Environmental Engineering (BS)
Environmental Engineering Degree
The Environmental Engineering curriculum is designed for students interested in environmental protection and sustainability. The curriculum provides students with a foundation in the science and mathematics required to observe, understand, model, and analyze environmental systems, as well as engineering skills to design critical components of society’s infrastructure. Upon graduation, students are prepared to work in such areas as water treatment, water resources management, air pollution control, solid waste management, and sustainable energy systems. The curriculum emphasizes the interdisciplinary nature of environmental engineering with courses in engineering, earth, and life sciences, including specialized courses on energy and climate, pollution control, waste management, and water and sanitation in developing countries.
Educational Objectives in Environmental Engineering
Within a few years of graduation alumni of the Environmental Engineering program will:
- Function successfully in a professional environment by utilizing and enhancing their technical, critical thinking, communication, and leadership skills.
- Continue learning through graduate or other professional education and obtaining licensure where appropriate.
- Function in team-oriented, multidisciplinary open-ended engineering activities considering the societal, economic, public health, and environmental impacts of engineering decisions, and the professional and ethical responsibilities of environmental engineers.
- Provide mentoring to those under their supervision, and provide leadership in their employment organizations, industry associations, and professional societies.
Plan Requirements
| First Year | ||
|---|---|---|
| Fall Semester | Hours | |
| CH 101 | Chemistry - A Molecular Science 1 | 3 |
| CH 102 | General Chemistry Laboratory 1 | 1 |
| E 101 | Introduction to Engineering & Problem Solving 2 | 1 |
| E 115 | Introduction to Computing Environments | 1 |
| ENG 101 | Academic Writing and Research 2 | 4 |
| MA 141 | Calculus I 1 | 4 |
| GEP Health and Exercise Studies | 1 | |
| Hours | 15 | |
| Spring Semester | ||
| MA 241 | Calculus II 1 | 4 |
| PY 205 & PY 206 | Physics for Engineers and Scientists I and Physics for Engineers and Scientists I Laboratory 1 | 4 |
| Select one of the following: | 3 | |
| Introduction to Agricultural & Resource Economics | ||
| Introduction to Agricultural & Resource Economics | ||
| Principles of Microeconomics | ||
| Fundamentals of Economics | ||
| E 102 | Engineering in the 21st Century | 2 |
| GEP Requirement | 3 | |
| Hours | 16 | |
| Second Year | ||
| Fall Semester | ||
| CE 214 | Engineering Mechanics-Statics 2 | 3 |
| CE 250 | Introduction to Sustainable Infrastructure | 3 |
| CH 201 | Chemistry - A Quantitative Science | 3 |
| CSC 111 | Introduction to Computing: Python | 3 |
| MA 242 | Calculus III | 4 |
| GEP Health and Exercise Studies | 1 | |
| Hours | 17 | |
| Spring Semester | ||
| BIO 183 | Introductory Biology: Cellular and Molecular Biology | 4 |
| CE 373 | Fundamentals of Environmental Engineering 2 | 3 |
| CHE 205 | Chemical Process Principles | 4 |
| MA 341 | Applied Differential Equations I | 3 |
| CE 282 | Hydraulics | 3 |
| Hours | 17 | |
| Third Year | ||
| Fall Semester | ||
| CE 378 | Environmental Chemistry and Microbiology | 4 |
| PY 208 | Physics for Engineers and Scientists II | 3 |
| PY 209 | Physics for Engineers and Scientists II Laboratory | 1 |
| ST 370 | Probability and Statistics for Engineers 3 | 3 |
| Earth Science Elective | 3 | |
| Environment and Society Elective | 3 | |
| Hours | 17 | |
| Spring Semester | ||
| CE 381 | Hydraulics Systems Measurements Lab | 1 |
| CE 383 | Hydrology and Urban Water Systems | 3 |
| CE 339 | Civil Engineering Systems | 3 |
| COM 110 | Public Speaking | 3 |
| TDE 220 or GIS 280 | Civil Engineering Graphics or Introduction to GIS | 3 |
| ENE Technical Breadth Elective | 3 | |
| Hours | 16 | |
| Fourth Year | ||
| Fall Semester | ||
| CE 484 | Water Supply and Waste Water Systems | 3 |
| CE 488 | Water Resources Engineering | 3 |
| Air Elective | 3 | |
| ENE Senior Elective | 3 | |
| GEP Requirement | 3 | |
| Hours | 15 | |
| Spring Semester | ||
| CE 481 | Environmental Engineering Project | 3 |
| ENE Senior Elective | 3 | |
| ENE Senior Elective | 3 | |
| ENE Technical Breadth Elective | 3 | |
| GEP Requirement | 3 | |
| Hours | 15 | |
| Total Hours | 128 | |
- 1
A grade of C or higher is required.
