Quick answer: An online mechanical engineering degree is a four-year ABET-accredited bachelor’s (BSME) delivered by distance or hybrid, and it is the credential that can move a tradesperson from installing systems to designing them. Programs, the careers this degree opens, and what they pay are covered below.
For hiring purposes, yes, provided one condition holds: the program carries accreditation from ABET’s Engineering Accreditation Commission (EAC). ABET accredits programs, not delivery formats, so a distance or hybrid BSME can carry the exact same EAC accreditation as the on-campus version. Your diploma will not say “online.”
The condition is not a formality. A school can hold recognized institutional accreditation from an accreditor such as HLC, SACSCOC, MSCHE, NECHE, NWCCU, WSCUC, ACCSC, ABHES, COE or DEAC and still offer a mechanical engineering degree that ABET has never touched. Institutional accreditation governs financial and academic legitimacy; ABET-EAC governs whether the degree counts as an engineering degree. State licensing boards and NCEES build the FE and PE pathway around ABET-EAC programs, and corporate recruiting filters do the same. Before you register for a single course, search ABET’s own accredited-program database for the exact program name at the exact campus.
The second reality check is lab work. Mechanical engineering is not a fully asynchronous subject. Most legitimate online BSME programs are hybrid: coursework and lectures at a distance, with laboratory sequences handled through short residency weeks, proctored on-campus intensives, partner-site labs, or hands-on kits shipped to you. If a program advertises a BSME with no lab component at all, that is a flag worth chasing down before you commit.
Before you request information anywhere, search ABET’s accredited-program database for the exact BSME at the exact campus and ask how the laboratory sequences are delivered. With that filter set, compare online mechanical engineering programs enrolling now:
Every school listed is verified in federal IPEDS data both to award this degree and to offer programs that can be completed entirely by distance education at this level. Whether this exact degree is delivered fully online varies by school, so confirm the format before you apply.
This page lists 10 schools, closest group first, then ordered by BOC Score with the highest at the top. 10 of them carry a score.
Scores come from IPEDS (2024) and the U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard. Earnings are for all graduates of a school, not one program, so treat them as a signal about the institution rather than about this subject. Sponsored listings are paid placements and are labelled as such; they are separate from this ranking and never change it. Read the full methodology.
Source: ACCSC IPEDS College Scorecard
Source: ACCSC IPEDS College Scorecard
Source: ACCSC IPEDS College Scorecard
Source: ACCSC IPEDS College Scorecard
Source: ACCSC IPEDS College Scorecard
Source: ACCSC IPEDS College Scorecard
Source: ACCSC IPEDS College Scorecard
Source: ACCSC IPEDS College Scorecard
Source: ACCSC IPEDS College Scorecard
Source: ACCSC IPEDS College Scorecard
A BSME is roughly 120 credit hours split into general education, a math and science core, an engineering science core, and a design sequence that ends in a capstone project. The engineering content is the part tradespeople recognize immediately; the math core is the part that decides who finishes.
| Course block | What it covers | Why it matters to a tradesperson |
|---|---|---|
| Math sequence | Calculus one through three, differential equations, linear algebra | The gate. Everything downstream assumes it |
| Physics and chemistry | Calculus-based mechanics, electricity and magnetism | Reframes shop intuition as equations |
| Statics and dynamics | Forces, moments, motion of bodies | Why a rigging plan or a frame holds |
| Strength of materials | Stress, strain, deflection, fatigue | Why a shaft, bracket, or hanger fails |
| Thermodynamics and heat transfer | Cycles, refrigeration, conduction and convection | HVAC and refrigeration work, formalized |
| Fluid mechanics | Pressure drop, pumps, ducts, piping | Pipefitting and hydraulics, formalized |
| Machine design and manufacturing | Tolerances, materials, processes, CAD | Machinists start here at an advantage |
| Capstone design | Team project, requirements to prototype | The portfolio piece employers ask about |
The honest answer is the calculus-through-differential-equations sequence. Not thermodynamics, not machine design. A millwright who has rebuilt gearboxes for a decade will follow dynamics fine, then lose a semester to integration techniques he last saw in high school, if ever.
Three tactics genuinely reduce the risk:
Sequence a placement run before you enroll. Take college algebra, trigonometry, and precalculus at a community college, at your own pace, before you start the clock on an engineering program. Getting an A in precalculus is a far better predictor of finishing a BSME than confidence about being “good with numbers.” Treat it as the on-ramp, not remediation.
Take the math sequence one course at a time. Working adults who try to carry calculus two and physics two in the same term while running service calls tend to drop both. Two engineering-track courses per term is aggressive; one math course plus one non-math course is sustainable.
