Engineering
Mechanical Engineer
Mechanical engineers design and test everything that moves — engines, machines, HVAC, robotics. One of the broadest, most versatile engineering disciplines.
Median salary
$96,000
Typical range
$65k – $140k
Job outlook
+10% (faster than average)
AI exposure
Plan a path to Mechanical Engineer
Education
Typical entry: Bachelor's degree
Plan my path to this →Typical progression
Mechanical Engineer Intern
Internship
$36,000
~4 mos to advance
Junior Mechanical Engineer
Entry / Junior
$65,000
~2 yrs to advance
Mechanical Engineer
Established
$96,000
~3 yrs to advance
Senior Mechanical Engineer
Senior
$118,000
Internships are a common on-ramp here — they speed up landing that first role and improve your odds, which is why the Safe and High-ceiling plans build one in.
Key skills
A typical day
- •Design mechanical systems
- •Build and test prototypes
- •Analyze performance
Fields of study
Mechanical Engineering
Top colleges for Engineering
Explore all- Massachusetts Institute of Technology4% admit · $124,000 grad pay
- Stanford University4% admit · $122,000 grad pay
- University of California, Berkeley11% admit · $97,000 grad pay
- Georgia Institute of Technology16% admit · $99,000 grad pay
- University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign45% admit · $80,000 grad pay
Reputation-based selection; stats shown are outcome data per school.