Civil Engineering
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Types of Degrees Civil Engineering Majors Are Getting
The following table lists how many civil engineering technology graduations there were in 2020-2021 for each degree level.
Education Level | Number of Grads |
---|---|
Associate Degree | 690 |
Bachelor’s Degree | 286 |
Basic Certificate | 150 |
Undergraduate Certificate | 56 |
Master’s Degree | 5 |
What Civil Engineering Majors Need to Know
O*NET surveyed people in occupations related to civil engineering tech and asked them what knowledge areas, skills, and abilities were important for their jobs. The responses were rated on a scale of 1 to 5 with 5 being most important.
Knowledge Areas for Civil Engineering Tech Majors
This major prepares you for careers in which these knowledge areas are important:
- 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.
- Mathematics - Knowledge of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, statistics, and their applications.
- 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.
- Design - Knowledge of design techniques, tools, and principles involved in production of precision technical plans, blueprints, drawings, and models.
- Clerical - Knowledge of administrative and clerical procedures and systems such as word processing, managing files and records, stenography and transcription, designing forms, and other office procedures and terminology.
Skills for Civil Engineering Tech Majors
When studying civil engineering tech, you’ll learn many skills that will help you be successful in a wide range of jobs - even those that do not require a degree in the field. The following is a list of some of the most common skills needed for careers associated with this major:
- Critical Thinking - Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions or approaches to problems.
- Active Listening - Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.
- Reading Comprehension - Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work related documents.
- Mathematics - Using mathematics to solve problems.
- Speaking - Talking to others to convey information effectively.
Abilities for Civil Engineering Tech Majors
Civil Engineering Tech majors often go into careers where the following abilities are vital:
- Oral Comprehension - The ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.
- Written Comprehension - The ability to read and understand information and ideas presented in writing.
- Mathematical Reasoning - The ability to choose the right mathematical methods or formulas to solve a problem.
- Deductive Reasoning - The ability to apply general rules to specific problems to produce answers that make sense.
- Near Vision - The ability to see details at close range (within a few feet of the observer).
What Can You Do With a Civil Engineering Major?
People with a civil engineering tech degree often go into the following careers:
Job Title | Job Growth Rate | Median Salary |
---|---|---|
Civil Engineering Technicians | 8.9% | $52,580 |
Who Is Getting a Bachelor’s Degree in Civil Engineering?
Racial-Ethnic Diversity
At the countrywide level, the racial-ethnic distribution of civil engineering tech majors is as follows:
Race/Ethnicity | Number of Grads |
---|---|
Asian | 9 |
Black or African American | 25 |
Hispanic or Latino | 40 |
White | 177 |
International Students | 21 |
Other Races/Ethnicities | 14 |
Geographic Diversity
Students from other countries are interested in Civil Engineering Tech, too. About 7.3% of those with this major are international students. The most popular countries for students from outside the country are:
- Saudi Arabia
- China
- India
- Nigeria
- Kuwait
How Much Do Civil Engineering Majors Make?
Bachelor’s Degree Starting Salary
According to 2019-2020 data from the U.S. Department of Education, students who graduated with a bachelor’s degree in civil engineering tech have a median salary of $57,999 during the early years of their career. During this timeframe, most salaries fell between $55,157 (25th percentile) and $59,155 (75th percentile).
Note that some of these people may have jobs that are not directly related to a civil engineering tech degree.
Salaries According to BLS
Civil Engineering Tech majors often go into careers with median salaries of $54,670. This median refers to all degree levels, so you may expect those with a more advanced degree to make more while those with less advanced degrees will typically make less.
To put that into context, according to BLS data from the first quarter of 2020, the typical high school graduate makes between $30,000 and $57,900 a year (25th through 75th percentile). The average person with a bachelor’s degree (any field) makes between $45,600 and $99,000. Advanced degree holders make the most with salaries between $55,600 and $125,400.
Amount of Education Required for Careers Related to Civil Engineering
Some careers associated with civil engineering tech require an advanced degree while some may not even require a bachelor’s. Whatever the case may be, pursuing more education usually means that more career options will be available to you.
How much schooling do you really need to compete in today’s job market? People currently working in careers related to civil engineering tech have obtained the following education levels.
Education Level | Percentage of Workers |
---|---|
High School Diploma - or the equivalent (for example, GED) | 2.7% |
Post-Secondary Certificate - awarded for training completed after high school (for example, in agriculture or natural resources, computer services, personal or culinary services, engineering technologies, healthcare, construction trades, mechanic and repair technologies, or precision production) | 29.8% |
Some College Courses | 28.1% |
Associate’s Degree (or other 2-year degree) | 21.2% |
Bachelor’s Degree | 18.3% |
Online Civil Engineering Programs
In 2020-2021, 160 schools offered a civil engineering tech program of some type. The following table lists the number of programs by degree level, along with how many schools offered online courses in the field.
Degree Level | Colleges Offering Programs | Colleges Offering Online Classes |
---|---|---|
Certificate (Less Than 1 Year) | 0 | 0 |
Certificate (1-2 years) | 23 | 1 |
Certificate (2-4 Years) | 3 | 0 |
Associate’s Degree | 124 | 1 |
Bachelor’s Degree | 1 | 0 |
Post-Baccalaureate | 0 | 0 |
Master’s Degree | 1 | 0 |
Post-Master’s | 0 | 0 |
Doctor’s Degree (Research) | 0 | 0 |
Doctor’s Degree (Professional Practice) | 0 | 0 |
Doctor’s Degree (Other) | 0 | 0 |
Is a Degree in Civil Engineering Worth It?
The median salary for a civil engineering tech grad is $54,670 per year. This is based on the weighted average of the most common careers associated with the major.
This is 37% more than the average salary for an individual holding a high school degree. This adds up to a gain of about $295,400 after 20 years!
Top Ranking Lists for Civil Engineering
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Majors Related to Civil Engineering
You may also be interested in one of the following majors related to civil engineering tech.
Major | Number of Grads |
---|---|
Industrial Production Technology | 11,906 |
Electromechanical Engineering Technology | 10,593 |
Drafting & Design Engineering Technology | 8,964 |
Environmental Control Technology | 8,690 |
Electronics Engineering Technology | 8,592 |
Engineering-Related Fields | 6,736 |
Mechanical Engineering Technology | 6,013 |
General Engineering Technology | 4,676 |
Construction Engineering Technology | 4,330 |
Quality Control Technology | 3,824 |
Computer Engineering Technology | 3,595 |
Engineering Technology (Other) | 1,768 |
Architectural Engineering Technology | 1,290 |
Energy Systems Technologies | 1,256 |
Engineering-Related Technologies | 989 |
Mining & Petroleum Technology | 445 |
Nuclear Engineering Technology | 220 |
Nanotechnology | 114 |
References
*The racial-ethnic minorities count is calculated by taking the total number of students and subtracting white students, international students, and students whose race/ethnicity was unknown. This number is then divided by the total number of students at the school to obtain the racial-ethnic minorities percentage.
- College Factual
- College Scorecard
- National Center for Education Statistics
- O*NET Online
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
- Usual Weekly Earnings of Wage and Salary Workers First Quarter 2020
- Image Credit: By Sean Mack under License
More about our data sources and methodologies.
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