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Best Biomedical Engineering Schools by Graduate Salary & ROI (2026)

119 schools ranked by DegreeOutlook Score · Updated 2026

These are the top schools offering Biomedical Engineering, ranked by DegreeOutlook Score. The score combines graduate earnings, AI automation resilience, job market demand, and return on tuition investment. The average Biomedical Engineering graduate earns $63,751/yr across 119 schools.

What do Biomedical Engineering graduates do? See career paths and salaries →

Why Cal Poly’s Hands-On Approach Delivers the #1 Spot

California Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo earns its #1 rank not on prestige, but on practicality. The university’s “learn by doing” philosophy means biomedical engineering students spend significant time in labs, building and testing devices, not just studying theory. This hands-on experience makes graduates immediately valuable to employers in California's massive medical device industry, leading to a high starting salary of $81,186/yr and a powerful 24.1x return on investment.

The Florida Surprise: How Lower-Cost Schools Generate Massive ROI

The appearance of Florida International University (#7) and Florida Gulf Coast University (#8) in the top 10 is a lesson in financial efficiency. While their graduates' earnings are modest compared to the top of the list, their exceptionally low tuition costs result in the highest ROI in the top 20 (34.7x and 34.5x, respectively). These schools prove you don’t need an elite, high-cost degree to get a fantastic return, offering an accessible and affordable entry point into a lucrative career, especially for students targeting Florida's growing biotech sector.

How AI Will Reshape the Biomedical Engineer's Job

The 100% high-risk rating for AI exposure doesn't mean this career is disappearing; it means the work is changing. Routine tasks like drafting initial device schematics or performing basic data analysis will be automated. For graduates, this shifts the focus from rote technical skill to critical human judgment. Your value will be in validating an AI-generated design for a prosthetic, solving complex biological integration problems the AI can't, and making the final ethical and strategic decisions on life-saving technology.

Public Universities Dominate Through a Powerful Ecosystem

The top 20 is composed entirely of public universities for a clear reason: they provide the ideal ecosystem for biomedical engineering to thrive. As large, state-funded research institutions, they often have affiliated medical schools, large-scale engineering facilities, and a mandate to drive local economic growth in tech. This combination of interdisciplinary research, infrastructure, and industry partnership creates a powerful, and often more affordable, pipeline for students that private universities struggle to match at scale.

Programs Ranked

119

Avg Earnings

$63,751/yr

Avg DW Score

59/100

AI Risk

High

55% task exposure

All Biomedical Engineering Programs Ranked

Click any row for full AI scenario analysis, earnings projections, and career path breakdown.

