Civil Engineers
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.
Also Known As:
City Engineer
Civil Engineer
County Engineer
Design Engineer
Engineer
Geotechnical Engineer
Licensed Engineer
Project Engineer
Railroad Design Consultant
Structural Engineer
Wages
Annual wages for Civil Engineers in United States
Job Outlook
Bright
New job opportunities are very likely in the future
United States
2033 Projected Employment
363,900
7% Change From 2023
Explore Civil Engineers video
Tasks you might complete in a day.
- Direct engineering activities, ensuring compliance with environmental, safety, or other governmental regulations.
- Test soils or materials to determine the adequacy and strength of foundations, concrete, asphalt, or steel.
- Conduct studies of traffic patterns or environmental conditions to identify engineering problems and assess potential project impact.
- Provide technical advice to industrial or managerial personnel regarding design, construction, program modifications, or structural repairs.
- Design or engineer systems to efficiently dispose of chemical, biological, or other toxic wastes.
- Identify environmental risks and develop risk management strategies for civil engineering projects.
- Identify environmental risks and develop risk management strategies for civil engineering projects.
- Prepare or present public reports on topics such as bid proposals, deeds, environmental impact statements, or property and right-of-way descriptions.
- Develop or implement engineering solutions to clean up industrial accidents or other contaminated sites.
- Prepare or present public reports on topics such as bid proposals, deeds, environmental impact statements, or property and right-of-way descriptions.
- Develop or implement engineering solutions to clean up industrial accidents or other contaminated sites.
- Manage and direct the construction, operations, or maintenance activities at project site.
- Compute load and grade requirements, water flow rates, or material stress factors to determine design specifications.
- Estimate quantities and cost of materials, equipment, or labor to determine project feasibility.
- Direct or participate in surveying to lay out installations or establish reference points, grades, or elevations to guide construction.
- Inspect project sites to monitor progress and ensure conformance to design specifications and safety or sanitation standards.
- Analyze survey reports, maps, drawings, blueprints, aerial photography, or other topographical or geologic data.
- Plan and design transportation or hydraulic systems or structures, using computer-assisted design or drawing tools.
- Design energy-efficient or environmentally sound civil structures.
Subject areas you may need to master.
- Administrative - Knowledge of administrative and office procedures and systems such as word processing, managing files and records, stenography and transcription, designing forms, and workplace terminology.
- Production and Processing - Knowledge of raw materials, production processes, quality control, costs, and other techniques for maximizing the effective manufacture and distribution of goods.
- Medicine and Dentistry - Knowledge of the information and techniques needed to diagnose and treat human injuries, diseases, and deformities. This includes symptoms, treatment alternatives, drug properties and interactions, and preventive health-care measures.
- Personnel and Human Resources - Knowledge of principles and procedures for personnel recruitment, selection, training, compensation and benefits, labor relations and negotiation, and personnel information systems.
- Geography - Knowledge of principles and methods for describing the features of land, sea, and air masses, including their physical characteristics, locations, interrelationships, and distribution of plant, animal, and human life.
- History and Archeology - Knowledge of historical events and their causes, indicators, and effects on civilizations and cultures.
- Engineering and Technology - Knowledge of the practical application of engineering science and technology. This includes applying principles, techniques, procedures, and equipment to the design and production of various goods and services.
- Sales and Marketing - Knowledge of principles and methods for showing, promoting, and selling products or services. This includes marketing strategy and tactics, product demonstration, sales techniques, and sales control systems.
- Psychology - Knowledge of human behavior and performance; individual differences in ability, personality, and interests; learning and motivation; psychological research methods; and the assessment and treatment of behavioral and affective disorders.
- Therapy and Counseling - Knowledge of principles, methods, and procedures for diagnosis, treatment, and rehabilitation of physical and mental dysfunctions, and for career counseling and guidance.
- Transportation - Knowledge of principles and methods for moving people or goods by air, rail, sea, or road, including the relative costs and benefits.
- Law and Government - Knowledge of laws, legal codes, court procedures, precedents, government regulations, executive orders, agency rules, and the democratic political process.
- Education and Training - Knowledge of principles and methods for curriculum and training design, teaching and instruction for individuals and groups, and the measurement of training effects.
