Purdue Mechanical Engineering Technology (Bachelor's): Tuition, Graduate Salary, and Debt
- Bachelor's in Mechanical Engineering Related Technologies/Technicians
- Public university
- West Lafayette, IN
- About 265 graduates a year
College Scorecard June 2026 release · BLS wages May 2025
The short answer
Purdue mechanical engineering technology graduates earn more than graduates of most mechanical engineering technology programs nationally, $67,093 in their first year. Where this program stands out is debt. The typical graduate leaves with $20,500 in federal loans, less than at 88% of mechanical engineering technology programs in the country. It is one of the higher-paying mechanical engineering technology degrees in Indiana.
How it compares
Each figure is the median for graduates of the program. The Indiana and national columns are the medians across all mechanical engineering technology bachelor's programs that report the figure.
Five years out, Purdue graduates earn about the national figure and about the same as the Indiana median.
Debt and first-year pay at every Indiana mechanical engineering technology program
Programs in the upper left give graduates higher pay for less debt. Dashed lines mark the Indiana medians.
Hover over or tap a dot to see the school. Only programs that report both earnings and debt are shown.
What graduates earn over time
Pay rises about 21% between the first and fifth year.
Year 1 and year 5 figures come from different graduating classes, so the growth rate is an estimate.
Does family income change the outcome?
Graduates who received Pell Grants, which go to students from lower-income families, earned $2,343 less in their first year than other graduates. Students who expect to rely on grants should weigh this gap.
Paying back the loans
On a standard 10-year plan, the median debt means a payment of about $217 a month, or 3.9% of a graduate's typical monthly pay in the first year.
The government publishes these as ranges to protect privacy. They were measured in 2018 to 2020, partly during the pandemic pause on federal loan payments, so the forbearance share may be higher than usual. Separately, 71 parents took out Parent PLUS loans for these students, with a median of $19,294.
Where graduates work, and what the pay is worth
62% of graduates (175 of 283) were working in Indiana one year after graduating. Prices in the Lafayette area are about 7% below the national average, so a $67,093 salary here buys what about $71,811 buys in a typical US city.
Careers this field leads to
These are the jobs that the federal crosswalk from fields of study to occupations links to mechanical engineering technology, largest first. Pay is the median across all experience levels.
Automotive Service Technicians and Mechanics
$49,360Median pay in Indiana. 16,480 people work in this job in Indiana. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 5% from 2025 to 2035, with about 66,200 openings a year. Typical education to start: postsecondary nondegree award.
Mechanical Drafters
$62,820Median pay in Indiana. 1,300 people work in this job in Indiana. Nationally, jobs are projected to shrink 6% from 2025 to 2035, with about 2,900 openings a year. Typical education to start: associate's degree.
Mechanical Engineering Technologists and Technicians
$77,220Median pay in Indiana. 1,500 people work in this job in Indiana. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 1% from 2025 to 2035, with about 3,100 openings a year. Typical education to start: associate's degree.
Motorboat Mechanics and Service Technicians
$51,200Median pay in Indiana. 450 people work in this job in Indiana. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 5% from 2025 to 2035, with about 2,600 openings a year. Typical education to start: high school diploma or equivalent.
About Purdue
Mechanical Engineering Technology ranks 23rd of 70 bachelor's programs at Purdue by first-year earnings. The top three are Computer Science ($94,786), Computer Engineering ($89,965), and Electrical Engineering ($84,300).
Other mechanical engineering technology bachelor's programs near West Lafayette
Common questions
The median graduate earns $67,093 one year after graduating and $81,374 five years after. The median across mechanical engineering technology bachelor's programs in Indiana is $66,479.
The median federal loan balance is $20,500, which ranks the lowest of 5 mechanical engineering technology bachelor's programs in Indiana. That works out to about $217 a month over 10 years.
On the numbers, yes for most students. Debt equals 31% of first-year earnings, against a national median of 42%, and the share of borrowers in default two years into repayment is 5% or less.
Most do. 62% (175 of 283) were working in Indiana one year after graduating.
About this data
- Earnings and debt only include students who received federal financial aid (grants or loans).
- Earnings only count graduates who were working and not enrolled in more school. Graduates who went straight to further study are not included.
- Debt only includes federal loans. Private loans and credit cards are not counted.
- Some schools with several campuses report one combined figure for all of them. We count each of those schools once, and leave them out of Indiana comparisons when their main campus is in another state.
- Scorecard figures describe graduating classes from several years ago. BLS wages are from May 2025.
- School-level numbers like tuition, admission rate, and graduation rate are for the whole school, not the mechanical engineering technology program.
Sources
- U.S. Department of Education, College Scorecard, field of study and institution files, June 2026 release
- Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025
- Bureau of Labor Statistics, Employment Projections 2025 to 2035
- Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities, 2024
- NCES, CIP 2020 to SOC 2018 crosswalk, and IPEDS institution directory, 2024