The undergraduate Civil Engineering program provides a solid base in the physical sciences, mathematics, engineering fundamentals, and design and management concepts. The All-University Core Curriculum (AUCC) provides a broad background in communication, liberal arts, humanities, and social sciences. In addition to offering courses in the various sub-disciplines of Civil Engineering, the Civil Engineering curriculum covers design practices, information technology, technical communications, project management, and engineering ethics. The program culminates in a year-long, term-based, senior capstone design experience. Preparation for high-level professional practice is emphasized. The Fundamentals of Engineering (FE) exam is the first step toward registration as a licensed Professional Engineer (PE), an important professional credential for civil engineers. Thus, students in this major are encouraged to take the FE exam prior to graduation.
Participation in internships, volunteer activities, professional organizations, and cooperative education opportunities is highly recommended to enhance practical training and development. Graduates who pursue advanced studies are prepared for higher level technical responsibilities.
The educational outcomes and objectives of this major can be found on the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering website. The Civil Engineering major is accredited by the Engineering Accreditation Commission of ABET.
Learning Objectives
Upon successful completion, students will be able to:
- Identify, analyze, formulate, and design solutions to Civil Engineering problems, both independently and in a team environment;
- Apply considerations of technical, legal, regulatory, social, environmental, and economic factors towards managing multi-faceted and multi-disciplinary projects;
- Communicate effectively in both technical and non-technical settings with co-workers, professional clients, and the public; and
- Demonstrate commitment and progress in lifelong learning, professional development, and leadership, including participation in continuing education courses, workshops, and/or graduate study, and the pursuit of licensure as a Professional Engineer.
Potential Occupations
Students who obtain a Bachelor of Science degree in Civil Engineering from CSU are prepared to solve some of the world's most challenging problems involving critical climate change, resiliency, and sustainability. Graduates will be able to repair, redesign, and rebuild aging infrastructure around the world, from highways and buildings to water systems and disaster mitigating structures. Employment opportunities will be plentiful for the foreseeable future.
Civil engineers are employed in many different organizations, including small and large consulting firms, local, state, and federal governmental agencies, and industrial companies such as construction, petroleum, mining, and aerospace firms. Civil engineers also may find opportunities in specialized design, research, and teaching.
Some possible job titles for graduates with a Bachelor of Science degree in Civil Engineering (BSCE) include, but are not limited to, civil engineer, transportation engineer, hydraulic engineer, water resources engineer, structural engineer, geotechnical engineer, geoenvironmental engineer, groundwater engineer, hydrologist, urban/regional planner, infrastructure engineer or manager, contract administrator, construction engineer or manager, building construction inspector, facilities engineer or manager, industrial transportation specialist, industrial designer/engineer, construction materials engineer, irrigation engineer, mining engineer, mining and petroleum research engineer, technical sales engineer, and educator.
