Civil Engineering

The curricula in civil engineering within the Department of Civil, Environmental and Architectural Engineering have been designed to qualify students for entry-level positions in professional practice in the areas of civil and environmental engineering. These broad area designations may be separated into the subdisciplines of:

• construction engineering and management;
• environmental engineering;
• geotechnical engineering and geomechanics;
• structural engineering and structural mechanics; and
• water resource engineering and management.

Through the regular curriculum, students will be ready to enter professional practice in the foregoing areas and be equipped to progress to higher levels in many directions. An Engineering Science track is also available for undergraduates who want additional preparation for graduate study and careers in research and development.

Program Educational Objectives

The overall objectives of the bachelor of science program in civil engineering are:

• Graduates will be successfully employed in engineering, science or technology careers.
• Graduates will be assuming management or leadership roles.
• Graduates will engage in continual learning by pursuing advanced degrees or additional educational opportunities through course work, professional conferences and training and/or participation in professional societies.
• Graduates will pursue professional registration or other appropriate certifications.
• Graduates will be engaged in activities that provide benefit to communities.

Educational Outcomes

The outcomes that students are expected to have attained upon graduation with a bachelor of science degree in civil engineering are:

• the ability to apply knowledge of mathematics, science and engineering 
• the ability to design and conduct experiments 
• the ability to analyze and interpret data 
• the ability to design a system or component to meet desired needs 
• the ability to function on multidisciplinary teams 
• the ability to identify, formulate and solve engineering problems 
• an understanding of professional and ethical responsibilities 
• the ability to communicate effectively through writing and/or drawing 
• the ability to communicate effectively through oral presentations 
• an understanding of the impact of engineering on society 
• an understanding of the necessity to engage in lifelong learning 
• a knowledge of contemporary issues in civil, environmental and architectural engineering 
• the ability to use modern engineering techniques, skills and tools 
• the ability to explain basic concepts in management, business, public policy and leadership

Before their graduation, students in civil and environmental engineering will take a capstone design course in addition to training in structural and foundation design, civil engineering systems, construction, engineering geology, engineering materials, geotechnical engineering, soil mechanics, water quality, environmental engineering, fluid mechanics, computer-aided and manual engineering drawing, mechanics and dynamics, computer modeling, professional practice and ethics seminars, structural analysis and design, surveying and transportation systems via required and elective courses.

Research Interests and Facilities

The department has a wide variety of research facilities, including a 15g-ton centrifuge for geotechnical and structural model studies and a large 440g-ton geotechnical centrifuge for use in model testing. Also available is an instructional computing facility, the Bechtel Laboratory and the M.Y. Leung Computational Laboratory for Soils and Structures, both equipped with Windows and Linux high-performance workstations. In addition, extensive structural engineering, engineering mechanics and geotechnical capabilities exist such as a one-million-pound universal testing machine and several cubical cells for multi-axial testing of materials. A 40 ft. by 80 ft. structural strong floor with associated equipment permits the testing of a wide variety of structural configurations under controlled, both static and dynamic loading. The hydraulics and water resources research laboratories include excellent facilities in water quality and environmental engineering. A unique workstation laboratory for advanced decision support systems is available. Programs in construction management and building energy are well supported. A building mechanical and energy laboratory is capable of testing full-scale, commercial building systems and their controls using a one-of-a-kind data acquisition and experimental control system.

The Environmental Engineering program maintains approximately 12,000 sq. ft. of laboratories in the areas of process research, environmental microbiology, environmental chemistry, water quality, air quality, molecular biology, toxicology and field ecology. The Environmental Sustainability cluster and the Center for Environmental Mass Spectrometry offer formal collaborations between the CU-Boulder Environmental Engineering Group, Mechanical Engineering air research group, the US Geological Survey and industry partners, providing state-of-the-art facilities for research and teaching.

The Center for Advanced Decision Support for Water and Environmental Systems (CADSWES) is an interdisciplinary center of excellence, housed within the Department of Civil, Environmental and Architectural Engineering. CADSWES focuses on applying advanced computing techniques to provide decision makers with decision support systems (DSSs) to help them more effectively manage water and environmental systems.

Current research covers such topics as water and wastewater treatment, surface and subsurface contaminant transport, decision support systems, hydraulic research, land treatment, rapid infiltration and activated sludge processes. Cost prediction in construction, construction management, energy conservation in buildings, solar applications and lighting systems are included. Advances in soil mechanics, rock mechanics, soil dynamics and geotechnical earthquake engineering, foundation engineering, computational geomechanics, centrifugal modeling, geosynthetics and glacier flows have been produced. Research in structures includes stability, damage and fracture, material microstructures, durability, finite element modeling, reinforced concrete, earthquake responses, reinforced masonry structures, prestressed concrete and dynamic control.

Course code for this program is CVEN.