Best Online Engineering Programs in Philadelphia, PA (2026)

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania has a population of about 1,582,432. The city’s median household income is $60,698 (Census ACS 2023, 5-year). About 34.6% of adults 25+ hold a bachelor’s degree or higher. Our directory has 139 accredited schools offering engineering programs near Philadelphia, with tuition ranging from $19,964 to $62,110 per year for indexed programs. In the Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD metro area, the top-earning engineering-related role is Architectural and Engineering Manager at a median $166,850 annually (BLS OEWS, May 2024).


Closest Engineering Schools to Philadelphia

The 10 accredited institutions below are the closest among the 139 schools in our directory that offer engineering programs near Philadelphia. Distances are calculated from Philadelphia city center.

SchoolCityDistanceTuitionOnline
Temple UniversityPhiladelphia, PA2.2 mi$22,082 - $39,799
Community College of PhiladelphiaPhiladelphia, PA3.5 miContact school for pricing
Rutgers University-CamdenCamden, NJ4.2 miContact school for pricing
Thomas Jefferson UniversityPhiladelphia, PA4.3 mi$45,683 - $62,110
Drexel UniversityPhiladelphia, PA4.7 miContact school for pricing
University of PennsylvaniaPhiladelphia, PA5.0 miContact school for pricing
Manor CollegeJenkintown, PA5.7 mi$19,964 - $27,178
Pennsylvania State University-Penn State AbingtonAbington, PA7.7 miContact school for pricing
Villanova UniversityVillanova, PA11.1 miContact school for pricing
Rowan College at Burlington CountyMount Laurel, NJ12.9 miContact school for pricing

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


Engineering Wages Near Philadelphia

Philadelphia is part of the Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD metro area (BLS area code 37980). Where MSA-level wages are published, the table below shows MSA medians; otherwise it falls back to Pennsylvania statewide.

OccupationMedian WageSourceCOL-Adjusted (US=100)
Civil Engineer$96,630Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD$94,181
Electrical Engineer$125,350Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD$122,173
Mechanical Engineer$102,180Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD$99,591
Chemical Engineer$120,300Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD$117,251
Aerospace Engineer$128,400Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD$125,146
Biomedical Engineer$97,930Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD$95,448
Environmental Engineer$101,980Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD$99,396
Architectural and Engineering Manager$166,850Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD$162,622

Source: BLS, May 2024 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.


Philadelphia at a Glance

MetricValueSource
Population1,582,432Census ACS 2023 5-yr (B01003)
Median household income$60,698Census ACS 2023 5-yr (B19013)
Adults 25+ with bachelor’s+34.6%Census ACS 2023 5-yr (B15003)
Regional Price Parity (US=100)102.6 (above U.S. average)BEA RPP 2024
Engineering-related employment in Philadelphia County7,902 workers, 549 establishmentsBLS QCEW 2024 annual

Other Philadelphia-Area Cities With Engineering Programs


Frequently Asked Questions

How many accredited engineering schools are near Philadelphia, PA?

Our directory has 139 accredited schools offering engineering programs near Philadelphia. The closest is Temple University in Philadelphia, PA (2.2 miles), and the farthest in our top picks is Rowan College at Burlington County (12.9 miles). 0 of the highlighted schools are flagged as offering distance education.

What are the highest-paying engineering roles near Philadelphia?

Based on BLS OEWS May 2024 wage data, the top-paying engineering-related roles near Philadelphia are: Architectural and Engineering Manager ($166,850), Aerospace Engineer ($128,400), Electrical Engineer ($125,350). These reflect MSA-level medians where published, with Pennsylvania statewide fallback for occupations not reported at the metro level.

Should I look at programs in Camden instead of Philadelphia?

Camden, NJ is 5.1 miles from Philadelphia 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 Philadelphia an affordable place to study engineering?

Philadelphia’s median household income of $60,698 (Census ACS 2023) is one input. Online programs let students stay in Philadelphia while attending lower-cost out-of-state schools, and Pennsylvania 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.


Data verified: May 5, 2026. Salary, employment, and tuition figures on this page are sourced from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (OEWS May 2024; 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.