- Foreign Language - Knowledge of the structure and content of a foreign (non-English) language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition and grammar, and pronunciation.
- Mechanical - Knowledge of machines and tools, including their designs, uses, repair, and maintenance.
- Sociology and Anthropology - Knowledge of group behavior and dynamics, societal trends and influences, human migrations, ethnicity, cultures, and their history and origins.
- Fine Arts - Knowledge of the theory and techniques required to compose, produce, and perform works of music, dance, visual arts, drama, and sculpture.
- Public Safety and Security - Knowledge of relevant equipment, policies, procedures, and strategies to promote effective local, state, or national security operations for the protection of people, data, property, and institutions.
- Biology - Knowledge of plant and animal organisms, their tissues, cells, functions, interdependencies, and interactions with each other and the environment.
- English Language - Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, and rules of composition and grammar.
- Mathematics - Knowledge of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, statistics, and their applications.
- Administration and Management - Knowledge of business and management principles involved in strategic planning, resource allocation, human resources modeling, leadership technique, production methods, and coordination of people and resources.
- Food Production - Knowledge of techniques and equipment for planting, growing, and harvesting food products (both plant and animal) for consumption, including storage/handling techniques.
- Physics - Knowledge and prediction of physical principles, laws, their interrelationships, and applications to understanding fluid, material, and atmospheric dynamics, and mechanical, electrical, atomic and sub-atomic structures and processes.
- Economics and Accounting - Knowledge of economic and accounting principles and practices, the financial markets, banking, and the analysis and reporting of financial data.
- Design - Knowledge of design techniques, tools, and principles involved in production of precision technical plans, blueprints, drawings, and models.
- Computers and Electronics - Knowledge of circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.
- Chemistry - Knowledge of the chemical composition, structure, and properties of substances and of the chemical processes and transformations that they undergo. This includes uses of chemicals and their interactions, danger signs, production techniques, and disposal methods.
- Customer and Personal Service - Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.
- Building and Construction - Knowledge of materials, methods, and the tools involved in the construction or repair of houses, buildings, or other structures such as highways and roads.
- Telecommunications - Knowledge of transmission, broadcasting, switching, control, and operation of telecommunications systems.
- Communications and Media - Knowledge of media production, communication, and dissemination techniques and methods. This includes alternative ways to inform and entertain via written, oral, and visual media.
- Philosophy and Theology - Knowledge of different philosophical systems and religions. This includes their basic principles, values, ethics, ways of thinking, customs, practices, and their impact on human culture.
Strengths you may need in this role.
- Management of Personnel Resources - Selecting and managing the best workers for a job.
- Monitoring - Keeping track of how well people and/or groups are doing in order to make improvements.
- Operation and Control - Using equipment or systems.
- Persuasion - Talking people into changing their minds or their behavior.
- Technology Design - Making equipment and technology useful for customers.
- Judgment and Decision Making - Thinking about the pros and cons of different options and picking the best one.
- Mathematics - Using math to solve problems.
- Critical Thinking - Thinking about the pros and cons of different ways to solve a problem.
- Equipment Selection - Deciding what kind of tools and equipment are needed to do a job.
- Active Listening - Listening to others, not interrupting, and asking good questions.
- Systems Evaluation - Measuring how well a system is working and how to improve it.
- Installation - Installing equipment, machines, wiring, or computer programs.
- Quality Control Analysis - Testing how well a product or service works.
- Instructing - Teaching people how to do something.
- Troubleshooting - Figuring out what is causing equipment, machines, wiring, or computer programs to not work.
- Speaking - Talking to others.
- Management of Material Resources - Managing equipment and materials.
- Service Orientation - Looking for ways to help people.
- Programming - Writing computer programs.
- Social Perceptiveness - Understanding people's reactions.
- Science - Using scientific rules and strategies to solve problems.
- Equipment Maintenance - Planning and doing the basic maintenance on equipment.
- Negotiation - Bringing people together to solve differences.
- Learning Strategies - Using the best training or teaching strategies for learning new things.
- Reading Comprehension - Reading work-related information.
- Coordination - Changing what is done based on other people's actions.
