What Exactly is Civil Engineering?

molly-2016 Civil and Environmental, Molly, Viterbi Class, Work 2 Comments

I remember being a high school senior and having to pick a major on the USC application. I had never taken an engineering course, I had no idea of what half of the options even were! I just knew that engineering was right for me. So I picked one that sounded cool (computer engineering/computer science) and hoped for the best. I had an awesome experience, learned new things, and explored the engineering school until I found my current major: civil engineering, on the environmental track.

USC ASCE with their 2014 concrete canoe!

USC ASCE with their 2014 concrete canoe!

Through my freshman academy class in Viterbi, I was able to talk to other types of engineering students, as well as the students who led the class, and figure out what all of the different types of engineers did. While I was really excited to be learning code in my freshman computer engineering class, I’ve always been a hands-on learner, interested in building hot wheels tracks and legos. The more I heard about civil engineering, the more I realized it was for me. After a quick meeting with my advisor, I was enrolled in civil engineering courses. And I’ve had an amazing time ever since!

A small-scale earthquake simulator

A small-scale earthquake simulator

Civil engineering has been at USC for over 100 years. One of the main reasons why I love it is because there are a huge amount of things you can focus on within the major. Whether you’re interested in structures, building science, water resources, general environmental issues, air pollution, architecture, fluids, energy production, oil, or tons of other fields, civil engineering can be applied. Basically, anything that we need built for any commercial or industrial need is civil engineering. Civil engineers can be seen creating the piping, roads, sky scrapers, power plants, water treatment plants, bridges, houses, sidewalks, and everything else that needs to be built to create a city. It can be applied to anything, as traditional as bridge-building to something as innovative as systems to remove polluting particulates from our atmosphere. Careers include civil engineering, structural engineering, architectural engineering, consulting, construction management, and more. It’s been around for so long because the world has always needed and will always need civil engineers to maintain and improve our structures. And I’m so happy to be a part of the legacy of people who have created this stunning and innovative world.





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Comments 2

  1. One of the engineering professional educational practice that occupy the area of construction, designing, building, developing and maintenance of structure like houses, roads, buildings, dams etc.
    Civil engineering is everywhere. It existed even before the history was written. It’s in every road you drive. It’s in the clean water you drink. It’s where you live, work and play. It is the practical creativity we see around the globe! Civil engineers help improve the lives of millions of people every day.

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