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Dr. Isaac Howard is the materials and construction industries endowed chair in the civil & environmental engineering (CEE) department at Mississippi State University. He also works with the Center for Advanced Vehicular Systems (CAVS). He earned his BS in civil engineering from Arkansas State University, his MS in civil engineering from West Virginia University, and his PhD in civil engineering from the University of Arkansas.
Dr. Howard’s research interests include construction materials, infrastructure, airfield and highway asphalt pavements, and advanced construction materials such as composites and high performance concrete.
OnlineEngineeringPrograms.com: What is something you wish the public understood about civil engineering?
Dr. Howard: Civil engineering makes our modern quality of life possible. Some of the public may not be aware of how much recycling and environmental stewardship is done by civil engineers and how quality infrastructure makes people safer, more productive, and more able to live their dreams.
Challenge yourself for one day to see how much roads, pipelines, water treatment systems, sewers, bridges, levees, buildings, and infrastructure impact your life. Civil engineering is also heavily involved in recycling; for example, asphalt is the most recycled material in America. Take a look at our BCoE YouTube Construction Matters 2 videos for some fundamental examples of how civil engineering improves quality of life.
OnlineEngineeringPrograms.com: What advice would you give to aspiring students in civil engineering?
Dr. Howard: Civil engineering is an extremely broad field that allows people from many backgrounds, personality types, and interests to be successful. There are so many ways to be a successful civil engineer, and the field uses a lot more technology than people might think. The large-scale road, bridge, levee, utility, waterway, and building projects built with heavy equipment require math and science but equally require organization, communication, and a vision for what can be. The ability to be forward-thinking, to communicate effectively, and to be organized can be as important as math or science.
Just like you, your friends, and your family can’t have their current quality of life without infrastructure, civil and environmental engineering can’t have the infrastructure of tomorrow without the talent of tomorrow (YOU)! This field needs a wide range of skill sets—don’t let anyone tell you engineering isn’t for you—there are more ways to be a successful engineer than some might think, so look for yourself, or come talk to us at the Rula School of Civil & Environmental Engineering.
OnlineEngineeringPrograms.com: What does the future of the field look like to you?
Dr. Howard: My opinion is the future of the field is very bright and I see the infrastructure of tomorrow becoming more important over time. I see the skill sets of civil and environmental engineers broadening as people become more aware of how wonderful this field is, and how math and science, while very important, are not the only parts of the career. Civil engineering has been around so long for a reason, and I see its future as a bright one.
Dr. Jeffrey Roesler is the Ernest Barenberg Professor of Civil & Environmental Engineering (CEE) at the Grainger College of Engineering at the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign. He holds BS, MS, and PhD degrees in civil engineering from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, and has been on the faculty of CEE at Illinois since 2000. Before joining the faculty, he was a visiting postdoctoral researcher at the University of California at Berkeley.
Dr. Roesler has taught undergraduate and graduate courses in pavement and materials engineering, transportation engineering, geometric design of roadways, project-based intro to CEE, and CEE professional practice. He is an active participant in the Transportation Research Board (TRB) and past president of the International Society of Concrete Pavements (2020-2022). He is a registered PE in California.
OnlineEngineeringPrograms.com: What is something you wish the public understood about civil engineering?
Dr. Roesler: Civil engineers are responsible for the health, safety, and well-being of the public, which is primarily related to the built environment. The role civil engineers play as the “peoples’ engineers” is to allow the public to conduct their daily lives with all the necessary amenities like mobility within a city or intercity, quick access to food and water, a clean environment (air and water), and safe bridges and buildings.
With advancements in public infrastructure, a society or country can protect its most vulnerable populations and provide the foundation for a growing and robust economy that can be sustained. China, for example, has seen rapid advancement in the past 20 years because of its investment in infrastructure built by civil engineers. They now have the largest road network and high-speed rail system in the world, an expanding university system built to handle more education, and dams for tackling water scarcity and limiting flooding.
