2026 Best General Manufacturing Engineering Schools in Illinois

General Manufacturing Engineering degree programs prepare students for a range of careers in the field. The schools below stand out for the quality of their general manufacturing engineering programs.

For its 2026 ranking, College Factual looked at 3 schools in the United States to determine which ones were the best for general manufacturing engineering students pursuing a degree.

What’s on this page:

• Best General Manufacturing Engineering Schools in Illinois

Best Schools for General Manufacturing Engineering in Illinois

If you are not interested in a particular degree level and want to know which schools are the overall best at delivering an education for the general manufacturing engineering degrees they offer, see the list below.

Top Schools in General Manufacturing Engineering

1

Northwestern University
Evanston, IL

Doctoral Degree Highest Degree Type

16 General Manufacturing Engineering Degrees Awarded

$78,551 Median Starting Salary

Leading the list is Northwestern University, our #1 school for general manufacturing engineering. Located in the city of Evanston, Northwestern University is a very large private not-for-profit university. About 95% of students finish within six years. About 16 general manufacturing engineering degrees were awarded at Northwestern University in the most recent year. Students who receive their general manufacturing engineering degree from Northwestern University earn around $78,551 in the first couple years of their career. Students borrow a median of $16,616 to complete this degree. See the full general manufacturing engineering program report for Northwestern University

2

Bradley University
Peoria, IL

24 General Manufacturing Engineering Degrees Awarded

$67,488 Median Starting Salary

Bradley University is one of the finest schools in the country for a degree in general manufacturing engineering, ranking #2. Set in the city of Peoria, Bradley University is a moderately-sized private not-for-profit institution. Roughly 76% of students complete a degree within six years here. Bradley University awarded about 24 general manufacturing engineering degrees in the most recent data year. Graduates of the general manufacturing engineering program make about $67,488 in their early career. Typical student debt for the program is $27,000. Read more about the general manufacturing engineering program at Bradley University

Notes and References

This ranking is produced by College Factual (MF_RANKING_2025), 2026 edition. The methodology weighs graduation rate, post-graduation earnings, cost, and program quality, drawn primarily from the U.S. Department of Education (IPEDS and College Scorecard).

Ranking method: College Major Top Ranked · 3 schools evaluated.

• The Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) from the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), a branch of the U.S. Department of Education (DOE), serves as the core of our data about colleges.
• Some other college data, including much of the graduate earnings data, comes from the U.S. Department of Education’s (College Scorecard).

More about our data sources and methodologies.