The 2010 rankings by "U.S. News & World Report" put three public universities at the top of its list of civil engineering programs: the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (UIUC), University of California at Berkeley (UCB) and Georgia Institute of Technology (GaTech). Thirteen percent of students who attend UIUC major in engineering, making it one of the most popular degree fields on campus. All three schools earned high marks for their small class sizes and faculty interaction with students.
Four schools offering graduate degrees in civil engineering tied for third place in "U.S. News & World Report's" 2010 rankings. Coming in at number one was a school that made the undergraduate list as well -- the University of California at Berkeley. America's top undergraduate civil engineering school, the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, claimed the number two spot in the rankings. The four schools tied for third place were the Georgia Institute of Technology, Purdue University, University of Texas and -- the only private institution to make the top three -- Stanford University. These schools all scored high marks for faculty and student research as well as the number of professors who are standing members of the National Academy of Engineering.
Undergraduate students who choose to major in civil engineering will have a course load dominated by classes in the sciences and math. Georgia Tech -- which cracked the top three for both undergraduate and graduate civil engineering programs -- requires 64 credit hours of engineering classes for undergraduate majors, including courses in statistics, dynamics and engineering materials. Students must also take courses outside the engineering department, including classes in math, physics, chemistry and computer science, in order to graduate.
The Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology (ABET) is the chief accrediting agency for academic programs in engineering as well as other science degrees. It is important to know whether or not the program in which you plan to enroll is accredited by this agency. Failure to attend an ABET-accredited program can prevent you from attending graduate school later on or being accepted into certain civil engineering societies. Keep in mind that just because one program at your chosen university is accredited by ABET does not mean all of the programs are. The Civil Engineering Central website offers a list of ABET-accredited civil engineering programs.
After earning your undergraduate degree in civil engineering, you can choose to enter the workforce or continue your education by earning a master's or doctorate. Some universities that offer programs in civil engineering also offer certain focuses that lend themselves to work in particular industries after graduation. For example, the University of Texas at Austin offers specializations in transportation engineering, which can lead to a career in street planning and road design. Cornell University in Ithaca, New York offers a specialization in geotechnical engineering, which can lend itself to a career in building tunnels, dams and other underground facilities.