OnlineEngineeringPrograms.com: What advice would you give to aspiring students in civil engineering?
Dr. Roesler: Civil engineers can make transformative changes to society by allowing rapid travel, safer drinking, treatment of solid waste, cleaning the air, and building the next generation of energy infrastructure. All these factors allow people to have a higher standard of living, live longer lives, and create the economic infrastructure to allow goods, services, and people to move freely and rapidly.
Given that civil engineers build large things like bridges, buildings, airports, etc., aspiring students can easily see the fruits of their labor and know they participated in bringing to society a piece of infrastructure needed for that city or area. Students in civil engineering can find work at almost any place in the world, and, in an aging society, there is demand for civil engineers everywhere.
OnlineEngineeringPrograms.com: What does the future of the field look like to you?
Dr. Roesler: The future of civil engineering is very bright. Almost all areas of the world need civil engineers to develop, repair, or transform infrastructure to meet new societal challenges. For example, we are in a connected society, and now we need to build the necessary infrastructure for connected and autonomous systems (personal vehicles, freight, robots, air transport, drones, etc.).
We are moving into the era of megacities where the world’s population continues to be concentrated in cities versus rural areas. This requires further transformation of cities into more livable environments, e.g., tackling urban heat islands, air emissions, clean water demand, freight logistics, etc.
The new challenges in civil engineering require skills in traditional areas like structures, transportation, water, and construction, but also a greater understanding of sensors, climate, artificial intelligence, and systems integration.
Dr. Eric Steinberg has been a professor of civil engineering at Ohio University for more than 24 years. He is currently involved in several ODOT-funded research projects including leading the structures research services program. He is a board member of the Ohio Research Initiative for Locals (ORIL) and is involved as a technical advisory committee member on several of the organization’s research projects.
Dr. Steinberg is a member of PCI’s Committee on Bridges and a consulting member of the Student Education Committee. He is also a panel member on a National Cooperative Highway Research Project for the Transportation Research Board. He is a registered PE in Ohio and is a member of ACI, ASCE, and PCI. He has served as an expert witness in the field of structural engineering and as the faculty advisor for the student organizations of ASCE and SEAO.
OnlineEngineeringPrograms.com: What is something you wish the public understood about civil engineering?
Dr. Steinberg: Civil engineering (CE) is a very broad engineering field, and it directly impacts the public. CE includes designing, constructing, maintaining, and renovating: transportation systems utilized for the movement of the public and goods on roadways, waterways, and airways; buildings/structures that we work and live in; facilities, systems, and processes that provide clean and safe water, deal with wastewater, power to our homes and offices, and providing protection for the environment. The list goes on and on.
Lastly, CEs have the ability to analyze and solve problems. Therefore, career paths may even take them into non-traditional areas of sales, software development, education, and research.
OnlineEngineeringPrograms.com: What advice would you give to aspiring students in civil engineering?
Dr. Steinberg: There is no limit to what you can do and achieve. The career options are out there.
OnlineEngineeringPrograms.com: What does the future of the field look like to you?
Dr. Steinberg: The demand for civil engineers will never cease to exist. Civil engineers serve the public, and there will always be a need for water, shelter, and transportation.
For anyone who has not pursued online education before, it is important to understand how the process works and allows students to receive a high-quality, marketable education while learning online.
Civil engineering, in particular, is a discipline that requires a good deal of hands-on instruction. However, online civil engineering programs can work with students to provide a solid foundation in courses like math and physics via online modules, and then have those students participate in face-to-face on-campus lab assignments. Some programs do not have campus attendance requirements and instead assess hands-on capabilities through course projects.
Online learning can be a particularly attractive and effective choice for non-traditional students. For instance, working professionals who want to pursue a new degree can take courses independently without quitting their jobs or uprooting their families. The same applies to active military members who want to further their education but do not necessarily live near a university. In this way, online learning can open up otherwise unavailable opportunities to passionate learners who just can’t make a regular degree program work.
