Getting an engineering degree can be a lucrative pursuit, offering professional stability and a solid salary across varying specialties — whether chemical, electrical or other branches.
According to Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) data, the median engineering salary is at $93,000. Though the career outlook can look bright, in the meantime, you need to cover your higher education costs and some students look to student loans as one option.
Engineering students are typically attractive to lenders because of their potential future engineering salary. If your program is short, you might earn far more than your debt and might get lower rates from private lenders. In this guide, learn about the top nine student loans for engineering students.
1. 9 best student loans for engineering students 2. Engineering loans for international students 3. Federal student loans vs. private student loans 4. Next steps to getting a loan for engineering students
9 best student loans for engineering students
When it comes to financing your engineering degree, you may need to utilize various resources. Family support, and a mix of grants and scholarships, are a good place to start.
If you need to explore student loan options, start with federal student loans, which offer a number of benefits for borrowers, including student loan forgiveness.
Federal loan options, however, might not cover all of your engineering program costs or might have steep interest rates, depending on the federal loan type. In this case, it might make sense to shop around for private student loans as a financial aid supplement.
Below are some private student loans for engineering students to consider.
1. Sallie Mae
One of the major private lenders on the market is Sallie Mae. It offers the Smart Option Student Loan to undergraduates, and borrowers may choose a fixed rate or variable rate.
Additionally, there’s the Sallie Mae Graduate School Loan, which also offers fixed rates and variable rates and doesn’t have origination fees — unlike federal PLUS Loans for graduate students. Depending on your credit score, you might also be eligible for a lower APR than with a Grad PLUS Loan.
Both loan types have minimums of $1,000 and maximums up to the cost of attendance, making it a flexible option to cover your needs. You might also get an interest rate reduction of 0.25% when signing up for auto-pay, which automatically takes out loan payments from your checking account.
Here’s a look at interest rates from Sallie Mae:
*Disclosures Lends at most
degree programs VISIT SALLIE MAE Fixed 4.50 – 15.49% APR* Variable 6.12 – 16.45% APR*
Interest rates:
- Fixed or variable
- Starting rates also based on enrollment level
Repayment terms:
- 10 to 20 years (15 years for graduate loans)
Loan limits:
- $1,000 to cost of attendance for undergraduate loans and graduate loans
2. Ascent
If you’re going for a short engineering program and expect to earn a high salary, you’ll want to find a lender that offers flexibility and can cater to you. Ascent is a private lender that offers some of the most interesting student loans for engineering students.
Not only does the company offer loans without a cosigner, but the company also offers loans that aren’t just based on your credit. For example, there are no-cosigned outcome-based loans available for undergraduate students who are juniors or seniors and have a GPA of 2.9 and above. These loans also have an attractive 1% interest rate reduction with auto-pay, while the others have 0.25%.
Credit-based loans offer more flexibility with repayment terms, including some as short as five years and as long as 15 years. Both undergraduate and graduate loans from Ascent have no fees and offer a robust grace period of nine months.
Here are Ascent’s current interest rates:
Large autopay
discounts VISIT ASCENT Fixed 4.48 – 15.38% APR* Variable 5.94 – 15.83% APR*
Interest rates:
- Fixed or variable
- Starting rates also based on enrollment level, whether a cosigner is required, and if it’s a credit- or outcomes-based loan
Repayment terms:
- Five, seven, 10, 12 or 15 years for credit-based loans
- 10 or 15 years for outcome-based loans
Loan limits:
- $2,001-$200,000 for undergraduate loans
- $2,001-$400,000 for graduate loans
- Borrowers in Massachusetts have a minimum loan of $6,001
3. Citizens Bank
Citizens Bank is a well-known lender that offers various types of financing, including private student loans. These are available to undergraduate and graduate students and have loan terms of five, 10, and 15 years. If you’re a Citizens Bank customer and sign up for autopay, you may qualify for a 0.50% interest rate reduction.
Whether you’re getting a Bachelor’s degree or Master’s degree, you can borrow between $1,000 to $150,000 through Citizens Bank for your engineering education.
