The curriculum includes a core of required technical courses plus additional civil engineering electives chosen by the student on the basis of individual professional interest. The core courses include topics in structural engineering, hydrology, surveying, soil mechanics and foundations, transportation, construction management, and environmental engineering. The field of civil engineering is concerned with the planning, design, construction, and maintenance of private and public works projects such as highways, bridges, buildings, dams, subdivisions, water supplies, and waste disposal systems. The Civil Engineering and Surveying Department offers a flexible program where students, upon completing the core curriculum, may select courses of interest and develop one or more areas of special emphasis. Areas of emphasis include structural design, public works, construction, and environmental engineering.
Students can then target specific careers within the broad field of civil engineering.
The structural design emphasis prepares graduates to direct the planning, analysis, and design of buildings and other structures. Design electives provide an exposure to the techniques of analysis and design in the principle construction materials. Integrated design project courses integrate prior course work in the design of complete, realistic projects. Graduates may be employed by consulting engineering firms, state and federal agencies, or construction companies. Graduates become involved in the planning, design, operation and maintenance of major municipal, state and federal infrastructure facilities associated with air, water and land transportation, water resources, liquid and solid waste collection, treatment and disposal.