The most successful students in an online learning environment tend to be extremely organized and self-motivated. Courses may be set up in different ways depending on the program. Generally, the most successful online students are those who can set aside specific blocks of time throughout the week to study and participate in online class discussions.
While flexibility is one of the most attractive features of online learning, finding structure and accountability within that flexibility is key to success.
| School | City | State | Website | Undergrad | Graduate | Grads |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Champaign |
IL | www.illinois.edu | 455 | |||
Tempe |
AZ | www.asu.edu | 262 | |||
Seattle |
WA | www.washington.edu | 258 | |||
Newark |
NJ | www.njit.edu | 252 | |||
Ames |
IA | www.iastate.edu | 228 | |||
Arlington |
TX | www.uta.edu | 226 | |||
Raleigh |
NC | www.ncsu.edu | 218 | |||
Gainesville |
FL | www.ufl.edu/ | 200 | |||
Stanford |
CA | www.stanford.edu | 197 | |||
Madison |
WI | www.wisc.edu | 192 | |||
Lubbock |
TX | www.ttu.edu | 189 | |||
Clemson |
SC | www.clemson.edu | 175 | |||
Auburn |
AL | www.auburn.edu | 164 | |||
Rolla |
MO | www.mst.edu | 163 | |||
New York |
NY | www.columbia.edu | 155 | |||
Boulder |
CO | www.colorado.edu | 139 | |||
Pittsburgh |
PA | www.pitt.edu | 131 | |||
Houghton |
MI | www.mtu.edu | 119 | |||
Knoxville |
TN | www.utk.edu | 110 | |||
Mississippi State |
MS | www.msstate.edu | 110 | |||
Athens |
OH | www.ohio.edu | 102 | |||
Charlottesville |
VA | www.virginia.edu | 97 | |||
Fort Collins |
CO | www.colostate.edu | 93 | |||
Kennesaw |
GA | www.kennesaw.edu | 79 | |||
Villanova |
PA | www.villanova.edu | 79 | |||
Manhattan |
KS | www.k-state.edu | 78 | |||
Houston |
TX | www.uh.edu | 77 | |||
Louisville |
KY | www.louisville.edu | 65 | |||
Grand Forks |
ND | und.edu | 63 | |||
Northfield |
VT | www.norwich.edu | 60 | |||
Norman |
OK | www.ou.edu | 56 | |||
Southfield |
MI | www.ltu.edu | 34 | |||
Cleveland |
OH | www.case.edu | 33 | |||
Dallas |
TX | www.smu.edu | 20 | |||
University Park |
PA | worldcampus.psu.edu | 1 |
Applying to any university program can be stressful, particularly if you don't know exactly what to expect from the process. While it can be quite different for graduate and undergraduate admissions (and varies from school to school), some commonalities are helpful to understand.
Students should expect to demonstrate an aptitude for math and science through high school transcripts and standardized testing when applying to an undergraduate civil engineering program. The online application process generally charges a nominal fee and must include transcripts, test scores, personal essays, and letters of recommendation.
Every program is different, but most undergraduate programs start during the fall semester, with applications due towards the beginning of the year (January or February is common). Those programs that allow for spring admission tend to accept applications for that semester during the previous fall (September or October is common).
Graduate programs in civil engineering can be quite competitive and have stricter experience and academic requirements for admission. Most programs require that entering students already have a bachelor of science (BS) degree in civil engineering, although some programs may accept degrees in a closely related field.
Similarly, civil engineering doctoral programs require that applicants obtain a master's degree in civil engineering before admission. Some schools, such as Columbia University, offer programs that allow students to earn a master's degree from the same program before admission to the doctoral track.
