Career
Mechanical Engineer
Design the physical systems in cars, aircraft, robots, HVAC, medical devices — anything that moves.
Median salary
$100K
$64K$157K
2022–2032 outlook
+10%
Faster than averageA day in the life
- 01Draft CAD models for a new component
- 02Run simulations to stress-test a design
- 03Meet with manufacturing to hand off specs
- 04Walk the shop floor to observe how parts fit together
What you'll actually do
- →Design mechanical products, devices, and systems
- →Analyze test results and modify designs
- →Oversee manufacturing and installation
Majors that lead here
Top colleges for this path
Pennsylvania State University
University Park, PA
55% acceptance
Grand Canyon University
Phoenix, AZ
78.9% acceptance
University of Washington
Seattle, WA
48% acceptance
Rutgers University
New Brunswick, NJ
66% acceptance
University of Arizona
Tucson, AZ
86.1% acceptance
Pennsylvania State University-Main Campus
University Park, PA
60.6% acceptance
Michigan State University
East Lansing, MI
84.8% acceptance
University of Alabama
Tuscaloosa, AL
80% acceptance
California State University-Fullerton
Fullerton, CA
90.5% acceptance
University of South Florida
Tampa, FL
43.2% acceptance
California State University-Long Beach
Long Beach, CA
46.3% acceptance
San Diego State University
San Diego, CA
36.2% acceptance
See how you stack up
Get your personalized match score for colleges strong in this path.