Best Colleges for Civil Engineering (2026)

229 programs ranked by graduate earnings, acceptance rates, and outcomes — powered by federal data from the U.S. Department of Education.

229

Programs

$85,553

Avg Field Earnings

$19,900

Avg Net Price

68%

Avg Admit Rate

There are 229 accredited Civil Engineering programs across U.S. colleges and universities, with graduate earnings ranging from $56,688 to $108,548. University of California-Berkeley produces the highest-earning graduates, while the average program graduate earns $85,553 within four years of completion. Whether you're focused on maximizing earning potential or finding the best value, this data — sourced from the U.S. Department of Education — helps you compare programs side by side.

Quick Facts — Civil Engineering Programs

Highest Earning

University of California-Berkeley

$108,548field earnings

Most Selective

Columbia University in the City of New York

4%acceptance rate

Best Grad Rate

Columbia University in the City of New York

96%6-yr grad rate

Most Affordable

CUNY City College

$3,776avg net price

Top 15 Colleges for Civil Engineering by Graduate Earnings

Ranked by field-specific earnings after graduation. Public and private nonprofit only.

#	School	Location	Type	Earnings	Admit Rate	Net Price
1	University of California-Berkeley	Berkeley, CA	Public	$108,548	11%	$13,481
2	The Cooper Union for the Advancement of Science and Art	New York, NY	Private Nonprofit	$108,466	21%	$13,269
3	Columbia University in the City of New York	New York, NY	Private Nonprofit	$108,246	4%	$21,590
4	San Jose State University	San Jose, CA	Public	$106,415	85%	$13,760
5	University of Southern California	Los Angeles, CA	Private Nonprofit	$106,308	10%	$32,740
6	Santa Clara University	Santa Clara, CA	Private Nonprofit	$105,594	48%	$50,062
7	Carnegie Mellon University	Pittsburgh, PA	Private Nonprofit	$105,199	12%	$31,944
8	Loyola Marymount University	Los Angeles, CA	Private Nonprofit	$103,223	45%	$48,381
9	California Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo	San Luis Obispo, CA	Public	$101,072	31%	$16,665
10	George Washington University	Washington, DC	Private Nonprofit	$100,990	47%	$36,586
11	Northeastern University	Boston, MA	Private Nonprofit	$100,613	5%	$30,915
12	California State Polytechnic University-Pomona	Pomona, CA	Public	$97,790	75%	$11,531
13	California State University-Northridge	Northridge, CA	Public	$97,123	93%	$7,021
14	University of California-Los Angeles	Los Angeles, CA	Public	$97,092	9%	$12,548
15	University of California-Irvine	Irvine, CA	Public	$96,354	29%	$14,251

Best Value Civil Engineering Programs

Lowest net price among schools with above-median Civil Engineering graduate earnings (above $85,053).

#1 Best ValuePublic

CUNY City College

New York, NY

Net Price

$3,776

Field Earnings

$87,957

#2 Best ValuePublic

California State University-Los Angeles

Los Angeles, CA

Net Price

$3,967

Field Earnings

$94,760

#3 Best ValuePublic

University of Florida

Gainesville, FL

Net Price

$6,541

Field Earnings

$86,453

#4 Best ValuePublic

California State University-Fullerton

Fullerton, CA

Net Price

$6,555

Field Earnings

$95,854

#5 Best ValuePublic

California State University-Fresno

Fresno, CA

Net Price

$7,000

Field Earnings

$87,627

What the Data Tells Us

17 of the top 15 programs by earnings are at public universities — 8 are private nonprofits.
2The #1 program (University of California-Berkeley) pays 27% more than the average Civil Engineering program nationally.
3Average acceptance rate among Civil Engineering programs is 68% — selectivity varies widely by school.
4Best-value programs combine above-median earnings (>$85,053) with lower-than-average net prices.

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All Civil Engineering Programs

All 229 institutions offering Civil Engineering. Click column headers to sort. Includes for-profit institutions.

