Dec 14, 2024  
2015-2016 Undergraduate Academic Catalog 
    
2015-2016 Undergraduate Academic Catalog [ARCHIVED CATALOG]

Civil Engineering B.S.


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Program Director:

Dr. Francis Mahuta Jr.
Office: CC-60D
Phone: (414) 277-7599
Fax: (414) 277-7415
Email: mahuta@msoe.edu

Civil engineers are responsible for the planning, design, construction, operation, and maintenance of the infrastructure necessary to support modern society. The design of MSOE’s civil engineering degree program was guided by the Civil Engineering Body of Knowledge requirements developed by the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE). These requirements call for civil engineers to be proficient in both technical and professional skills, including familiarity with issues of business and public administration, public policy, leadership, and teamwork. Addressing these requirements will equip students to meet the proposed new licensing requirements developed by the National Council of Examiners for Engineering and Surveying, which call for a minimum of a master’s degree or equivalent as a prerequisite for professional engineering licensure.

MSOE students will be able to specialize in one of the following three civil engineering specialty areas: structural engineering (StrE), environmental and water resources engineering (EWRE), and construction management (ConM). Students may choose to use their technical electives taking classes from other specialty areas, or to pursue a minor in a related discipline such as mathematics, chemistry, or physics.

Incoming freshman students whose high school GPA is 3.5 or above (4.0 scale) and whose overall ACT score is 28 or above qualify for acceptance into the Civil Engineering B.S., M.S. Dual-Degree   program. Students who pursue this option are assured of admittance into the graduate component of the program as long as they are able to attain an MSOE GPA of 3.0 or above prior to starting graduate studies. Students previously accepted into the dual-degree program but who do not meet the MSOE GPA requirement will be transferred to the B.S. degree program prior to the start of their senior year.

Program Educational Objectives

Program educational objectives are broad statements that describe what graduates are expected to attain within a few years after graduation, and are based on the needs of the program’s constituencies. The program objectives of the Bachelor of Science / Master of Science in Civil Engineering (CVE) program are as follows:

  • Graduates of the CVE program who choose to pursue registration as a professional engineer or certification as a professional construction manager will, after attaining the required years of work experience stipulated by the relevant licensing board, achieve that distinction
  • Graduates of the CVE program will pursue opportunities to advance their technical and professional skills through advanced degrees and lifelong learning
  • Graduates of the CVE program will demonstrate a commitment to their profession and to their community by participating in and providing leadership for professional society and/or public service activities
  • Graduates of the CVE program will be able to evaluate complex systems or processes within realistic constraints such as customary standards of practice, costs, and sustainability
  • Graduates of the CVE program who choose to do so will be able to move into advanced management positions, having the business, communications, leadership, and teamwork skills required
  • Graduates of the CVE program will have the ability to determine appropriate courses of action in situations involving conflicting professional and ethical interests

Student Outcomes

Student outcomes are narrower statements that describe what students are expected to know and be able to do by the time of graduation. These student outcomes relate to the knowledge, skills, and behaviors that students acquire as they progress through the program. The student outcomes of the Bachelor of Science / Master of Science in Civil Engineering (CVE) program are as follows:

a. an ability to apply knowledge of mathematics, science, and engineering

b. an ability to design and conduct experiments, as well as to analyze and interpret data

c. an ability to design a system, component, or process to meet desired needs within realistic constraints such as economic, environmental, social, political, ethical, health and safety, manufacturability, and sustainability

d. an ability to function on multidisciplinary teams

e. an ability to identify, formulate, and solve engineering problems

f. an understanding of professional and ethical responsibility

g. an ability to communicate effectively

h. the broad education necessary to understand the impact of engineering solutions in a global, economic, environmental, and societal context

i. a recognition of the need for, and an ability to engage in life-long learning

j. a knowledge of contemporary issues

k. an ability to use the techniques, skills, and modern engineering tools necessary for engineering practice

l. an ability to explain basic concepts in business, specifically in the areas of project management, leadership, finance, and economics

m. an ability to explain basic concepts in law and public policy, and develop recommendations on issues of public policy associated with the civil engineering profession

n. an ability to apply master’s-level knowledge in one area of specialization

o. participate in professional society and community service activities

p. an ability to (1) explain the importance of professional licensure, and (2) pass the Fundamentals of Engineering (FE) exam prior to graduation

