Best Schools for Civil Engineering in 2026

220 schools ranked by DegreeWorth Score · Updated 2026

These are the top schools offering Civil Engineering, ranked by DegreeWorth Score. The score combines graduate earnings, AI automation resilience, job market demand, and return on tuition investment. The average Civil Engineering graduate earns $69,097/yr across 220 schools.

Programs Ranked
220
Avg Earnings
$69,097/yr
Avg DW Score
68/100
AI Risk
High
55% task exposure

All Civil 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
77
74–78
$80,673/yr 21.9x
2 California State Polytechnic University-Pomona
Pomona, CA · Public
77
74–79
$75,758/yr 32.6x
3 California State University-Long Beach
Long Beach, CA · Public
77
74–78
$73,342/yr 34.0x
4 California State University-Los Angeles
Los Angeles, CA · Public
77
74–78
$73,178/yr 35.6x
5 University of Alaska Anchorage
Anchorage, AK · Public
76
74–78
$72,140/yr 31.7x
6 California State University-Chico
Chico, CA · Public
76
74–78
$72,350/yr 30.5x
7 California State University-Fresno
Fresno, CA · Public
76
74–77
$71,093/yr 32.4x
8 California State University-Fullerton
Fullerton, CA · Public
76
74–78
$72,606/yr 31.9x
9 California State University-Sacramento
Sacramento, CA · Public
76
74–77
$71,342/yr 30.4x
10 San Diego State University
San Diego, CA · Public
76
74–78
$73,584/yr 28.0x
11 San Francisco State University
San Francisco, CA · Public
76
74–77
$68,256/yr 32.9x
12 University of Florida
Gainesville, FL · Public
76
73–77
$72,889/yr 33.3x
13 University of Alaska Fairbanks
Fairbanks, AK · Public
75
73–77
$71,312/yr 25.7x
14 University of California-Berkeley
Berkeley, CA · Public
75
72–76
$78,142/yr 16.6x
15 University of California-Los Angeles
Los Angeles, CA · Public
75
72–76
$75,510/yr 17.6x
16 University of Central Florida
Orlando, FL · Public
75
73–76
$69,321/yr 32.9x
17 University of Houston
Houston, TX · Public
75
73–77
$74,822/yr 22.5x
18 The University of Texas at Austin
Austin, TX · Public
75
72–76
$75,153/yr 18.9x
19 Florida International University
Miami, FL · Public
74
73–76
$66,215/yr 32.5x
20 Florida State University
Tallahassee, FL · Public
74
73–76
$67,050/yr 37.1x
21 University of South Florida
Tampa, FL · Public
74
72–75
$70,047/yr 30.4x
22 Georgia Institute of Technology-Main Campus
Atlanta, GA · Public
74
72–76
$75,688/yr 18.4x
23 University of Maryland-College Park
College Park, MD · Public
74
72–76
$76,731/yr 18.7x
24 University of Nevada-Las Vegas
Las Vegas, NV · Public
74
72–76
$69,629/yr 23.2x
25 CUNY City College
New York, NY · Public
74
73–76
$67,194/yr 29.8x
26 North Carolina State University at Raleigh
Raleigh, NC · Public
74
72–75
$70,346/yr 22.9x
27 Texas A & M University-College Station
College Station, TX · Public
74
71–76
$75,793/yr 17.2x
28 Texas Tech University
Lubbock, TX · Public
74
72–76
$74,655/yr 18.4x
29 Brigham Young University
Provo, UT · Private nonprofit
74
72–75
$68,685/yr 30.8x
30 George Mason University
Fairfax, VA · Public
74
71–75
$75,822/yr 16.4x
31 University of Washington-Seattle Campus
Seattle, WA · Public
74
71–75
$73,357/yr 17.5x
32 Purdue University-Main Campus
West Lafayette, IN · Public
74
72–76
$74,369/yr 20.4x
33 University of Washington-Tacoma Campus
Tacoma, WA · Public
74
71–75
$73,357/yr 17.3x
34 Kennesaw State University
Kennesaw, GA · Public
74
72–75
$65,259/yr 36.5x
35 California State University-Northridge
Northridge, CA · Public
73
72–75
$62,768/yr 30.3x
36 University of California-Davis
Davis, CA · Public
73
71–75
$75,165/yr 15.1x
37 University of California-Irvine
Irvine, CA · Public
73
70–74
$73,835/yr 15.6x
38 University of Colorado Denver/Anschutz Medical Campus
Denver, CO · Public
73
71–75
$72,362/yr 20.0x
39 Central Connecticut State University
New Britain, CT · Public
73
71–75
$71,859/yr 17.6x
40 Florida Atlantic University
Boca Raton, FL · Public
73
72–75
$64,671/yr 40.9x
41 University of North Florida
Jacksonville, FL · Public
73
72–75
$65,622/yr 31.4x
42 University of Idaho
Moscow, ID · Public
73
71–74
$68,885/yr 21.9x
43 Iowa State University
Ames, IA · Public
73
71–75
$72,502/yr 19.5x
44 University of Nebraska at Omaha
Omaha, NE · Public
73
72–75
$68,574/yr 23.8x
45 University of Nevada-Reno
Reno, NV · Public
73
71–74
$67,379/yr 22.1x
46 North Carolina A & T State University
Greensboro, NC · Public
73
71–75
$70,474/yr 27.2x
47 University of North Carolina at Charlotte
Charlotte, NC · Public
73
71–75
$67,934/yr 26.7x
48 University of North Dakota
Grand Forks, ND · Public
73
71–75
$73,260/yr 18.8x
49 Ohio University-Eastern Campus
Saint Clairsville, OH · Public
73
71–74
$63,884/yr 31.2x
50 Ohio University-Chillicothe Campus
Chillicothe, OH · Public
73
71–74
$63,884/yr 31.2x

Methodology

Programs are ranked by DegreeWorth Score, which combines four equally weighted factors: graduate earnings (Year 1 after graduation), AI automation resilience (based on OpenAI and academic research), job market size (BLS annual openings), and earnings-to-tuition multiple (10-year projected earnings vs. 4-year tuition).

Earnings data comes from the U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard, which reports actual median earnings of graduates — not self-reported surveys.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the best school for Civil Engineering?
Based on our DegreeWorth Score, California Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo ranks #1 for Civil Engineering with a score of 77/100 and graduate earnings of $80,673/yr.
How much do Civil Engineering graduates earn?
Across 220 schools, Civil Engineering graduates earn an average of $69,097/yr in their first year. The highest-earning program reports $87,790/yr.
Is Civil Engineering a good major for AI resistance?
Civil Engineering has an average AI task exposure of 55%, rated "High". This field has significant AI exposure. Check individual program pages for scenario analysis.
Data: U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard (earnings, debt), Bureau of Labor Statistics 2024–2034 (employment projections), OpenAI GPTs-are-GPTs research (AI task exposure), Felten et al. AIOE. Last updated 2025.