Some civil engineering programs are accredited by the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology (ABET). Students wishing to pursue a master's in civil engineering may need an undergraduate degree from an ABET-accredited program to qualify. Similarly, qualifying for the Professional Engineer (PE) license may call for a degree from an ABET-accredited program, but students may undergo a separate evaluation process if their program does not have this recognition. Conditions in various states vary (e.g., New Jersey).
Applicants for licensing must have completed an undergraduate degree (at minimum) and at least four years of work as an engineer before applying for the Professional Engineer (PE) license. Licensing exams are offered by the National Council of Examiners for Engineering and Surveying (NCEES).
For a full listing of engineering licensing boards in each state, visit the NCEES website.
As with most academic programs, the exact curriculum for one online civil engineering program will not be the same as another, but there are similarities.
Undergraduate online civil engineering students can expect to take many foundational courses in engineering, including courses in design, construction, soil mechanics, and AutoCAD. Many programs also include some degree of research or internship that involves hands-on professional experience.
In addition, undergraduates should expect to complete any university prerequisites required for an undergraduate degree, which may include courses in liberal arts, languages, writing, or elective courses. These prerequisites may be decreased for students who transfer into a program from a community college.
Pursuing a master's degree is typically the right course of action for civil engineers who want to specialize in a certain field. Most programs offer a master's of science (MS) degree, although some offer a master’s of engineering (ME).
In many cases, master's programs offer higher-level versions of undergraduate courses, such as advanced foundation design, computational hydraulics, or air pollution control engineering. Depending on which undergraduate courses were completed, high-level courses in statistics, physics, chemistry, and other sciences may be required.
Licensing exams for civil engineers are offered by the NCEES in five separate specializations:
These specialties closely mimic the types of programs that are available to graduate students in civil engineering programs and will determine what type of curriculum a student should expect. In general, students must choose one specialty and earn a degree in that area. A standard MS or ME program takes approximately two years to complete, regardless of specialization.
Civil engineers who are not ready to commit to a master's program (or who have already earned a master's degree but want to expand their credentials) can choose to earn a graduate certificate.
At the University of Illinois, for example, there are several specialized graduate certificates in civil engineering. Their focuses include construction management, pavement engineering, railroad engineering, and transportation engineering.
Doctoral programs vary widely depending on the specialty that a student chooses to pursue. For instance, a PhD candidate in transportation engineering will have to take courses in traffic flow theory, while someone studying water resources will take courses in river mechanics.
All PhD students will have to complete a dissertation to complete the degree. PhD programs can take around four years to complete, depending on the final dissertation project.
Auburn University - Samuel Ginn College of Engineering
Auburn University, based in Alabama, offers an online master of civil engineering (MCE) degree program, with tracks in environmental engineering, geotechnical engineering, pavements and materials, and structural engineering. (It has additional tracks available on-campus only.) These programs are available through the Samuel Ginn College of Engineering. The U.S. News and World Report have ranked Auburn’s master’s offerings among the best online engineering programs in the country.
To be eligible for this program, students must have a bachelor's degree in civil engineering or a similar discipline from an accredited institution, GRE scores, three letters of recommendation, and TOEFL scores (for international applicants only).
This 30-credit program involves courses such as advanced analysis of framed structures; fatigue and fracture mechanics; earthquake engineering; pavement management and rehabilitation; advanced stress analysis; and advanced flow and water quality models.
Columbia University - Fu Foundation School of Engineering and Applied Science
As part of the Fu Foundation School of Engineering and Applied Science, Columbia University offers online certification in civil engineering - construction management, a certification in civil engineering, and a master of science degree in civil engineering. The school has been consistently ranked among the top online programs by the U.S. News and World Report.
Of particular interest to those looking for a master's program, Columbia University offers a standard civil engineering option with concentrations in construction engineering, structures, soil mechanics, continuum mechanics, fluid mechanics, experimental mechanics, and earthquake engineering, among others. Master's programs are available completely online.
