Civil Engineers, come here.

[Lockelar]

What does a civil engineer do? They design structures, but is that it? Do they actually work or do they just design? How much of the design do you actually know when you start and how much of it do you reference for the different jobs? How much of a pain is it to get your PE? Does school experience count towards the four years required experience, or do you have to actually be on the job doing whatever you do?

 

[ErmanC]

Glad to see someone interested in the field. Ok one question at a time. Civil Engineers do lots of things. Generally we focus in 5 big areas: structures, construction, geotechnical, transportation, and water resources. Sometimes surveying is involved too. Usually, undergraduate work is more general and you take classes to apply to each of those areas. If you want to specialize most people go for graduate study in one particular area.

Structural engineers are all about design and strength of bridges, frames, trusses, building systems, etc. Construction engineers focus on construction methodology, scheduling, optimization, and management. Geotechnical engineers focus on foundations, settlement, strength and properties of soils, pavements, and subsurface features. Transportation engineers design roadways, traffic control systems, safety systems, mass transit, shipping and freight facilities, etc. Water resources engineers do drainage design such as ditches and culverts, detention ponds, lakes, etc. They also design drinking water and wastewater collection, treatment, and distribution systems. These are only a few of the things Civil Engineers are involved in and most civil engineers cross over between areas to some extent. The great thing about the civil engineering is that your background is usually general enough that you get to work to some extent in all the areas as your career progresses.

As far as the design work its a grab bag. Some engineers do just design, but some do only field work, data collection, construction site management, and inspection. It all depends on your interest and the project you're working on. Ideally you'll get to do a little of each to keep it interesting. How much of the design do you know? Well you know parts or have an idea of what to do, but it isn't necessarily like you pull something off the shelf and use it over and over again. There's always something new or unexpected. There's also always new materials and building practices to consider. As for your PE, that comes later. First expect to spend 5 years in school (hardly anyone can do it in 4) then take a very difficult intern test. After you're an intern for 4 years on the job you take another test for your PE. More than anything a PE gives you the responsibility to certify that your design is safe and protects human life and all that. Actual rules vary from state to state, but some states let you get a year of credit for completing grad school.

All and all its a very rewarding career. The work can be difficult, the hours are long, the pay is decent, and there's always something new around the corner. If you still want more info, PM me. Hope it helps!

 

[Dedpuhl]

ErmanC pretty much hit all the key points.

I am one class away (differential equations) from having a degree in Civil Engineering. I have ZERO work experience in engineering/industry, so I am most likely going to take a job with the Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development (DOTD). Generally, Civils are the lowest paid and the most underappreciated. At my school (McNeese State), the Chemicals get all the attention.


How much of a pain is it to get your PE? Does school experience count towards the four years required experience, or do you have to actually be on the job doing whatever you do?

I have heard that they are changing the format of the PE Exam. My professors and older engineers had a choice to take the PE in a certain branch of CE such as Hydrology, Open Channels, Transportation, etc. New PE applicants are now having to take a general Civil Examination. One of my professors claims that "no one will pass the PE again." CE is such a broad discipline that it can be damn near impossible to retain all the information after 4 years.

 

[Thegonagle]

I'm very interested in the field, particularly transportation.

I'd like to go to school either here at the U of MN, in Chicago, or perhaps New York or Boston (though I've never been out east, both those cities appeal to me).

Anyone got any suggestions? Is the University of Minnesota well respected for civil engineering?

Jeez, I realize that while Minneapolis is bad enough for cost of living, it could hardly get worse than Chicago, New York, or Boston.

 

[ErmanC]

ON AN ADDITIONAL NOTE: There's also a big push right now to make a graduate degree a requirement for the PE, so anyone starting into the field needs to make sure they check into that along with the accredidation of the prospective school. That way there's no surprises down the road.

As for schools, unless you're going big time research, pick the one that's right for you and still has the accredidation to get you where you want to go. Be sure and talk to the school's adminstration and make sure they're ABET/NCEES accredited for your program. In general, the engineering program at any school is all what you make of it. You learn what you can while you're in school and you'll pick up most of your real education once you start working. The more you pick up while in school, the easier it is when you hit the real world.


Hey DED... just learn the Laplace Transform You get that and you got diff-eq licked.

I'm not sure about the new format of the PE. I think here (in Kentucky) its going to be a breadth and depth test. The morning session is more general and you pick so many questions that you think you can answer. It's more like the EIT (FE) test you take during your senior year. In the afternoon, you work out longer more discipline specific problems in one or more of the various areas. You still get to chose which ones you're going to try. Good news is you show all your work and they do give partial credit. From what they tell me, basically if you're qualified to be a PE and know what you're doing and study a bit, you'll be able to pass the thing. I can't sit for it until next spring so I have some studying to do.

BTW, Good luck with LDOT.

 

[Dedpuhl]

BTW, Good luck with LDOT.

Thanks. If it's anything like I hear, then I should be in for an easy ride at the DOTD

 

[Lockelar]

Thanks for the answers. I've already been in school for two years, originally pursuing an electrical engineering degree and a computer science degree, but my current employer, Texas Department of Transportation, has suggested that I switch to civil engineering since I'll have at least two years work exp with them by the time I graduate, i.e. more pay I like the idea that I'd have job security. It is a state agency, afterall, so I'd have my job until I died. I hope I don't have to do graduate school. I really can't imagine getting a Master's in any engineering field as that would be a helluva lot of work.

One other thing. All that stuff I did NOT learn in Physics, they reteach it to you in the CE classes, right? Or maybe I'm wrong and there's not as much Physics in Civil Engineering as I thought there was?

 

[The Wildcard]

Hahaha, well one class that I know civil engineers have to take is a class in Dynamics. In most colleges, this class is taught by the Mechanical Engineering department and yes, it involves alot of physics.