<p>I have been to couple forums and talked to some people in school.
I know that, in the past, Civil Engin. were really great. But now, people mostly said that there aren't any future for Civil Engin. and it is the worst among all engineering. There are too many people out in this field and it is hard to compete and get a job. Even if you get a job, you can rarely be promoted. Therefore, most Civil Engin. degree holders would switch to another field so as to get a job. Is this true or not?
I know that we cannot predict what would be the best in the future. But at least, as of today, what is the market of Civil Engin.? What graduates usually work at? Is it bright or not? My Civil department said it is good and blah blah blah. But can anyone, in the field or will get into the field soon or know a lot about it, give me some ideas too?
Also, I just done with my freshman year, therefore, I still got some space to change major. Before, I was kind of in-between Civil and Mechanical Engin. I like to either build/destroy stuff. My final selection in Civil Engin. is because building huge infrastructures seems more interesting than building machines. But, I was into both fields, therefore, now, I am wondering did I make the right choice? Show I major in Mechanical Engin.? Please give me some advices about Civil and Mechanical Engin. too. Thanks all!!</p>
<p>"Therefore, most Civil Engin. degree holders would switch to another field so as to get a job"</p>
<p>I don't know much about Civil Eng. but I do know someone who was a Civil Eng., he switched his job. He studied for a Pharm D. and is a pharamcist now.</p>
<p>I am interested in the answer to this question as well.</p>
<p>I just graduated with a civil engineering BS degree and there is definitely not a shortage of jobs. The transportation department of the firm at which I interned has doubled in size over the course of a year and a half. A few of my friends worked at a design firm which focuses on bridges and tunnels, and they were pretty desperate for help. I even received unsolicited phone calls from 3 or 4 different companies during my senior year. Everybody's always looking for help, especially contractors nowadays. </p>
<p>The good thing about civil engineering is that it's one of the most stable of the engineering professions. There will always always be a need for them. Every building that goes up, every building that comes down, every building that undergoes a major renovation will require the services of a civil engineer. Don't forget that you need them in the government as well; every city and town has engineers regulating the processes. </p>
<p>I've never heard of anybody switching out of civil engineering because he/she couldn't find a job. I do know of a few who switched from EE to civil though (this was shortly after the dot com bust). </p>
<p>tom725, do you know why that person switched to pharmacy? I would think it's because he didn't like his job, and not that he couldn't find one. It's a pretty big change. </p>
<p>I don't know too much about the mechE job market, but it's probably the most flexible engineering degree in terms of what you can do afterwards. Anything from HVAC to aerospace to biomechanical engineering. </p>
<p>Personally, I couldn't be happier with the job market in New York right now. Just walking to work or school everyday, I see a couple of cranes, which means something's getting built = civEs being employed. </p>
<p>If you want a more unbiased opinion, this is what the US Dept of Labor says:</p>
<p>"Civil engineers are expected to see average employment growth through 2014. Spurred by general population growth and an increased emphasis on infrastructure security, more civil engineers will be needed to design and construct safe and higher capacity transportation, water supply, and pollution control systems, as well as large buildings and building complexes. They also will be needed to repair or replace existing roads, bridges, and other public structures. Because construction and related industries—including those providing design services—employ many civil engineers, employment opportunities will vary by geographic area and may decrease during economic slowdowns, when construction often is curtailed."</p>
<p>As a civil & environmental engineering employer, I'll second everything that ken285 has said. There IS a shortage of good engineers out there....especially those w/ 5 to 10 years experience. That shortage, which was caused by an upsurge to IT degrees prior to the "BUST" a few years back at the peak of the dot-com era, taking graduates away from engineering, at least for a period of time. What this translates to for new grads is a tremendous amount of upward mobility potential, much more so than prior times. In our collective lifetimes, there will never be a shortage of infrastructure building needs or environmental problems, short of a global really-bad-event like world war (which would affect just about every profession), so I see a bright future for civil engineering. Plus, as civil engineering is largely location-specific, there is less ability for employers to off-shore (i.e., hire engineers in other, cheaper countries to do US work) this profession than others, like computer engineering. We haven't had a civil engineer leave the profession (in my company) since the dot-com era.....but I'd bet many of those who jumped ship back then would be happy to return.</p>
<p>Thanks ken285 and Papa Chicken opinions. It seems that CE market is not as bad as I thought. I always dream to build some huge infrastructures like buildings, bridges, airports, tunnel, etc. And I think I will stick with my major.</p>
<p>
[quote]
Plus, as civil engineering is largely location-specific, there is less ability for employers to off-shore (i.e., hire engineers in other, cheaper countries to do US work) this profession than others, like computer engineering.
[/quote]
Civil engineering appears to be much less affected by outsourcing and off-shoring than certain other disciplines of engineering. </p>
<p>First, civil engineering is very site-specific, as noted above. It typically requires knowledge of local conditions, including natural factors (e.g. soil, groundwater, climate, etc.) and human factors (local politics, regulations, real estate market, etc). You look for such knowledge locally, not thousands of miles away. </p>
<p>Second, civil engineering typically requires a state license, as well as academic credentials. There may be lots of BS or MS engineers in China or India, but there aren't many PEs.</p>
<p>"Second, civil engineering typically requires a state license, as well as academic credentials. There may be lots of BS or MS engineers in China or India, but there aren't many PEs."</p>
<p>Even with all the engineers in China, I doubt they would even have the resources to take on projects in the U.S. right now if they wanted to. That country is developing rapidly which not only means they'll need civil engineers to put up the buildings, but also to improve the infrastructure.</p>