#	School	DW Score	Earnings	ROI
1	California Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo San Luis Obispo, CA · Public	74 70–75	$81,186/yr	24.1x
2	Georgia Institute of Technology-Main Campus Atlanta, GA · Public	72 69–73	$74,562/yr	20.9x
3	North Carolina State University at Raleigh Raleigh, NC · Public	72 69–73	$74,016/yr	26.9x
4	University of Utah Salt Lake City, UT · Public	71 68–72	$68,783/yr	25.1x
5	University of Wisconsin-Madison Madison, WI · Public	71 68–72	$74,094/yr	20.1x
6	Purdue University-Main Campus West Lafayette, IN · Public	71 68–72	$72,749/yr	22.2x
7	Florida International University Miami, FL · Public	70 68–71	$62,254/yr	34.7x
8	Florida Gulf Coast University Fort Myers, FL · Public	70 67–71	$62,972/yr	34.5x
9	University of California-Davis Davis, CA · Public	69 66–70	$68,419/yr	16.3x
10	University of California-Irvine Irvine, CA · Public	69 67–70	$67,170/yr	18.2x
11	University of California-San Diego La Jolla, CA · Public	69 67–70	$65,045/yr	18.4x
12	University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign Champaign, IL · Public	69 66–70	$71,485/yr	15.1x
13	Indiana University-Indianapolis Indianapolis, IN · Public	69 66–70	$71,852/yr	19.2x
14	University of California-Los Angeles Los Angeles, CA · Public	68 66–69	$57,874/yr	19.8x
15	University at Buffalo Buffalo, NY · Public	68 66–69	$55,974/yr	22.2x
16	Texas A & M University-College Station College Station, TX · Public	68 66–69	$63,249/yr	18.3x
17	Arizona State University Campus Immersion Tempe, AZ · Public	67 64–67	$60,828/yr	17.4x
18	University of California-Berkeley Berkeley, CA · Public	67 64–68	$73,348/yr	14.0x
19	University of Iowa Iowa City, IA · Public	67 65–68	$58,144/yr	19.4x
20	University of Minnesota-Twin Cities Minneapolis, MN · Public	67 65–69	$76,184/yr	13.3x
21	CUNY City College New York, NY · Public	67 65–68	$56,711/yr	26.1x
22	University of Cincinnati-Main Campus Cincinnati, OH · Public	67 64–68	$72,166/yr	14.7x
23	University of Toledo Toledo, OH · Public	67 65–68	$69,711/yr	16.0x
24	University of California-Riverside Riverside, CA · Public	66 64–67	$61,342/yr	15.3x
25	University of California-Santa Cruz Santa Cruz, CA · Public	66 63–67	$55,856/yr	15.8x
26	University of Delaware Newark, DE · Public	66 64–67	$71,980/yr	13.2x
27	Binghamton University Vestal, NY · Public	66 64–67	$58,999/yr	18.5x
28	Ohio State University-Main Campus Columbus, OH · Public	66 64–67	$65,469/yr	15.9x
29	University of Rhode Island Kingston, RI · Public	66 64–67	$68,410/yr	13.2x
30	The University of Texas at Austin Austin, TX · Public	66 64–67	$56,045/yr	18.5x
31	University of Connecticut-Waterbury Campus Waterbury, CT · Public	65 63–66	$66,075/yr	12.5x
32	University of Connecticut-Avery Point Groton, CT · Public	65 63–66	$66,075/yr	12.5x
33	University of Connecticut-Stamford Stamford, CT · Public	65 63–66	$66,075/yr	12.5x
34	University of Connecticut-Hartford Campus Hartford, CT · Public	65 63–66	$66,075/yr	12.5x
35	University of Michigan-Ann Arbor Ann Arbor, MI · Public	64 61–65	$70,307/yr	11.4x
36	Michigan Technological University Houghton, MI · Public	64 62–65	$63,831/yr	11.8x
37	University of Pittsburgh-Pittsburgh Campus Pittsburgh, PA · Public	64 62–65	$67,627/yr	11.0x
38	Clemson University Clemson, SC · Public	64 62–65	$65,110/yr	12.7x
39	University of California-Merced Merced, CA · Public	64 62–65	$57,223/yr	14.7x
40	University of Connecticut Storrs, CT · Public	63 61–64	$66,075/yr	10.6x
41	University of Illinois Chicago Chicago, IL · Public	63 61–64	$55,011/yr	14.1x
42	New Jersey Institute of Technology Newark, NJ · Public	63 61–64	$63,449/yr	11.4x
43	Rutgers University-New Brunswick New Brunswick, NJ · Public	63 61–64	$62,097/yr	11.7x