- Operations Analysis - Figuring out what a product or service needs to be able to do.
- Systems Analysis - Figuring out how a system should work and how changes in the future will affect it.
- Complex Problem Solving - Noticing a problem and figuring out the best way to solve it.
- Operations Monitoring - Watching gauges, dials, or display screens to make sure a machine is working.
- Writing - Writing things for co-workers or customers.
- Active Learning - Figuring out how to use new ideas or things.
- Repairing - Repairing machines or systems using the right tools.
- Management of Financial Resources - Making spending decisions and keeping track of what is spent.
- Time Management - Managing your time and the time of other people.
- Finger Dexterity - Putting together small parts with your fingers.
- Category Flexibility - Grouping things in different ways.
- Mathematical Reasoning - Choosing the right type of math to solve a problem.
- Memorization - Remembering words, numbers, pictures, or steps.
- Reaction Time - Quickly moving your hand, finger, or foot based on a sound, light, picture or other command.
- Manual Dexterity - Holding or moving items with your hands.
- Visualization - Imagining how something will look after it is moved around or changed.
- Hearing Sensitivity - Telling the difference between sounds.
- Explosive Strength - Jumping, sprinting, or throwing something.
- Glare Sensitivity - Seeing something even if there is a glare or very bright light.
- Depth Perception - Deciding which thing is closer or farther away from you, or deciding how far away it is from you.
- Written Expression - Communicating by writing.
- Trunk Strength - Using your lower back and stomach.
- Auditory Attention - Paying attention to one sound while there are other distracting sounds.
- Sound Localization - Noticing the direction that a sound came from.
- Flexibility of Closure - Seeing hidden patterns.
- Selective Attention - Paying attention to something without being distracted.
- Spatial Orientation - Knowing where things are around you.
- Number Facility - Adding, subtracting, multiplying, or dividing.
- Wrist-Finger Speed - Making fast, simple, repeated movements of your fingers, hands, and wrists.
- Dynamic Flexibility - Quickly and repeatedly bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching out with your body, arms, and/or legs.
- Speech Clarity - Speaking clearly.
- Time Sharing - Doing two or more things at the same time.
- Far Vision - Seeing details that are far away.
- Dynamic Strength - Exercising for a long time without your muscles getting tired.
- Extent Flexibility - Bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching with your body, arms, and/or legs.
- Speech Recognition - Recognizing spoken words.
- Gross Body Equilibrium - Keeping your balance or staying upright.
- Fluency of Ideas - Coming up with lots of ideas.
- Stamina - Exercising for a long time without getting out of breath.
- Visual Color Discrimination - Noticing the difference between colors, including shades and brightness.
- Written Comprehension - Reading and understanding what is written.
- Gross Body Coordination - Moving your arms, legs, and mid-section together while your whole body is moving.
- Inductive Reasoning - Making general rules or coming up with answers from lots of detailed information.
- Response Orientation - Quickly deciding if you should move your hand, foot, or other body part.
- Control Precision - Quickly changing the controls of a machine, car, truck or boat.
- Peripheral Vision - Seeing something to your side when your are looking ahead.
- Night Vision - Seeing at night or under low light.
- Oral Expression - Communicating by speaking.
- Deductive Reasoning - Using rules to solve problems.
- Problem Sensitivity - Noticing when problems happen.
- Multilimb Coordination - Using your arms and/or legs together while sitting, standing, or lying down.
- Information Ordering - Ordering or arranging things.
- Speed of Closure - Quickly knowing what you are looking at.
- Arm-Hand Steadiness - Keeping your arm or hand steady.
- Rate Control - Changing when and how fast you move based on how something else is moving.
- Perceptual Speed - Quickly comparing groups of letters, numbers, pictures, or other things.
- Speed of Limb Movement - Quickly moving your arms and legs.
- Static Strength - Lifting, pushing, pulling, or carrying.
- Near Vision - Seeing details up close.
- Oral Comprehension - Listening and understanding what people say.
- Originality - Creating new and original ideas.
Average Education Attained
Highest level of education earned by people in this career.
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Content sourced from United States Department of Labor Employment and Training Administration ("DOLETA") and the Minnesota Department of Employment & Economic Development ("DEED")