Chemical Engineeringat University of Kentucky
Graduates earn $65,389/yr in their first year — about 10.0% below the national Chemical Engineering average. Base-case 10-year earnings $773K; scenarios range from $679K to $804K depending on AI disruption.
What this degree looks like at University of Kentucky
First-year earnings of $65,389 track close to the $72,288 national median for Chemical Engineering programs. This is a middle-of-the-road outcome on salary alone.
The 14.6x earnings multiple means ten-year projected earnings exceed tuition cost by an order of magnitude. By pure financial math, this is a standout.
AI risk is moderate — 48% task exposure — and the 16% scenario spread suggests disruption would dent but not destroy the earnings outlook.
At $22,950 in median debt against $65,389 in first-year earnings, graduates can expect to clear their loan balance in under six months of full earnings.
At #102 out of 158 programs, University of Kentucky's financial outcomes for Chemical Engineering trail the majority of peers. The value case depends on other factors.
The five-year earnings trajectory from $65,389 to $83,438 shows 28% growth, reflecting steady but unremarkable salary progression.
Three scenarios, ten years out
Each scenario is a different assumption about how AI reshapes the career paths this major feeds into. Earnings projections stack the full 10-year cumulative trajectory; scores use the same 0–100 metric as the hero, recomputed under that scenario's assumptions.
10 year projection
Year-by-year earnings under each scenario. Base case reflects BLS growth patterns applied to University of Kentucky's starting earnings; optimistic and pessimistic adjust for AI's effect on each career path this major feeds into.
Common career destinations for this program's graduates, weighted by the school's specific occupation mix. Salary is BLS national median; AI risk is per-role task-exposure research.
Peer schools offering Chemical Engineering
How University of Kentucky stacks up against other schools offering this major.
Other top programs at University of Kentucky
Other highest-scoring programs offered at University of Kentucky, ranked by DegreeOutlook Score.
Frequently asked about Chemical Engineering at University of Kentucky
How does University of Kentucky's Chemical Engineering program score?
A score of 67/100 reflects decent absolute metrics, but University of Kentucky trails the majority of Chemical Engineering programs on relative rankings. Context matters more than the raw number.
How vulnerable is Chemical Engineering to AI automation?
AI won't 'replace' Chemical Engineering careers outright, but it is likely to reduce the number of job openings. We model 48% task exposure, which compresses field employment probability in our scenarios.