Chemical Engineering at Ohio University-Chillicothe Campus

Ohio University-Chillicothe's chemical engineering program starts graduates below the state median but shows impressive upward momentum, with earnings jumping 26% to reach $84,847 by year four. While that first-year salary of $67,322 trails behind powerhouses like Case Western and Cincinnati by $15,000-$16,000, the four-year trajectory suggests graduates are catching up rather than falling behind. At the 40th percentile among Ohio programs, this sits squarely in the middle tier—not competing with the state's flagship research universities, but delivering real engineering outcomes for a regional campus.

The debt picture makes this program more accessible than most alternatives. At $23,250, graduates carry the same median debt as the national and state averages, translating to a manageable 0.35 debt-to-earnings ratio. For context, a typical 10-year repayment would claim about 5% of that first-year salary—tight but workable for most households. The moderate sample size suggests this is a smaller but established program, not an experimental offering.

Parents should recognize this as a practical entry point into chemical engineering rather than a premium option. Your child won't match the immediate earning power of Cincinnati or Case Western graduates, but they'll avoid the steeper costs those schools often carry while still landing in a genuine engineering career. The earnings growth pattern indicates employers increasingly value these graduates' skills over time, which matters more than where you start.