Civil engineering is all about helping people and shaping a sustainable society, while seeing the products of your design.

Civil engineers design, build, and preserve the built fabric of our society including roads, bridges, buildings, drinking water and energy systems, waterways and ports, airports and the infrastructure for a cleaner environment. Civil engineering is an exciting profession because you get to see the products of your design, whether it is a high-rise building, a bridge, a dam, a roundabout, a canal or a wind turbine, to name a few. Civil engineers may work in the private sector at consulting firms or in the public sector for local, state or federal government in jobs that involve being outside, hands-on construction and monitoring, computer-aided analysis and design. A civil engineering degree also provides a great foundation to build other careers such as management, public administration, teaching, law and medicine.

An engaging and well-rounded curriculum

Civil Engineering students at UVM begin their education by acquiring a common base of knowledge in mathematics, sciences and engineering, and then progressively learn to analyze and design sustainable civil engineering systems. The degree culminates in a two semesters-long capstone design experience in the senior year, which is typically a service-learning project in collaboration with a community partner. The degree intentionally requires a relatively small number of required courses allowing students to pursue technical electives to their liking in the senior year in structural engineering and materials, geotechnical/geoenvironmental engineering, transportation engineering, and environmental and water resources engineering. The civil engineering degree as a whole has UVM’s Sustainability Designation. Students can take courses in arts, languages, community development, business and other areas as part of the general education component.  The degree program includes nine courses with hands-on laboratories and most technical electives are project-based. The curriculum allows opportunities for picking up a minor, co-op and/or study abroad experiences, or an accelerated Master’s degree.

Program Educational Objectives

The educational objectives of UVM’s Civil Engineering program are to provide our graduates with disciplinary breadth and depth to fulfill complex professional and societal expectations by:

• pursuing careers as practicing engineers or using their program knowledge in a wide range of other professional, educational and service activities.
• assuming leadership roles and seeking continuous professional development.
• contributing to their profession and society while appreciating the importance of ethical and sustainable practices, diversity, and inclusion.

Student Outcomes

The Student Outcomes of the B.S. in Civil Engineering degree program directly relate to the ABET (1)-(7) Criterion 3 Student Outcomes and are as follows:

• an ability to identify, formulate, and solve complex engineering problems by applying principles of engineering, science, and mathematics
• an ability to apply engineering design to produce solutions that meet specified needs with consideration of public health, safety, and welfare, as well as global, cultural, social, environmental, and economic factors
• an ability to communicate effectively with a range of audiences
• an ability to recognize ethical and professional responsibilities in engineering situations and make informed judgments, which must consider the impact of engineering solutions in global, economic, environmental, and societal contexts
• an ability to function effectively on a team whose members together provide leadership, create a collaborative and inclusive environment, establish goals, plan tasks, and meet objectives
• an ability to develop and conduct appropriate experimentation, analyze and interpret data, and use engineering judgment to draw conclusions
• an ability to acquire and apply new knowledge as needed, using appropriate learning strategies.

ABET Accreditation

• The Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering is accredited by the Engineering Accreditation Commission (EAC) of ABET, https://www.abet.org.

Civil Engineering Undergraduate Enrollment Data for the Past Four Years

Total Number of FT and PT students: 118 (2020-2021), 125 (2019-20), 138 (2018-19), 141 (2017-18), 156 (2016-17)
Number of BS Degree Graduates: 34 (2020-21)*, 32 (2019-20), 38 (2018-19), 43 (2017-18), 35 (2016-17)
(2020-2021 Graduate numbers will be updated by 9/1 to include August graduates.)

Professional Licensure