School	City	State	Type	Field Earnings	Admit Rate	Net Price
University of California-Berkeley	Berkeley	CA	Public	$108,548	11%	$13,481
The Cooper Union for the Advancement of Science and Art	New York	NY	Private Nonprofit	$108,466	21%	$13,269
Columbia University in the City of New York	New York	NY	Private Nonprofit	$108,246	4%	$21,590
San Jose State University	San Jose	CA	Public	$106,415	85%	$13,760
University of Southern California	Los Angeles	CA	Private Nonprofit	$106,308	10%	$32,740
Santa Clara University	Santa Clara	CA	Private Nonprofit	$105,594	48%	$50,062
Carnegie Mellon University	Pittsburgh	PA	Private Nonprofit	$105,199	12%	$31,944
Loyola Marymount University	Los Angeles	CA	Private Nonprofit	$103,223	45%	$48,381
California Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo	San Luis Obispo	CA	Public	$101,072	31%	$16,665
George Washington University	Washington	DC	Private Nonprofit	$100,990	47%	$36,586
Northeastern University	Boston	MA	Private Nonprofit	$100,613	5%	$30,915
California State Polytechnic University-Pomona	Pomona	CA	Public	$97,790	75%	$11,531
California State University-Northridge	Northridge	CA	Public	$97,123	93%	$7,021
University of California-Los Angeles	Los Angeles	CA	Public	$97,092	9%	$12,548
University of California-Irvine	Irvine	CA	Public	$96,354	29%	$14,251
University of California-Davis	Davis	CA	Public	$95,939	42%	$14,741
Manhattan University	Riverdale	NY	Private Nonprofit	$95,877	79%	$27,256
San Diego State University	San Diego	CA	Public	$95,865	36%	$15,364
California State University-Fullerton	Fullerton	CA	Public	$95,854	91%	$6,555
Bucknell University	Lewisburg	PA	Private Nonprofit	$95,693	29%	$40,766
The University of Texas at Austin	Austin	TX	Public	$95,271	27%	$19,857
University of Colorado Boulder	Boulder	CO	Public	$94,960	78%	$25,346
New York University	New York	NY	Private Nonprofit	$94,867	9%	$37,050
Rice University	Houston	TX	Private Nonprofit	$94,796	8%	$13,370
California State University-Los Angeles	Los Angeles	CA	Public	$94,760	91%	$3,967
Colorado School of Mines	Golden	CO	Public	$94,228	61%	$28,690
The College of New Jersey	Ewing	NJ	Public	$93,977	62%	$27,646
California State University-Sacramento	Sacramento	CA	Public	$93,973	94%	$9,338
George Mason University	Fairfax	VA	Public	$93,856	87%	$17,915
The Catholic University of America	Washington	DC	Private Nonprofit	$93,821	83%	$29,561
Worcester Polytechnic Institute	Worcester	MA	Private Nonprofit	$93,417	60%	$43,071
Wentworth Institute of Technology	Boston	MA	Private Nonprofit	$93,402	91%	$34,170
University of Maryland-College Park	College Park	MD	Public	$93,280	45%	$15,678
Stony Brook University	Stony Brook	NY	Public	$92,908	49%	$18,784
Milwaukee School of Engineering	Milwaukee	WI	Private Nonprofit	$92,809	59%	$22,453
Stevens Institute of Technology	Hoboken	NJ	Private Nonprofit	$92,609	48%	$41,346
California State University-Chico	Chico	CA	Public	$92,472	93%	$14,480
Texas A&M University-College Station	College Station	TX	Public	$92,433	57%	$21,315
University of Colorado Denver/Anschutz Medical Campus	Denver	CO	Public	$92,224	75%	$11,900
University of Washington-Seattle Campus	Seattle	WA	Public	$92,010	39%	$14,091
Washington State University	Pullman	WA	Public	$91,879	87%	$14,971
Lehigh University	Bethlehem	PA	Private Nonprofit	$91,856	26%	$36,931
University of California-San Diego	La Jolla	CA	Public	$91,745	27%	$12,470
