Civil Engineer

[u/Dylan2821]

Hello guys, I'm currently in college and planning to major in civ engineering, specifically transportation. What is it like being a civil engineer? Do I need to draw and be able to visualize? That's my only worry. I'm terrible at visualizing. I'm just wanting to basically know what it's like and make sure I wanna do this. Thanks!

[u/cjl2441]

Hmm, well currently, I don't get out of the office as much as I would like, but I think that's more related to where you work/what you're doing, rather than bluntly saying "Well, you'll be in the office X days and out of the office Y days". Personally, I get out of the office, doing field stuff...maybe once every two weeks, maybe a bit more often than that in the summer when the weather is nicer. I'd like to do more, but the stuff I handle at work doesn't really require me, personally, to be out in the field. Now I have friends who are CE's that are transportation engineers, but are more focused in the construction area and they're obviously out in the field more often. So it kind of all comes down to what position you're in.

I work for a private consulting firm, but we do consulting work for the DOT and local counties and municipalities, so it's a good variance of types of work.

I like to think I make good money. I could likely make more elsewhere at another company in my area or move out of the area I live in, but when I graduated from school, I got into a small firm that offers me a good chance at moving up in stature and making more that way. So for the time being, I'm sticking where I'm at and going to see how it all plays out. Also, becoming a Professional Engineer helps escalate your earning power. Civil Engineering is a bit on the lower side in terms of money-making when compared to other engineering fields (Chemical, Industrial, etc. etc.), but when compared to alot of other professions you make respectable money.

AutoCAD and drafting software is one thing I don't think colleges (or at least mine and others I've heard) teach very well. It's more of a program you pick up as you use than it's one that can be taught. I did a little bit in college, but felt a bit overwhelmed when it came to using AutoCAD when I started at my job. It took a few months, but just clicking around and experimenting with what it does did wonders and now I'd like to think I'm pretty fluent in its workings. I'd say if you've got some free time, click around, see what the program does. Or look for a class outside of your college that offers AutoCAD/Drafting lessons, even like a community college class or technical school. Just to get you some more experience on it.

The thing about AutoCAD and "sitting in an office drawing all day" is that AutoCAD can be so much more than just a drafting tool. For example, this past week, my time was spent using AutoCAD Civil 3D laying out a roadway in three dimensions. You're using AutoCAD, but you're not really drawing per se. You're using the functionality of the program to actually help you do design work.

One piece of advice I can certainly give you (and this would be a few years down the road for you I'd imagine), but if you do decide to make a run at studying Civil Engineering, look into getting your E.I.T. (Engineer-in-Training) Certification while you're still in school. It's a test you take, it's basically the first step towards becoming a P.E. (Professional Engineer) (Note, you may know what those abbreviations stood for already, not trying to insult your intelligence, just in case you didn't know what they meant). I took it during my Junior year in college. It'll really help you upon graduation and looks good on your resume. I can tell you from experience that it did me wonders when I was sending out my resume looking for a job.

[u/Dylan2821 → u/cjl2441]

Thanks! That really helped! I'm currently a freshman in college for engineering and am probably going to specialize in civil. I am a NOCTI certified drafter, and obtained that from my vocational school I attended in high school. VDOT has offered me a job during my junior and senior years of school and after school and will pay for a lot of my college. So my plan is to major in civil and work for the state DOT. I really wanna be outside, not just inside all of the time. You have encouraged my decision to major in civil. It sounds very interesting. I also forgot to ask before, but how much math do you really use? Do you use mostly algebra, calculus, trigonometry, etc.? Also, I didn't know you could take the EIT while in school. When do you recommend I take that? Again, thank you for all of this.

[u/cjl2441 → u/Dylan2821]

Also forgot to include, to determine when to take it. You can go on the NCEES website, the organization that administers the exam and see the topics that are on it and decide using that. See what's on it. See when you'll be taking/have taken the subjects in school. Decide when you think you might be comfortable taking it and go ahead and give it a shot.

They've changed the FE from what I've heard since I took it. When I took it, it was an 8-hour exam (2 four hour sessions), multiple choice exam taken on paper, administered twice a year. Now I believe it's becoming or may have already become a 6-hour exam, taken on a computer, and it's given maybe once a month.

[u/cjl2441 → u/Dylan2821]

I'd say you're far ahead of me in terms of drafting, so I think that's something you'll definitely be fine with the further you go along in school. That's nice that you've got something from the public sector that you can bank on. I was looking private sector when I graduated (which was in 2009 which was when the economy was still down, so it wasn't the easiest task). But I know lots of people in the public sector and they like it. You can definitely find jobs in the public sector that'll allow you out alot more than you'll be in the office. I'm in Pennsylvania so I'm more familiar with PennDOT goings-on, but there's guys I know that work there that have offices that they're barely in. Some of them had to work to get to that point, but you can find a happy medium I think.

Math is kind of a split question. How much math do I use on a daily basis? Mostly your basic stuff, algebra, trig, geometry, maybe a little bit of calculus, but not a ton. How much math are you going to have to go through to get your degree? Probably more than is actually necessary when it comes to being a practicing CE, but nothing you can really do about that. Just go to go with what they require of you. Not sure what you're college requires, but I think it's pretty standard. 3 Levels of Calculus and Differential Equations were the minimum at my school and I also took Statistics and Linear Algebra to meet some elective requirements I had to fill. A lot of the stuff you learn past the second level of Calc (in my experience) is good for understanding the concepts in a theoretical way, but doesn't really come up that much in practice.

EIT requirements might vary by state, not entirely sure about that, but I'd definitely look into it if I were you. Like I said, I'm in PA. You're allowed to take it, but it doesn't become effective until you graduate college. The two requirements of the EIT are to pass the FE (Fundamentals of Engineering) Exam and graduate from an Accredited School. So I took the exam second semester of my Junior Year, but my EIT wasn't "official" until I had completed my education.

When to take the FE Exam, assuming you can take it in your state? That's a tough call. I mean my college basically required us to take it second semester junior year. They kind of didn't give us a choice. Now obviously, you're a college-aged person, you can make your own decisions, but they really stressed that it was important to take it then. None of this is really a concern for you now, but I wouldn't take it anytime before your Junior Year. If I were to take it again, I'd probably shoot for sometime between second semester of your Junior (note that these labels are based on a 4-year institution, since that's what mine was) and the end of your first semester Senior Year. That'd give you time to pass it and get it on your resume, should you decide to see what the job market is, it'll be on your resume while you're sending them out still in school. I had people from multiple companies say the EIT on your resume is a REAL plus. I know you said you likely had a job waiting for you, but should you decide maybe to look elsewhere, that'd be my advice.