Best Electrical Engineering Degree Programs in Pennsylvania in 2026
Pennsylvania’s electrical engineering choices span device physics, power systems, communications and computing, but each degree organizes that breadth differently. Our best electrical engineering degree programs in Pennsylvania ranking reviews Penn State’s University Park program, Drexel in Philadelphia and Lehigh in Bethlehem. The focus is the bachelor’s curriculum and the decisions a student faces before and during enrollment.
Penn State requires nanoelectronics and a staged series of design courses before graduation. Drexel combines its electrical curriculum with one- or three-co-op plans and describes dedicated power and control laboratories. Lehigh offers a wide approved elective list within a 125-credit standalone EE degree. The reviews explain those distinctions and separate degree requirements from optional experiences.
Electrical Engineering bachelor’s rankings by state+
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How we ranked electrical engineering bachelor’s programs in Pennsylvania
We selected three Pennsylvania institutions with verifiable electrical engineering bachelor’s curricula, admissions information and current undergraduate cost context. Other Pennsylvania programs may also be worth considering; this ranking assesses the reviewed set rather than claiming a complete census.
Penn State is placed first for its broad required electrical core and clear progression into advanced study. Drexel follows for integrating co-op choices with electrical laboratory and design work. Lehigh adds a strong elective-based route into devices, photonics, power and related subjects. The order reflects our editorial assessment, not a numerical institutional score.
University Park full-time lower-division tuition effective fall 2026; nonresident lower-division tuition is $22,287 per semester. Upper-division engineering tuition is $13,389 for Pennsylvania residents and $26,328 for nonresidents per semester. Mandatory fees, housing, meals and other expenses are additional; part-time rates differ.
Penn State's University Park electrical engineering degree uses a broad required core before advanced EE and computer engineering electives. Circuits, electronic design, electromagnetics, nanoelectronics and linear systems all appear in the 127-credit curriculum, alongside programming and digital design. Design Tools, Design Process and Capstone Design give the project work a staged structure instead of reserving all design activity for graduation. This review covers the program completed at University Park. The university's separate entrance-to-major process is central to evaluating the route, because an initial Penn State admission is only one step toward the electrical major.
Where it stands out
Penn State is a strong option to investigate when you want exposure to device physics and system-level electrical work before choosing advanced courses. Its required nanoelectronics, circuits and systems courses provide concrete starting points for comparing the elective plan with your interests.
What to weigh
Major entry depends on graded Penn State coursework and specified course results, so transfer or AP credit does not substitute for the entire entrance process. Costs also change at upper-division standing: engineering juniors and seniors have a higher tuition schedule than lower-division students at University Park.
Core courses include circuits and devices, electronic circuit design, electromagnetics, nanoelectronics and continuous-time linear systems.
Digital systems and a digital design laboratory sit alongside programming and data structures.
Approved advanced EE/CMPEN selections provide technical depth beyond the required foundation.
Admission & progression
Entrance to the major requires 29–55 graded Penn State credits, excluding AP and transfer credits, and a minimum 2.60 cumulative GPA.
Specified chemistry, calculus, physics and programming/design entrance courses require grades of C or better. Enrollment controls can require a higher GPA and the appropriate pre-major enrollment.
The reviewed program ends at University Park; an approved starting campus does not change the degree-completion location.
Design & practical experience
Design Tools, the writing-intensive Design Process course and Capstone Design are prescribed courses.
The curriculum combines lecture work with electrical and digital laboratory assignments.
Approved supporting credits may include co-op coursework within catalog limits.
Four years with one co-op or five years with three co-ops
Study format
On campus
Program accreditation
Engineering Accreditation Commission of ABET
2026–27 tuition
$63,078 estimated first-year tuition
Cost basis & conditions +
University undergraduate first-year tuition before aid; fees add $2,420. Subsequent annual charges depend on enrollment by term. Co-op terms do not carry tuition, but university fees and applicable food/housing costs continue. Transfer evaluations can produce a different enrollment plan. Books, equipment, transportation and other expenses are additional.
Drexel's electrical engineering degree joins a broad electrical core with an explicit choice of co-op plans. Students can pursue a four-year route with one co-op or a five-year route with three. The curriculum includes circuits, devices, microcontrollers, signals, electromagnetics and power, with areas of study extending into electronics, telecommunications and controls. The power and systems control description is particularly useful: it identifies laboratories where software, instrumentation and physical electrical systems meet. A three-course senior design sequence provides another sustained project experience, alongside the work terms that shape the overall degree calendar.
Where it stands out
Drexel merits consideration if you want employer-based experience embedded in the undergraduate plan or want to explore electrical power and feedback control through laboratory work. Compare the one- and three-co-op routes against the time you want to spend in classes and professional settings.
What to weigh
The five-year route takes an additional calendar year, and quarter credits require careful interpretation when transferring. Later annual bills depend on the mix of classes and co-op terms. Tuition pauses during co-op, while university fees and applicable living costs continue, so a first-year price is not a complete degree estimate.
Tuition before aid for the 2026–27 academic year. The applicable engineering/science fee adds $870; published annual technology, activity and wellness fees are $630, $290 and $250. Housing, meals, books, transportation and other expenses are additional.
Lehigh's standalone electrical engineering degree requires 125 credits and leaves room for technical electives across several distinct EE subjects. Its approved list includes power systems, photovoltaics, wireless circuits, microfabrication, semiconductor devices, photonics and embedded systems. Those choices follow required work in circuits, signals, devices, control and computing. The senior design project can also connect with departmental research, giving students another way to investigate a technical interest. First-year engineering students enter without a declared major, so they can use the shared foundation and advising activities to evaluate EE before committing to its upper-level plan.