University of Virginia-Main Campus	Charlottesville	VA	Public	$91,651	17%	$21,565
University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign	Champaign	IL	Public	$91,650	42%	$14,355
The University of Tennessee-Chattanooga	Chattanooga	TN	Public	$91,615	81%	$14,265
University of Arizona	Tucson	AZ	Public	$91,602	86%	$16,674
Cornell University	Ithaca	NY	Private Nonprofit	$91,242	9%	$28,690
San Francisco State University	San Francisco	CA	Public	$90,894	96%	$12,278
Purdue University-Main Campus	West Lafayette	IN	Public	$90,873	50%	$14,600
Merrimack College	North Andover	MA	Private Nonprofit	$90,714	70%	$37,927
Michigan State University	East Lansing	MI	Public	$90,650	85%	$19,680
University of the Pacific	Stockton	CA	Private Nonprofit	$90,510	71%	$25,447
University of Nevada-Las Vegas	Las Vegas	NV	Public	$90,474	96%	$10,359
California Baptist University	Riverside	CA	Private Nonprofit	$90,251	85%	$26,285
Roger Williams University	Bristol	RI	Private Nonprofit	$90,146	88%	$37,999
Texas Tech University	Lubbock	TX	Public	$89,969	73%	$19,070
Oregon State University	Corvallis	OR	Public	$89,822	77%	$19,604
University of Cincinnati-Main Campus	Cincinnati	OH	Public	$89,653	85%	$25,648
University of Houston	Houston	TX	Public	$89,653	74%	$14,276
California State University-Long Beach	Long Beach	CA	Public	$89,457	46%	$10,440
University of Portland	Portland	OR	Private Nonprofit	$89,448	89%	$28,210
Lamar University	Beaumont	TX	Public	$89,250	86%	$9,366
Arizona State University Campus Immersion	Tempe	AZ	Public	$89,233	90%	$14,967
University of Michigan-Ann Arbor	Ann Arbor	MI	Public	$89,165	16%	$13,138
University of Kansas	Lawrence	KS	Public	$89,087	93%	$18,059
Syracuse University	Syracuse	NY	Private Nonprofit	$88,996	46%	$38,793
Tufts University	Medford	MA	Private Nonprofit	$88,924	11%	$39,998
Morgan State University	Baltimore	MD	Public	$88,870	82%	$14,985
Northern Arizona University	Flagstaff	AZ	Public	$88,184	90%	$14,158
Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology	Terre Haute	IN	Private Nonprofit	$88,155	77%	$42,513
Marquette University	Milwaukee	WI	Private Nonprofit	$88,144	81%	$31,487
Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University	Blacksburg	VA	Public	$88,142	55%	$24,953
The University of Texas at Tyler	Tyler	TX	Public	$88,102	94%	$13,323
University of Massachusetts-Amherst	Amherst	MA	Public	$88,076	60%	$22,383
Colorado State University-Fort Collins	Fort Collins	CO	Public	$88,001	89%	$21,279
CUNY City College	New York	NY	Public	$87,957	60%	$3,776
Illinois Institute of Technology	Chicago	IL	Private Nonprofit	$87,884	55%	$18,425
University of Connecticut	Storrs	CT	Public	$87,883	52%	$25,097
University of North Dakota	Grand Forks	ND	Public	$87,828	77%	$18,551
University of Wisconsin-Madison	Madison	WI	Public	$87,691	45%	$17,354
The University of Alabama	Tuscaloosa	AL	Public	$87,685	77%	$22,420
University of Georgia	Athens	GA	Public	$87,684	38%	$13,936
California State University-Fresno	Fresno	CA	Public	$87,627	95%	$7,000
Rutgers University-New Brunswick	New Brunswick	NJ	Public	$87,557	58%	$24,406
New Jersey Institute of Technology	Newark	NJ	Public	$87,389	65%	$16,504
Central Connecticut State University	New Britain	CT	Public	$87,366	73%	$16,857
University of Hawaii at Manoa	Honolulu	HI	Public	$87,286	87%	$15,664
University of Delaware	Newark	DE	Public	$87,015	71%	$17,799
