Civil Engineering Career Overview
Civil Engineers are responsible for designing, planning, and managing construction and engineering projects that are often carried out on a very large scale. Civil Engineers typically specialize in a particular type of construction engineering.
A Civil Engineer might work on structural projects such as buildings, dams, and pipelines, on transportation projects such as railways and roads, and environmental, maritime, or geotechnical projects. Civil Engineers might work for local, state or federal government agencies, environmental agencies, construction companies, or consulting firms.
Civil Engineers must have excellent skills in mathematics, science and information technology, and the ability to analyze data and problems to come up with practicable solutions for their projects. They must have excellent communication skills, and be able to explain complex subjects and concepts to laypeople, and have good management, interpersonal, and decision-making skills.
Construction Engineer Career
Construction Engineers are involved in planning and managing the construction of large-scale projects such as buildings, railroads, airports, bridges, highways and dams. Construction Engineers use principles of engineering, mathematics, and science to design construction processes, analyze construction problems, and provide solutions for problems.
A Construction Engineer’s work involves discussing projects with clients and assessing their needs, drawing up plans and blueprints for construction projects, meeting with other contracted professionals such as surveyors and architects, and devising solutions for any problems that occur during the construction process. They must also make sure that projects and construction sites meet both legal requirements and health and safety standards.
Construction Engineers must have excellent analytical skills, as well as problem-detection and problem-solving skills. Good communication and interpersonal skills are also important, and they must be able to explain complex concepts and subjects to laypeople who may not have their level of expert knowledge. Excellent management and decision-making skills are also needed.
Career Fields/Specializations
Civil Engineer Career
Civil Engineers design, plan and manage construction and engineering projects that are often carried out on a very large scale. Civil Engineers typically specialize in a particular type of engineering such as environmental, geotechnical, or hydraulic engineering. A Civil Engineer might work on structural projects such as buildings, dams, and pipelines, on transportation projects such as railways and roads, and environmental, maritime, or geotechnical projects.
The work of a Civil Engineer involves a variety of different types of tasks, including discussing project specifications with clients and other contracted professionals, analyzing data obtained from surveys and maps, creating plans and blueprints, making decisions about the feasibility of projects and making recommendations for improvements, and managing and monitoring the progress of their projects.
Civil Engineers should be analytical and detail-oriented, and have excellent problem-detection and problem-solving skills. They must have excellent communication skills, and be able to explain complex subjects and concepts to laypeople, and have good management, interpersonal, and decision-making skills. Confidence in making difficult decisions is also a useful attribute.
Environmental Engineer Career
Environmental Engineers work on construction projects such as drainage systems, waste management systems, water supply networks, and flood barriers. Their focus is on creating systems that are both efficient and safe for both humans and the environment.
Environmental Engineers may specialize in areas such as water pollution, air pollution, waste management, or landfill design. In addition to planning and designing systems, they may also have a role in examining existing systems and determining consumer or citizen requirements for that system, and then making recommendations for improvements.
Environmental Engineers must have excellent planning, problem-detection, analysis, and problem-solving skills, as well as good communication skills. Reading and writing reports is a significant aspect of the job, and an Environmental Engineer should therefore have particularly good writing skills. Decision-making skills and good judgment is also important.
Geotechnical Engineer Career
Geotechnical Engineers work on construction projects that include foundations of large buildings, earthworks, and mining operations. Their main role lies in determining how construction projects will affect the ground they rest on, and in designing foundations that will support the mass and weight of large buildings.
During a typical project, a Geotechnical Engineer might be involved in investigating subsurface foundation conditions on a construction site, assessing risks involved in building on the site, and making recommendations for improvement in construction, and for minimizing long-term risks. In addition, they will be involved in monitoring site conditions while a project is being completed.
Geotechnical Engineers should have excellent analytical skills, attention to detail, and problem-detection and problem-solving skills. For Geotechnical Engineers, written and verbal communication skills are needed, as well as the ability to explain complex concepts to laypeople that may not have their level of technical knowledge. Decision-making skills and good judgment are also important.
Hydraulic Engineer Career
Hydraulic Engineers are concerned with the design of structures that convey water or are suspended over water, such as channels and canals, dams, bridges, reservoirs and levees. They are typically involved in the design, planning and implementation of water collection or distribution networks as well as ‘stand-alone’ structures such as bridges.
In addition to planning concepts for such structures, Hydraulic Engineers typically work with computer-aided software programs that allow them to determine flow characteristics for a particular design, to ensure it will work correctly in all environmental conditions. Hydraulic Engineers may also be involved in related fields such as shoreline management, flood alleviation, and coastal protection.
Hydraulics Engineers should have excellent problem-detection and problem-solving skills, analytical skills, and decision-making skills. Good written and verbal communication skills are also important, as well as the ability to analyze and synthesize large amounts of data.
Structural Engineer Career
Structural Engineers are concerned with designing and managing structural systems that are built for the purpose of supporting structural loads (forces such as mass and weight that are applied to a given structure). One of the most important concerns of the Structural Engineer lies in ensuring that the intended design and function of a building does not compromise safety standards.
Structural Engineers may be involved in building large structures such as office towers and skyscrapers, or non-building structures such as dams, tunnels and bridges. They may also be involved in the design of machinery that relies heavily on structural integrity to maintain reliability and safety standards.
Structural Engineers must have excellent analytical, problem-detection, and problem-solving skills, with excellent attention to detail, and the ability to analyze and synthesize large amounts of data into a form that laypeople can understand. Good communication skills are also important, as well as decision-making and project-management skills.
View Info
3 Reviews
Search Civil Engineering Schools