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Student engineer salary
Average student engineer salary
$71,947
Understanding the Salary of a Student Engineer
The average Student Engineer salary stands at $71,947 per year, or around $35 per hour. This salary reflects the growing demand for engineering skills in various industries, including civil, mechanical, and software engineering. Factors influencing salary include location, with states like California and Texas often offering higher wages due to the concentration of engineering firms and tech companies.
Experience plays a significant role in salary progression. Entry-level positions may start lower, but internships and co-op programs can provide valuable experience, making graduates more competitive in the job market. For instance, those with relevant internships can see starting salaries increase by as much as 10-15%.
Additionally, geographic regions with a high cost of living typically offer higher salaries. For example, student engineers in metropolitan areas may earn more than their counterparts in rural regions. To maximize your earning potential, it's advisable to seek internships that provide hands-on experience and networking opportunities. Overall, the outlook for student engineers remains positive as industries continue to evolve and expand.
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Where can a Student Engineer earn more?
Student engineer salaries by experience level
Student engineer salary estimates from across the web
Average student engineer salary by state
The highest-paying states for student engineers are Washington, West Virginia, and Massachusetts. The lowest average student engineer salary states are South Carolina, Kentucky, and Kansas.
- State view
- County view
Highest paying states for student engineers
| Rank | State | Avg. salary | Hourly rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Washington | $87,462 | $42.05 |
| 2 | Massachusetts | $82,909 | $39.86 |
| 3 | Oregon | $79,703 | $38.32 |
| 4 | Connecticut | $81,007 | $38.95 |
| 5 | District of Columbia | $84,804 | $40.77 |
| 6 | New Mexico | $78,959 | $37.96 |
| 7 | West Virginia | $85,309 | $41.01 |
| 8 | New York | $82,748 | $39.78 |
| 9 | California | $81,665 | $39.26 |
| 10 | Virginia | $78,318 | $37.65 |
| 11 | Arizona | $75,234 | $36.17 |
| 12 | Maryland | $79,678 | $38.31 |
| 13 | Maine | $79,635 | $38.29 |
| 14 | Texas | $76,210 | $36.64 |
| 15 | Michigan | $72,942 | $35.07 |
| 16 | Pennsylvania | $76,360 | $36.71 |
| 17 | Vermont | $75,130 | $36.12 |
| 18 | Minnesota | $74,802 | $35.96 |
| 19 | Illinois | $76,324 | $36.69 |
| 20 | New Jersey | $80,632 | $38.77 |
| 21 | New Hampshire | $73,581 | $35.38 |
| 22 | Alaska | $78,776 | $37.87 |
| 23 | Delaware | $73,077 | $35.13 |
| 24 | Rhode Island | $73,391 | $35.28 |
| 25 | South Dakota | $74,329 | $35.74 |
| 26 | Georgia | $74,768 | $35.95 |
| 27 | Louisiana | $75,469 | $36.28 |
| 28 | Idaho | $71,257 | $34.26 |
| 29 | Nevada | $71,670 | $34.46 |
| 30 | Colorado | $71,447 | $34.35 |
| 31 | Tennessee | $72,049 | $34.64 |
| 32 | Ohio | $70,939 | $34.11 |
| 33 | Florida | $73,818 | $35.49 |
| 34 | Hawaii | $71,315 | $34.29 |
| 35 | North Carolina | $69,430 | $33.38 |
| 36 | Wisconsin | $69,469 | $33.40 |
| 37 | Alabama | $67,373 | $32.39 |
| 38 | North Dakota | $66,592 | $32.02 |
| 39 | Utah | $66,881 | $32.15 |
| 40 | Oklahoma | $69,622 | $33.47 |
| 41 | Missouri | $70,273 | $33.79 |
| 42 | Nebraska | $67,797 | $32.59 |
| 43 | Iowa | $64,719 | $31.11 |
| 44 | Wyoming | $61,599 | $29.61 |
| 45 | Indiana | $64,257 | $30.89 |
| 46 | Montana | $64,207 | $30.87 |
| 47 | Kansas | $61,922 | $29.77 |
| 48 | South Carolina | $63,897 | $30.72 |
| 49 | Kentucky | $62,494 | $30.05 |
| 50 | Arkansas | $58,303 | $28.03 |
| 51 | Mississippi | $61,386 | $29.51 |
Highest paying cities for student engineers
The highest-paying cities for student engineers are Yakima, WA, Martinez, CA, and New York, NY.