Citizens Bank has fixed and variable interest rates:
International
students accepted VISIT CITIZENS BANK Fixed 4.99 – 11.75% APR* Variable 6.04 – 13.11% APR*
Interest rates:
- Fixed or variable
- Starting rates also based on enrollment level
Repayment terms:
- Five, 10, or 15 years for both undergraduate loans and graduate loans
Loan limits:
- $1,000 to $150,000 for undergraduate and graduate loans
4. College Ave
College Ave can provide a private loan for engineering students whether you’re looking to fund your undergraduate or graduate education. You can choose a private loan with a fixed rate or a variable rate and select a loan repayment term of five, eight, 10, or 15 years. Similar to other lenders, you can also get an automatic payment discount of 0.25%.
There’s also the College Ave Multi-Year Peace of Mind®, which is available to undergraduate borrowers with a cosigner. According to their site, 95% of undergrad borrowers who apply with a cosigner secure funding for multiple years.
College Ave’s current interest rates are:
Flexible repayment VISIT COLLEGE AVE Fixed 4.42% – 14.49% APR* Variable 5.29% – 14.49% APR*
Interest rates:
- Fixed or variable rate
- Starting rates also based on enrollment level
Repayment terms:
- Five, eight, 10, or 15 years for undergraduate and graduate loans
Loan limits:
- $1,000 up to the cost of attendance for undergraduate and graduate loans
5. Discover
Through Discover private loans, engineering students can find funding for their undergraduate or graduate degree up to the cost of attendance. There are zero fees, and you can choose from a variable rate or fixed rate, depending on your situation.
What makes Discover student loans stand out is the fact you can get cash rewards for getting good grades in school. To lower the interest on your loans, you can obtain a 0.25% reduction in interest with autopay. There are also a number of ways to apply, including online or by calling 1-800-STUDENT.
Here’s a look at current Discovery student loan interest rates:
*Disclosures In-school payment
flexibilty VISIT DISCOVER Fixed 5.24 – 14.59% APR* Variable 6.37 – 16.37% APR*
Interest rates:
- Fixed or variable
- Starting rates also based on enrollment level
Repayment terms:
- 15 years for undergraduate loans
- 20 years for graduate loans
Loan limits:
- $1,000 to cost of attendance for both undergraduate and graduate loans
6. Earnest
Earnest is a unique private lender that offers borrowers low rates. They’re so confident about this fact, they have a 100% Rate Match Guarantee where they’ll match any rate you find from a competitor and offer a $100 Amazon Gift Card. Earnest private loans also have an autopay discount of 0.25% and a 9-month grace period on student loans.
There are flexible repayment terms of 5, 10, 15, or 20 years. And what’s interesting is that you can even skip a payment once a year.
You can score lower rates with a cosigner. Cosigners can access a mobile loan application to make the process easy. It should be noted that there is a lifetime maximum of $250,000 for Earnest private student loans.
At Earnest, you’ll find competitive interest rates. Here’s a look at current rates:
Check eligibility
in 2 minutes VISIT EARNEST Fixed 4.43 – 15.90% APR* Variable 5.39 – 16.20% APR*
Interest rates:
- Fixed or variable
- Starting rates also based on enrollment level and whether a cosigner is required
Repayment terms:
- Five, 10, 15, or 20 years
Loan limits:
- $1,000 up to the cost of attendance, with a lifetime maximum of $250,000
7. Funding U
Funding U is a non-traditional private loan lender in that it offers loans only to undergraduate students and never asks for a cosigner. For-profit schools aren’t eligible for these loans nor are graduate students. The company looks at different factors like your academics, future salary, graduation timeline and likelihood, and classes.
This unique model could benefit some engineering students looking for funding. It should be noted that the limits are relatively small, from $3,001 to $20,000 per year for the academic year of 2023-2024. All loans have fixed rates and a repayment term of 10 years.
Let’s look at current interest rates from Funding U:
No-cosigner
undergrad loans VISIT FUNDING U Fixed 7.49 – 12.99% APR* Variable 7.49 – 12.99% APR*
Interest rates:
- Fixed rate
Repayment terms:
- 10 years
Loan limits:
- $3,001 up to $20,000 per year for school year 2023-2024
Engineering loans for international students
International students looking for loans for engineering may have limited options as federal financial aid isn’t available. However, there are private loans that can help.
8. Prodigy Finance
Prodigy Finance offers private student loans to international students pursuing their master’s. So if you want to pursue a master’s in engineering and are an international student, you can try Prodigy Finance.