Bank transferable credit before it costs you a semester. General education, technical coursework, and prior training can often move over. Registered apprenticeship coursework through DOL RAPIDS, military training documented on the Joint Services Transcript (JST), CLEP and DSST exams, and ACE credit recommendations attached to industry training all show up here. Our guides on college credit for work experience and degree completion programs walk through how to get a written transfer evaluation before enrolling rather than after. Note that ABET-EAC programs are strict about the engineering core: expect general education to transfer generously and engineering courses to transfer narrowly.
A BSME is 120 credit hours, four years full-time and commonly five to seven years part-time while working. Programs built for adults run 7-week or 8-week terms with multiple start dates, which helps when your service schedule changes. Costs vary widely by institution type and residency status; in-state public online programs are generally the value benchmark, and we do not publish tuition figures because there is no reliable single number to publish.
The lever most tradespeople underuse is employer support. Contractors, manufacturers, utilities, and facilities departments frequently reimburse coursework for employees who stay, and mechanical is a discipline employers want in-house. Start with employer tuition assistance and, if you are still weighing whether the four years pencil out at all, is college worth it frames the decision without the sales pitch.
Before you shortlist schools, it also helps to be precise about the job this degree points at.
Not credit hours, in most cases. What transfers is comprehension speed and hiring credibility, and both are worth more than they sound.
The blunt caveat: none of this replaces the degree. Employers hire mechanical engineers on the ABET credential. Experience changes where you land after graduation, not whether you need the paper.
Mechanical engineering is the broadest engineering discipline, which is exactly why it holds value if your industry turns. The main employment clusters:
For the full occupation profile, including day-to-day duties and state-by-state detail, see the mechanical engineer career guide.
For most, no. Manufacturers operate under the industrial exemption, where the firm rather than the individual carries design responsibility, so a large share of mechanical engineers never license.
It matters enormously in one place: stamping mechanical building systems. If you want to seal HVAC, plumbing, or fire-protection drawings for permit as a design engineer or firm principal, the PE is the whole ballgame. The sequence is fixed. Earn the ABET-EAC bachelor’s, pass the NCEES Fundamentals of Engineering (FE) exam - you can sit for it as a senior - accumulate qualifying experience under a licensed PE, then pass the NCEES PE Mechanical exam and satisfy your state board’s requirements. ETAC-accredited technology degrees face additional restrictions in many states, which is another argument for the BSME if licensure is anywhere in your plan.
Mechanical engineers earn a median of $104,110 per year across 296,810 jobs (BLS OEWS, May 2025), with 9.1% projected growth through 2034 (BLS Employment Projections, 2024-34).
| Metric | Detail | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Median annual wage (mechanical engineers) | $104,110 ($50.05 per hour) | BLS OEWS, May 2025 |
| Typical wage range | $73,990 (10th pct) - $164,340 (90th pct) | BLS OEWS, May 2025 |
| Employment | 296,810 nationwide | BLS OEWS, May 2025 |
| Projected change (2024-34) | 9.1%, about 18,100 openings per year | BLS Employment Projections, 2024-34 |
| Required accreditation | ABET Engineering Accreditation Commission (EAC) | ABET |
| Typical length | 120 credit hours, four years full-time | Program standard |
| Licensing path | NCEES FE exam, then PE Mechanical for stamping work | NCEES / state boards |
This is the single most consequential choice on the page, and it turns on ABET commission. A BSME is accredited under EAC. A bachelor of science in mechanical engineering technology (BSMET) is accredited under ETAC, the engineering technology commission. Both are legitimate; they lead different places.
| Factor | BSME (ABET-EAC) | BSMET (ABET-ETAC) |
|---|---|---|
| Focus | Design, analysis, theory | Application, implementation, operations |
| Math load | Through differential equations | Lighter, often applied calculus |
| Occupation and SOC | Mechanical Engineers, SOC 17-2141 | Mechanical Engineering Technologists and Technicians, SOC 17-3027 |
| Median annual wage | $104,110 | $74,510 |
| 90th percentile | $164,340 | $106,050 |
| Employment | 296,810 | 36,190 |
| Projected change 2024-34 | 9.1%, about 18,100 openings per year | 0.0%, about 3,200 openings per year |
| Licensure | Cleanest path to FE and PE | Varies by state board, often restricted |
All wage and employment figures above: BLS OEWS, May 2025. All projection figures: BLS Employment Projections, 2024-34.