Effective Fall 2023
Freshman | |||
---|---|---|---|
AUCC | Credits | ||
CHEM 111 | General Chemistry I (GT-SC2) | 3A | 4 |
CHEM 112 | General Chemistry Lab I (GT-SC1) | 3A | 1 |
CIVE 102 | Introduction to Civil and Environmental Engr | 3 | |
CIVE 103 | Engineering Graphics and Computing | 3 | |
CO 150 | College Composition (GT-CO2) | 1A | 3 |
MATH 160 | Calculus for Physical Scientists I (GT-MA1) | 1B | 4 |
MATH 161 | Calculus for Physical Scientists II (GT-MA1) | 1B | 4 |
PH 141 | Physics for Scientists and Engineers I (GT-SC1) | 3A | 5 |
Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion | 1C | 3 | |
Total Credits | 30 | ||
Sophomore | |||
CHEM 113 | General Chemistry II | 3 | |
CIVE 202 | Numerical Modeling and Optimization | 3 | |
CIVE 203 | Engineering Systems and Decision Analysis | 3 | |
CIVE 260 | Engineering Mechanics-Statics | 3 | |
CIVE 261 | Engineering Mechanics-Dynamics | 3 | |
CIVE 360 | Mechanics of Solids | 3 | |
MATH 261 | Calculus for Physical Scientists III | 4 | |
MECH 237 | Introduction to Thermal Sciences | 3 | |
Science Technical Elective (see list below) | 3 | ||
Historical Perspectives | 3D | 3 | |
Social and Behavioral Sciences | 3C | 3 | |
Total Credits | 34 | ||
Junior | |||
CIVE 300 | Fluid Mechanics | 3 | |
CIVE 301 | Fluid Mechanics Laboratory | 1 | |
CIVE 302 | Evaluation of Civil Engineering Materials | 3 | |
CIVE 303 | Infrastructure and Transportation Systems | 3 | |
CIVE 322 | Basic Hydrology | 3 | |
CIVE 355 | Introduction to Geotechnical Engineering | 3 | |
CIVE 356 | Geotechnical Engineering Laboratory | 1 | |
CIVE 367 | Structural Analysis | 3 | |
CIVE 467 | Design of Reinforced Concrete Structures | 3 | |
MATH 340 | Intro to Ordinary Differential Equations | 4 | |
Advanced Writing | 2 | 3 | |
Arts and Humanities | 3B | 3 | |
Total Credits | 33 | ||
Senior | |||
CIVE 401 | Hydraulic Engineering | 3 | |
CIVE 402 | Senior Design Principles | 4A,4B | 3 |
CIVE 403 | Senior Project Design | 4C | 3 |
CIVE 438 | Fundamentals of Environmental Engr | 3 | |
CIVE 466 | Design and Behavior of Steel Structures | 3 | |
Civil Engineering Technical Electives (see list below) | 15 | ||
Arts and Humanities | 3B | 3 | |
Total Credits | 33 | ||
Program Total Credits: | 130 |
Science Technical Electives – Select a minimum of 3 credits
Code | Title | Credits |
---|---|---|
BSPM 102 | Insects, Science, and Society (GT-SC2) | 3 |
BZ 110 | Principles of Animal Biology (GT-SC2) | 3 |
BZ 120 | Principles of Plant Biology (GT-SC1) | 4 |
ESS 210/GR 210 | Physical Geography | 3 |
GEOL 120 | Exploring Earth - Physical Geology (GT-SC2) | 3 |
GEOL 122 | The Blue Planet - Geology of Our Environment (GT-SC2) | 3 |
GEOL 150 | Physical Geology for Scientists and Engineers | 4 |
HORT 171/SOCR 171 | Environmental Issues in Agriculture (GT-SS3) | 3 |
LAND 220/LIFE 220 | Fundamentals of Ecology (GT-SC2) | 3 |
LIFE 102 | Attributes of Living Systems (GT-SC1) | 4 |
MIP 149 | The Microbial World | 3 |
NR 120A | Environmental Conservation (GT-SC2) | 3 |
NR 130 | Global Environmental Systems (GT-SC2) | 3 |
NR 150 | Oceanography (GT-SC2) | 3 |
SOCR 240 | Introductory Soil Science | 4 |
Civil Engineering Technical Electives – Select a minimum of 15 credits
Select a minimum of 9 credits from the Engineering Technical Electives; a maximum of 6 credits may be selected from the Additional Technical Electives. Only 3 credits of a 4- or 5-credit course will apply toward this requirement.