View Annual Student Enrollment and Graduation Data

Civil Engineering B.S. Track 3.0


First Year


Totals: 14 lecture hours- 4 lab hours- 16 credits

Totals: 14 lecture hours- 4 lab hours- 16 credits

Totals: 14 lecture hours- 4 lab hours- 16 credits

Total: 48 credits


Second Year


Totals: 15 lecture hours- 6 lab hours- 17 credits

Totals: 15 lecture hours- 4 lab hours- 17 credits

Totals:

ConM: 14 lecture hours- 4 lab hours- 16 credits 

EWRE and StrE: 12 lecture hours- 4 lab hours- 14 credits 

Total:


ConM: 50 Credits 

EWRE and StrE: 48 Credits 

Third Year


Totals: 14 lecture hours- 6 lab hours- 16 credits

Totals:

ConM: 13 lecture hours- 4 lab hours- 15 credits 

EWRE: 15 lecture hours- 2 lab hours- 16 credits 

StrE: 14 lecture hours- 4 lab hours- 16 credits 

Totals:

ConM: 15 lecture hours- 2 lab hours- 16 credits 

EWRE: 16 lecture hours- 2 lab hours- 17 credits 

StrE: 16 lecture hours- 2 lab hours- 17 credits 

Total:


ConM: 47 Credits 

EWRE and StrE: 49 Credits 

Fourth Year


Fall


Totals: 15 lecture hours- 2 lab hours- 15 credits

Winter


Totals: 14 lecture hours - 4 lab hours - 16 credits

Spring


Totals: 13 lecture hours- 6 lab hours- 16 credits

Total: 47 credits


Total Program: 192 Credits


Notes:


1 The physics/chemistry elective is satisfied by taking either PH 2031  or both CH 302  and CH 303 ; the science elective may be selected from BI or SC prefixed courses (CH or PH prefixed courses do not count); the math/science elective may be selected from (1) any MA 300 level and above course (except MA 340 , MA 3501 , and MA 3502 ), (2) any BI or SC prefixed course, (3) any CH 200 level and above course, or (4) any PH 300 level and above course. A minimum of 10 credits total from these courses is required for graduation.

All students must choose one of the three specialization tracks within civil engineering prior to the winter quarter of their junior year: ConM- Construction Management, EWRE- Environmental and Water Resources Engineering, or StrE- Structural Engineering.

There are 15 credits of humanities and social sciences (HU/SS) electives; 6 credits minimum from HU-prefixed courses and 6 credits minimum from SS-prefixed courses. At least 3 credits must be selected from the political science series (SS 45X).

There are 8 credits of undergraduate technical electives that may be selected from the engineering, science, math, technical communications, or business areas (200-level or above). A course used to satisfy the science, physics/chemistry, or math/science elective requirements cannot be used to satisfy this requirement. At least 3 credits must be used to take a design-course from a second specialization area within civil engineering.

5 May substitute MS 221  or MS 322  for MS 2220  

ConM students only

EWRE and StrE students only

Students must take the Fundamentals of Engineering (FE) exam in their senior year, as a condition of graduation

Students in the Air Force ROTC program can make the following substitution: AF 401 for SS 45X course

 

“Civil Engineering is a new program, and the curriculum was designed to meet the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology (ABET) criteria for Civil Engineering program accreditation. We will be seeking ABET accreditation in the 2015-2016 academic year, after the graduation of our first class of students, which is a requirement for accreditation.” 

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