44	University of Akron Main Campus Akron, OH · Public	63 61–64	$61,226/yr	14.0x
45	Oregon State University Corvallis, OR · Public	63 62–64	$48,134/yr	16.9x
46	The University of Texas at Dallas Richardson, TX · Public	63 61–64	$58,916/yr	13.2x
47	University of Virginia-Main Campus Charlottesville, VA · Public	63 61–64	$66,823/yr	10.3x
48	Oregon State University-Cascades Campus Bend, OR · Public	63 62–64	$48,134/yr	18.2x
49	University of Arkansas Fayetteville, AR · Public	62 59–63	$59,504/yr	15.6x
50	Colorado School of Mines Golden, CO · Public	62 60–63	$56,529/yr	10.9x
51	Wentworth Institute of Technology Boston, MA · Private nonprofit	62 58–63	$80,401/yr	5.3x
52	University of Pennsylvania Philadelphia, PA · Private nonprofit	62 59–63	$93,310/yr	3.6x
53	The University of Tennessee-Knoxville Knoxville, TN · Public	62 61–63	$47,261/yr	16.2x
54	University of Houston Houston, TX · Public	62 61–63	$48,329/yr	19.6x
55	University of South Carolina-Columbia Columbia, SC · Public	61 59–62	$57,311/yr	13.5x
56	Santa Clara University Santa Clara, CA · Private nonprofit	60 57–61	$73,710/yr	4.0x
57	Johns Hopkins University Baltimore, MD · Private nonprofit	60 57–61	$76,928/yr	3.7x
58	Wright State University-Main Campus Dayton, OH · Public	60 60–61	$45,570/yr	17.9x
59	University of Alabama at Birmingham Birmingham, AL · Public	59 61–60	$42,570/yr	23.2x
60	California State University-Long Beach Long Beach, CA · Public	59 56–60	$66,090/yr	22.6x
61	University of Southern California Los Angeles, CA · Private nonprofit	59 56–61	$80,508/yr	3.1x
62	Northwestern University Evanston, IL · Private nonprofit	59 57–60	$68,592/yr	3.9x
63	Worcester Polytechnic Institute Worcester, MA · Private nonprofit	59 56–60	$78,283/yr	3.3x
64	Mississippi State University Mississippi State, MS · Public	59 59–60	$45,483/yr	18.2x
65	Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute Troy, NY · Private nonprofit	59 56–60	$74,427/yr	3.5x
66	Southern California Institute of Technology Anaheim, CA · Private for-profit	59 56–60	$74,115/yr	8.1x
67	George Washington University Washington, DC · Private nonprofit	58 56–59	$69,942/yr	3.4x
68	University of Florida Gainesville, FL · Public	58 56–59	$60,524/yr	22.7x
69	Massachusetts Institute of Technology Cambridge, MA · Private nonprofit	58 55–59	$70,696/yr	3.4x
70	Rochester Institute of Technology Rochester, NY · Private nonprofit	58 55–59	$72,344/yr	3.5x
71	Duke University Durham, NC · Private nonprofit	58 56–59	$69,873/yr	3.4x
72	University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Chapel Hill, NC · Public	58 56–59	$70,561/yr	18.6x
73	Drexel University Philadelphia, PA · Private nonprofit	58 55–59	$74,860/yr	3.3x
74	Virginia Commonwealth University Richmond, VA · Public	58 56–59	$54,133/yr	10.6x
75	Louisiana State University and Agricultural & Mechanical College Baton Rouge, LA · Public	57 57–58	$44,717/yr	14.7x
76	Case Western Reserve University Cleveland, OH · Private nonprofit	57 54–58	$78,815/yr	2.9x
77	Lehigh University Bethlehem, PA · Private nonprofit	57 54–58	$72,440/yr	3.1x
78	Rice University Houston, TX · Private nonprofit	57 54–58	$88,307/yr	2.9x
79	Marquette University Milwaukee, WI · Private nonprofit	57 54–58	$73,526/yr	3.7x
80	Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology Terre Haute, IN · Private nonprofit	56 53–57	$71,714/yr	3.1x
81	Stevens Institute of Technology Hoboken, NJ · Private nonprofit	56 53–57	$73,454/yr	2.9x
82	University of Rochester Rochester, NY · Private nonprofit	56 53–57	$69,414/yr	2.9x
83	Vanderbilt University Nashville, TN · Private nonprofit	56 54–57	$63,402/yr	3.1x
84	Louisiana Tech University Ruston, LA · Public	55 53–56	$62,384/yr	14.4x
85	Boston University Boston, MA · Private nonprofit	55 53–56	$69,209/yr	2.8x