The gap is not small, and the projection difference is the part people miss: the engineering occupation is growing while the technologist occupation is projected flat. If you are already investing four years, the BSME is usually the better trade. The BSMET makes sense when you intend to stay close to the floor - test, manufacturing support, field engineering - or when the math sequence is genuinely not viable alongside your schedule. If that is you, read online engineering technology degrees before deciding, and see which engineering degree fits your trade for the full comparison across disciplines.
| State | Median annual wage | Employment |
|---|---|---|
| New Mexico | $157,710 | 2,710 |
| District of Columbia | $133,300 | 510 |
| California | $130,900 | 30,530 |
| Delaware | $125,130 | 610 |
| Colorado | $124,430 | 7,190 |
Wages and employment: BLS OEWS, May 2025. High-wage states are not always deep job markets - New Mexico and Delaware pay well but employ few mechanical engineers, so a bad fit with one employer is a relocation problem. The largest employment centers tell a different story:
| State | Median annual wage | Employment |
|---|---|---|
| Michigan | $104,890 | 34,630 |
| California | $130,900 | 30,530 |
| Texas | $112,410 | 22,080 |
| Ohio | $99,100 | 14,390 |
| Pennsylvania | $97,920 | 13,550 |
Wages and employment: BLS OEWS, May 2025.
Use the percentile spread rather than the median as your reference point, because a new graduate does not start at the median.
| Measure | Mechanical engineers (17-2141) | HVAC/refrigeration mechanics (49-9021) |
|---|---|---|
| Median annual wage | $104,110 | $61,010 |
| 25th percentile | $84,130 | $48,360 |
| 75th percentile | $132,590 | $77,060 |
| 90th percentile | $164,340 | $95,210 |
| Employment | 296,810 | 409,670 |
| Projected change 2024-34 | 9.1% | 8.1% |
Wages and employment: BLS OEWS, May 2025. Projections: BLS Employment Projections, 2024-34.
Two honest observations. First, the HVAC trade is a large, growing occupation with about 40,100 annual openings (BLS Employment Projections, 2024-34), so nobody should read this as an argument that the trade is a dead end. Second, the top of the HVAC range at $95,210 sits below the mechanical engineering median, and a senior tech reaching that level has usually taken on a business or supervisory role to get there. The degree changes which curve you are on, not just where you sit on your current one.
Yes, but the list is short. ABET accredits the program, not the delivery format, so an online or hybrid bachelor's can hold EAC accreditation under the engineering commission. Confirm the specific program name and campus appear in ABET's own accredited program search before you enroll, because a school can hold recognized institutional accreditation while that particular degree is not ABET-accredited.
The national median annual wage for mechanical engineers is $104,110, or $50.05 per hour (BLS OEWS, May 2025). The 10th percentile earns $73,990 and the 90th percentile earns $164,340. Total employment is 296,810. Pay varies widely by state and industry, so treat the median as a midpoint rather than a starting offer.
Employers screen for ABET accreditation and for the degree title, not for whether lectures were streamed. An ABET-EAC bachelor's in mechanical engineering carries the same weight online as on campus, and it is what state licensing boards and NCEES expect for the FE and PE exams. A non-accredited online degree is the thing that gets filtered out.
Calculus one through three, differential equations, and usually linear algebra, plus calculus-based physics and statistics. Those feed statics, dynamics, strength of materials, thermodynamics, fluid mechanics, and heat transfer. This sequence is where most working adults stall, not the engineering courses. Many students start with college algebra or precalculus first and treat that as normal, not remedial.
A BSME carries accreditation from the ABET engineering commission (EAC) and is the design and analysis path that leads to the FE and PE exams. A BSMET carries accreditation from the ABET engineering technology commission (ETAC) and is applications-focused with lighter math. Mechanical engineering technologists and technicians had a median wage of $74,510 versus $104,110 for engineers (BLS OEWS, May 2025).
Yes, and HVAC is one of the most transferable backgrounds because building mechanical systems are a core ME employment area. You still need the ABET-accredited bachelor's, since field experience does not substitute for the degree. What the experience does buy is faster comprehension of thermodynamics, psychrometrics, and fluid flow, plus credibility with design and commissioning employers.
Most do not, because manufacturers operate under the industrial exemption where the company holds design responsibility. The PE matters if you want to stamp mechanical building systems such as HVAC, plumbing, and fire protection drawings for permit. That path runs ABET degree, NCEES FE exam, qualifying experience under a licensed PE, then the NCEES PE Mechanical exam under your state board's rules.
BLS projects mechanical engineering employment to change by 9.1% from 2024 to 2034, moving from 293,100 to 319,600 jobs, with about 18,100 openings per year on average (BLS Employment Projections, 2024-34). By contrast, mechanical engineering technologists and technicians are projected at 0.0% change with about 3,200 annual openings.
State pay, licensing and metro-level data for this degree. Wage and employment figures on every state page come from BLS OEWS, May 2025.
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About this guide: Researched and written by the TradeCareerPath Editorial Team. Our editorial team researches and sources every trade school and career guide using federal labor and education data, including BLS OEWS and Employment Projections, DOL apprenticeship records, IPEDS, College Scorecard, and state licensing boards. We follow the editorial standards documented at /editorial-policy/.
