Civil engineers design and supervise the construction of roads,
buildings, airports, tunnels, dams, bridges, and water supply and sewage
systems. Civil engineering, considered one of the oldest engineering
disciplines, encompasses many specialties. The major specialties within
civil engineering are structural, water resources, environmental,
construction, transportation, and geotechnical engineering.
Many civil engineers hold supervisory or administrative positions,
from supervisor of a construction site to city engineer. Others may work
in design, construction, research, and teaching.
Civil engineers held about 228,000 jobs in 2002. More than 4 in 10
were employed by firms providing architectural, engineering, and related
services, primarily developing designs for new construction projects.
Almost one-third of the jobs were in Federal, State, and local
government agencies. The construction industry accounted for most of the
remaining employment. About 15,000 civil engineers were self-employed,
many as consultants.
Civil engineers usually work near major industrial and commercial
centers, often at construction sites. Some projects are situated in
remote areas or in foreign countries. In some jobs, civil engineers move
from place to place to work on different projects.
Employment of civil engineers is expected to increase more slowly
than the average for all occupations through 2012. Spurred by general
population growth and an increased emphasis on infrastructure and
security, more civil engineers will be needed to design and construct
safe and higher capacity transportation, water supply, and pollution
control systems, and large buildings and building complexes. They also
will be needed to repair or replace existing roads, bridges, and other
public structures. In addition to those arising from job growth,
openings will result from the need to replace civil engineers who
transfer to other occupations or leave the labor force.
Because construction and related industries—including those
providing design services—employ many civil engineers, employment
opportunities will vary by geographic area and may decrease during
economic slowdowns, when construction often is curtailed.
Median annual earnings of civil engineers were $60,070 in 2002. The
middle 50 percent earned between $48,360 and $74,700. The lowest 10
percent earned less than $39,960, and the highest 10 percent earned more
than $91,010. Median annual earnings in the industries employing the
largest numbers of civil engineers in 2002 were:
Federal government
$67,410
Local government
62,210
Architectural, engineering, and related services
59,060
State government
58,350
Nonresidential building construction
54,190
According to a 2003 salary survey by the National Association of
Colleges and Employers, bachelor’s degree candidates in civil
engineering received starting offers averaging $41,669 a year;
master’s degree candidates received an average offer of $47,245, and
Ph.D. candidates were offered $69,079, on average, as an initial salary.
Links to non-BLS Internet sites are provided for your
convenience and do not constitute an endorsement.
General information about civil engineers, as well as career,
education, and related information, can be obtained from:
American Society of Civil Engineers, 1801 Alexander Bell Dr.,
Reston, VA 20191-4400. Internet: http://www.asce.org
See the introduction to the section on engineers
for information on working conditions, training requirements, and other
sources of additional information.
Suggested citation: Bureau of Labor Statistics,
U.S. Department of Labor, Occupational Outlook Handbook,
2004-05 Edition,
Civil Engineers
, on the Internet at http://www.bls.gov/oco/
ocos030.htm
(visited January 27, 2005).