86	Stony Brook University Stony Brook, NY · Public	55 60–56	$39,035/yr	20.8x
87	Syracuse University Syracuse, NY · Private nonprofit	55 53–56	$64,660/yr	3.0x
88	North Carolina A & T State University Greensboro, NC · Public	55 53–55	$52,948/yr	18.6x
89	University of Memphis Memphis, TN · Public	55 52–56	$62,454/yr	14.1x
90	The University of Texas at San Antonio San Antonio, TX · Public	55 53–56	$60,705/yr	15.9x
91	Milwaukee School of Engineering Milwaukee, WI · Private nonprofit	55 52–56	$70,090/yr	3.4x
92	University of New Hampshire-Main Campus Durham, NH · Public	53 50–54	$76,755/yr	9.0x
93	University of Colorado Denver/Anschutz Medical Campus Denver, CO · Public	52 50–53	$55,550/yr	12.9x
94	University of Miami Coral Gables, FL · Private nonprofit	52 50–53	$67,064/yr	2.6x
95	Rowan University Glassboro, NJ · Public	52 49–53	$67,609/yr	9.8x
96	George Mason University Fairfax, VA · Public	52 50–53	$63,981/yr	10.6x
97	Wichita State University Wichita, KS · Public	51 49–52	$51,636/yr	12.8x
98	University of Maine Orono, ME · Public	51 49–52	$59,864/yr	10.9x
99	University of Massachusetts-Dartmouth North Dartmouth, MA · Public	50 47–51	$60,237/yr	8.9x
100	University of Washington-Seattle Campus Seattle, WA · Public	50 48–51	$57,062/yr	10.3x
101	Northern Illinois University Dekalb, IL · Public	49 47–50	$54,047/yr	9.6x
102	University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee Milwaukee, WI · Public	49 47–50	$50,472/yr	11.6x
103	Miami University-Oxford Oxford, OH · Public	48 46–49	$58,914/yr	7.3x
104	University of the Pacific Stockton, CA · Private nonprofit	47 44–48	$77,099/yr	2.5x
105	Trine University Angola, IN · Private nonprofit	47 45–48	$67,702/yr	3.8x
106	Lawrence Technological University Southfield, MI · Private nonprofit	45 43–46	$64,298/yr	2.8x
107	Temple University Philadelphia, PA · Public	45 43–46	$54,415/yr	5.2x
108	Widener University Chester, PA · Private nonprofit	45 43–46	$68,762/yr	2.2x
109	Brown University Providence, RI · Private nonprofit	45 43–46	$74,180/yr	1.7x
110	Illinois Institute of Technology Chicago, IL · Private nonprofit	44 43–45	$48,572/yr	2.5x
111	Washington State University Pullman, WA · Public	44 55–45	$30,778/yr	17.4x
112	Western New England University Springfield, MA · Private nonprofit	43 41–44	$58,437/yr	2.1x
113	Columbia University in the City of New York New York, NY · Private nonprofit	43 40–44	$62,895/yr	1.3x
114	Union College Schenectady, NY · Private nonprofit	43 40–44	$62,624/yr	1.4x
115	Cornell University Ithaca, NY · Private nonprofit	42 40–43	$61,397/yr	1.3x
116	Saint Louis University Saint Louis, MO · Private nonprofit	40 38–41	$56,932/yr	1.8x
117	The University of Texas at Arlington Arlington, TX · Public	39 41–40	$41,773/yr	7.9x
118	Stanford University Stanford, CA · Private nonprofit	39 37–40	$50,487/yr	1.0x
119	University of Michigan-Dearborn Dearborn, MI · Public	33 38–34	$38,593/yr	5.5x

Scores calculated using College Scorecard, BLS, and AI task-exposure data. See full methodology →

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the best school for Biomedical Engineering?

Based on our DegreeOutlook Score, California Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo ranks #1 for Biomedical Engineering with a score of 74/100 and graduate earnings of $81,186/yr.

How much do Biomedical Engineering graduates earn?

Across 119 schools, Biomedical Engineering graduates earn an average of $63,751/yr in their first year. The highest-earning program reports $93,310/yr.

Is Biomedical Engineering a good major for AI resistance?

Biomedical Engineering has an average AI task exposure of 55%, rated "High". This field has significant AI exposure. Check individual program pages for scenario analysis.