Prodigy loans have no cosigners or fees and don’t require any collateral. According to the company website, they’ve funded 1.5 billion in loans for students from 150 countries.
Interest rates:
- Starting at 11.06% APR. Rates subject to change.
- Fixed or variable variable
- 5% administration fee
Repayment terms:
- 7 to 20 years
Loan limits:
- Based on cost of program and earning potential
9. MPOWER Financing
MPOWER Financing is another international student loan lender that can help you get financing. The main benefit is that you don’t need a cosigner and can borrow up to $100,000. So if you’re looking for loans for engineering students that are international, this is a good place to start. There’s also free visa support and a 0.25% autopay discount available, like other lenders. All loans are fixed and have a 10-year repayment term.
Interest rates:
- Starting at 13.98% APR. Rates subject to change.
- Fixed rates
- Starting rates also based on enrollment level
Repayment terms:
- 10 years
Loan limits:
- $2,001 to $100,000
Federal student loans vs. private student loans
Taking on student loan debt can be a big decision, especially deciding on whether to use federal students or private student loans. You can choose one or the other, or use both loan vehicles to pay for your education.
To get federal loans, students need to fill out the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA). The primary benefits of going this route include numerous repayment options and loan forgiveness programs. Being eligible for income-driven repayment plans (IDR) can be immensely helpful if you hit hard times financially.
Private loans don’t come with the same benefits and generally require a good credit history or a cosigner. However, there are some private loans without a cosigner available. The primary benefits of private loans are that it can cover your costs and may help you get a lower interest rate.
Before making a decision and applying, review total costs, interest rates, repayment terms, origination fees, and borrower benefits. If going the private route, look at reviews, potential drawbacks, and if there’s deferment or forbearance as a possibility.
Next steps to getting a loan for engineering students
If you’re looking at a loan for engineering students and wondering which one to go with, it can feel overwhelming. Each option has something to consider, and it can be tough to make sense of it all.
Understand your loan amount, monthly payment, eligibility, and repayment period on your new loan. Before making any moves and applying for a loan, talk to a Student Loan Planner consultant for a pre-debt consultation to get the expertise and support you need.
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Competitive
interest rates VISIT SALLIE MAE Fixed 4.50 – 15.49% APR1 Variable 6.12 – 16.45% APR1 Check eligibility
in 2 minutes VISIT EARNEST Fixed 4.43 – 15.90% APR2 Variable 5.39 – 16.20% APR2 Large autopay
discounts VISIT ASCENT Fixed 4.48 – 15.38% APR3 Variable 5.94 – 15.83% APR3 
Flexible repayment options VISIT COLLEGE AVE Fixed 4.42 – 14.49% APR Variable 5.29 – 14.49% APR
1Sallie Mae disclosures. Lowest APRs shown for Sallie Mae Loans include the auto debit discount: The borrower or cosigner must enroll in auto debit through Sallie Mae to receive a 0.25 percentage point interest rate reduction benefit. This benefit applies only during active repayment for as long as the Current Amount Due or Designated Amount is successfully withdrawn from the authorized bank account each month. It may be suspended during forbearance or deferment.
2Earnest: All rates listed above represent APR range. Rate range above includes optional 0.25% Auto Pay discount. Earnest disclosures.
3Ascent disclosures. Disclosure: Ascent Student Loans are funded by Bank of Lake Mills or DR Bank, each Member FDIC. Loan products may not be available in certain jurisdictions. Certain restrictions, limitations; and terms and conditions may apply. For Ascent Terms and Conditions please visit: www.AscentFunding.com/Ts&Cs. Rates are effective as of 7/01/2023 and reflect an automatic payment discount of either 0.25% (for credit-based loans) OR 1.00% (for undergraduate outcomes-based loans). Automatic Payment Discount is available if the borrower is enrolled in automatic payments from their personal checking account and the amount is successfully withdrawn from the authorized bank account each month. For Ascent rates and repayment examples please visit: AscentFunding.com/Rates. 1% Cash Back Graduation Reward subject to terms and conditions. Cosigned Credit-Based Loan student must meet certain minimum credit criteria. The minimum score required is subject to change and may depend on the credit score of your cosigner. Lowest APRs require interest-only payments, the shortest loan term, and a cosigner, and are only available to our most creditworthy applicants and cosigners with the highest average credit scores.