What type of mathematics do water resources engineers employ? Do they ever use calculus, statistics, differential equations, or other high-level math? I enjoy the side of my water classes, but it appears that many civil engineering careers do not require much math.
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You make use of the foundations of sophisticated math, but you never apply it. Understanding hydrographs is like knowing basic calculus, except you don't have to do the math. Spreadsheets and software can help you with this.
Engineering, in general, does not entail the use of higher arithmetic; instead, it involves the application of the underlying principles of that math.
I work for a private corporation as a water resource engineer, and I don't perform any high-level math. I've never had to calculate a differential equation, and I've only had to do some basic statistics on rare occasions. All design calculations that involve higher arithmetic, in my experience, are already completed and stored in correlation tables for future reference. I use Excel a lot, but I haven't yet figured out how to use VBA to speed up several tasks. Other people I work with, on the other hand, utilize VBA, and I think it's a helpful ability to have. I spend more time preparing planning documents than final design and construction documentation. I consider it more important to be a good communicator, presenter, writer, and colleague than anything else.