Admission requirements include an undergraduate degree in civil engineering or a related field from an accredited academic institution, a minimum grade point average of 3.0, GRE scores, three letters of recommendation, transcripts, a current resume, and a personal-professional statement. TOEFL scores are required of international applicants.
The master’s program involves 30 credits, providing students with a solid foundation in the fundamentals of civil engineering. Courses in the master’s program include elastic and plastic analysis of structures; uncertainty, and risk in infrastructure systems; managing engineering and construction processes; prevention and resolution of construction disputes; and advanced soil mechanics.
The certificate programs are made up of 12 credits each and can be completed entirely online.
Kansas State University offers a fully online civil engineering master’s degree allowing students to customize their curriculum and meet their career goals. The program provides the following five concentrations:
Admission requirements for the program include a bachelor’s degree in civil engineering from an institution accredited by ABET, a statement of objectives, three professional references, and unofficial transcripts from each institution attended. Students who do not have a bachelor’s degree from an ABET-accredited institution must submit GRE scores.
Designed for working professionals, this online master’s degree is made up of 30 credits. Courses in the program might include water treatment processes; environmental engineering chemistry; advanced soil mechanics; advanced geotechnical design; advanced steel design; traffic engineering; and design of groundwater flow systems.
Graduates of this program will be ready to construct working and living spaces, provide water for industrial use and drinking, clean the environment, dispose of waste generated by humans, and create a reliable transportation system for people and food.
Mississippi State University - Rula School of Civil and Environmental Engineering
Mississippi State’s Rula School of Civil and Environmental Engineering offers programs of study leading to a Master's degree in Civil and Environmental Engineering with specializations in the following areas:
The non-thesis option comprises 33 credits. Applicants must hold a bachelor's degree from a fully recognized four-year educational institution that has unconditional accreditation with appropriate regional accrediting agencies. They also must meet the admission requirements of the Graduate School and the Civil Engineering program.
University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign - The Granger College of Engineering
The online master of science in civil engineering program at The Grainger College of Engineering is US News and World Report’s choice for the best in the nation. It also allows for flexibility to specialize and upskill in a chosen field of expertise. Students can select from 10 specialty or cross-disciplinary areas, including: construction management; environmental engineering; infrastructure; and transportation engineering.
The 36-credit, non-thesis program can be finished in as little as one year with a full-time courseload. Possible courses include: pavement design; high-speed rail engineering; traffic capacity analysis; environmental systems; and structural mechanics.
Villanova University - College of Engineering
Villanova University offers a completely online civil engineering master's program. The university offers a great deal of flexibility for online students, which is a good option for those who wish to continue their careers while attending school. The concentrations offered are as follows:
To apply, students must hold a bachelor of science in civil engineering (BSCE) degree from an ABET-accredited program (or its equivalent), official transcripts from all undergraduate and graduate universities attended, two recommendations, a statement of purpose, a current resume, and official TOEFL or IELTS scores for international applicants.
The MSCE program consists of 30 credits and includes courses such as lake, stream, and wetland ecology; hazardous waste management; an introduction to hydraulics and hydrology; design of railway and airport infrastructure; geosynthetics; geoenvironmental engineering; traffic engineering; and sustainable pavement systems.
Iowa State University offers a 100 percent online master's degree program in civil engineering. Students can also pursue a master's degree program in civil engineering with an emphasis on construction engineering and management. This highly practical degree requires students to learn management techniques and other real-world skills besides the engineering component. The program provides students with managerial and technical education, helping them overcome problems in a construction environment.
For admission, students must have an undergraduate degree in engineering from an accredited program with a GPA of 3.0 (or higher), three letters of recommendation, and English language proficiency for international students.
Made up of 30 credits, the program includes courses such as construction finance & business management; construction special topics: planning & scheduling; construction special topics: engineering for disaster and climate resilience; applied foundation engineering; and dynamics of soils and foundations.
