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Wilma Caldwell
Architectural technologist
Asked a question 2 years ago

What are the different career options after civil engineering?

What are the different career options after civil engineering?

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Civil engineering is one of the oldest and core branch of engineering . After getting bachelor degree in civil engineering, you will be required to work in the construction industry as well as in the business, management, & financial sectors. There are many job openings from a variety of avenues if you have done bachelor in civil engineering.

The different career options after civil engineering are as follows;

  • You can take up your career as Building Control surveyors in surveying field.
  • If you are expert in designing and planning, you can apply for CAD planner as well as CAD technician.
  • After completion of B.tech27, you can also go for higher studies like masters and Phd.
  • You can prepare for GATE exams and can get enter prestigious colleges for M.tech24 studies.
  • You can also study management because it can help you to get a high-paying job with more responsibility.
  • Apart from doing job or study, you can be enterpreneur and have your own companies and job.
  • You can apply for campus placement where you can join job as per your convenience.
  • You can look over for internships to increase your knowledge.
  • If you are not interested to study further after B.tech27 then you can also apply for jobs in private companies.
  • You can also join the Indian Armed forces.

A civil engineering graduate is free to explore their skills in the field or In Jobs, in competitive exams or to start their own venture.

Following are the paths for a graduate civil engineer

  1. To pursue a masters course in a relevant subject.
  2. Go for competitive exams.
  3. Go for MS or project management courses.
  4. To start working on the field
  5. To start an own venture of construction
  6. Long various designing and architectural software’s like AutoCAD Revit staad Pro blender etc and start on earning.
  7. Go for tutoring, this also gives a decent earning.
  8. Go for a management degree
  9. Start a consulting company.

Go for a higher degree is secure and gives you a better opportunity for earning.

Hope this is beneficial for you.

If interested in design

1) structural engineering – related to design of buildings (industrial and residential)

2) transportation engineering – related design of roads , bridges , tunnels

3) infrastructure engineering- related to design of water tanks , sewage pipes , road transit systems, dams , canals

4) marine engineering – related to design of docks , harbours and other structures inside sea for oil industries

5) geo technical engineering : designing retaining walls , diaphragm walls to retain soil .

If interested in planning

1) infrastructure planning – planning the infrastructures which is talked about earlier .

2) town planning – planning of a specific area might be a city or a private township

if interested in research

1) GIS engineering

(geographic information system ).

it deals with collecting and analysing geographic data and using it for remote sensing, crime mapping , minerals searching etc.

2) Environmental engineering – researching on problems related to environment like global warming and ways to improve current condition

if interested in management

1) construction project management – managing a construction project . It can be of any design field mentioned above.

2)water/solid waste management – mainly deals with recycling of waste which is produced due to industries and also by citizens.

Learning is not a destination it’s a journey, always keep learning.

Looking at the present Construction Industry scenario, I would advice that it’s better to go for higher education, depending on your personal interest and future plans. You can prepare for GATE, GRE, TOEFL, Project Management, MBA, MTech, IES, IAS entrance exam.

Still you want to do the job then try for Government Job, Public Sector Unit (PSU), If you don’t fall in for any of the above then simply go for reputed companies or infrastructure jobs. But if possible avoid private companies at this juncture because it’s the worst hit period for the construction Industry.

Colleges from where you can pursue Construction/Project Management.

Go for M.S. in Civil Engineering in U.S. UK,South East Asia or Australia

Depending on your score in GRE, preferably 300+ you can choose one of the top ranking universities for M.S in civil engineering with a specialization of your choice in foreign universities.

Now for the options. Following are few options I considered and still do :-

  1. MTech in any division of your choice, like structures, transportation, geotechnical, etc. It depends on your interest. There’s immense scope for qualified engineers out there.
  2. Masters in Construction Management from NICMAR or other similar Indian universities. I cannot attest to its credibility and feasibility. But it is an option.
  3. Work as a site engineer. To most people, this option might be the least preferred. But, I’ve seen a few people who love working on the sites and watching their hard work build wonderful projects. Initially, the work will be hard and tiring, but if you can execute works with all the quality and safety parameters, you can charge a premium for your services.
  4. Work as a Quantity Surveyor. In many organizations, the site engineer himself plays this role. But in bigger organizations, the QS is responsible for billing. This is an important role for a company since the only way the work gets translated into money is by billing. If you can take measurements on-site accurately without any mistakes and be able to convince the clients of your calculations, again, you can demand a premium for your service.
  5. You can start your contracting firm. This step is normally taken by people who have surplus funds and with loads of connections with access to projects.
  6. LEED – Clear the LEED exams to gain LEED credentials. With this, you can join an architecture firm focusing on sustainability. Sustainability is important for our future generations, and this field is only going to grow from here.
  7. Find a problem and come up with solutions. Be it water sustainability, traffic congestion, Infrastructure deterioration, etc. The industry is waiting for young innovative minds to revamp it!
  8. Partner with a CS or ECE student to work on software for the construction industry. Labour attendance, material tracking, drone surveying, etc.

For a civil engineer career options are as below.

  1. Engineering- you can join design firm as a design engineer.
  2. Construction – you can be construction engineer
  3. Schedule Engineer/Planning Engineer (Project Controls)- After graduation you can do post graduation in NICMAR or equivalent institutes be a schedule engineer.
  4. Estimator – you can be a quantity or cost estimator.
  5. Contracts Administrator.
  6. Procurement Engineer – you can join supply chain – be a expeditor or buyer or material specialist.
  7. Safety Engineer-  by studying safety related courses ( NIBOSH etc) you can choose to be a Safety Engineer.
  8. Environment Engineer.
  9. Builder- you can be on your own by starting your own business in building construction or work as contractor for government projects.

Hope this answers your question

Seth Morgan
Construction Superintendent

Civil engineering the oldest known engineering of the world. And hence it is related to everything. The question you have asked has different views from different people. Here I have listed career options as per different interests.

Career for those who want to work in the core construction area

You can go for Designing (Structural design)

You can join different consultants such as Geotechnical consultants, quality control consultant, etc.

You can also find the above domains in big construction companies itself.

You can choose specific roles where you are good at such as surveying

Career for those who want to build their career in Roads and Highways

You can join a company which is into road construction

You can go to traffic engineering

Career for those who want to build their career in environmental engineering

You can join a company for water treatment

You can go for wastewater treatment

You can also go for fecal sludge management

Career for those who want to build their career in research

You can do an M.Tech26 and then Ph.D. from a reputed college, where you can do research for new materials, methods and much more, Most of the people interested in this work as a faculty member in a college and simultaneously do research works.

Career for those who want to build their career in Construction Management

You can be a planning engineer, site execution engineer, etc if you do a construction management course or have some experience in the construction site.

You can also go for Building Information Modelling (BIM)

Note all the above roles I have mentioned are assuming you are a fresher. once you gain some experience you can choose a more specific domain such as tunneling, high rise structure, roads and highways, bridges, metros, Sewer treatment plant work as a more responsible domain like project engineer or construction manager and project manager.

As you grow you will learn more and you will find your interest more clear and you will go there.

Some more options for civil engineers

Facility Management

Operations Management

Contract Management

Some options for Civil Engineers other than the construction industry

Software development for civil construction companies there are companies like, CSI, Bentley, Autodesk which does that.

Hello, I recommended to watch this video:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DZ7vOUT0C-s&t=43s