Best Engineering Schools Near Plant City, FL (2026)

Updated September 6, 2026 BLS data College Scorecard On this page

Plant City, Florida has 5 accredited schools offering engineering programs, with tuition ranging from $6,410 to $22,859 per year for indexed programs. Plant City has a population of about 40,009. Median household income is $64,536 (Census ACS 2023, 5-year). About 22.7% of adults 25+ hold a bachelor’s degree or higher. In the Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FL metro area, the top-earning engineering-related role is Architectural and Engineering Manager at a median $169,310 annually (BLS OEWS, May 2025).

Closest Engineering Schools to Plant City

The accredited institutions listed below are the closest in our directory that offer engineering programs near Plant City, ranked by BOC Score and straight-line distance from Plant City city center. The list is rebuilt from federal IPEDS data on every site update.

How We Rank Schools

Every school list on this site is ordered by the BOC Score, computed from the most recent school-level data published by the U.S. Department of Education (College Scorecard and IPEDS). To qualify, a school must be currently operating and accredited by an agency recognized by the U.S. Department of Education. Each eligible school is then scored on five measures, percentile-ranked against schools at the same credential level:

  • Graduation rate 30%
  • Median earnings, 10 years after entry 25%
  • Average net price (lower is better) 20%
  • Retention rate 15%
  • Fully online availability 10%

Schools without enough outcome data appear after ranked schools, without a score. On this page, schools are ordered by distance from Plant City. Advertising never affects these rankings. Read the full methodology.

Ranked by BOC Score — U.S. Dept. of Education outcome data. Advertising never affects rankings.

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#1

University of South Florida

Tampa, FL 18.2 miles from Plant City
  • 4 year
  • Offers a fully online program
  • Accredited
81.8 BOC Score
Acceptance rate 43%
Graduation rate 76%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry $57,743
Avg net price $9,812/yr
Tuition
In‑state$6,410
Out‑of‑state$17,324
Contact
Key stats
  • Retention rate: 91%
  • Programs offered: 151

Source:Accreditor: Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on CollegesIPEDSCollege Scorecard

#2

Florida Polytechnic University

Lakeland, FL 19.2 miles from Plant City
  • 4 year
46.2 BOC Score
Graduation rate 52%
Avg net price $11,853/yr
TuitionContact school for pricing
Contact
Key stats
  • Retention rate: 75%
  • Programs offered: 14

Source:IPEDSCollege Scorecard

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#3

Hillsborough Community College

Tampa, FL 21.2 miles from Plant City
  • 4 year
  • Offers a fully online program
61.2 BOC Score
Graduation rate 34%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry $40,782
Avg net price $3,861/yr
TuitionContact school for pricing
Contact
Key stats
  • Programs offered: 88

Source:IPEDSCollege Scorecard

#4

Saint Leo University

Saint Leo, FL 23.8 miles from Plant City
  • 4 year
  • Offers a fully online program
32.0 BOC Score
Graduation rate 33%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry $48,364
Avg net price $21,293/yr
TuitionContact school for pricing
Contact
Key stats
  • Retention rate: 58%
  • Programs offered: 43

Source:IPEDSCollege Scorecard

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#5

Polk State College

Winter Haven, FL 24.9 miles from Plant City
  • 4 year
  • Offers a fully online program
54.3 BOC Score
Graduation rate 33%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry $40,624
Avg net price $9,427/yr
TuitionContact school for pricing
Contact
Key stats
  • Programs offered: 38

Source:IPEDSCollege Scorecard

#6

St Petersburg College

St. Petersburg, FL 35.7 miles from Plant City
  • 4 year
  • Offers a fully online program
74.6 BOC Score
Graduation rate 38%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry $42,557
Avg net price $1,471/yr
TuitionContact school for pricing
Contact
Key stats
  • Programs offered: 75

