Civil Engineer

A civil engineer is a professional who works on civil engineering projects. The job of a civil engineer is planning, designing, maintaining, construction and operations of infrastructure while at the same time safeguarding public and environmental health. Civil Engineer also performs land surveying. The job of a civil engineer is very much like the job of a military engineer work on defense and armaments.

Role of a Civil Engineer

Civil Engineer is responsible to work on big size construction projects, building, road, bridge, tunnel, highways, water pipeline and sewage treatment etc. Normally, a Civil Engineer does the following on and off on the work site.
  • Studies reports and maps, and determine soil quality to fix if soil is suitable for a project.
  • Does cost estimation regarding concrete, steel, cement etc. and evaluate cost of whole project.
  • Check government rules and regulations in the area where a project is commenced and identify the impact of a project in the environment.
  • Use designing software for model design of a project.
  • Take part in surveying and present observations from engineering view points.

Skills Required for Civil Engineers

Academic requirement: Academically you need minimum bachelor’s degree i.e. B.E/B.Tech/B.S or equivalent from a recognized institute to start career as civil engineer. The bachelor’s degree in engineering is a 4year program offered to those candidates who have completed K-12 standard of education with physics, chemistry and mathematics. Working with rigorous mathematical and computational formula and understanding the dynamics of physics are some necessary trait to enroll in a bachelor’s program in civil engineering.

To join postgraduate degree programs like MS, M.Tech and Ph.D etc universities ask for score in standardized test followed by essay test and personality interview. Minimum qualification to join masters level program and higher is graduate qualification in civil engineering and related discipline.

Personal Skills

To be a successful in civil engineer one needs to possess the following personality traits:

Analytical skill requirements- Civil Engineer must possess sound analytical skills to understand land, water, soil, environment as well as government rules and regulations for the project site.

Business Skills Requirements- Civil Engineer must be good in numbers to predetermine what a project will cost; the precise cost estimation forms the very basis of a civil engineering project as these projects are normally of very big size.

Critical Thinking Abilities- Civil Engineer must be able to think under what circumstances designs, materials and end product or project may fail and what should be alternative options in case of a glitch or failure. Civil Engineers work in highly competitive environments

Team Worker- Civil Engineer works in team, he / she must need to be a good team worker, able to learn and make others learn in work environment.
   
Writing Skills- Civil Engineer works in a team with fellow engineers and other coworkers. They should have good writing skills to write clear papers which other team workers could fully understand.

Scope of Civil Engineers in India

There is a lot of scope in the government departments like public health, irrigation or public works for civil engineering graduates. Among all the branches of engineering, the range of civil engineering is the broadest. The whole of infrastructure of a nation like India depends upon civil engineers. India is fast developing economy and it is building mighty power plants, dams, airports, sea ports, highways, inland waterways and industrial plants. Construction of these is impossible without civil engineers. These professionals are also engaged in building an unending array of structures like bridges, commercial complexes, tunnels, roads, urban rapid transport systems, multiplexes and so on. So there are job opportunities in road projects, building work, consultancy firms, and housing societies as well for civil engineers. Growth in the Indian economy and in the construction industry has brought a lot of cheer among civil engineers in the country.

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