Find your perfect college degree
Civil engineers make modern living possible! Infrastructures for living, commuting, driving, or public use primarily utilize civil engineering principles and processes.
The prospects in civil engineering are expanding due to technological advancements and the rising and urgent need to address environmental issues.
The United States is home to about 108,233 civil engineers, but the demand is rapidly rising. The Labor Statics Bureau has forecasted a 6% job growth for civil engineers in the next ten years.
A career in civil engineering may suit you if you enjoy building structures, investing in such property, or envisioning a more modern world in rural and urban settings.
A bachelor’s in Civil Engineering is the essential requirement for most occupations in this field, along with a specialist license that increases your chances of employment.
The Lowdown
Cities function smoothly with civil engineers designing, planning, and building important public infrastructure such as airports, bridges, hospitals, and schools. With an online Bachelor’s in Civil Engineering degree in their belt, graduates can expect to complete lab work, lectures, and internship requirements.
Methodology
Becoming a licensed civil engineer should be part of your plans, and enrolling in an excellent online civil engineering degree program is a must, for starters! To help prospective students, we compiled the five top online Civil Engineering programs.
Each online Civil Engineering degree program was chosen with these factors in mind:
- Delivered as an entirely online or blended Civil Engineering program requiring in-person research, group discussions, lectures, laboratory work, and capstone projects,
- Features rigorous coursework that equips Civil Engineering majors with the fundamental technical skills,
- Produces technically savvy graduates with research, leadership, problem-solving, communication, and analysis skills,
- Presents a curriculum developed by renowned civil engineers, researchers, and other experts in the field,
- Offers internships and other real-life learning opportunities,
- Prepare Civil Engineering majors for higher education in civil engineering or other branches of engineering,
- Offers federal aid and financial assistance programs, such as scholarships, veteran or military benefits, student loans, and grants,
- Received regional accreditation, and Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology (ABET)-approved,
- Esteemed in the civil engineering industry.
Please visit our Methodology page.
Best Online Bachelor’s in Civil Engineering
University of North Dakota
Online Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering
The University of North Dakota offers an online Bachelor’s Degree in Civil Engineering. Regarding civil engineering, the University of North Dakota is one of the country’s leading schools. There is no difference in online tuition prices based on where you live. Since your job as a civil engineer impacts many other jobs, choosing the best bachelor’s program in civil engineering is crucial.
Civil engineers are responsible for designing, communicating, and improving how we travel, live, and interact in communities. On the job, civil engineers manage projects and plan in the office. For such crucial roles, future civil engineers at the University of North Dakota are trained to hone their soft skills, such as collaboration, creativity, and problem-solving.
After graduation, you’ll be able to apply your knowledge of science, mathematics, and engineering as you conduct research, apply theories, and implement experiments. You’ll also learn the latest developments in computer software.
What’s Unique About this Program:
The University of North Dakota offers numerous opportunities to lead through practical learning. There are several student organizations available to you for getting involved in communities all over the world.
Through your coursework, you will participate in practical labs, internships, and undergraduate research opportunities related to civil engineering topics.
Did You Know?
You can complete both your bachelor’s and master’s degrees in civil engineering faster than you would if you were to earn them separately. Both degrees will make you stand out once you begin your career. There are both on-campus and online options for the combined curriculum.
Liberty University
Online Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering
An online BS in Civil Engineering program is offered at Liberty University. This online degree can lead to a rewarding and exciting career if you wish to contribute to creating and maintaining modern society’s structures. Civil engineers play a critical role in nearly every aspect of modern civilization.
The engineers are the people who design, build, and maintain the infrastructure people use every day, such as schools, offices, highways, transportation systems, bridges, airports, and seaports. They even develop emergency and disaster relief systems.
You will get to know and work with classmates and professors while finishing your online degree and earning useful hands-on experience through the two mandatory intense on-campus courses.
By taking advantage of these intensives, you can visit Liberty University’s stunning campus in the Virginia Blue Ridge Mountains when convenient.