Where it stands out
Lehigh deserves a close look for students interested in connecting device-level topics with a broader electrical curriculum. The elective rules also require study beyond ECE and computing, which can support a deliberate combination with another engineering discipline, mathematics or natural science.
What to weigh
The standalone EE curriculum should be distinguished from Lehigh's separate electrical engineering and engineering physics dual-degree route. They have different requirements and timelines. Approved electives also require planning with an advisor; the annual tuition figure excludes the applicable engineering/science charge and other university fees.
Foundations cover linear and electronic circuits, control, signals, physical electronics, electromagnetic theory, energy conversion and digital systems.
At least four approved ECE/CSE technical elective courses include a minimum of two ECE courses.
Additional elective requirements extend into engineering outside ECE/CSE and into mathematics or natural science.
Admission & progression
Students begin in the Rossin College without formally declaring a major and ordinarily share a first-year curriculum.
Entering Rossin students take the ALEKS mathematics placement exam; prior credit and placement affect the actual first-year schedule.
Design & practical experience
Students synthesize their coursework in a senior design project, which can connect with departmental research.
Teaching facilities include electronic circuits, microcomputer, electromechanics, digital signal processing and senior-project laboratories.
The approved EE elective list includes power electronics, photovoltaic systems, micro/nanofabrication, photonics and embedded systems.
What matters in electrical engineering bachelor’s programs in Pennsylvania
Required electrical study
We distinguish material required for all students from the subjects that depend on elective choices.
Practice and professional experience
Laboratories, design courses and the exact co-op structure provide the evidence for assessing practical study.
Admission and financial conditions
We consider the major-entry process, campus scope and changes to the bill as a student progresses.
Compare electrical engineering degree programs in Pennsylvania by subject
The Penn State University Park curriculum requires circuits and devices, electronic circuit design, electromagnetics, nanoelectronics and continuous-time linear systems. That sequence gives every student a foundation extending from physical devices to systems. Additional EE and computer engineering courses then provide depth. Its Design Tools, Design Process and Capstone Design requirements also make it possible to trace how technical knowledge is applied as the degree progresses.
For a power or automation interest, read Drexel’s electrical engineering description closely. The Interconnected Power System Laboratory and Ortlip Systems Laboratory connect modeling with physical power, sensing and feedback experiments. Lehigh’s approved electives offer another route: photovoltaic systems, power electronics, micro/nanofabrication, semiconductor devices, photonics and embedded systems. These are choices within a broad degree, so ask which combination fits the available elective credits and prerequisites.
Understand what an offer of admission gives you
Penn State’s electrical major has an entrance process after university enrollment. The current bulletin requires 29–55 graded Penn State credits, specified courses completed at C or better, and at least a 2.60 cumulative GPA. AP and transfer credits are excluded from that graded-credit window, and enrollment controls can raise the threshold. The reviewed degree ends at University Park, even when an approved route begins at another Penn State campus.
Lehigh engineering students begin without formally declaring a major and ordinarily share their first-year courses. Mathematics placement and prior credit affect the individual schedule. Drexel publishes first-year engineering preparation in mathematics through precalculus plus laboratory chemistry and physics. Its placement process can add preparatory coursework. An applicant comparing these schools should therefore examine both the admission decision and the conditions governing the first technical courses; neither a university offer nor a transfer-credit total answers every progression question.
Build an electrical degree budget around your enrollment plan
At Penn State, University Park tuition changes when students reach upper-division engineering standing. At Lehigh, the annual undergraduate tuition has an additional engineering/science charge and separate university fees. For both schools, retain residency and fee conditions when comparing the figures in the cards; an annual tuition amount is only one part of attendance cost.
Drexel’s cost guidance explains why later years cannot be priced by multiplying its first-year figure. Class terms carry tuition, while co-op terms do not; fees and applicable living expenses continue during co-op. The four-year and five-year routes also distribute professional experience differently. Work from the intended enrollment plan and financial-aid offer, including transfer adjustments where relevant. Our ranking methodology explains how we use these practical conditions alongside curriculum evidence.
Questions, answered
What else should you know?
Does Penn State admission guarantee the University Park electrical major?+
Students must separately meet the electrical engineering entrance-to-major requirements. The current bulletin specifies a graded Penn State credit window, minimum GPA and required course grades, with additional conditions possible when enrollment is controlled.
Which reviewed Pennsylvania option includes power-system laboratory work?+
Drexel explicitly describes an Interconnected Power System Laboratory within its power and systems control area. Its curriculum also includes power and energy fundamentals. Lehigh offers power-related electives, while Penn State provides a broad electrical foundation and approved advanced choices.
Is Lehigh’s electrical engineering degree the same as its engineering physics dual degree?+
No. This review covers the standalone BS in Electrical Engineering, which the current catalog lists at 125 credits. Lehigh separately describes a dual-degree route combining electrical engineering with engineering physics; its requirements should be evaluated independently.
How should I compare Pennsylvania electrical degree costs?+
Use your residency classification, degree route, academic standing and aid offer. Keep Penn State’s upper-division engineering rate, Lehigh’s additional engineering/science fee and Drexel’s class-versus-co-op billing rules in the same budget comparison.
Keep researching
Choosing a electrical engineering degree
Learn what an electrical engineering degree covers, including circuits, signals, lab work and design, plus admissions, transfer and online study.
