40 Best colleges for Optical Engineering in Ohio

Updated: March 15, 2026

Ranking by academic field

Below is a list of best universities in Ohio ranked based on their research performance in Optical Engineering. A graph of 3.37M citations received by 103K academic papers made by 40 universities in Ohio 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. Ohio State University

Columbus

For Optical Engineering

#27 in the United States

#28 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 61%
Average SAT: 1395
Average ACT: 30
Receiving Aid: 80%

2. Case Western Reserve University

Cleveland

For Optical Engineering

#54 in the United States

#59 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 37%
Average SAT: 1485
Average ACT: 33
Net Price: $44,000

3. University of Cincinnati

Cincinnati

For Optical Engineering

#91 in the United States

#103 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 85%
Average SAT: 1265
Average ACT: 27
Receiving Aid: 88%

4. Kent State University at Kent

Kent

For Optical Engineering

#110 in the United States

#128 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 86%
Average SAT: 1125
Average ACT: 22
Receiving Aid: 97%

5. University of Akron

Akron

For Optical Engineering

#122 in the United States

#144 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 60%
Average SAT: 1045
Average ACT: 21
Receiving Aid: 97%

6. University of Dayton

Dayton

For Optical Engineering

#123 in the United States

#145 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 65%
Average SAT: 1290
Average ACT: 28
Net Price: $32,794

7. University of Toledo

Toledo

For Optical Engineering

#164 in the United States

#189 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 92%
Average SAT: 1200
Average ACT: 26
Receiving Aid: 92%

8. Wright State University

Dayton

For Optical Engineering

#167 in the United States

#192 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 96%
Receiving Aid: 96%
Average Aid: $8,942
Enrollment: 10,603

9. Bowling Green State University

Bowling Green

For Optical Engineering

#194 in the United States

#222 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 81%
Average SAT: 1105
Average ACT: 23
Receiving Aid: 99%

10. Miami University - Oxford

Oxford

For Optical Engineering

#197 in the United States

#225 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 75%
Average SAT: 1305
Average ACT: 28
Receiving Aid: 98%

11. Urbana University

Urbana

For Optical Engineering

#200 in the United States

#228 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 61%
Net Price: $21,774
Receiving Aid: 100%
Average Aid: $15,344

12. Air Force Institute of Technology - Graduate School of Engineering & Management

Wright-Patterson AFB

For Optical Engineering

#207 in the United States

#235 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 42%
Enrollment: 1,070
Male:Female: 81:19
Founded: 1919

13. Cleveland State University

Cleveland

For Optical Engineering

#252 in the United States

#286 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 91%
Receiving Aid: 90%
Average Aid: $9,795
Enrollment: 14,074

14. Heidelberg University

Tiffin

For Optical Engineering

#338 in the United States

#382 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 86%
Net Price: $19,447
Receiving Aid: 100%
Average Aid: $27,363

15. Oberlin College

Oberlin

For Optical Engineering

#375 in the United States

#422 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 34%
Average SAT: 1440
Average ACT: 33
Net Price: $51,624

16. Youngstown State University

Youngstown

For Optical Engineering

#394 in the United States

#441 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 84%
Average SAT: 1120
Average ACT: 22
Receiving Aid: 98%

17. Northeast Ohio Medical University

Rootstown

For Optical Engineering

#402 in the United States

#450 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 9%
Enrollment: 1,029
Male:Female: 51:49
Founded: 1973

18. Capital University

Columbus

For Optical Engineering

#430 in the United States

#479 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 70%
Average SAT: 1045
Average ACT: 22
Net Price: $22,395

19. Marietta College

Marietta

For Optical Engineering

#441 in the United States

#493 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 79%
Average SAT: 1120
Average ACT: 21
Net Price: $22,007

20. Kenyon College

Gambier

For Optical Engineering

#445 in the United States

#498 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 31%
Average SAT: 1431
Average ACT: 32
Net Price: $46,859

21. College of Wooster

Wooster

For Optical Engineering

#479 in the United States

#532 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 60%
Average SAT: 1340
Average ACT: 30
Net Price: $28,004

22. Franklin University

Columbus

For Optical Engineering

#481 in the United States

#534 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 100%
Net Price: $25,576
Receiving Aid: 96%
Average Aid: $5,166

23. Denison University

Granville

For Optical Engineering

#504 in the United States

#558 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 17%
Average SAT: 1405
Average ACT: 32
Net Price: $43,721