What’s Unique About this Program:
It is an online program for civil engineering degrees that combines eight-week and sixteen-week courses, allowing you to complete most of your coursework at home while attending two intensive on-campus sessions for networking opportunities.
This civil engineering degree retains its academic rigor and quality despite its online delivery. You can pursue various civil engineering jobs once you complete this degree program.
Did You Know?
This Civil Engineering degree at Liberty provides a wide range of fundamental knowledge that prepares learners for graduate school or a career in engineering.
Civil engineers should consider many factors when designing long-lasting structures, including costs, environmental risks, governmental requirements, infrastructure durability, and natural disaster resistance.
The courses you will take in civil engineering cover these and other subjects, focusing on civil engineering, structural, transportation, construction, and geotechnical engineering.
Old Dominion University
Online Bachelor of Science in Engineering Technology: Civil Engineering
Old Dominion University offers an online BS in Engineering Technology – Civil Engineering Technology concentration. This online degree includes courses that focus on using and implementing civil engineering principles.
Civil Engineering graduates become effective communicators in written, oral, and graphic form. Computer literacy skills are one of the most important components of this program.
Your civil engineering technology degree focuses on the following courses:
- Site planning
- Construction management
- Structural design
The total number of credit hours required is 126. Graduates can sit for the Fundamentals of Engineering test after they have graduated. Professional engineer licenses can be obtained through this process in Virginia and many other states.
They have worked with the Virginia Community College System and a few other educational institutions to facilitate transfers, making them a transfer-friendly university.
What’s Unique About this Program:
Old Dominion University has prominent student support services thanks to its decades of remote education experience. You can access the course materials anywhere you have access to the internet. Online meetings will be held for some classes but not for others.
The instructor can schedule assignments and tests at specific times since they usually implement a standard academic timetable.
Did You Know?
This online degree will prepare you for the Fundamentals of Engineering exam required in several states as a first step toward obtaining a professional engineer license. Holding a license to work in this sector is usually unnecessary, but some employers may require it.
Florida Institute of Technology
Online Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering
The Florida Institute of Technology offers the online Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering that prepares students for fundamental knowledge of the field and eventual entry into it.
A civil engineering degree from the Florida Institute of Technology will provide you with a solid foundation in engineering along with practical experience in computer-aided design and construction management, regardless of whether you want to engage in real estate, bridges, and infrastructure construction, water treatment plants, transportation systems, or other public structure projects.
The program offers six engineering specializations:
- Structural Engineering
- Transportation
- Environmental
- Water Supplies
- Geotechnical
- Construction Administration
What’s Unique About this Program:
Florida Institute of Technology is also recognized as one of the best civil engineering colleges because all their professors are licensed professional engineers. Each faculty member has experience conducting research and designing for the real world.
Several individuals have been honored with multiple awards, making them credible experts.
Did You Know?
- At the Florida Institute of Technology, civil engineering laboratories are fully equipped to research materials, structures, and geotechnical engineering, contributing to its reputation as one of the nation’s best civil engineering education institutions.
- Students also have full access to the large OE Complex, including the latest electronic and communications technologies, specialized research labs, and a huge-capacity multimedia auditorium.
South Dakota State University
Online Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering
Earn your online Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering at South Dakota State University. This civil engineering degree will teach you the fundamentals of planning, executing, and analyzing various engineering projects and theories.
By earning a BS in Civil Engineering from South Dakota State University, graduates can launch a career without putting their professional life on hold.
Numerous levels of government practice civil engineering, from local to federal, and numerous levels of business, in both the private and public sectors. There are 130 credits in this bachelor’s degree program. Students must complete 76 units in civil engineering and construction.
Get ready to sharpen your technical skills and hone your soft skills. You’ll discover how to plan and manage the building initiatives and civil infrastructure influencing different neighborhoods.
What’s Unique About this Program:
This four-year undergraduate degree completion program is specifically created for individuals who have begun but have not completed their undergraduate degree. You can obtain a meaningful degree from South Dakota State University that works around your busy schedule.