Johns Hopkins University - Whiting School of Engineering
Johns Hopkins University offers an online master’s in civil engineering and an online graduate certificate in civil engineering. Both these programs prepare students for challenges in the field, offering advanced courses taught by experienced civil engineering professionals and researchers. Students can study focus areas such as structural engineering, ocean and coastal engineering, and geotechnical engineering or pursue general civil engineering studies.
For admission to these programs, students must be in the last semester of undergraduate study (or hold a bachelor’s degree from a regionally accredited college or university). They must have a grade point average of at least 3.0, transcripts from all college studies, and proof of English language proficiency (for international students only).
The master's program involves ten courses, while the graduate certificate involves five courses. Courses in these programs include mathematical methods for engineers; structural mechanics; geotechnical engineering principles; natural disaster risk modeling; sustainable coastal engineering; an independent study in civil engineering; ground improvement methods; and wind engineering.
Graduates will be able to apply science, engineering, and mathematics principles, identify and solve complex problems in civil engineering, and use skills, modern engineering tools, and techniques necessary for engineering practice.
North Carolina State University
The North Carolina State University offers an online master of civil engineering program, which can be completed entirely online and does not have any on-campus residency requirement. The program provides the following concentrations:
To be accepted into this program, students must have a bachelor's degree in civil engineering from an accredited institution, an overall grade point average of 3.0, and TOEFL or IELTS scores (for all international applicants, except those who have completed one year of full-time study at a U.S. university). The Graduate Record Exam (GRE) is automatically waived for applicants who have an engineering degree from a US institution.
Made up of 30 credits, the program includes courses such as information technology and modeling; construction project management; the physical principles of environmental engineering; geomechanics of stress and deformation; and transportation systems engineering.
University of Southern California
USC Viterbi School of Engineering’s department of civil and environmental engineering offers an online master of science in civil engineering program, which is focused on structural engineering. Structural engineering emphasizes experimental and analytical studies of the behavior of structures such as dams, bridges, and buildings. The program is taught by the same faculty members who teach on campus.
For admission to the program, applicants need a bachelor's degree from an accredited institution in any engineering or engineering-related disciplines, transcripts from all universities and colleges attended, a current resume, a personal statement, two letters of recommendation, and TOEFL or IELTS scores for international students whose first language is not English.
Comprising 28 credits, the program includes courses such as mechanics of solids; engineering mathematical methods; finite element analysis; advanced reinforced concrete; advanced steel structures; dynamics of structures; and finite element analysis, among others.
At the end of the program, graduates can pursue opportunities in the areas of building maintenance, construction design, architecture, environmental engineering, project management, project planning, and surveying.
University of Houston’s Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering offers an online Master of Science in Civil Engineering program that connects structural engineering with the disciplines of hydrosystems engineering, geotechnical engineering, environmental engineering, mechanical engineering, subsea engineering, and geosensing & geoinformatics. This program is ideal for working professionals as it only requires one on-campus orientation at the program's start.
To get accepted into the program, applicants must have a bachelor of science in civil engineering degree, or the equivalent, from an ABET-accredited (or similar) program, a GPA of 3.0, GRE test scores, and TOEFL or IELTS scores for international students without U.S. degrees.
This 31-credit program can be completed in as little as two years. It includes courses such as constitutive modeling of materials, advanced foundations, advanced steel design, introduction to dynamics of structures, water quality, environmental chemistry, and computational mechanics.
The program equips students with an extensive background in civil engineering focusing on design, management, operation, and construction, enabling graduates to solve current and future challenges faced by the civil engineering field.
Ohio University offers a fully online master of science program in civil engineering that is focused on showing students how to address sustainability, emerging technologies, and globalization using advanced principles and techniques of physical science and mathematics. The program helps students expand their expertise in the scientific, mathematical, and technical areas of civil engineering while increasing their management skills.
Students can specialize their studies with four concentration options to align with their desired career path: construction engineering and management; structural engineering; environmental engineering; or transportation engineering.
