Best Mechanical Engineering Degree Programs in North Dakota in 2026
The best mechanical engineering degree programs in North Dakota give applicants a meaningful format choice. Our 2026 ranking reviews UND’s bachelor’s degree in Grand Forks, available on campus or online with campus laboratories, and NDSU’s campus BSME in Fargo. Both have substantial design and laboratory requirements; the way you attend and progress through them differs.
Use the review to decide whether scheduled travel for UND laboratories or regular campus attendance at NDSU fits your situation. Then compare the elective structure, major-entry rules and current Engineering tuition. The national mechanical engineering ranking provides other reviewed degrees if neither arrangement fits.
Mechanical Engineering bachelor’s rankings by state+
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How we ranked mechanical engineering bachelor’s programs in North Dakota
This North Dakota selection contains two officially verified mechanical engineering bachelor’s programs. We reviewed the exact awards and separated UND’s online lab obligations from NDSU’s campus degree. Other degrees in the state are not represented as reviewed solely because they appear in federal data.
UND leads for its verified choice of campus or online attendance with a detailed mechanical laboratory plan and defined concentrations. NDSU follows for a structured sequence through machine design, thermal testing and product development, plus a stated cooperative-education opportunity. Students seeking continuous campus study may weigh those features differently from applicants who need remote coursework. Read our ranking methodology for how we assess reviewed programs.
With 2026/2027 selected on the exact mechanical BS cost page, online tuition is $623.99 per credit plus $79.59 per credit in student fees, capped at 12 credits per semester for fees. The campus North Dakota resident selection lists $480.74 tuition plus $79.59 fees per credit, with the stated campus tuition cap. Other residency categories, summer lab travel/lodging, course costs and living expenses require separate budgeting.
UND offers a mechanical BS through campus or online study while retaining required physical laboratory work. The core covers design, controls, manufacturing and thermal subjects, with optional concentrations providing defined routes through advanced electives. We include the Grand Forks program for this combination of format choice and a clearly published mechanical lab plan. Online students can identify the campus obligations before applying, which makes the degree practical to evaluate alongside work and travel commitments.
Where it stands out
Consider UND if you need to study most coursework remotely and can arrange the required laboratory visits. Compare the regular mechanical plan with a specific concentration, then ask an advisor to place campus labs, senior design and any transferred courses on one realistic calendar.
What to weigh
The online route requires campus laboratory attendance and work outside those visit dates. It is not self-paced, and the department restricts transfer of specified laboratories and senior work. Aerospace also has a different credit total and aviation requirement. Use the online tuition selection and include travel and lodging before comparing the program with a campus offer.
Attendance:Campus or online study. The online route requires scheduled campus laboratories in Grand Forks; it is not a fully remote degree. The optional Aerospace concentration has a separate 133-credit plan.
The required sequence includes student design, machine-component design, control systems, manufacturing processes, heat/mass transfer and mechanical measurements.
Engineering Design spans two senior courses, and the regular degree includes 21 technical-elective credits under the approved stem and residency rules.
Optional concentrations include Mechanical Design, Thermal Sciences, Manufacturing and Materials, and Aerospace. The Aerospace plan totals 133 credits and includes an aviation course or the stated pilot-license substitution.
Areas of focus
Mechanical Design
Thermal Sciences
Manufacturing and Materials
Aerospace
Admission & progression
UND’s general freshman guidance recommends a 2.75 or higher GPA and specifies high-school core coursework; ACT/SAT scores are not required.
The mechanical requirements specify C or better in transferred courses and selected foundational subjects. Certain senior, laboratory and elective work must be completed through UND.
Design & practical experience
Online mechanical students ordinarily complete Student Design in four campus days, Manufacturing Processes Laboratory in four days and Mechanical Measurements Laboratory in five days; additional work and published transfer/assessment provisions apply.
Machine Component Design Laboratory is completed by distance. The manufacturing and measurements laboratories must be completed at UND under the published mechanical lab policy.
Resident Engineering tuition: $5,754.50 per semester
Cost basis & conditions +
Fall 2026/Spring 2027 Engineering tuition for 13 or more credits is $5,754.50 for North Dakota residents; the standard U.S. nonresident/WUE/MSEP category is $8,632. Other listed regional, reciprocity and international categories differ. Mandatory fees reach $860.40 at 12 credits. Engineering tuition applies to all enrolled credits for Engineering majors, including pre-engineering; course fees and living expenses are additional.
NDSU’s Fargo mechanical degree gives machine design, thermal experiments and product development distinct places in the required curriculum. Those subjects lead into a two-course design project, while advanced electives leave room to explore particular mechanical applications. We include the BSME for that structured campus sequence and its stated cooperative-education opportunity after the sophomore year. The department also makes the academic requirements for entering junior and senior work explicit.
Where it stands out
NDSU is a useful option if you want a campus-based mechanical degree that combines component design with thermal-system testing and product development. Ask how a co-op work session would fit between required courses, and compare project expectations with the advanced electives you hope to take.
