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Civil Engineers

$95,890 Median Wage (2023)

22,900 Projected job openings (2023-2033)

6.50% Projected growth (2023-2033)

Perform engineering duties in planning, designing, and overseeing construction and maintenance of building structures and facilities, such as roads, railroads, airports, bridges, harbors, channels, dams, irrigation projects, pipelines, power plants, and water and sewage systems.

Experience Requirements Overview

Job Zone Four: Considerable Preparation Needed
A considerable amount of work-related skill, knowledge, or experience is needed for these occupations. For example, an accountant must complete four years of college and work for several years in accounting to be considered qualified.
Most of these occupations require a four-year bachelor's degree, but some do not.
Employees in these occupations usually need several years of work-related experience, on-the-job training, and/or vocational training.

Education, Training and Experience

Required Level of Education: Bachelor's Degree

Related Work Experience: Over 4 years, up to and including 6 years

On-Site or In-Plant Training: N.A.

On-the-Job Training: Over 6 months, up to and including 1 year

Detailed Work Activities

Estimate technical or resource requirements for development or production projects.
Inspect facilities or sites to determine if they meet specifications or standards.
Survey land or bodies of water to measure or determine features.
Estimate operational costs.
Prepare proposal documents.
Explain project details to the general public.
Test characteristics of materials or structures.
Investigate the environmental impact of projects.
Incorporate green features into the design of structures or facilities.
Design systems to reduce harmful emissions.
Implement design or process improvements.
Develop technical methods or processes.
Coordinate safety or regulatory compliance activities.
Recommend technical design or process changes to improve efficiency, quality, or performance.
Direct construction activities.
Create graphical representations of civil structures.
Evaluate technical data to determine effect on designs or plans.

Work Values

Achievement

Occupations that satisfy this work value are results oriented and allow employees to use their strongest abilities, giving them a feeling of accomplishment. Corresponding needs are Ability Utilization and Achievement.

Working Conditions

Recognition

Relationships

Support

Independence

Tasks

Direct engineering activities, ensuring compliance with environmental, safety, or other governmental regulations.
Manage and direct the construction, operations, or maintenance activities at project site.
Inspect project sites to monitor progress and ensure conformance to design specifications and safety or sanitation standards.
Compute load and grade requirements, water flow rates, or material stress factors to determine design specifications.
Plan and design transportation or hydraulic systems or structures, using computer-assisted design or drawing tools.
Provide technical advice to industrial or managerial personnel regarding design, construction, program modifications, or structural repairs.
Analyze survey reports, maps, drawings, blueprints, aerial photography, or other topographical or geologic data.
Direct or participate in surveying to lay out installations or establish reference points, grades, or elevations to guide construction.
Estimate quantities and cost of materials, equipment, or labor to determine project feasibility.
Prepare or present public reports on topics such as bid proposals, deeds, environmental impact statements, or property and right-of-way descriptions.
Design energy-efficient or environmentally sound civil structures.
Test soils or materials to determine the adequacy and strength of foundations, concrete, asphalt, or steel.
Identify environmental risks and develop risk management strategies for civil engineering projects.
Conduct studies of traffic patterns or environmental conditions to identify engineering problems and assess potential project impact.
Develop or implement engineering solutions to clean up industrial accidents or other contaminated sites.
Design or engineer systems to efficiently dispose of chemical, biological, or other toxic wastes.

Work Styles

Achievement/Effort

Job requires establishing and maintaining personally challenging achievement goals and exerting effort toward mastering tasks.

Persistence

Initiative

Leadership

Cooperation

Concern for Others

Social Orientation

Self-Control

Stress Tolerance

Adaptability/Flexibility

Dependability

Attention to Detail

Integrity

Independence

Innovation

Analytical Thinking

Data Source: This page includes information from the O*NET 28.0 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA). Used under the CC BY 4.0 license. O*NET® is a trademark of USDOL/ETA. This page includes Employment Projections program, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics program, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

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