17 Best Mechanical Engineering schools in Chicago, IL

Updated: March 15, 2026

Ranking by academic field

Below is a list of best universities in Chicago ranked based on their research performance in Mechanical Engineering. A graph of 1.22M citations received by 31.6K academic papers made by 17 universities in Chicago was used to calculate publications' ratings, which then were adjusted for release dates and added to final scores.

We don't distinguish between undergraduate and graduate programs nor do we adjust for current majors offered. You can find information about granted degrees on a university page but always double-check with the university website.

1. University of Chicago

For Mechanical Engineering

#3 in Illinois

#31 in the United States

Acceptance Rate: 4%
Average SAT: 1545
Average ACT: 35
Net Price: $28,060

2. University of Illinois at Chicago

For Mechanical Engineering

#4 in Illinois

#53 in the United States

Acceptance Rate: 77%
Average SAT: 1240
Average ACT: 28
Receiving Aid: 80%

3. Illinois Institute of Technology

For Mechanical Engineering

#5 in Illinois

#121 in the United States

Acceptance Rate: 55%
Average SAT: 1310
Average ACT: 29
Net Price: $24,796

4. Loyola University Chicago

For Mechanical Engineering

#7 in Illinois

#193 in the United States

Acceptance Rate: 82%
Average SAT: 1265
Average ACT: 30
Net Price: $39,147

5. DePaul University

For Mechanical Engineering

#9 in Illinois

#228 in the United States

Acceptance Rate: 76%
Average SAT: 1235
Average ACT: 28
Net Price: $34,135

6. Saint Xavier University

For Mechanical Engineering

#13 in Illinois

#272 in the United States

Acceptance Rate: 84%
Net Price: $11,318
Receiving Aid: 100%
Average Aid: $31,985

7. Rush University

For Mechanical Engineering

#15 in Illinois

#328 in the United States

Acceptance Rate: 33%
Enrollment: 2,769
Male:Female: 21:79
Founded: 1972

8. Toyota Technological Institute at Chicago

For Mechanical Engineering

#20 in Illinois

#454 in the United States

Acceptance Rate: 10%
Enrollment: 39
Male:Female: 76:24

9. School of the Art Institute of Chicago

For Mechanical Engineering

#25 in Illinois

#543 in the United States

Acceptance Rate: 77%
Net Price: $55,631
Receiving Aid: 99%
Average Aid: $20,050

10. Northeastern Illinois University

For Mechanical Engineering

#27 in Illinois

#631 in the United States

Acceptance Rate: 75%
Receiving Aid: 90%
Average Aid: $12,876
Enrollment: 5,734

11. Roosevelt University

For Mechanical Engineering

#30 in Illinois

#718 in the United States

Acceptance Rate: 97%
Average SAT: 1035
Average ACT: 22
Net Price: $22,366

12. Lutheran School of Theology at Chicago

For Mechanical Engineering

#31 in Illinois

#754 in the United States

Enrollment: 101
Male:Female: 46:54

13. Chicago State University

For Mechanical Engineering

#33 in Illinois

#829 in the United States

Acceptance Rate: 43%
Receiving Aid: 99%
Average Aid: $18,194
Enrollment: 2,238

14. John Marshall Law School

For Mechanical Engineering

#35 in Illinois

#872 in the United States

Acceptance Rate: 52%
Founded: 1899

15. National Louis University

For Mechanical Engineering

#42 in Illinois

#973 in the United States

Acceptance Rate: 95%
Net Price: $13,150
Receiving Aid: 87%
Average Aid: $11,056

16. Columbia College Chicago

For Mechanical Engineering

#43 in Illinois

#993 in the United States

Acceptance Rate: 89%
Net Price: $29,473
Receiving Aid: 100%
Average Aid: $22,780

17. DeVry University - Illinois

For Mechanical Engineering

#44 in Illinois

#1002 in the United States

Acceptance Rate: 98%
Average SAT: 865
Average ACT: 15
Net Price: $30,889

Universities for Mechanical Engineering near Chicago

Distance, km 📏 km	University	Country rank 🏆	City
19	Northwestern University	27	Evanston, Illinois
21	NorthShore University HealthSystem School of Nurse Anesthesia	430	Evanston, Illinois
35	Purdue University Northwest	338	Hammond, Indiana
50	Rosalind Franklin University of Medicine and Science	408	North Chicago, Illinois
68	Valparaiso University	359	Valparaiso, Indiana
94	Northern Illinois University	207	DeKalb, Illinois
117	University of Notre Dame	72	Notre Dame, Indiana
122	Saint Anthony College of Nursing	346	Rockford, Illinois
131	Marquette University	179	Milwaukee, Wisconsin
133	Medical College of Wisconsin	149	Milwaukee, Wisconsin

Universities for Mechanical Engineering near Chicago

Engineering subfields in Chicago