Electrical, Electronics and Communications Engineering at Illinois Institute of Technology

Illinois Institute of Technology's electrical engineering program starts graduates at $70K—about $10K below the national median and trailing all but one comparable Illinois program. That 14th percentile national ranking should catch your attention, especially since you're likely comparing IIT to state flagships.

The surprising part? Earnings jump 27% by year four to $89K, eventually exceeding the national median and climbing past most Illinois competitors except UIUC. The $25,500 debt burden, while slightly above the Illinois median, becomes quite manageable at 0.36 times first-year salary—meaning your child could theoretically pay it off in four months of gross earnings. This is fundamentally a back-loaded investment: weaker starting position, stronger mid-career trajectory.

The question is whether those initial earnings gaps matter for your situation. If your child needs to start repaying loans immediately or values a strong first job, schools like UIUC or Southern Illinois Edwardsville offer better launch points. But if they're building toward a career where year-four earnings matter more—or if IIT's Chicago location and industry connections align with their goals—the growth trajectory justifies the slower start. Just understand you're paying similar debt for below-average initial returns, banking on that later acceleration.