- 2
A grade of C- or higher is required.
- 3
Students pursuing a minor in Statistics can use ST 371, but should consult with undergraduate office
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| GEP Courses | ||
| GEP Humanities | 3 | |
| GEP Health and Exercise Studies | 2 | |
| GEP Interdisciplinary Perspectives | 3 | |
| GEP Elective | 3 | |
| GEP Global Knowledge (verify requirement) | ||
| GEP Foundations of American Democracy (verify requirement) | ||
| World Language Proficiency (verify requirement) | ||
| Total Hours | 11 | |
ENE Senior Elective
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| CE 435 | Engineering Geology | 3 |
| CE 475/575 | Renewable Energy and the Grid | 3 |
| CE 478/578 | Energy and Climate | 3 |
| CE 487 | Introduction to Coastal and Ocean Engineering | 3 |
| CE 489/589 | Global Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene | 3 |
| CE 580 | Coastal Modeling | 3 |
| CE 581 | Fluid Mechanics in Natural Environments | 3 |
| CE 582 | Coastal Hydrodynamics | 3 |
| CE 583 | Engineering Aspects Of Coastal Processes | 3 |
| CE 585 | Principles of Surface Water Quality Modeling | 3 |
| Air Elective not previously used | 3 | |
Air Elective
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| CE 476/576 | Air Pollution Control | 3 |
| CE 479/579 | Air Quality | 3 |
ENE Technical Breadth Elective
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| CE 499 | Undergraduate Research Thesis in Civil, Construction and Environmental Engineering | 1-3 |
| ENE Senior Elective not previously used | 3 | |
| CE Breadth Elective | 3 | |
| ENE Breadth Elective | 3 | |
CE Breadth Elective
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| CE 225 | Mechanics of Solids | 3 |
| CE 301 | Civil Engineering Surveying and Geomatics | 3 |
| CE 305 | Introduction to Transportation Systems | 3 |
| CE 325 | Structural Analysis I | 3 |
| CE 327 | Reinforced Concrete Design | 3 |
| CE 342 | Engineering Behavior of Soils and Foundations | 4 |
| CE 426 | Structural Steel Design | 3 |
| CE 437/537 | Civil Engineering Computing | 3 |
| CE 477/577 | Principles of Solid Waste Engineering | 3 |
| CE 497 | Current Topics in Civil Engineering | 1-4 |
| CE 557 | Engineering Measurement and Data Analysis | 3 |
| CE 536 | Introduction to Numerical Methods for Civil Engineers | 3 |
| CE 590 | Special Topics In Civil Engineering | 1-6 |
| CE 591 | Special Topics in Civil Engineering Computing | 1-6 |
| CE 592 | Special Topics in Construction Engineering | 1-6 |
| CE 593 | Special Topics in Geotechnical Engineering | 1-3 |
| CE 594 | Special Topics in Structures and Mechanics | 1-6 |
| CE 595 | Special Topics in Transportation Engineering | 1-6 |