For admission to the program, applicants must have a bachelor’s degree in civil engineering from an ABET-accredited university with a 3.0 GPA or higher. Applicants with lesser GPA scores will be admitted on a conditional basis.
As part of the program, students will explore topics such as engineering writing, project management, principles of pavement design, environmental analysis of transportation systems, prestressed concrete design, traffic parameters, transportation design, timber design, water resources engineering, and heavy construction management.
Students enrolled in Louisiana State University’s online master in civil engineering program will have the flexibility to plan their curriculum through specializations. They will be equipped to develop, design, and effectively lead in the civil engineering industry. Graduates will gain the necessary tools to address sustainability and globalization while advancing their careers as civil engineering leaders.
To get accepted into the program, applicants must have an undergraduate degree in civil engineering from an accredited institution or its equivalent with an overall grade point average of 3.0 (a GPA of 2.75 may be accepted with relevant work experience). Additionally, international applicants will require three professional letters of recommendation along with TOEFL or IELTS scores unless they have completed one year of full-time study at a US university. GRE scores are not required for admission.
The 36-credit program includes courses such as soil improvement and stabilization, geotechnical engineering and construction, traffic engineering operations and control, pavement design, concrete in transportation applications, advanced bridge engineering, pavement management system, and geometric design of highways and airports.
Graduates will be ready to take up roles such as transportation engineers, pavement engineers, design engineers, project engineers, structural engineers, traffic engineers, civil engineers, architectural managers, construction managers, and environmental engineers.
While programs do not uniformly report their campus visitation requirements for online programs, we can get a general idea about how much campus time is required from the various programs. Some programs require no campus time at all. Others are more of a hybrid online and in-person program, requiring campus visits each semester.
Most online master's programs in civil engineering are 100 percent online, which is convenient. These programs may involve submitting physical projects, but that does not necessarily involve traveling to the school's campus.
Internships are another common requirement for civil engineering programs, but these can usually be completed in the student's state of residence, so long as it is a program that has been approved in that state.
Choosing the right online civil engineering program will depend largely on what the student hopes to achieve in the program. While many master's level programs make it easy to complete an entire degree online, more advanced students may find it difficult to complete a doctoral dissertation without one-on-one counseling.
Internships are another critical portion of advanced engineering education. While an internship cannot take place online, students need to ensure that the program can help them identify appropriate internships and work experiences that they can participate in locally to complete their education. Some programs leave the internship portion up to the student but have staff available to assist in the process.
These numbers represent data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics from May 2023—the latest figures available as of August 2024.
Civil Engineers
Matt Zbrog is a writer and researcher from Southern California. Since 2018, he’s written extensively about a wide range of engineering disciplines, with a particular focus on the potential impacts of major technological breakthroughs. His work largely centers around conversations with engineeri...
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Environmental engineers apply their math, science, and engineering savvy to prevent and solve environmental problems. One might think such a field is too specialized to offer much professional variation, but there is a wealth of career paths in this high-growth area of the discipline.
Earning a master’s degree in civil engineering can lead to careers in urban and regional planning, landscape architecture, construction management, and surveying, among others.
The cost of energy, the rise of illnesses related to pollution, and most importantly, climate change, have all prompted engineers to come up with sustainable ideas for development and innovation. These ideas range from the construction of residential and commercial buildings designed to be environmentally friendly to the development of new technologies for pollution control, waste disposal, or other public health concerns. Sustainable engineering uses current resources in an optimal manner so that it does not harmfully impact the environment, ensuring that present and future generations live in a safe and healthy world.
While it may be the oldest field of engineering, civil engineering is a field embracing modern approaches and applying them to major problems like urban traffic congestion, water harvesting and purification, and infrastructure deterioration. These professors are helping to lead the way.
Meet 20 professors who teach their students to protect us from environmental threats, and ultimately reduce or eliminate them.