What to weigh
The junior/senior major has separate engineering and cumulative GPA requirements, and every course used for the degree must meet the minimum grade rule. Engineering tuition begins with the applicable major classification, including pre-engineering, and applies across enrolled credits. Use your exact residency category and add mandatory fees before comparing semester costs.
The 130-credit BSME requires engineering measurements, vibrations, two machine-design courses, a thermal-systems laboratory and manufacturing processes.
Product Design and Development precedes the two-course Design Project sequence; the catalog also includes engineering ethics and technical writing.
Fifteen technical-elective credits allow approved advanced study, with a maximum of nine credits outside the mechanical department.
Admission & progression
Admission to the junior/senior mechanical major requires at least a 2.70 engineering GPA and a 2.50 cumulative GPA.
The major accepts no grade below C for a degree requirement and requires a 2.50 cumulative GPA for graduation. University transfer residency requirements also apply.
Design & practical experience
The department describes an optional Cooperative Education Program with one or more four-month work sessions after the sophomore year. Students should confirm placement and how participation fits the degree.
Materials and thermal laboratory courses provide required testing experience; undergraduate faculty research is a separately described opportunity.
What matters in mechanical engineering bachelor’s programs in North Dakota
A realistic attendance commitment
Online lecture access does not settle the laboratory question. We examine required visits, preparation and the work that remains outside a scheduled lab.
Design supported by the core
Required testing and component or product design matter separately from optional research and employment experiences.
Clear progression and billing rules
Junior-year admission requirements, tuition categories and credit caps affect the actual path through the degree.
Plan UND’s mechanical campus laboratories before enrolling
UND’s mechanical lab policy lists Student Design, Manufacturing Processes Laboratory and Mechanical Measurements Laboratory as campus requirements, ordinarily scheduled for four, four and five days respectively. The measurements course also has work before and after the visit. These are specific course obligations; ask the department how they fit your planned terms and which dates will be offered.
The Machine Component Design laboratory is completed by distance. Published assessment and transfer provisions can affect particular earlier requirements, while the manufacturing and measurements laboratories must be completed at UND. Obtain approval before taking a proposed equivalent elsewhere. Then budget travel, lodging and time away from work alongside tuition; an online course schedule alone cannot answer those questions.
Compare a concentration with a product-development sequence
UND’s regular mechanical plan supports optional concentrations in Mechanical Design, Thermal Sciences, and Manufacturing and Materials. Its Aerospace concentration is a different 133-credit plan that includes an aviation requirement and a stated substitution for students already holding the relevant pilot credential. Request the exact concentration audit instead of assuming every option fits the regular 128-credit total.
NDSU requires Product Design and Development alongside two machine-design courses and the Design Project I/II sequence. It also describes an optional cooperative-education route after the sophomore year. Ask whether a planned work session interrupts any required course sequence, how students obtain placements and which preparation would make the experience relevant to the kind of mechanical work you want to do.
Check NDSU’s junior-year thresholds separately
The Fargo BSME requires a 2.70 engineering GPA and a 2.50 cumulative GPA for admission to its junior/senior major. Its degree rules also require C or better in courses used toward the award. Ask which courses enter the engineering calculation and how transfer grades, repeated courses or an earlier change of major would be handled.
At UND, review the required grades, specified courses that must be completed through the university and the elective-residency rules. At either school, a transcript evaluation should lead to a remaining-course schedule. Ask which course controls access to the next laboratory or design class, and whether the proposed term load is workable alongside employment or travel.
Compare Engineering tuition using your actual attendance route
With the 2026/2027 year selected, UND’s mechanical cost page lists online tuition of $623.99 per credit plus student fees; its North Dakota resident campus selection uses a different tuition rate and cap. The online tuition and the fees do not share the same billing rule. Use the exact route, year and credit load before estimating a semester.
NDSU applies its Engineering tuition to enrolled credits for students classified in Engineering, including pre-engineering. Its tuition cap begins at 13 credits, while the mandatory-fee cap uses 12. Regional and reciprocity categories can also differ. Put those categories beside the housing and travel costs that apply to you, then compare individual aid offers using the engineering degree cost guide.
Questions, answered
What else should you know?
Can I complete UND mechanical engineering without visiting campus?+
The published online mechanical route includes campus laboratory requirements. Manufacturing Processes Laboratory and Mechanical Measurements Laboratory must be completed at UND; the policy describes limited assessment or transfer provisions for certain other coursework.
Are all UND mechanical concentrations 128 credits?+
No. The regular plan and the three listed mechanical stems use the 128-credit structure, while the optional Aerospace concentration has a 133-credit plan and an aviation requirement. Use the exact concentration requirements.
Does NDSU’s mechanical major have a separate upper-level admission standard?+
Yes. The catalog requires at least a 2.70 engineering GPA and a 2.50 cumulative GPA for the junior/senior major. Minimum grades and graduation requirements also apply.
Does NDSU wait until junior year to charge Engineering tuition?+
Its current policy applies Engineering tuition to students in Engineering majors, including pre-engineering. The price depends on the applicable residency category and enrollment load, with mandatory and course fees considered separately.
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