Code | Title | Credits |
---|---|---|
Engineering Technical Electives – Select 9-15 credits from the following: | ||
CIVE 305 | Intermediate AutoCAD | 3 |
CIVE 330 | Ecological Engineering | 3 |
CIVE 405 | Sustainable Civil/Environmental Engineering | 3 |
CIVE 413 | Environmental River Mechanics | 3 |
CIVE 423 | Groundwater Engineering | 3 |
CIVE 437 | Wastewater Treatment Facility Design | 3 |
CIVE 439 | Applications of Environmental Engr Concepts | 3 |
CIVE 440 | Nonpoint Source Pollution | 3 |
CIVE 442 | Air Quality Engineering | 3 |
CIVE 455 | Applications in Geotechnical Engineering | 3 |
CIVE 458 | Environmental Geotechnics | 3 |
CIVE 502 | Fluid Mechanics | 3 |
CIVE 505 | Structural Inspection, Management and Repair | 3 |
CIVE 507 | Transportation Engineering | 3 |
CIVE 508 | Bridge Engineering | 3 |
CIVE 510 | Applied Hydraulic System Design | 3 |
CIVE 511 | Coastal Engineering | 3 |
CIVE 512 | Irrigation Systems Design | 3 |
CIVE 513 | Morphodynamic Modeling | 3 |
CIVE 514 | Hydraulic Structures/Systems | 3 |
CIVE 519 | Irrigation Water Management | 3 |
CIVE 520 | Physical Hydrology | 3 |
CIVE 521 | Hydrometry | 3 |
CIVE 524/WR 524 | Modeling Watershed Hydrology | 3 |
CIVE 525 | Water Engineering International Development | 3 |
CIVE 529 | Environmental Organic Chemistry | 3 |
CIVE 530 | Environ Engr at the Water-Energy-Health Nexus | 3 |
CIVE 531 | Groundwater Hydrology | 3 |
CIVE 533/BIOM 533 | Biomolecular Tools for Engineers | 3 |
CIVE 538 | Aqueous Chemistry | 3 |
CIVE 540/CBE 540 | Advanced Biological Wastewater Processing | 3 |
CIVE 541 | Physical Chemical Water Treatment Processes | 3 |
CIVE 542 | Water Quality Modeling | 3 |
CIVE 544 | Water Resources Planning and Management | 3 |
CIVE 547/STAT 547 | Statistics for Environmental Monitoring | 3 |
CIVE 549 | Drainage and Wetland Engineering | 3 |
CIVE 550 | Foundation and Retaining Wall Engineering | 3 |
CIVE 555 | Mining Geotechnics | 3 |
CIVE 556 | Slope Stability, Seepage, and Earth Dams | 3 |
CIVE 558 | Containment Systems for Waste Disposal | 3 |
CIVE 559 | Special Topics in Geotechnical Engineering | 3 |
CIVE 560 | Advanced Mechanics of Materials | 3 |
CIVE 561 | Advanced Steel Behavior and Design | 3 |
CIVE 562 | Fundamentals of Vibrations | 3 |
CIVE 565 | Finite Element Method | 3 |
CIVE 566 | Intermediate Structural Analysis | 3 |
CIVE 567 | Advanced Concrete Design | 3 |
CIVE 568 | Design of Masonry and Wood Structures | 3 |
CIVE 571 | Pipeline Engineering and Hydraulics | 3 |
CIVE 572 | Analysis of Urban Water Systems | 3 |
CIVE 573 | Urban Stormwater Management | 3 |
CIVE 574 | Civil Engineering Project Management | 3 |
CIVE 575 | Sustainable Water and Waste Management | 3 |
CIVE 576 | Engineering Applications of GIS and GPS | 3 |
CIVE 578 | Infrastructure and Utility Management | 3 |
ENGR 550/MATH 550 | Numerical Methods in Science and Engineering | 3 |
Additional Technical Electives – Select 0-6 credits from the following: | ||
BC 351 | Principles of Biochemistry | 4 |
CHEM 245 | Fundamentals of Organic Chemistry | 4 |
CHEM 341 | Modern Organic Chemistry I | 3 |
CON 370 | Asphalt Pavement Materials and Construction 1 | 3 |
ERHS 446 | Environmental Toxicology | 3 |
GEOL 442 | Applied Geophysics | 4 |
GR 323/NR 323 | Remote Sensing and Image Interpretation | 3 |
LIFE 320 | Ecology | 3 |
MATH 332 | Partial Differential Equations | 3 |
MATH 369 | Linear Algebra I | 3 |
MIP 300 | General Microbiology | 3 |
NR 319 | Introduction to Geospatial Science | 4 |
A maximum of one course may be selected from the following: | ||
FIN 305 | Fundamentals of Finance 1 | 3 |
MGT 305 | Fundamentals of Management 1 | 3 |
MKT 305 | Fundamentals of Marketing 1 | 3 |
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Students may need to obtain an override or approval from the respective department to take this course.
TO DECLARE MAJOR: Engineering is a controlled major: students are admitted into the major only if they meet established academic standards. Please see competitive major requirements or the advisor in the department for more information.
TO PREPARE FOR FIRST SEMESTER: The curriculum for this major assumes students enter college prepared to take calculus. To qualify for graduation, Civil Engineering majors must achieve a minimum 2.000 grade point average at CSU in all courses in engineering, mathematics, physics, and chemistry as well as courses taken as technical electives.
