Home › Purdue University-Main Campus › Industrial Engineering

Industrial Engineering at Purdue University-Main Campus

West Lafayette, IN · Public · Bachelor's Degree
77 /100
DegreeWorth Score (Base Case)
78
Optimistic
77
Base Case
71
Pessimistic
Earnings $81,379/yr (10% vs median)
AI Risk High (43% exposed)
Job Market Large (60,900 openings/yr)

How AI Changes the Outlook

Three scenarios based on how aggressively AI disrupts the career paths available to Industrial Engineering graduates.

Optimistic
No Disruption		 Base Case
Gradual AI		 Pessimistic
Aggressive AI
10-Year Earnings $1,043K $857K $628K
Earnings Multiple (In-State) 26.1x 21.4x 15.7x
Earnings Multiple (Out-of-State) 9.1x 7.4x 5.5x
Viable Career Paths 4 of 4 4 of 4 4 of 4
DegreeWorth Score 78 77 71

10-Year Earnings Projection

*Year 1 uses actual reported earnings. Scenarios diverge as AI impact compounds over time.

4-Year Tuition (In-State)
$39,968
Out-of-state: $115,176
Median Debt at Graduation
$18,357
2.7 months of Year 1 earnings
Reported Earnings (5 Year)
$100,438
23% growth from Year 1

Career Paths

Where Industrial Engineering graduates typically work. Raw data — no blending. The scenarios above model how these factors interact. This field has roughly 60,900 combined openings per year.

Career Path Wage Openings/yr Growth AI Risk
Architectural and engineering managers $167,740 14,500 +3.8% 41%
Industrial production managers $121,440 17,100 +1.9% 34%
Engineering teachers, postsecondary $106,120 4,100 +8.1% 50%
Industrial engineers $101,140 25,200 +11.0% 48%

Compare & Explore

Industrial Engineering at Other Schools

SUNY Maritime College ($91,470) Northwestern University ($89,811) Georgia Institute of Technology-Main Campus ($87,826) University of Southern California ($87,807) California Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo ($87,226) University of Michigan-Ann Arbor ($86,476) Kettering University ($85,105) North Carolina A & T State University ($83,427)

Other Majors at Purdue University-Main Campus

Computer Science ($94,786) Computer Engineering ($89,965) Electrical, Electronics and Communications Engineering ($84,300) Chemical Engineering ($81,105) Mechanical Engineering ($80,374) Materials Engineering ($78,265) Construction Engineering ($76,966) Architectural Engineering Technologies/Technicians ($75,913)

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the DegreeWorth Score for Industrial Engineering at Purdue University-Main Campus?
This program scores 77/100 in the Base Case scenario, factoring in earnings, AI disruption risk, job market size, and earnings multiple. The score ranges from 78 (optimistic) to 71 (pessimistic) depending on AI's impact.
How does AI affect Industrial Engineering career prospects?
We model three scenarios: Optimistic (no disruption), Base Case (gradual AI adoption), and Pessimistic (aggressive AI displacement). In the base case, Industrial Engineering graduates retain 4 of 4 viable career paths. 10-year earnings range from $628,178 (pessimistic) to $1,042,960 (optimistic).
How many job openings are there for Industrial Engineering graduates?
The career paths mapped to Industrial Engineering have roughly 60,900 combined job openings per year nationally, making this a large job market.
Is Industrial Engineering at Purdue University-Main Campus worth it?
In the Base Case, this degree earns 21.4x its in-state tuition over 10 years. Even in the Pessimistic scenario, the multiple is 15.7x. The spread between scenarios tells you how sensitive this degree is to AI disruption.
Data: U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard (earnings, debt), Bureau of Labor Statistics 2024-2034 (employment projections), OpenAI GPTs-are-GPTs research (AI task exposure), Felten et al. AIOE. Scenarios use a continuous weighting function combining AI exposure and BLS job growth projections. "Earnings Multiple" is total 10-year projected earnings divided by tuition — not a discounted financial ROI. Last updated 2025.