Gonzaga University	Spokane	WA	Private Nonprofit	$86,942	82%	$35,119
Oklahoma State University-Main Campus	Stillwater	OK	Public	$86,890	75%	$17,447
The University of Texas at Arlington	Arlington	TX	Public	$86,844	80%	$13,951
University of Alaska Fairbanks	Fairbanks	AK	Public	$86,819	N/A	$10,892
University of Central Florida	Orlando	FL	Public	$86,803	40%	$10,411
Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute	Troy	NY	Private Nonprofit	$86,794	63%	$36,228
Florida Institute of Technology	Melbourne	FL	Private Nonprofit	$86,536	58%	$35,639
University of Florida	Gainesville	FL	Public	$86,453	24%	$6,541
Western New England University	Springfield	MA	Private Nonprofit	$86,375	83%	$27,290
University of Idaho	Moscow	ID	Public	$86,310	76%	$14,831
University of Louisiana at Lafayette	Lafayette	LA	Public	$86,128	87%	$13,530
Portland State University	Portland	OR	Public	$86,084	91%	$9,552
Southern Illinois University Edwardsville	Edwardsville	IL	Public	$85,969	98%	$14,889
Utah State University	Logan	UT	Public	$85,815	92%	$14,936
University of Notre Dame	Notre Dame	IN	Private Nonprofit	$85,781	11%	$26,780
University of Alaska Anchorage	Anchorage	AK	Public	$85,650	N/A	$15,301
Louisiana State University and Agricultural & Mechanical College	Baton Rouge	LA	Public	$85,627	73%	$19,151
North Carolina State University at Raleigh	Raleigh	NC	Public	$85,568	42%	$17,303
Iowa State University	Ames	IA	Public	$85,427	89%	$18,589
University of Oklahoma-Norman Campus	Norman	OK	Public	$85,332	77%	$15,300
Saint Martin's University	Lacey	WA	Private Nonprofit	$85,276	90%	$28,119
Ohio State University-Main Campus	Columbus	OH	Public	$85,202	61%	$17,339
Georgia Institute of Technology-Main Campus	Atlanta	GA	Public	$85,133	14%	$12,116
University of Utah	Salt Lake City	UT	Public	$85,097	86%	$16,200
University of Missouri-Kansas City	Kansas City	MO	Public	$85,055	72%	$13,310
Missouri University of Science and Technology	Rolla	MO	Public	$85,053	73%	$16,298
Drexel University	Philadelphia	PA	Private Nonprofit	$84,992	79%	$38,509
Clemson University	Clemson	SC	Public	$84,873	38%	$22,253
University at Buffalo	Buffalo	NY	Public	$84,868	74%	$20,995
University of South Florida	Tampa	FL	Public	$84,789	43%	$9,812
Florida Atlantic University	Boca Raton	FL	Public	$84,778	66%	$8,752
University of Hartford	West Hartford	CT	Private Nonprofit	$84,614	96%	$30,282
Florida International University	Miami	FL	Public	$84,523	55%	$9,288
Purdue University Northwest	Hammond	IN	Public	$84,514	72%	$6,079
Florida Gulf Coast University	Fort Myers	FL	Public	$84,451	63%	$12,568
Florida State University	Tallahassee	FL	Public	$84,340	24%	$11,297
The University of Texas at San Antonio	San Antonio	TX	Public	$84,166	87%	$10,836
Wayne State University	Detroit	MI	Public	$84,157	81%	$12,766
University of South Carolina-Columbia	Columbia	SC	Public	$84,148	60%	$22,811
Prairie View A & M University	Prairie View	TX	Public	$84,082	79%	$13,570
North Dakota State University-Main Campus	Fargo	ND	Public	$83,992	95%	$15,543
Michigan Technological University	Houghton	MI	Public	$83,841	92%	$14,182
Bradley University	Peoria	IL	Private Nonprofit	$83,801	77%	$22,719
University of New Haven	West Haven	CT	Private Nonprofit	$83,798	60%	$34,192
University of Missouri-Columbia	Columbia	MO	Public	$83,684	78%	$20,268
University of Illinois Chicago	Chicago	IL	Public	$83,680	77%	$10,974
