America's 10 Best Schools For Electrical Engineering in 2023

Ivan Farkas July 18, 2023

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Over the next decade, more than 20,000 job openings in electrical engineering will become available each year on average. Electrical engineering encompasses the various electrical processes, equipment, and innovations that make up much of modern civilization. And as electronics continue to develop, the electrical engineering field has a bright future.

The next wave of electrical engineers has the potential to uncover ways to improve technology, such as navigation systems and power generation equipment. For students interested in pursuing a career in electrical engineering, the first step is finding the right school and program.

We’ve created a guide to the 10 best schools for electrical engineering in 2023. These institutions feature global standouts, including the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), Georgia Tech, and Stanford. It’s challenging to make the top 10 list, as world-class schools like Harvard, Columbia University, and Northwestern University didn’t make the cut.

These academic institutions have catapulted students into top electrical engineering careers for over a century, including design and maintenance for power plants, aeronautics, defense, automotive, communications, transport, information systems, computer science, and more.

What Top Universities Offer

The top universities for electrical engineering offer diverse interdisciplinary programs to bring engineering advancements into various domains, such as transportation, biomedicine, and power generation.

Some of the benefits of attending one of the top 10 electrical engineering universities are:

A good student-to-faculty ratio,
In-person and remote mentorship opportunities,
Engaging workshops,
On-campus research centers,
State-of-the-art technology,
A strong personal community,
and strong faculty leadership.

Top 10 Electrical Engineering Programs

According to U.S. News & World Report, these are the top 10 electrical engineering institutions.

1. Massachusetts Institute of Technology

The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) was founded in 1861. Over the years, it has transformed computing science and led to innovations in email, GPS, solar power, microchips, and nuclear fission. Some well-known graduates include former astronaut Buzz Aldrin and former secretary general Kofi Annan.

One of America's highest-rated technological institutions, MIT's engineering admission standards are strict, with an acceptance rate of only 8%, meaning MIT hopefuls must display creativity and unconventional thinking. Tuition is full-time and $57,590 per year.

2. Georgia Institute of Technology

The Georgia Institute of Technology (Georgia Tech) is a college of engineering that hosts eight separate engineering schools; each consistently top-ranked nationwide.

Georgia Tech includes 20 specialization areas, including medical physics, industrial engineering, and aerospace, to keep humanity healthy, prosperous, and curious.

Dual-degree options allow scholars to attend prestigious international institutions in France, Germany, Korea, and China. Engineering students can pursue research and volunteer projects, and these rich learning and kinship opportunities contribute to a graduation rate of over 65%. Additionally, the percentage of women engineers nearly doubles the national average.

Tuition is $14,064 annually for in-state students and $29,140 for out-of-staters.

3. University of California, Berkeley

The University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley) is expectedly selective among the most prestigious universities, with an acceptance rate of just 9%. Advanced degrees are available in eight essential disciplines, including industrial engineering.

Unsurprisingly, the school’s faculty is full of award winners, and the students are at the forefront of forward-thinking disciplines, including artificial intelligence (AI), nanotechnology, and cyber-physical systems.

The average annual in-state tuition cost for UC Berkeley is $41,000, while out-of-state attendees pay closer to $71,000 annually. Graduates with bachelor's degrees earn a median salary of $126,367, nearly double the national average for electrical engineering bachelor's recipients.

4. Stanford University

A memorial and an educational institution, this globally regarded university realizes the Stanford family's vow "to promote the public welfare by exercising an influence on behalf of humanity and civilization."

Stanford's electrical engineering courses began in 1892, a year after the school opened, and included subjects like electrical currents, magnetism, and the design of electric generating plants.

Cutting-edge engineering in information systems, medicine, hardware-software integration, computation, and photonics have led to innovations like "e-skin," a soft, skin-like synthetic material that generates nerve-like impulses that talk to the brain.

Stanford provides a customizable, coursework-based curriculum and state-of-the-art equipment to prepare students for their professional careers. Tuition is $66,297 per year.

5. California Institute of Technology

The California Institute of Technology’s (Caltech) electrical engineering program dates back to 1910 and has since excelled in experimental and applied science. Students can earn a master of science in one year or a special electrical engineering degree — focused on aeronautics, mechanics, electrical, or civil engineering — in two years.

Students also benefit from numerous research centers and out-of-classroom groups and events. Graduates are invited back annually for events focusing on breakthroughs and applications in their fields. Previous Caltech projects include optics, molecular sensing, and photonic computing that create virtual lifeforms which evolve, reproduce, and die.

Industry and partnership programs also allow startups to engage and collaborate with students, benefitting new and aspiring professionals. The average tuition cost is $56,649.

6. University of Michigan, Ann Arbor

Founded in 1817, the University of Michigan (UMich) is one of the oldest public research universities. The institution’s curriculum is project-based and equally aimed at work and enjoyment, featuring numerous luncheons and events like bowling challenges.

