How much debt do Wayne State mechanical engineering graduates have?

The median federal loan balance is $24,140, which ranks 4th lowest of 14 mechanical engineering bachelor's programs in Michigan. That works out to about $256 a month over 10 years.

Is a mechanical engineering degree from Wayne State worth it?

On the numbers, yes for most students. Debt equals 32% of first-year earnings, against a national median of 35%, and the share of borrowers in default two years into repayment is 20% or less. If the highest possible early salary is the main goal, several Michigan programs report higher pay, usually with more debt.

Wayne State Mechanical Engineering (Bachelor's): Tuition, Graduate Salary, and Debt

Q: Do Wayne State mechanical engineering graduates stay in Michigan?

Most do. 88% (87 of 99) were working in Michigan one year after graduating.

Bachelor's in Mechanical Engineering
Public university
Detroit, MI
About 61 graduates a year

College Scorecard June 2026 release · BLS wages May 2025

The short answer

Wayne State mechanical engineering graduates earn more than graduates of most mechanical engineering programs nationally, $74,457 in their first year. The typical graduate leaves with $24,140 in federal loans, close to the national median of $24,730. Several Michigan programs report higher pay.

First-year earnings$74,45775th percentile of 302 programs nationally

Earnings after 5 years$98,43432% more than year one

Median federal debt$24,1404th lowest of 14 Michigan programs

Debt-to-earnings32%Michigan median 35%, national 35%

How it compares

Each figure is the median for graduates of the program. The Michigan and national columns are the medians across all mechanical engineering bachelor's programs that report the figure.

	Wayne State	Michigan	National
Earnings, 1 year after graduating	$74,457	$76,300	$70,725
Earnings, 5 years after graduating	$98,434	$94,853	$91,554
Median federal debt at graduation	$24,140	$26,951	$24,730
Debt as share of first-year pay	32%	35%	35%
Programs compared		16	302

Five years out, Wayne State graduates earn more than the national figure and about $3,581 more than the Michigan median.

Debt and first-year pay at every Michigan mechanical engineering program

Programs in the upper left give graduates higher pay for less debt. Dashed lines mark the Michigan medians.

Wayne StateOther Michigan programs

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 32% between the first and fifth year.

Wayne State grads, year 1$74,457

Wayne State grads, year 5$98,434

All Michigan mechanical engineering grads, year 5$94,853

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 slightly more in their first year than other graduates, but borrowed more: a median of $25,799 against $19,841.

Pell Grant recipients, year 1 earnings$73,439Median debt $25,799

Other graduates, year 1 earnings$71,357Median debt $19,841

Paying back the loans

On a standard 10-year plan, the median debt means a payment of about $256 a month, or 4.1% of a graduate's typical monthly pay in the first year.

Two years into repayment (68 borrowers)	Share
Paid off in full	20–39%
Paying down the balance	40–59%
Paused payments (forbearance)	20% or less
In default	20% or less

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.

Where graduates work, and what the pay is worth

88% of graduates (87 of 99) were working in Michigan one year after graduating. Prices in the Detroit area are about the same as the national average.

Careers this field leads to

These are the jobs that the federal crosswalk from fields of study to occupations links to mechanical engineering, largest first. Pay is the median across all experience levels.

Mechanical Engineers

$104,890

Median pay in Michigan. 34,630 people work in this job in Michigan. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 11% from 2025 to 2035, with about 17,800 openings a year. Typical education to start: bachelor's degree.

Bottom 10%: $76,310Top 10%: $159,840

Cost Estimators

$77,990

Median pay in Michigan. 6,960 people work in this job in Michigan. Nationally, jobs are projected to shrink 3% from 2025 to 2035, with about 17,600 openings a year. Typical education to start: bachelor's degree.

Bottom 10%: $46,660Top 10%: $125,520

Architectural and Engineering Managers

$166,930

Median pay in Michigan. 14,820 people work in this job in Michigan. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 6% from 2025 to 2035, with about 14,900 openings a year. Typical education to start: bachelor's degree, plus 5 years or more of related work experience.

Bottom 10%: $117,490Top 10%: $218,050

Aerospace Engineers

$128,960

Median pay in Michigan. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 8% from 2025 to 2035, with about 3,800 openings a year. Typical education to start: bachelor's degree.

Bottom 10%: $76,130Top 10%: $180,160

About Wayne State

In-state tuition and fees	$15,190 / year
Out-of-state tuition and fees	$32,037 / year
Average net price after aid	$12,766 / year
Admission rate	81%
Graduation rate (within 6 years)	58%
Undergraduate students	15,587

Mechanical Engineering ranks 6th of 49 bachelor's programs at Wayne State by first-year earnings. The top three are Electrical Engineering Technology ($82,524), Electrical Engineering ($78,738), and Industrial Engineering ($77,815).

Other mechanical engineering bachelor's programs near Detroit

School	Distance	Year 1 pay	Debt
Wayne StateDetroit, MI · public		$74,457	$24,140
UM-DearbornDearborn, MI · public	9 mi	$70,688	$23,950
Lawrence Technological UniversitySouthfield, MI · private nonprofit	12 mi	$77,321	$27,000
Oakland UniversityRochester Hills, MI · public	23 mi	$78,213	$25,000
University of MichiganAnn Arbor, MI · public	34 mi	$82,823	$21,750
UM-FlintFlint, MI · public	55 mi	$74,974	$31,000
Kettering UniversityFlint, MI · private nonprofit	56 mi	$79,307	$28,000
University of ToledoToledo, OH · public	56 mi	$77,011	$17,900

Common questions

The median graduate earns $74,457 one year after graduating and $98,434 five years after. The median across mechanical engineering bachelor's programs in Michigan is $76,300.

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 Michigan 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 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

Mechanical Engineering bachelor's programs in Michigan, ranked16 programs by pay and debt Mechanical Engineering bachelor's programs in the US, ranked302 programs by pay and debt All Wayne State programs, ranked49 programs by pay and debt