Bridge Builder

Description: Civil engineers design and supervise the construction of roads, buildings, airports, tunnels, dams, bridges, and water supply and sewage systems. They must consider many factors in the design process from the construction costs and expected lifetime of a project to government regulations and potential environmental hazards such as earthquakes and hurricanes.

Knowledge Required: Engineering and Technology, Design, English Language, mathematics, physics

Skills: Critical thinking, science, operations analysis, judgment and decision making

Career Path: In general, Civil Engineering requires a minimum of a bachelor's degree. Choose a program that has courses in the specific areas you are interested in. During your education, it is important to try to pursue and internship in the field you are interested in. During your junior or senior year, you need to take the (FE/EiT) Engineering in Training exam. It is a prerequisite for the (PE) Professional Engineering exam. Passing the PE is key to finding employment.

Best Cities for this job: The top city to pursue a career in the field of engineering is Houston, Texas. The second best city to find employment in the engineering field is Chicago, Illinois. New York, New York, and Atlanta, Georgia come in fourth and fifth, respectively. In California, San Diego, Los Angeles, and Santa Clara offer many employment opportunities. There are many engineering jobs available throughout the United States. Jobs are often more readily available to those willing to relocate outside of metropolitan areas.

Median Annual Income: National: $76,590 CA: $90,460

Future Growth: The Bureau of Labor Statistics predicts a 24% growth in the field, much faster than average.

From the Field: "I'm the type of person who likes to think fast, use my engineering background and my construction background and try to determine repairs on the go. Some people run away from that kind of thing, you know the pressure, but I seem to thrive."

-Ken Brown, Civil Engineer, CalTrans