<p>Hey, I am still a high school senior and I am seriously already thinking about how to do my best in undergrad so I can go to a very good graduate school for civil engineering. I have a few questions I want answered.</p>
<p>Does a degree in graduate school make a significant in terms of opportunities for a civil engineer? I guess the obvious answer would be yes, but I still want to know in what ways.</p>
<p>ALso, I have been accepted to both Berkeley and UCLA for civil engineering. Would maintaining a good gpa in Berkeley significantly trump maintaining a good gpa in UCLA in regards to getting into a good grad school? Or are they about the same level and do the grad school admission committees look more at how I use the education and opportunities?</p>
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Does a degree in graduate school make a significant in terms of opportunities for a civil engineer?
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<p>I don't think it makes as much of a difference as it does in other fields. Unless you want to be a prof, I don't see much use getting a research degree in civil (assuming you mean PhD).</p>
<p>The MS degree may become <em>critical</em> for civil engineers over the next 10 years or so. Civil engineers (unlike most other engineers) typically need to earn state Professional Engineer's licenses to advance in their careers. Traditionally, the education requirements for the PE have been fulfilled by an ABET-accredited BS degree, but ASCE and NCEES have recommended "upgrading" the education requirement to the MS, or equivalent graduate-level coursework.</p>
<p>There is no way to predict exactly if or when these recommendations will be implemented by each state board, but it is likely that at least some states will start requiring the MS for professional engineering licensure over the next several years. If this occurs, the MS will basically become the first professional degree for civil engineers. </p>
<p>At present, you can find work and get licensed with a BS, but the job opportunities and prospects for advancement are better with an MS.</p>
<p>Berkeley and UCLA are both good choices for undergraduate study. If you take advantage of the opportunities at either school, you should be well positioned for graduate school.</p>
<p>NCEES is a national organization that represents state engineering boards. They prepare the FE and PE exams that are used to license engineers. They also develop a (non-enforceable) "Model Law" that states use as guidance for their own (enforceable) engineering practice laws.</p>
<p>The latest version of the NCEES "Model</a> Law" indicates that the MS degree requirement for professional licensure should become effective on January 1, 2015. Since this is only a model law, this date is not enforceable; individual states could pick earlier or later dates, or even ignore this proposed change entirely.</p>
<p>Note that you also need a few years of professional experience to qualify for a PE license. This means that if you are starting school in 2007, you may not be eligible for licensure until 2015, when the new requirements may become effective. So you may want to keep an eye on this issue while you're in school. Any college civil engineering department should be aware of it.</p>
<p>So, is it possible to generalize that going to Berkeley (ranked #1 for undergrad civil engineering in USNews) would not leave me standing on a better vantage point than going to UCLA?</p>
<p>Also, although I do indeed value job stability much more than money, it seems there isnt much progression for civil engineers after they get MS. Wut do a lot of civil engineers do beside stick to public sector jobs or private construction firms? On a similar note, would a major in civil engineering and a minor in business be a good idea and not too burdensome?</p>
<p>For civil engineers, the importance of MS depends on what branch you go into as well. Many structural engineering firms simply will not hire you unless you have a MS or plan on getting one.</p>
<p>*Wut do a lot of civil engineers do beside stick to public sector jobs or private construction firms? *</p>
<p>I'm not exactly sure what you're trying to ask, but I'll take a stab at it. Many civil engineers also work for the consultant firms on projects (structural engineering, geotechnical engineering, traffic engineering, environmental engineering, etc). People working for these companies may work on both private and public projects, depending on the company. This also applies to those in construction engineering. If you're working for a government agency, chances are you'll be working for a department of transportation somewhere, and most of those projects are of course roadways, bridges and highways. These employees typically don't do the design or construction engineering though unless they're working in transportation (maybe). Private firms get hired to complete these tasks and the public organizations in charge more or less just oversee everything.</p>
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So, is it possible to generalize that going to Berkeley (ranked #1 for undergrad civil engineering in USNews) would not leave me standing on a better vantage point than going to UCLA?
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Note that the US News undergraduate engineering rankings "are based solely on a peer survey of deans and senior faculty that asked them to rate each program they are familiar with on a scale from 1 (marginal) to 5 (distinguished)." So they are based on purely subjective criteria, unlike the better-known general college rankings, and are not taken as seriously.</p>
<p>Grad schools will look primarily at your GRE scores and grades; they will also be impressed if you are involved in research or a complete an honors thesis. The name of your school will be a relatively minor consideration, and even then, the Berkeley name will have only a minor advantage over the UCLA name.</p>
<p>From what I've heard, engineering grad school admissions usually don't use the GREs as a determining factor like the LSAT for law school. As long as you're above a certain score, it's not going to play a huge role.</p>