| Rank | City | Avg. salary | Hourly rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Yakima, WA | $87,185 | $41.92 |
| 2 | Martinez, CA | $86,458 | $41.57 |
| 3 | New York, NY | $82,861 | $39.84 |
| 4 | Cambridge, MA | $82,854 | $39.83 |
| 5 | Milford, CT | $81,151 | $39.01 |
| 6 | Portland, OR | $79,694 | $38.31 |
| 7 | Newport News, VA | $78,405 | $37.69 |
| 8 | Champaign, IL | $75,039 | $36.08 |
| 9 | Atlanta, GA | $74,647 | $35.89 |
| 10 | Melbourne, FL | $73,871 | $35.51 |
| 11 | Troy, MI | $73,086 | $35.14 |
| 12 | Kingsport, TN | $72,971 | $35.08 |
| 13 | Loveland, CO | $71,516 | $34.38 |
| 14 | Columbus, OH | $70,727 | $34.00 |
| 15 | Durham, NC | $70,069 | $33.69 |
| 16 | Salt Lake City, UT | $66,718 | $32.08 |
| 17 | Dubuque, IA | $65,593 | $31.54 |
| 18 | Lawrence, KS | $61,961 | $29.79 |
Student engineer salary details
A student engineer's salary ranges from $54,000 a year at the 10th percentile to $95,000 at the 90th percentile.
What is a student engineer's salary?
| Percentile | Annual salary | Monthly salary | Hourly rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 90th Percentile | $95,000 | $7,917 | $46 |
| 75th Percentile | $83,000 | $6,917 | $40 |
| Average | $71,947 | $5,996 | $35 |
| 25th Percentile | $61,000 | $5,083 | $29 |
| 10th Percentile | $54,000 | $4,500 | $26 |
Highest paying student engineer jobs
The highest paying types of student engineers are staff engineer, tool engineer, and research and development engineer.
| Job title | Annual salary | Monthly salary | Hourly rate | Job openings |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Engineering Internship | $41,918 | $3,493 | $20.15 | 97,722 |
| Mechanical Engineering Internship | $42,749 | $3,562 | $20.55 | 115,512 |
| Engineering Trainee | $60,235 | $5,020 | $28.96 | 79,966 |
| Design Engineer Internship | $55,346 | $4,612 | $26.61 | 139,842 |
| Mechanical Design Engineer | $75,821 | $6,318 | $36.45 | 120,258 |
| Research And Development Engineer | $100,169 | $8,347 | $48.16 | 187,910 |
How would you rate the starting salaries for student engineers, as well as the prospects for salary advancement?
Daisy Huang
Assistant Professor, University of Alaska Fairbanks
Top companies hiring student engineers now:
Which companies pay student engineers the most?
Student engineer salaries at JPMorgan Chase & Co. and Siemens Enterprise Communications Inc are the highest-paying according to our most recent salary estimates. In addition, the average student engineer salary at companies like Abbott and Los Alamos National Laboratory are highly competitive.