| CE 596 | Special Topics in Water Resource and Environmental Engineering | 1-6 |
ENE Breadth Elective
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| ARC 521 | Daylighting and Passive Energy Systems for Architecture | 3 |
| ARC 522 | Building Energy Efficiency & Renewable Energy | 3 |
| ARC 523 | Building Energy Modeling and Simulation | 3 |
| ARE 336 | Introduction to Resource and Environmental Economics | 3 |
| BAE 376 | Watershed Assessment and Water Quality Protection | 3 |
| BAE 455/555 | R Coding for Data Management and Analysis | 3 |
| BAE 472/572 | Irrigation and Drainage | 3 |
| BAE 473/573 | Introduction to Hydrologic and Water Quality Modeling | 3 |
| BAE 474 | Principles and Applications of Ecological Engineering | 3 |
| BAE 583 | Stream Corridor 3 Es: Ecohydraulics, Engineering and Ethics | 3 |
| CH 220 | Introductory Organic Chemistry | 3 |
| or CH 221 | Organic Chemistry I | |
| CH 222 | Organic Chemistry I Lab | 1 |
| DSA 201 | Introduction to R/Python for Data Science | 1 |
| DSA 202 | Introduction to Data Visualization | 1 |
| DSA 205 | Data Communication | 1 |
| DSA 225 | Data Science for Social Good | 1 |
| DSA 406 | Exploratory Data Analysis for Big Data | 1 |
| DSA 412 | Exploring Machine Learning | 1 |
| ECE 331 | Principles of Electrical Engineering | 3 |
| ENG 331 | Communication for Engineering and Technology | 3 |
| or ENG 333 | Communication for Science and Research | |
| FOR 353 | GIS and Remote Sensing for Environmental Analysis and Assessment | 3 |
| GIS 510 | Fundamentals of Geospatial Information Science and Technology | 3 |
| GIS 512 | Introduction to Environmental Remote Sensing | 3 |
| GIS 521 | Surface Water Hydrology with GIS | 3 |
| MA 305 | Introductory Linear Algebra and Matrices | 3 |
| or MA 405 | Introduction to Linear Algebra | |
| MA 427 | Introduction to Numerical Analysis I | 3 |
| MAE 201 | Thermal-Fluid Sciences | 3 |
| MEA 411 | Marine Sediment Transport | 3 |
| MEA 425 | Introduction to Atmospheric Chemistry | 3 |
| MEA 485 | Introduction to Hydrogeology | 3 |
| ST 372 | Introduction to Statistical Inference and Regression | 3 |
| ST 421 | Introduction to Mathematical Statistics I | 3 |
| TOX 415 | Ecotoxicology | 4 |
Environment and Society Elective
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| ARE 309 | Environmental Law & Economic Policy | 3 |
| NR 460 | Renewable Natural Resource Management and Policy | 3 |
| PS 320 | U.S. Environmental Law and Politics | 3 |
| PS 336 | Global Environmental Politics | 3 |
Earth Science Elective
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| MEA 323 | Geochemistry of Natural Waters | 3 |
| SSC 442 | Soil and Environmental Biogeochemistry | 3 |
Semester Sequence
This is a sample.