University of Dayton	Dayton	OH	Private Nonprofit	$83,460	65%	$29,533
Kansas State University	Manhattan	KS	Public	$83,453	82%	$19,406
University of Iowa	Iowa City	IA	Public	$83,350	84%	$22,531
Lawrence Technological University	Southfield	MI	Private Nonprofit	$83,291	56%	$32,918
University of North Carolina at Charlotte	Charlotte	NC	Public	$83,289	80%	$15,435
Arkansas State University	Jonesboro	AR	Public	$83,270	82%	$12,366
University of Massachusetts-Lowell	Lowell	MA	Public	$83,233	83%	$17,163
University of Wyoming	Laramie	WY	Public	$83,184	97%	$13,599
Kennesaw State University	Kennesaw	GA	Public	$83,012	69%	$15,048
Montana State University	Bozeman	MT	Public	$82,785	82%	$22,499
Vanderbilt University	Nashville	TN	Private Nonprofit	$82,744	6%	$15,846
Old Dominion University	Norfolk	VA	Public	$82,703	90%	$14,638
University of New Hampshire-Main Campus	Durham	NH	Public	$82,653	88%	$23,805
Temple University	Philadelphia	PA	Public	$82,553	80%	$28,198
University of Akron Main Campus	Akron	OH	Public	$82,547	60%	$13,946
South Dakota State University	Brookings	SD	Public	$82,486	98%	$19,841
Clarkson University	Potsdam	NY	Private Nonprofit	$82,387	77%	$30,305
University of Minnesota-Twin Cities	Minneapolis	MN	Public	$82,281	80%	$16,778
West Virginia University Institute of Technology	Beckley	WV	Public	$82,117	37%	$9,337
West Virginia University	Morgantown	WV	Public	$82,117	89%	$15,634
University of Wisconsin-Platteville	Platteville	WI	Public	$81,976	89%	$16,032
University of New Mexico-Main Campus	Albuquerque	NM	Public	$81,933	95%	$15,489
Brigham Young University	Provo	UT	Private Nonprofit	$81,928	68%	$15,564
Southern Illinois University-Carbondale	Carbondale	IL	Public	$81,888	87%	$13,297
University of Nebraska-Lincoln	Lincoln	NE	Public	$81,620	87%	$17,747
Seattle University	Seattle	WA	Private Nonprofit	$81,559	77%	$34,662
Louisiana Tech University	Ruston	LA	Public	$81,524	86%	$11,864
Boise State University	Boise	ID	Public	$81,405	87%	$21,610
Pennsylvania State University-Penn State Harrisburg	Middletown	PA	Public	$81,403	98%	$23,330
Pennsylvania State University-Main Campus	University Park	PA	Public	$81,403	61%	$32,875
University of Missouri-St Louis	Saint Louis	MO	Public	$81,305	63%	$15,071
Mississippi State University	Mississippi State	MS	Public	$81,203	78%	$17,595
University of Nevada-Reno	Reno	NV	Public	$81,201	74%	$15,927
LeTourneau University	Longview	TX	Private Nonprofit	$81,065	38%	$28,185
Citadel Military College of South Carolina	Charleston	SC	Public	$81,055	23%	$20,723
Villanova University	Villanova	PA	Private Nonprofit	$81,038	27%	$43,756
University of Kentucky	Lexington	KY	Public	$81,031	93%	$18,851
Ohio University-Main Campus	Athens	OH	Public	$81,019	85%	$21,637
The University of Tennessee-Knoxville	Knoxville	TN	Public	$80,958	42%	$18,976
University of New Orleans	New Orleans	LA	Public	$80,704	74%	$12,384
University of Louisville	Louisville	KY	Public	$80,681	79%	$17,988
South Dakota School of Mines and Technology	Rapid City	SD	Public	$80,613	80%	$20,183
University of Evansville	Evansville	IN	Private Nonprofit	$80,532	78%	$18,499
Brigham Young University-Idaho	Rexburg	ID	Private Nonprofit	$80,521	96%	$8,221
Youngstown State University	Youngstown	OH	Public	$80,437	84%	$12,767
Montana Technological University	Butte	MT	Public	$80,327	91%	$16,481
Valparaiso University	Valparaiso	IN	Private Nonprofit	$80,173	89%	$18,578
