October 2014

PE REPORT
Increasing Number of Undergrads Earn Engineering Degrees

The number of U.S. students who graduated with engineering bachelor’s degrees increased by 6% to reach 93,360 in 2013, according to the American Society for Engineering Education. The growth in the number of engineering bachelor’s degrees awarded is expected to continue its upward trend because enrollments increased by nearly 8% from 2012 to 2013.

Mechanical and civil engineering remained the top disciplines for 2013 with 21,707 and 12,464 degrees awarded, respectively. Some smaller engineering disciplines also experienced significant increases in bachelor’s degrees awarded in 2013. The number of civil/environmental engineering degrees increased by 27% from 2012, with 953 degrees awarded. General engineering degrees increased by 30%, with 1,554 degrees awarded.

Several engineering disciplines are projected to see an increase in the number of bachelor’s degrees awarded over the next few years due to enrollment growth. Petroleum engineering experienced the greatest growth, with a 23% increase in enrollment. Among the engineering majors experiencing enrollment growths of 7%–15%: biological and agricultural engineering, biomedical engineering, chemical engineering, civil/environmental engineering, and computer science (inside engineering).

For the fifth straight year, women continued to earn a growing percentage of engineering bachelor’s degrees. In 2013, women earned 19.1% of engineering bachelor’s degrees, up from 17.8% in 2009. Women also earned 23.9% of engineering master’s degrees, an all-time high.