Engineering at University of Delaware

Drawing from national benchmarks, engineering bachelor's programs typically produce first-year earnings around $73,000—and that's where University of Delaware's program appears to land. With estimated debt of $22,875, graduates would face a debt-to-earnings ratio of 0.31, meaning they'd owe roughly four months of their first year's salary. For engineering, where strong starting salaries are the norm, this represents a manageable burden that most graduates can tackle within a few years.

The challenge here is that Delaware has only one engineering bachelor's program, so there's no in-state comparison to gauge whether UD specifically delivers on these typical outcomes. The school's 65% admission rate and above-average SAT scores (1297) suggest a reasonably selective student body, which often correlates with better career outcomes. However, without actual graduate earnings data from this specific program, you're essentially betting on UD's engineering reputation to deliver the same results as peer programs nationwide.

The practical question: can your family handle the estimated $23,000 in debt if earnings fall short of projections? Engineering degrees generally justify their cost better than most fields, but you're working with educated guesses here rather than verified outcomes from UD graduates. If your child is committed to engineering and UD offers other compelling advantages—location, culture, specific specializations—this debt level leaves room for error. Just know you're making that choice without the transparency you'd ideally want.