Distinctive Requirements for Degree Program:
TO PREPARE FOR FIRST SEMESTER: The curriculum for this major assumes students enter college prepared to take calculus.
Freshman | |||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Semester 1 | Critical | Recommended | AUCC | Credits | |
CIVE 102 | Introduction to Civil and Environmental Engr | X | 3 | ||
CO 150 | College Composition (GT-CO2) | X | 1A | 3 | |
MATH 160 | Calculus for Physical Scientists I (GT-MA1) | X | 1B | 4 | |
PH 141 | Physics for Scientists and Engineers I (GT-SC1) | X | 3A | 5 | |
Total Credits | 15 | ||||
Semester 2 | Critical | Recommended | AUCC | Credits | |
CHEM 111 | General Chemistry I (GT-SC2) | 3A | 4 | ||
CHEM 112 | General Chemistry Lab I (GT-SC1) | 3A | 1 | ||
CIVE 103 | Engineering Graphics and Computing | X | 3 | ||
MATH 161 | Calculus for Physical Scientists II (GT-MA1) | X | 1B | 4 | |
Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion | X | 1C | 3 | ||
Total Credits | 15 | ||||
Sophomore | |||||
Semester 3 | Critical | Recommended | AUCC | Credits | |
CHEM 113 | General Chemistry II | 3 | |||
CIVE 202 | Numerical Modeling and Optimization | X | 3 | ||
CIVE 260 | Engineering Mechanics-Statics | X | 3 | ||
MATH 261 | Calculus for Physical Scientists III | X | 4 | ||
Science Technical Elective (See List on Major Requirements Tab) | 3 | ||||
Total Credits | 16 | ||||
Semester 4 | Critical | Recommended | AUCC | Credits | |
CIVE 203 | Engineering Systems and Decision Analysis | X | 3 | ||
CIVE 261 | Engineering Mechanics-Dynamics | X | 3 | ||
CIVE 360 | Mechanics of Solids | X | 3 | ||
MECH 237 | Introduction to Thermal Sciences | X | 3 | ||
Historical Perspectives | 3D | 3 | |||
Social and Behavioral Sciences | 3C | 3 | |||
Total Credits | 18 | ||||
Junior | |||||
Semester 5 | Critical | Recommended | AUCC | Credits | |
CIVE 300 | Fluid Mechanics | X | 3 | ||
CIVE 301 | Fluid Mechanics Laboratory | 1 | |||
CIVE 302 | Evaluation of Civil Engineering Materials | X | 3 | ||
CIVE 367 | Structural Analysis | X | 3 | ||
MATH 340 | Intro to Ordinary Differential Equations | X | 4 | ||
Advanced Writing | 2 | 3 | |||
Total Credits | 17 | ||||
Semester 6 | Critical | Recommended | AUCC | Credits | |
CIVE 303 | Infrastructure and Transportation Systems | X | 3 | ||
CIVE 322 | Basic Hydrology | 3 | |||
CIVE 355 | Introduction to Geotechnical Engineering | 3 | |||
CIVE 356 | Geotechnical Engineering Laboratory | 1 | |||
CIVE 467 | Design of Reinforced Concrete Structures | X | 3 | ||
Arts and Humanities | 3B | 3 | |||
CIVE 367 must be completed by the end of Semester 6. | X | ||||
Total Credits | 16 | ||||
Senior | |||||
Semester 7 | Critical | Recommended | AUCC | Credits | |
CIVE 401 | Hydraulic Engineering | 3 | |||
CIVE 402 | Senior Design Principles | X | 4A,4B | 3 | |
CIVE 466 | Design and Behavior of Steel Structures | 3 | |||
Civil Engineering Technical Electives (See List on Major Requirements tab) | 6 | ||||
Arts and Humanities | 3B | 3 | |||
Total Credits | 18 | ||||
Semester 8 | Critical | Recommended | AUCC | Credits | |
CIVE 403 | Senior Project Design | X | 4C | 3 | |
CIVE 438 | Fundamentals of Environmental Engr | X | 3 | ||
Civil Engineering Technical Electives (See list on Major Requirements tab) | X | 9 | |||
The benchmark courses for the 8th semester are the remaining courses in the entire program of study. | X | ||||
Total Credits | 15 | ||||
Program Total Credits: | 130 |