I’m planning on studying civil/environmental engineering in college before studying a separate but heavily math-based field in graduate school. Does it really matter if I get my BS from a school that isn’t accredited?
If you don’t want to be an engineer, I don’t think ABET accreditation really matters. If there’s any possibility you might want to be, though, I would go to an accredited school.
What school is it? That heavily matters too.
From what I’ve heard ABET accreditation is more important in engineering fields(EE,BME,ME,CE) than technology fields(CS,IT,IS,CN)
Also think about this:
-How much do you like that school?
-How good is the school overall?
-Are the facilities FOR YOUR FIELD up-to-date/state of the art?(They shouldn’t look like a relic)
-View the course layout for Civil Engineering at your school. Does it look similar to CE programs at ABET-Accredited schools?
In California, and I would think it would be the same in most states, you cannot get a Professional Engineering license unless your degree is from an ABET accredited program. A PE is a very valuable credential in the work place.
So it would depend on whether having a PE is important in your future career.
I would be a bit wary of a non ABET accredited program. At the very least, I’d want to know why the program has not been accredited.
Civil and environmental engineering tend to be the engineering areas where Professional Engineer licensing is most likely to be needed or desirable when working, so having an ABET-accredited degree is most important for those majors.
Also good to note - schools cannot get ABET accreditation until a class of students graduates - something to look at for new programs, who often will get accredited.
Are schools that have ABET accreditation in other disciplines first adding Enviro as a concentration under another discipline?
Sometimes, it is just a subarea of civil. But ABET accreditation is most essential for civil.