Memphis, TN (population: 662,989) has three environmental engineering schools within a 100-mile radius of its city center. Arkansas State University-Main Campus, the highest ranked school in this group with an environmental engineering program, has a total student population of 12,156. It is the 462nd highest ranked school in the USA and the 3rd highest in the state of Arkansas (#1 is Harding University).
Environmental Engineering students from Memphis schools who go on to become environmental engineers, environmental scientists, environmental specialists, environmental protection specialists, etc. have a good chance at finding employment. For example, there are 50,610 people working as environmental engineers alone in the US, and their average annual salary is $80,750. Also, Environmental scientists and specialists, including health make on average $67,360 per year and there are about 83,530 of them employed in the US today. In fact, in the Memphis-MS-AR area alone, there are 120 employed environmental scientists and specialists, including health earning an average salary of $44,320. Environmental engineers in this area earn $65,720/yr and there are 110 employed.
Memphis lies in Shelby county, which is one of the 26 counties in Tennessee. Overall, the Memphis-MS-AR area has 605,630 total employed workers according to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, with a 1.2% unemployment rate, $18.93/hr average worker wage, and a $39,380 average annual salary. Thus, about 0.184 out of every 1000 jobs in Memphis are held by environmental engineers, and 0.192/1000 are held by environmental scientists and specialists, including health.
Of the 3 environmental engineering schools with a 100-mile radius of Memphis, only 1 has a student population over 10k. After taking into account tuition, living expenses, and financial aid, Lambuth University comes out as the most expensive ($15,377/yr) for environmental engineering students, with East Arkansas Community College as the lowest, reported at only $2,502/yr.
| Name | State | Population | # of Schools | Avg School Rank | Total Programs | Distance from Memphis |
| Southaven | MS | 47,625 | 1 | 27.9087 | 11 | 9.7 miles |
| Bartlett | TN | 47,744 | 0 | - | 0 | 12.3 miles |
| Senatobia | MS | - | 1 | 17.4796 | 114 | 34.1 miles |
| Jonesboro | AR | 66,734 | 1 | 24.4204 | 8 | 62.3 miles |
| State University | AR | - | 1 | 57.8251 | 135 | 63.1 miles |