Civil Engineers

Perform engineering duties in planning, designing, and overseeing construction and maintenance of building structures and facilities, such as roads, railroads, airports, bridges, harbors, channels, dams, irrigation projects, pipelines, power plants, and water and sewage systems.

Most important skills

Active Listening
Reading Comprehension
Speaking
Mathematics
Critical Thinking
Complex Problem Solving
Science
Systems Analysis

Key knowledge

Design
Engineering and Technology
Building and Construction
Mathematics
English Language
Physics
Administration and Management
Customer and Personal Service

What the work involves

Compute load and grade requirements, water flow rates, or material stress factors to determine design specifications.
Inspect project sites to monitor progress and ensure conformance to design specifications and safety or sanitation standards.
Direct or participate in surveying to lay out installations or establish reference points, grades, or elevations to guide construction.
Estimate quantities and cost of materials, equipment, or labor to determine project feasibility.
Prepare or present public reports on topics such as bid proposals, deeds, environmental impact statements, or property and right-of-way descriptions.
Design energy-efficient or environmentally sound civil structures.
Direct engineering activities, ensuring compliance with environmental, safety, or other governmental regulations.
Provide technical advice to industrial or managerial personnel regarding design, construction, program modifications, or structural repairs.

Strongest interest areas (O*NET): Realistic, Investigative, Conventional.

Qualifications and licensing

Most common education: Bachelor's Degree (85.7% of respondents)
Related experience: Over 4 years, up to and including 6 years (28.6%)
On-the-job training: Over 6 months, up to and including 1 year (19.1%)
Preparation level: O*NET job zone 4: Job Zone Four: Considerable Preparation Needed
Licensing: Not yet verified. Check your state licensing board.

Check before planning

Licensing for Civil Engineers is not yet verified for any state: check the state licensing board before planning.

Limits

Distributions show what current workers or occupational experts report, not legal minimums.
Requirements vary by employer and state; time to qualify is not estimated.

Source: O*NET 31.0 Database (USDOL/ETA, CC BY 4.0); BLS Employment Projections · dataset 2026.10.8 · method e3-qualification-1.0.0

Work environment

How the typical conditions of this occupation compare with 911 occupations in O*NET (very low = the lowest fifth).

Levels are relative. Most occupations involve a lot of contact with people, for example, so “very low” can still mean regular contact; the last column shows what workers actually reported.

Rankings compare typical U.S. occupation-level work conditions; individual jobs and employers vary. Data: O*NET 31.0 Work Context and BLS wages (May 2025).
Condition	Level	Compared with other occupations	Most common answer (O*NET survey)
Contact with others	Low	Lower on contact with others than 65% of occupations compared	43% of surveyed respondents chose “Contact with others most of the time”
Dealing with the public	Moderate	Higher on dealing with the public than 55% of occupations compared	48% of surveyed respondents chose “Very important”
Teamwork	Moderate	Higher on teamwork than 59% of occupations compared	52% of surveyed respondents chose “Very important”
Freedom to make decisions	Low	Lower on freedom to make decisions than 71% of occupations compared	52% of surveyed respondents chose “Some freedom”
Time pressure	High	Higher on time pressure than 61% of occupations compared	52% of surveyed respondents chose “Once a week or more but not every day”
Conflict situations	Moderate	Higher on conflict situations than 55% of occupations compared	52% of surveyed respondents chose “Once a month or more but not every week”
Dealing with unpleasant or angry people	Very low	Lower on dealing with unpleasant or angry people than 81% of occupations compared	76% of surveyed respondents chose “Once a year or more but not every month”
Consequence of error	High	Higher on consequence of error than 69% of occupations compared	43% of surveyed respondents chose “Extremely serious”

Work-pressure profile

Time pressure: high
Conflict situations: moderate
Dealing with unpleasant or angry people: very low
Consequence of error: high

Each part is shown on its own. There is no combined stress score, and conditions vary by employer and role.

Full answer distributions