Widener University	Chester	PA	Private Nonprofit	$80,117	71%	$25,759
Case Western Reserve University	Cleveland	OH	Private Nonprofit	$79,980	37%	$41,190
University of Arkansas	Fayetteville	AR	Public	$79,929	74%	$18,209
University of Toledo	Toledo	OH	Public	$79,886	92%	$17,249
Auburn University	Auburn	AL	Public	$79,778	46%	$24,323
Ohio Northern University	Ada	OH	Private Nonprofit	$79,673	74%	$24,478
University of Memphis	Memphis	TN	Public	$79,598	72%	$12,397
University of Minnesota-Duluth	Duluth	MN	Public	$79,485	89%	$18,743
University of Rhode Island	Kingston	RI	Public	$79,457	72%	$21,440
University of Massachusetts-Dartmouth	North Dartmouth	MA	Public	$79,051	91%	$20,927
University of Maine	Orono	ME	Public	$78,989	97%	$17,510
University of Alabama in Huntsville	Huntsville	AL	Public	$78,858	69%	$18,796
Rowan University	Glassboro	NJ	Public	$78,834	78%	$22,408
Jackson State University	Jackson	MS	Public	$78,824	93%	$23,836
Trine University	Angola	IN	Private Nonprofit	$78,808	85%	$25,355
University of Nebraska at Omaha	Omaha	NE	Public	$78,663	87%	$13,441
Tennessee Technological University	Cookeville	TN	Public	$78,646	76%	$14,246
Western Michigan University	Kalamazoo	MI	Public	$78,368	85%	$15,273
University of South Alabama	Mobile	AL	Public	$78,187	71%	$17,648
University of Alabama at Birmingham	Birmingham	AL	Public	$78,054	88%	$18,749
Georgia Southern University	Statesboro	GA	Public	$78,034	88%	$15,267
Howard University	Washington	DC	Private Nonprofit	$77,997	41%	$50,539
University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee	Milwaukee	WI	Public	$77,958	91%	$15,014
University of Pittsburgh-Johnstown	Johnstown	PA	Public	$77,608	95%	$18,202
University of Pittsburgh-Pittsburgh Campus	Pittsburgh	PA	Public	$77,608	58%	$30,434
University of North Florida	Jacksonville	FL	Public	$77,498	53%	$10,154
University of Vermont	Burlington	VT	Public	$77,342	65%	$19,343
Virginia Military Institute	Lexington	VA	Public	$76,991	71%	$17,113
Oregon Institute of Technology	Klamath Falls	OR	Public	$76,642	95%	$15,706
North Carolina A & T State University	Greensboro	NC	Public	$76,508	50%	$10,846
The University of Texas at El Paso	El Paso	TX	Public	$75,882	100%	$9,403
Western Kentucky University	Bowling Green	KY	Public	$75,732	94%	$10,990
Norwich University	Northfield	VT	Private Nonprofit	$75,713	74%	$22,257
SUNY Polytechnic Institute	Utica	NY	Public	$75,078	81%	$14,164
Texas A&M University-Kingsville	Kingsville	TX	Public	$75,033	91%	$12,090
Minnesota State University-Mankato	Mankato	MN	Public	$74,989	88%	$19,139
New Mexico State University-Main Campus	Las Cruces	NM	Public	$74,115	89%	$8,889
Cleveland State University	Cleveland	OH	Public	$73,575	91%	$14,764
Quinnipiac University	Hamden	CT	Private Nonprofit	$73,064	72%	$40,675
The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley	Edinburg	TX	Public	$71,848	94%	$4,831
Texas Southern University	Houston	TX	Public	$71,595	97%	$16,590
Lafayette College	Easton	PA	Private Nonprofit	$70,391	31%	$34,433
Southern University and A & M College	Baton Rouge	LA	Public	$68,016	35%	$20,077
Universidad Politecnica de Puerto Rico	Hato Rey	PR	Private Nonprofit	$63,518	N/A	$17,540
University of Puerto Rico-Mayaguez	Mayaguez	PR	Public	$63,091	57%	$17,936
University of Mississippi	University	MS	Public	$58,112	97%	$13,314
Angelo State University	San Angelo	TX	Public	$56,688	83%	$15,091

Showing 229 of 229 schools