24. University of Rio Grande

Rio Grande

For Optical Engineering

#539 in the United States

#593 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 100%
Net Price: $24,061
Receiving Aid: 100%
Average Aid: $8,910

25. John Carroll University

University Heights

For Optical Engineering

#574 in the United States

#628 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 81%
Average SAT: 1255
Average ACT: 29
Net Price: $30,030

26. Ohio Northern University

Ada

For Optical Engineering

#609 in the United States

#665 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 74%
Average SAT: 1288
Average ACT: 27
Net Price: $25,941

27. Ohio Wesleyan University

Delaware

For Optical Engineering

#622 in the United States

#678 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 56%
Net Price: $23,006
Receiving Aid: 100%
Average Aid: $45,481

28. Xavier University

Cincinnati

For Optical Engineering

#660 in the United States

#717 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 86%
Average SAT: 1207
Average ACT: 26
Net Price: $33,623

29. Wittenberg University

Springfield

For Optical Engineering

#661 in the United States

#718 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 72%
Average SAT: 1128
Average ACT: 25
Net Price: $23,537

30. Walsh University

North Canton

For Optical Engineering

#680 in the United States

#738 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 71%
Average SAT: 1160
Average ACT: 24
Net Price: $23,933

31. Ashland University

Ashland

For Optical Engineering

#781 in the United States

#844 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 76%
Average SAT: 1122
Average ACT: 23
Net Price: $22,610

32. Baldwin Wallace University

Berea

For Optical Engineering

#797 in the United States

#860 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 76%
Average SAT: 1175
Average ACT: 26
Net Price: $27,991

33. Cedarville University

Cedarville

For Optical Engineering

#802 in the United States

#865 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 65%
Average SAT: 1245
Average ACT: 26
Net Price: $27,150

34. Union Institute & University

Cincinnati

For Optical Engineering

#883 in the United States

#948 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 100%
Net Price: $28,463
Receiving Aid: 100%
Average Aid: $3,217

35. Otterbein University

Westerville

For Optical Engineering

#957 in the United States

#1024 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 85%
Average ACT: 25
Net Price: $20,457
Receiving Aid: 100%

36. Ohio University

Athens

For Optical Engineering

#961 in the United States

#1028 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 85%
Average SAT: 1190
Average ACT: 25
Receiving Aid: 97%

37. University of Mount Union

Alliance

For Optical Engineering

#969 in the United States

#1036 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 78%
Average SAT: 1075
Average ACT: 22
Net Price: $23,616

38. University of Findlay

Findlay

For Optical Engineering

#988 in the United States

#1055 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 83%
Net Price: $27,297
Receiving Aid: 100%
Average Aid: $27,292

39. Central State University

Wilberforce

For Optical Engineering

#989 in the United States

#1056 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 99%
Receiving Aid: 99%
Average Aid: $18,654
Enrollment: 2,708

40. Antioch College

Yellow Springs

For Optical Engineering

#997 in the United States

#1064 in North America

Acceptance Rate: 89%
Net Price: $15,964
Receiving Aid: 100%
Average Aid: $33,414

Closest to Ohio states to learn Optical Engineering

State	Universities Unis	Best university country rank Best uni rank
West Virginia	7	119
Indiana	23	23
Kentucky	12	85
Pennsylvania	68	18
Virginia	30	52
Michigan	26	5
District of Columbia	8	94
Maryland	21	11
Illinois	41	8
Tennessee	26	64
North Carolina	24	32
New Jersey	18	15
New York	92	9
Wisconsin	23	16
South Carolina	15	81
Connecticut	18	29
Georgia	26	14
Missouri	18	48
Iowa	11	46
Vermont	4	148
Massachusetts	50	2
Rhode Island	6	59
Alabama	19	88
New Hampshire	8	95
Arkansas	11	114
Mississippi	10	137
Minnesota	19	25
Maine	7	183
Kansas	9	99
Louisiana	19	79
Florida	31	30
Oklahoma	11	97
Nebraska	7	83
South Dakota	7	246
North Dakota	3	193
Texas	55	13
Colorado	16	33
New Mexico	6	70
Montana	3	147
Utah	7	36
Idaho	4	166
Arizona	5	20
Puerto Rico	9	264
Nevada	3	126
Washington	17	10
Oregon	15	84
California	80	1
Alaska	3	201
Hawaii	4	124