Source:IPEDSCollege Scorecard

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#7

Pasco-Hernando State College

New Port Richey, FL 36.8 miles from Plant City
  • 4 year
  • Offers a fully online program
65.7 BOC Score
Graduation rate 37%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry $39,903
Avg net price $5,203/yr
TuitionContact school for pricing
Contact
Key stats
  • Programs offered: 43

Source:IPEDSCollege Scorecard

#8

South Florida State College

Avon Park, FL 48.4 miles from Plant City
  • 4 year
  • Offers a fully online program
  • Accredited
73.8 BOC Score
Graduation rate 49%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry $39,990
Avg net price $3,877/yr
Tuition
In‑state$3,165
Out‑of‑state$11,859
Contact
Key stats
  • Programs offered: 40

Source:Accreditor: Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on CollegesIPEDSCollege Scorecard

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Source: IPEDS / College Scorecard (2023 cohort). Browse all Florida schools on the Florida engineering page.

Engineering Wages Near Plant City

Plant City is part of the Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FL metro area (BLS area code 45300). Where MSA-level wages are published, the table below shows MSA medians; otherwise it falls back to Florida statewide.

Occupation Median Wage Source COL-Adjusted (US=100)
Civil Engineer $100,570 Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FL $99,673
Electrical Engineer $102,110 Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FL $101,199
Mechanical Engineer $100,290 Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FL $99,395
Chemical Engineer $110,000 Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FL $109,019
Aerospace Engineer $126,500 Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FL $125,372
Biomedical Engineer $100,540 Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FL $99,643
Environmental Engineer $116,840 FL statewide $115,798
Architectural and Engineering Manager $169,310 Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FL $167,800

Source: BLS, May 2025 Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics publishes wage data at the metro (MSA) and state level – not by individual city.

Plant City at a Glance

Metric Value Source
Population 40,009 Census ACS 2023 5-yr (B01003)
Median household income $64,536 Census ACS 2023 5-yr (B19013)
Adults 25+ with bachelor’s+ 22.7% Census ACS 2023 5-yr (B15003)
Regional Price Parity (US=100) 100.9 (above U.S. average) BEA RPP 2024
Engineering-related employment in Hillsborough County 15,053 workers, 1,366 establishments BLS QCEW 2024 annual

Other Plant City-Area Cities With Engineering Programs

Frequently Asked Questions

How many accredited engineering schools are near Plant City, FL?

Our directory has 5 accredited schools offering engineering programs near Plant City. The closest is Traviss Technical College in Lakeland, FL (14.0 miles), and the farthest of the schools shown is Saint Leo University (23.8 miles). 3 of the highlighted schools are flagged as offering distance education.

What are the highest-paying engineering roles near Plant City?

Based on BLS OEWS May 2025 wage data, the top-paying engineering-related roles near Plant City are: Architectural and Engineering Manager ($169,310), Aerospace Engineer ($126,500), Environmental Engineer ($116,840). These reflect MSA-level medians where published, with Florida statewide fallback for occupations not reported at the metro level.

Should I look at programs in Lakeland instead of Plant City?

Lakeland, FL is 10.5 miles from Plant City and has its own set of local engineering programs – see the city’s page. For online programs, distance matters less; for hybrid or in-person formats, comparing both can help.

Is Plant City an affordable place to study engineering?

Plant City’s median household income of $64,536 (Census ACS 2023) is one input. Online programs let students stay in Plant City while attending lower-cost out-of-state schools, and Florida public universities often offer reduced in-state online tuition.

How do I verify a program is accredited?

Confirm institutional accreditation via the U.S. Department of Education database (U.S. Dept. of Education database), and check for any program-specific accreditation listed by the school.

Learn More About Engineering Programs

Other Programs Available in Plant City

Compare every accredited online degree program with city-level data for Plant City:

Data verified: September 6, 2026. Salary, employment, and tuition figures on this page are sourced from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (OEWS May 2025; Employment Projections 2024–2034) and the U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard (2023 cohort). The source agency and data year are cited inline with every statistic.

Back to Best Engineering Schools in Florida: Online Programs (2026)