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Discover Civil Engineering

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What Does a Civil Engineer Do?

Imagine knowing how to build a school that stays standing during an earthquake. Or designing roads that actually end traffic jams. Or working on the creation of a stadium where every fan has a great view of the action. That’s the kind of real-world impact civil engineers make every day.

Civil engineers design, plan, and build the structures that shape our lives: bridges, highways, railways, skyscrapers, tunnels, and water systems. They work to turn big ideas into reality, bringing plans to life safely and efficiently. From famous landmarks like New York’s Freedom Tower to eye-catching structures like Vietnam’s Dragon Bridge, civil engineers are the problem-solvers who make bold designs stand strong.

Meet the Change Makers Who Are Civil Engineers!

Meet Peyton Gibson

Peyton is a civil engineer and urban economist who works with architecture, engineering, and construction companies to design a better world for everyone.

Meet Katie Kelly

Katie is a bridge design engineer who ensures public safety by evaluating old bridges and designing new ones.

Meet Jonathan Bower

Jonathan is a structural engineer who battles gravity, earthquakes, and wind every day.

Meet Avery Bang

Avery is a civil engineer and CEO of Bridges to Prosperity where she leads a global team to build bridges to better lives.

Meet Brad Roberts

Brad is a land surveyor and NCEES volunteer who likes to surf in his spare time!

Meet Bart Miller, PE

Bart Miller is a structural engineer who helps build some of the biggest and best stadiums in the United States.

Meet Vatsal Shah

Vatsal is a civil engineering professional and teacher who gets to play with dirt every day.

Civil Engineering Career Overview¹

$100,000

Median salary²

368,900

Number of jobs in 2024

5%

Job growth over next 10 years

Jobs and Education

Bachelor’s Degree

Ensure safe drinking water by managing a community’s water supply.
Develop an art museum that provides state-of-the-art protection for paintings.
Cut down on airport delays by designing a better runway system.
Design the structure of one of the world’s tallest skyscrapers.
Build cheap, sturdy shelters for victims of hurricanes and flooding.

Associate Degree

Land surveyors measure land in order to define property boundaries so that it can be sold, built on, or used for other purposes.
Stake out where a concrete or earthen structure will be placed near a waterway to control flooding.
Plan the construction of new buildings and the destruction of old ones.

High School Diploma/GED + Certification

Turn engineering drawings into real structures by marking locations for new roads and buildings.
Use computer programs to create maps and drawings that engineers use to plan projects.

Real World Civil Engineering Projects

Floating Fire Station

San Francisco’s new floating fire station is designed to withstand earthquakes, storms and sea level rise while remaining fully operational. It is home to the city’s fire boats and houses a command center; repair, maintenance, and fabrication facilities for the fireboats; and residential areas for firefighters on duty.

Big Bertha

The cutter wheel of “Big Bertha,” one of the world’s largest tunnel boring machines, is lowered into place. Used for underground highway, transit, and water supply and discharge tunnels, these machines drill and place the tunnel entirely below the surface, allowing city life above to continue undisturbed.

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