Most of us usually confuse a civil engineer with an architect. On the contrary, a civil engineer can pass up as a designer and another high-profile profession. We understand that without civil engineers, our infrastructure won’t last long. However, this field of engineering has a lot more to offer than just creating roads and buildings. As a fresh civil engineer, you must be looking to expand your professional horizon rather than opting for mainstream roles. Therefore, if you want to look beyond the regular landscape of civil engineering career opportunities, keep reading.
Top 5 Popular Civil Engineering Career Options:
Civil engineers’ demand will never run out until the human population starts living in the caves again. Therefore, as a civil engineer, you have plenty of options and opportunities to go along. But if you have eyes only for the best and the most popular career options for civil engineers, check the following list. But before looking at the possibilities, it is crucial to obtain a relevant degree in this field. Suppose you already have a bachelor’s degree. In that case, you can pursue an online civil engineering master’s degree to grow exponentially in this field.
1. Environmental Engineer:
You can consider environmental engineers as earth’s heroes as they are often responsible for developing solutions to environmental problems. Environmental engineers aren’t your typical civil engineers. They apply chemistry and biology theory and soil science and public health, pollution control, water disposal, and recycling. Being an environmental engineer, you’ll be responsible for environmental cleanup, investigating ecological reports, and monitoring the ecological programs’ effectiveness
Salary: As of 2020, environmental engineers earn a median salary of approximately $92,000.
Job Outlook: The job outlook is likely to grow up to 3% in the next decade.
2. Engineering Project Manager:
Engineers in every field, including civil engineering, can easily transition to leadership and management roles. So, why are engineering project managers among the top 10 highest paying civil engineers? That’s because industries crave a project manager who can organize and plan projects and be aware of the technicalities. As a competent engineering manager, you’ll be responsible for leading a team of engineers, training and supervising staff, managing engineering activities, and ensuring timely project proceedings. Taking on a role that requires overseeing complex infrastructure projects requires exceptional problem-solving, organizational, communicational, and project management skills.
Salary: An engineering project manager gets paid an average salary between $80,000 and $166,848.
Job Outlook: The job demand for this field is likely to grow up to 8% by 2029.
3. Structural Engineer:
From bridges to buildings, it’s all a structural engineer’s efforts to develop A structural engineer works alongside the construction industry to help manage all the construction process aspects. You’ll be typically involved in every stage throughout the project’s life cycle, from preliminary designs to final inspection. This profession will always be in demand because as long as someone with deep knowledge of constructing large structures successfully, the world will always need them. The only downside to this fantastic career is that it can sometimes be a high-stress job.
Salary: A structural engineer gets paid an average salary between $70,000 and $83,540.
Job Outlook: The future of structural engineering looks bright, with a projected increase of 11% in employment by 2026.
4. Water Resources Engineer:
This subdiscipline of civil engineering deals with specialization in the maintenance and development of large water bodies such as lakes, rivers, municipal wastewater, and oceans. You may also deal with water resources management facilities such as irrigation systems, floodways, dams, reservoirs, and drainage canals. A water resources engineer has a steady demand in the market. However, suppose you want to stand out. It would help if you had a good understanding of biological and physicochemical processes for water and its treatment in that case. Apart from civil engineering, other degrees relevant to the field include environmental engineering, biochemistry, and geology.
Salary: A water resources engineer gets paid an average salary of $69,000/year.
Job Outlook: The overall employment rate for all civil engineers types shows a faster-than-average growth rate of 20% between 2012-2022.
5. Geotechnical Engineer:
When you want to know when and where to construct a bridge or a dam or how to manage flood control, a geotechnical engineer is your go-to person. A geotechnical engineer is an expert in the science of rock and soil and its applications in technical words. A geotechnical engineer’s typical responsibilities include working on the construction, design, and analysis of roadways, building foundations, retaining walls, embankments, and tunnels. Suppose you want to stand out in this field. In that case, you should include specializing in programs such as soil stabilization, earthquake engineering, and soil mechanics.
Salary: A geotechnical engineer gets paid an average salary of $67,000.
Job Outlook: The employment market for geotechnical engineers is likely to grow by 11% by 2026.
Start Thinking About Your Civil Engineering Career:
Trying to find your place in the professional world is not easy, especially if the competition is tough. As a civil engineer, instead of going for the same old fields, you can try making it work with the newest and trendiest civil engineering subdisciplines. Apart from looking at engineer project management, environmental engineering, and more, you can also look at marine engineering, public health engineering, and transportation engineering.
