27 Best Mechanical Engineering schools in North Carolina

Updated: March 02, 2025

Ranking by academic field

Below is a list of best universities in North Carolina ranked based on their research performance in Mechanical Engineering. A graph of 1.71M citations received by 53.1K academic papers made by 27 universities in North Carolina 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. Duke University

Durham

For Mechanical Engineering

#38 in the United States

#44 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 7%
Average SAT: 1540
Average ACT: 35
Net Price: $23,422

2. North Carolina State University at Raleigh

Raleigh

For Mechanical Engineering

#42 in the United States

#49 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 40%
Average SAT: 1380
Average ACT: 30
Receiving Aid: 68%

3. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

Chapel Hill

For Mechanical Engineering

#43 in the United States

#50 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 19%
Average SAT: 1450
Average ACT: 32
Receiving Aid: 58%

4. Wake Forest University

Winston-Salem

For Mechanical Engineering

#113 in the United States

#135 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 22%
Average SAT: 1450
Average ACT: 33
Net Price: $27,790

5. University of North Carolina at Charlotte

Charlotte

For Mechanical Engineering

#121 in the United States

#144 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 80%
Average SAT: 1215
Average ACT: 24
Receiving Aid: 72%

6. East Carolina University

Greenville

For Mechanical Engineering

#198 in the United States

#228 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 90%
Average SAT: 1125
Average ACT: 23
Receiving Aid: 79%

7. North Carolina A&T State University

Greensboro

For Mechanical Engineering

#241 in the United States

#274 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 46%
Average SAT: 1075
Average ACT: 19
Receiving Aid: 96%

8. University of North Carolina at Greensboro

Greensboro

For Mechanical Engineering

#245 in the United States

#278 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 90%
Average SAT: 1190
Average ACT: 25
Receiving Aid: 90%

9. Appalachian State University

Boone

For Mechanical Engineering

#301 in the United States

#340 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 89%
Average SAT: 1190
Average ACT: 24
Receiving Aid: 70%

10. University of North Carolina Wilmington

Wilmington

For Mechanical Engineering

#353 in the United States

#395 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 74%
Average SAT: 1290
Average ACT: 26
Receiving Aid: 72%

11. Western Carolina University

Cullowhee

For Mechanical Engineering

#446 in the United States

#495 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 87%
Average SAT: 1155
Average ACT: 23
Receiving Aid: 99%

12. Davidson College

Davidson

For Mechanical Engineering

#479 in the United States

#531 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 14%
Average SAT: 1435
Average ACT: 33
Net Price: $26,510

13. Elon University

Elon

For Mechanical Engineering

#488 in the United States

#541 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 67%
Average SAT: 1224
Average ACT: 26
Net Price: $41,849

14. University of North Carolina at Asheville

Asheville

For Mechanical Engineering

#588 in the United States

#645 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 94%
Average SAT: 1260
Average ACT: 26
Receiving Aid: 93%

15. University of North Carolina at Pembroke

Pembroke

For Mechanical Engineering

#611 in the United States

#670 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 92%
Receiving Aid: 88%
Average Aid: $7,008
Enrollment: 7,630

16. St. Andrews University

Laurinburg

For Mechanical Engineering

#627 in the United States

#686 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 100%
Net Price: $31,503
Receiving Aid: 98%
Average Aid: $18,206

17. Winston-Salem State University

Winston-Salem

For Mechanical Engineering

#632 in the United States

#691 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 69%
Average SAT: 935
Average ACT: 16
Receiving Aid: 96%

18. Queens University of Charlotte

Charlotte

For Mechanical Engineering

#643 in the United States

#702 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 68%
Average SAT: 1205
Average ACT: 27
Net Price: $27,178

19. North Carolina Central University

Durham

For Mechanical Engineering

#680 in the United States

#742 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 90%
Average SAT: 1040
Average ACT: 18
Receiving Aid: 96%

20. Fayetteville State University

Fayetteville

For Mechanical Engineering

#692 in the United States

#754 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 80%
Average SAT: 950
Average ACT: 18
Receiving Aid: 95%

21. Meredith College

Raleigh

For Mechanical Engineering

#744 in the United States

#808 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 75%
Average SAT: 1185
Average ACT: 27
Net Price: $23,405

22. High Point University

High Point

For Mechanical Engineering

#762 in the United States

#828 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 77%
Average SAT: 1205
Average ACT: 27
Net Price: $43,578

23. Methodist University

Fayetteville

For Mechanical Engineering

#793 in the United States

#859 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 75%
Average SAT: 1165
Average ACT: 24
Net Price: $25,786

24. Campbell University

Buies Creek

For Mechanical Engineering

#823 in the United States

#890 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 94%
Net Price: $24,517
Receiving Aid: 100%
Average Aid: $34,413

25. Piedmont International University

Winston-Salem

For Mechanical Engineering

#851 in the United States

#918 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 34%
Net Price: $19,111
Receiving Aid: 99%
Average Aid: $11,743

26. Johnson C Smith University

Charlotte

For Mechanical Engineering

#973 in the United States

#1044 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 43%
Net Price: $19,326
Receiving Aid: 100%
Average Aid: $14,883

27. Elizabeth City State University

Elizabeth City

For Mechanical Engineering

#990 in the United States

#1061 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 70%
Receiving Aid: 96%
Average Aid: $10,554
Enrollment: 2,165

Closest to North Carolina states to learn Mechanical Engineering

State	Universities Unis	Best university country rank Best uni rank
South Carolina	16	74
Virginia	28	32
West Virginia	9	105
Georgia	29	8
District of Columbia	8	107
Maryland	22	13
Kentucky	15	58
Tennessee	24	52
Ohio	38	14
Pennsylvania	72	12
Alabama	17	90
New Jersey	20	22
Indiana	24	11
Florida	33	26
Connecticut	19	28
Illinois	45	6
New York	102	9
Mississippi	7	123
Rhode Island	7	65
Massachusetts	48	1
Michigan	24	5
Arkansas	11	136
Vermont	4	150
Missouri	21	51
New Hampshire	8	108
Louisiana	16	62
Wisconsin	23	10
Iowa	10	40
Maine	8	191
Oklahoma	11	93
Kansas	9	101
Minnesota	20	19
Nebraska	7	81
Texas	58	15
South Dakota	6	304
North Dakota	4	193
Colorado	15	47
Puerto Rico	7	284
New Mexico	5	98
Montana	3	187
Utah	7	44
Arizona	5	41
Idaho	4	163
Oregon	15	84
California	87	2
Washington	19	7
Alaska	3	219
Hawaii	4	127