They also allow 60 total credits to be transferred.
Did You Know?
South Dakota State University’s online Civil Engineering program provides you with the foundation to succeed in your civil engineering career. After graduating, you’ll have the skills to become a successful engineer in your aspired field. You can learn the nuts and bolts to advance your career in civil engineering.
Benefits of Pursuing Civil Engineering
Civil engineering offers many advantages to anyone interested in pursuing a career. Civil engineers’ work improves people’s lives worldwide as they watch their creations take shape. On that note, read along and see how civil engineering careers can be an advantage for you:
Civil engineering offers a lot of project collaborations.
Civil engineers work on various projects that require the knowledge of other types of experts. You’ll collaborate with fellow engineers or other professionals to develop the tasks.
Civil engineers grow professionally and acquire other development opportunities.
Civil engineering is a field that is constantly growing, and new technologies, materials, and processes are always being developed. It’s a rapidly changing and innovative field that will offer you professional growth and unlimited development opportunities.
Civil engineers have numerous opportunities to advance their professional development. There are numerous on-the-job training opportunities and diverse pathways for continuing education or professional development programs.
Civil engineering offers diverse work options.
An engineering degree in civil engineering opens up various career options for graduates. Many industries require civil engineers, giving graduates many job prospects.
Civil engineering creates a good impact on society.
People’s lives are often directly affected by civil engineering projects that provide better transportation, infrastructure, or safer environments to the public.
The knowledge that their work contributes to the improvement of the world may bring great satisfaction and happiness to civil engineers. You’ll acquire that sense of purpose and calling that motivates you to improve your craft.
Tips to Become a Successful Civil Engineering
Students study civil engineering for four to five years under the impression they will be rewarded with good grades if they correctly handle technical difficulties. While there is definite truth in that, many other aspects are needed to succeed in civil engineering. Below are some pointers:
Take initiative.
Civil engineers must maintain a steady pace and ensure everything required for their projects is completed. You must be able to proceed to the next steps even when others are delayed or provide poor quality.
Own your work.
Civil engineers are less likely to remain employed by the same engineering firm for the rest of their careers, so they should consider their reputation before looking for jobs. If you pay more attention to your job when starting your career, you won’t look back with regret later in life and realize you could have been a larger success.
You should invest in your reputation for the rest of your life. Own your work and be proud of every project you handle.
Get mentored.
Engineers have traditionally learned their trade through apprenticeships with master artisans even more than attending college. Watch how your mentor interacts with others, perform civil engineering tasks, and learn from them. This learning style is still very effective in civil engineering today.
Frequently Asked Questions
What do Civil Engineers do?
Civil engineers with various specialties could build different infrastructures such as water systems, bridges, sewage, tunnels, airports, highways, seaports, subway stations, solar power installations, and nearly every type of large building or industrial project.
While civil engineering requires complicated project management and specific technical knowledge, it is also likely to involve inside desk work and outdoor excursions to construction sites.
What is the difference between Civil Engineers and Architects?
Infrastructure, such as transportation and public utilities, is designed by civil engineers, while architects design buildings. In both jobs, understanding construction materials and the physics of loads are required.
What is the timeline for completing an online Bachelor’s degree in Civil Engineering?
The typical time to complete an online Civil Engineering degree is four years, based on a 16-week semester, similar to most bachelor’s programs. In some programs, students are advised to plan on spending up to five years in school.
You may also be required to complete a senior project or research assignment as part of certain programs. Although these final assignments are popular, some people may struggle with them.
Summary Points
- Civil Engineering is a subset of engineering focusing on societal infrastructure such as roads, ports, dams, bridges, and other infrastructures.
- The typical prerequisite education for becoming a civil engineer is a bachelor’s degree in Civil Engineering.
- As they study complex math, physics, and engineering concepts, Civil Engineering students gain knowledge and abilities in project management, critical thinking, and teamwork. Full-time students normally need four years to finish the degree.
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