| Rank | Company | Average salary | Hourly rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | JPMorgan Chase & Co. | $120,426 | $57.90 |
| 2 | Siemens Enterprise Communications Inc | $103,583 | $49.80 |
| 3 | Abbott | $102,605 | $49.33 |
| 4 | Los Alamos National Laboratory | $97,456 | $46.85 |
| 5 | Jefferson Lab | $97,208 | $46.73 |
| 6 | Caterpillar | $95,561 | $45.94 |
| 7 | Jabil | $91,733 | $44.10 |
| 8 | M.I.T. International, Inc. | $89,539 | $43.05 |
| 9 | Draper | $89,043 | $42.81 |
| 10 | John Deere | $88,428 | $42.51 |
| 11 | Micron Technology | $87,494 | $42.06 |
| 12 | Magna International | $85,872 | $41.28 |
| 13 | Stratasys | $84,258 | $40.51 |
| 14 | AdvanSix | $80,901 | $38.89 |
| 15 | Jet Propulsion Laboratory | $80,617 | $38.76 |
| 16 | Precision Castparts | $80,553 | $38.73 |
| 17 | 3M Company | $78,676 | $37.83 |
| 18 | Faurecia Interior Systems Inc | $77,501 | $37.26 |
| 19 | Wayne County, Michigan | $76,362 | $36.71 |
| 20 | Siemens | $75,797 | $36.44 |
Wage gap by gender, race and education
Student Engineer salary by industry
The average student engineer salary varies across industries:
- The average student engineer salary in the transportation industry is $86,592, the highest of any industry.
- The average student engineer salary in the finance industry is $85,432.
- Student engineers in the education industry earn an average salary of $62,542, the lowest of any industry.
Highest paying industries for student engineers
| Rank | Industry | Average salary | Hourly rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Transportation | $86,592 | $41.63 |
| 2 | Professional | $85,432 | $41.07 |
| 3 | Manufacturing | $80,745 | $38.82 |
| 4 | Government | $63,178 | $30.37 |
| 5 | Education | $62,542 | $30.07 |
High paying student engineer jobs
Student engineer salary trends
The average student engineer salary has risen by $8,722 over the last ten years. In 2014, the average student engineer earned $63,225 annually, but today, they earn $71,947 a year. That works out to a 7% change in pay for student engineers over the last decade.
Compare student engineer salaries for cities or states with the national average over time.
Average student engineer salary over time
Compare student engineer salaries for individual cities or states with the national average.
Student engineer salary by year
| Year | Avg. salary | Hourly rate | % Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | $71,900 | $34.59 | +1.9% |
| 2025 | $70,600 | $33.93 | +1.2% |
| 2024 | $69,700 | $33.52 | +1.7% |
| 2023 | $68,500 | $32.95 | +2.0% |
| 2022 | $67,200 | $32.30 | +0.7% |
Recently added student engineer salaries
| Company | Job | Location | Date added | Salary |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| John Deere | Student-Maintenance Engineering | Waterloo, IA | 06/26/2025 | $31,305 |
| John Deere | Student-Factory Engineering-East | East Moline, IL | 06/25/2025 | $31,305 |
| Pacificorp | Student Engineer, Salt Lake City, UT #113642 | Cove, UT | 06/25/2025 | $44,871 |
| John Deere | Student-Manufacturing Engineering | Springfield, MO | 06/18/2025 | $31,305 |
| Siemens Corporation | Strategic Student Program: R&D Software Engineering Co-Op (Fall 2025, T&I) | Milford, OH | 06/18/2025 | $37,566 |
| Pacificorp | Student Engineer, Portland, or #113741 | Portland, OR | 06/13/2025 | $44,871 |
| GE Aerospace | Manufacturing Engineering Co-Op-US-Fall 2026-Returning Students | Evendale, OH | 06/13/2025 | $41,740 |
| GE Aerospace | Manufacturing Engineering Co-Op-US-Fall 2026-Returning Students | Batesville, AR | 06/13/2025 | $41,740 |
| GE Aerospace | Manufacturing Engineering Co-Op-US-Fall 2026-Returning Students | Erlanger, KY | 06/13/2025 | $41,740 |
| State of Virginia | Coordinator for Student Experiences and Engagement Engineer | Blacksburg, VA | 06/04/2025 | $45,000 |
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