tuskegee University Tuskegee, AL	57 57–59	$51,473/yr	8.0x
150	New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology Socorro, NM	56 55–57	$57,215/yr	14.8x
151	University of Alabama in Huntsville Huntsville, AL	55 53–56	$60,528/yr	11.9x
152	Johns Hopkins University Baltimore, MD	55 55–57	$51,267/yr	3.4x
153	University of Tulsa Tulsa, OK	55 55–56	$47,705/yr	4.5x
154	Rowan University Glassboro, NJ	52 50–53	$61,045/yr	8.7x
155	Milwaukee School of Engineering Milwaukee, WI	51 50–52	$55,333/yr	2.9x
156	Kettering University Flint, MI	49 47–50	$71,411/yr	2.8x
157	Syracuse University Syracuse, NY	48 45–49	$72,864/yr	1.9x
158	Washington University in St Louis Saint Louis, MO	47 45–48	$69,801/yr	1.8x

Highest Earning Chemical Engineering Programs

Schools where Chemical Engineering graduates earn the most in their first year after graduation.

School	1-Year Earnings	DW Score
Rice University	$87,830/yr	64
The University of Texas at Austin	$87,365/yr	76
Lamar University	$87,284/yr	77
University of Florida	$87,164/yr	77
Texas A & M University-College Station	$86,176/yr	76
University of Wisconsin-Madison	$85,945/yr	75
Georgia Institute of Technology-Main Campus	$85,847/yr	75
University of Virginia-Main Campus	$85,772/yr	72
Cornell University	$85,578/yr	63
University of Houston	$84,468/yr	76

Best ROI for Chemical Engineering

Schools with the highest earnings-to-tuition ratio for Chemical Engineering.

School	ROI Multiple	Earnings	DW Score
Florida State University	42.4x	$70,797/yr	74
Brigham Young University	41.2x	$77,565/yr	76
University of Florida	40.0x	$87,164/yr	77
University of Puerto Rico-Mayaguez	37.8x	$47,701/yr	66
Ohio University-Eastern Campus	34.7x	$67,322/yr	73
Ohio University-Chillicothe Campus	34.7x	$67,322/yr	73
Ohio University-Southern Campus	34.7x	$67,322/yr	73
Ohio University-Lancaster Campus	34.7x	$67,322/yr	73
Ohio University-Zanesville Campus	34.7x	$67,322/yr	73
California State Polytechnic University-Pomona	33.8x	$69,009/yr	74

Want to compare two Chemical Engineering programs side by side? Use the comparison tool →

Related Majors

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Frequently Asked Questions

How much do Chemical Engineering graduates earn?

Across 158 schools, Chemical Engineering graduates earn an average of $72,288 per year in their first year after graduation. Earnings range from $45,164 to $87,830 depending on the school.

What is the AI automation risk for Chemical Engineering?

Chemical Engineering is rated "High" for AI automation risk, with an average of 54% of job tasks exposed to large language models and AI tools. This means most career tasks in this field could be augmented or replaced by AI over the next decade.

Which school has the best Chemical Engineering program?

Based on our DegreeOutlook Score (combining earnings, AI resilience, job market size, and ROI), Lamar University ranks #1 for Chemical Engineering with a score of 77/100 and graduate earnings of $87,284/yr.

What's the outlook for a Chemical Engineering degree?

On average, Chemical Engineering graduates earn 16.1x their in-state tuition over 10 years. This is a strong return on investment.

Scores use College Scorecard earnings, BLS employment projections, and AI task-exposure research. See full methodology →