Students earning a bachelor's degree in electrical engineering at UMich earn a median salary of $78,393 yearly, around $9,000 more than the national average for electrical engineering bachelor's graduates. Additionally, the acceptance rate is 20%, which is higher than many other engineering programs.

Full-time, in-state tuition is around $29,466 per year and doubled for out-of-state students.

7. University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign

The University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign has 19 top-ranked undergraduate degrees, specialties, and elective courses. Its electrical engineering-specific areas include acoustics, communication, optics, bioengineering, and more.

The school’s electrical engineering college, Grainger College of Engineering, has more than 160 corporate partners, including Microsoft, Chevron, Pepsi, Samsung, and State Farm. As an incubator and research park, it trains 650+ interns annually and engages in over 2,000 research projects annually.

The school’s engineering college graduates are notably the masterminds behind YouTube and Paypal, have spawned 150+ startups, and raised $550 million in capital and funding.

Tuition is $19,320 in-state and $36,798 out-of-state. Graduates earn an average starting annual salary of $80,296.

8. Carnegie Mellon University

Carnegie Mellon is a private research university and non-profit founded in 1900, with an electrical engineering acceptance rate of 17%. Electrical engineering majors are trained to bolster the "community, nation, and world" through "cross-disciplinary collaboration.” The university features 10 interdisciplinary programs and 30 research centers at its Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, campus.

Carnegie has a long history of engineering excellence, with two Nobel Prizes, Turing Awards, and Franklin Institute Awards. Additionally, the school continues to have National Academy of Engineering Fellows. It's no wonder that the institution has eyes toward the future, with programs in additive manufacturing, bio-fabrication, and AI-based solutions to uncover “next-generation solutions for today's industries."

Carnegie’s tuition costs $52,100 per year.

9. Purdue University, West Lafayette

Top-ranked STEM standout Purdue bridges numerous electrical engineering disciplines, including circuit theory, bioengineering, electromagnetics, energy systems, materials, and communication sciences.

Purdue graduates can be seen in nearly every major industry, including nuclear, metallurgy, chemical, aerospace, railway, petroleum, and computers and automata.

Purdue also offers a cooperative education program allowing students to obtain paid industrial experience with major manufacturers like General Motors, Rolls Royce, or Cisco Systems while completing their electrical engineering major.

Tuition to Purdue for in-state residents is around $20,000 and $39,000 for out-of-state students.

10. Cornell University

Considered by many to be the top engineering choice among the Ivy League schools, Cornell offers 20 majors and 14 minors, such as biomedical programs in chemical, earth sciences, physics, mechanics, and civil engineering. Combined with rich minors, students earn highly coveted skills to pursue aerospace, robotics, game design, and municipal infrastructure.

Cornell also has the nation's most extensive collaborative program, bringing students and faculty together and fostering multi-faceted support services and a career network.

Cornell frequently partners with other institutions, including Toyota Material Handling. This ensures students get real-world experience before graduating. In 2022, a startup founded by Cornell professors made PopSci’s yearly innovations list for its creation of 3D-printed ear transplants.

The school’s full-time in-state tuition is $10,842 a year, and $29,644 per year for out-of-state students.

Career Opportunities in Electrical Engineering

Electrical engineers design and maintain power plants, energy sources, and the infrastructure that connects people to industrial, commercial, and residential destinations.

Job Prospects in the Electrical Industry

There are various focuses for future electrical engineers, including but not limited to:

Power and Energy
Communications and Networks
Nuclear Processes
Machine Learning
Control Systems
Electromagnetics
Microelectronics
Robotics

Salary Statistics for Electrical Engineers

According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the median annual salary for electrical engineers is around $101,000 and $48.93 hourly.

Current Trends — Which Skills Are Most Important to Employers?

The electrical engineering job market is free of ever becoming obsolete. Employers seek those who display strong analytical skills, a propensity for communication, leadership qualities, technical thinking, and the ability to think out of the box to solve common or persistent problems.

Other skills, such as circuit design, data collection, and a solid schematic sense, can put prospective engineers over the top, and there are plenty of ways to bolster these skills. With some effort, study, and discipline, the results can be electrifying.

A Note on Criteria for Evaluating Electrical Engineering Schools

There are many criteria for evaluating electrical engineering schools. The U.S. News & World Report, for example, combines expert opinion and statistical indicators to curate their rankings.

Compiling the most recent list of top EE programs required consulting "statistical surveys of 2,214 programs and form reputation surveys sent to approximately 6,300 academics and 12,690 professionals.” One method involved asking program directors, deans, and long-standing faculty to judge programs in their fields. Those who work with or hire graduates from the relevant schools were also surveyed.

Two other statistics were also used: inputs and outputs. The first, inputs, gauged the impact of students and faculties on academic experience; this included factors such as admission test scores. The second, outputs, measured the graduates’ achievements proportional to their degrees; this included salaries and job availability after graduating.

Measures such as job placement success and student-faculty ratios were also considered. Each indicator was then standardized and weighed in importance, which was decided by experts in the corresponding field.