Career in Civil Engineering

Typical Work
City Engineer, Planner, Drafting, and Consultant. The field of civil engineering is mostly focused in the area of city building, planning and operations. Civil engineers are behind the design and construction of roadways, buildings, tunnels, airports, dams and other large-scale construction projects. Many civil engineers are employed by the public sector in federal, state/provincial or municipal governments. Large development companies in the construction field also employ many Civil engineers. A recent development is that a large number of civil engineers have started or work at a consulting firm.

Education
To become a civil engineer you need to obtain a bachelor's degree or equivalent in the area of civil engineering. An engineering degree in a relevant field is useful as well although sometimes engineering degrees from other fields can cross over into civil engineering. If you obtain a college diploma in engineering it usually does not come with the same opportunities as a degree from a recognized university, you cannot register as a professional engineer as easily and you will not be recognized as a professional engineer (also people with diplomas in engineering are usually in the lower income bracket).

Top Schools in Civil Engineering
University of California-Berkley
University of Illinois-Urbana-Champaign
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
University of Texas-Austin
Simon Frasier University, BC, Canada
University of Tokyo, Japan

Skills/Education Needed
A civil engineer must have skills in mathematics, physics and other aspects of applied sciences, also they must be creative, analytical, and able to work on a team, and most large scale civil projects require large numbers of people to implement. An interest in construction is also important. Many engineers will move on into administration or management by completing a masters program in engineering or business studies.

Salary Range
$39, 900- $91,000+

Associations and Organizations
American Society of Civil Engineers- http://www.asce.org
International Cost Engineering Council (ICEC) - http://www.icoste.org/
Institution of Civil Engineers- http://www.ice.org.uk/homepage/index.asp
Canadian Society for Civil Engineers- http://www.csce.ca/

Other engineering career choices

Other career choices