| First Year | ||
|---|---|---|
| Fall Semester | Hours | |
| CH 101 | Chemistry - A Molecular Science 1 | 3 |
| CH 102 | General Chemistry Laboratory 1 | 1 |
| E 101 | Introduction to Engineering & Problem Solving 1,2 | 1 |
| E 115 | Introduction to Computing Environments 1,2 | 1 |
| ENG 101 | Academic Writing and Research 1,2 | 4 |
| MA 141 | Calculus I 1,2 | 4 |
| GEP Health and Exercise Studies | 1 | |
| Hours | 15 | |
| Spring Semester | ||
| EC 205 | Fundamentals of Economics | 3 |
| MA 241 | Calculus II 1 | 4 |
| PY 205 | Physics for Engineers and Scientists I 1 | 3 |
| PY 206 | Physics for Engineers and Scientists I Laboratory 1 | 1 |
| E 102 | Engineering in the 21st Century | 2 |
| GEP Requirement | 3 | |
| Hours | 16 | |
| Second Year | ||
| Fall Semester | ||
| CE 214 | Engineering Mechanics-Statics | 3 |
| CE 250 | Introduction to Sustainable Infrastructure | 3 |
| CH 201 | Chemistry - A Quantitative Science | 3 |
| MA 242 | Calculus III | 4 |
| CSC 111 | Introduction to Computing: Python | 3 |
| GEP Health and Exercise Studies | 1 | |
| Hours | 17 | |
| Spring Semester | ||
| BIO 183 | Introductory Biology: Cellular and Molecular Biology | 4 |
| CE 282 | Hydraulics | 3 |
| CE 373 | Fundamentals of Environmental Engineering | 3 |
| CHE 205 | Chemical Process Principles | 4 |
| MA 341 | Applied Differential Equations I | 3 |
| Hours | 17 | |
| Third Year | ||
| Fall Semester | ||
| CE 378 | Environmental Chemistry and Microbiology | 4 |
| PY 208 | Physics for Engineers and Scientists II | 3 |
| PY 209 | Physics for Engineers and Scientists II Laboratory | 1 |
| ST 370 | Probability and Statistics for Engineers 3 | 3 |
| Earth Science Elective | 3 | |
| Environment and Society Elective | 3 | |
| Hours | 17 | |
| Spring Semester | ||
| CE 381 | Hydraulics Systems Measurements Lab | 1 |
| CE 383 | Hydrology and Urban Water Systems | 3 |
| CE 339 | Civil Engineering Systems | 3 |
| COM 110 | Public Speaking | 3 |
| TDE 220 or GIS 280 | Civil Engineering Graphics or Introduction to GIS | 3 |
| ENE Technical Breadth Elective I | 3 | |
| Hours | 16 | |
| Fourth Year | ||
| Fall Semester | ||
| CE 484 | Water Supply and Waste Water Systems | 3 |
| CE 488 | Water Resources Engineering | 3 |
| ENE Senior Elective I | 3 | |
| Air Elective | 3 | |
| GEP Requirement | 3 | |
| Hours | 15 | |
| Spring Semester | ||
| CE 481 | Environmental Engineering Project | 3 |
| ENE Senior Elective II | 3 | |
| ENE Senior Elective III | 3 | |
| ENE Technical Breadth Elective II | 3 | |
| GEP Requirement | 3 | |
| Hours | 15 | |
| Total Hours | 128 | |
- 1
A grade of C or higher is required.
- 2
A grade of C- or higher is required.
- 3
Students pursuing a minor in Statistics can use ST 371, but should consult with undergraduate office
Career Opportunities
Society will always need constructed facilities to live, work, and sustain their lives and environment, and civil, construction, and environmental engineers will always be needed to plan, design, and construct these facilities. Civil, construction, and environmental engineering comprise such diversified fields that graduates have a wide choice in types and locations of employment. Jobs range from federal, state, or municipal agencies to a variety of manufacturing and processing industries, consulting firms or construction companies. The work may be performed partially or wholly in an office or in the field and may be located in a small community, a big city, an industrial center, or even in a foreign country. Careers in either professional practice or teaching and research are common for many graduates who complete advanced degrees.
Career Titles
- Environmental Engineer
- Air Quality Engineer
- Coastal Engineer
- Energy Engineer
- Environmental Engineer
- Industrial Safety and Health Engineer
- Municipal Engineer
- Product Safety Engineer
- Process Enginer
- Project Manager
- Solar Energy Systems Designer
- Water/Wastewater Engineer
- Engineering Professor
Learn More About Careers
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American Academy of Environmental Engineers & Scientists
National Association of Environmental Professionals
American Water Resources Association
National Society of Professional Engineers
American Society of Civil Engineers