Mechanical Engineering at South Dakota State University

South Dakota State's mechanical engineering program delivers exactly what parents should expect from a solid state university: manageable debt and steady career progression without premium pricing. With graduates starting at $68K and reaching $78K by year four, this program lands squarely in the middle of South Dakota's mechanical engineering offerings while keeping debt well below both state and national averages.

The debt picture here is genuinely impressive—at $27,000, graduates owe roughly five months of their first-year salary. Nationally, this program ranks in just the 5th percentile for debt, meaning 95% of mechanical engineering programs leave students owing more. That's a meaningful advantage when you consider the earnings trajectory is respectable, if not spectacular. The program performs slightly below national benchmarks (31st percentile), but the tradeoff makes sense: you're getting similar outcomes to schools that might charge significantly more.

For families prioritizing affordability over prestige, this represents straightforward value. Your child won't be competing with graduates from MIT or Georgia Tech in starting salary, but they'll enter the workforce with minimal debt burden and clear upward momentum in a field with strong fundamentals. The near-certain admission (99% acceptance rate) means access is essentially guaranteed for serious applicants, which matters when you're comparing engineering programs where admission itself can be a major hurdle.