Is a Career as a Civil Engineers Right for You?
Civil Engineers at a Glance
- O*NET-SOC Code
- 17-2051.00
- Holland Code
- RIC
- Typical Education
- Most of these occupations require a four-year bachelor's degree, but some do not.
What Does a Civil Engineers Do?
Perform engineering duties in planning, designing, and overseeing construction and maintenance of building structures and facilities, such as roads, railroads, airports, bridges, harbors, channels, dams, irrigation projects, pipelines, power plants, and water and sewage systems.
- Direct engineering activities, ensuring compliance with environmental, safety, or other governmental regulations.
- Manage and direct the construction, operations, or maintenance activities at project site.
- Inspect project sites to monitor progress and ensure conformance to design specifications and safety or sanitation standards.
- Compute load and grade requirements, water flow rates, or material stress factors to determine design specifications.
- Plan and design transportation or hydraulic systems or structures, using computer-assisted design or drawing tools.
Salary and Job Outlook
Verified salary and job-growth data for this occupation aren't published on this page yet, we only show figures we can cite to a real source (PRD methodology: O*NET/BLS).
Is Your Personality a Fit?
People who thrive as a Civil Engineers tend to score high in Realistic, Investigative, Conventional interests. Take the free career test to see how your own results compare.
Take the free career test to see if you matchHow to Become a Civil Engineers
Most of these occupations require a four-year bachelor's degree, but some do not.
Related Careers
FAQ
What does a Civil Engineers do day-to-day?
Perform engineering duties in planning, designing, and overseeing construction and maintenance of building structures and facilities, such as roads, railroads, airports, bridges, harbors, channels, dams, irrigation projects, pipelines, power plants, and water and sewage systems.
What education do I need to become a Civil Engineers?
Most of these occupations require a four-year bachelor's degree, but some do not.
Is a Civil Engineers a good personality fit for me?
It depends on your interests: Civil Engineerss tend to score high in Realistic, Investigative, Conventional. Take the free career test to see your own match.
Occupation data from the O*NET O*NET 30.3 Database (retrieved 2026-07-21), U.S. Department of Labor, used under the CC BY 4.0 license.