Majoring in Civil Engineering in Canada

Employment prospects of Canadian civil engineering graduates

With a degree in civil engineering, you have a chance to become a civil engineer. So, what exactly do civil engineers do in Canada? As a civil engineer, you can participate in the planning, design and construction of airports, highways, dams and power projects, water supply and waste disposal systems, bridges, ports, industrial facilities, etc.
In recent years, the field of civil engineering has also expanded, including dealing with issues such as urban planning, transportation, and in some cases, biomedical projects.
Since a civil engineering program teaches you so many employment skills, having a civil engineering degree can also allow you to do other civil engineering-related positions.

》Possible employment positions for civil engineering graduates

As mentioned earlier, by studying civil engineering at the university level, you can acquire the professional knowledge and skills that civil engineers need, providing a good foundation for various occupations. Therefore, graduates can do more than civil engineering. In the following, we have selected some occupations that are related to this degree, or occupations that are not directly linked to civil engineering, but require similar skills.
Please note that these are not all thee positions that the civil engineers can have:

• Building inspector
• Construction Engineer: Planning and managing the construction of public and private buildings and facilities.
• Draftsman: Mainly utilizes CAD
• Civil Engineering Technician
• Concrete engineer
• Construction manager
• Construction Cost Estimator
• Licensed Development Technician
• Geotechnical engineer: provides information on soil conditions required to design and construct foundations, underground structures, tunnels, embankments and dams
• Infrastructure Engineer: Develop strategies to protect municipal infrastructure investment.
• Materials engineer
• Structural Engineer: As part of a team, they may include architects, mechanical and electrical engineers, construction contractors and project developers
• Traffic planner or transportation engineer: Planners and designers for safe and efficient transportation systems for goods.
• Urban planning technician or land development engineer: In coordination with urban planners to implement engineering solutions to transform land into functional communities
• Water Resources Engineer: Design systems to collect, store and distribute water.

Please note: Some occupations listed above require additional education, training and/or experience. For example, to take on government projects in Canada, you must obtain permission from a professional engineer (PE).

》Obtain the permission and certification of a civil engineer

You need toobtain a professional engineer’s (PE) permission (link to a government website)to directly control government projects and supervise other civil engineers and engineering technicians. The person in charge of your company needs to have a PE name in order to sell its engineering services to the outside world.
As a licensed professional engineer in Canada, the following conditions are usually required:

• A four-year bachelor's degree in a recognized engineering major
• At least four years (usually) with relevant work experience under the supervision of a professional engineer
• At the time of the background check, there are at least three recommenders
• Successfully completed the legal, professional ethics and professional recognition exams

》Institutions hiring civil engineers:

Generally speaking, employers recruiting civil engineering graduates include government agencies (local, provincial/state or federal), private industry or engineering consulting companies

• Local, provincial/state and federal governments:Government agencies are responsible for the design, construction and maintenance of urban, regional and even national infrastructure. Specifically, civil engineers employed by government agencies are mainly involved in the planning, design, construction, and improvement of bridges, airports, highways, public transportation systems, power projects, water supply, and garbage disposal systems.
• Companies providing construction, surveying, engineering and related services:Government agencies often hire private companies to design and construct various civil infrastructure projects. These private companies also hire a large number of civil engineers.
• Special industries:Civil engineers are also employed in some special industries. For example, the oil and gas extraction industry usually employs civil engineers to assist in the design and supervision of oil and gas extraction and refining facilities. Pipeline transportation is another industry that employs civil engineers to design pipelines and distribution routes for natural gas and other energy sources.

》Salary of civil engineering graduates: the decisive factors

The level of salary that can be obtained as a graduate of civil engineering majors can vary widely and usually depends on the following factors:

• Education level (Bachelor, Graduate, etc.)
• Whether you are ultimately engaged in civil engineering
• Whether you have a professional title (such as Civil PE)
• Amount of work experience accumulated
• The size and type of company
• Industry
• Employment location

These are factors that may affect your income. To make it easier to determine what you can earn, let’s take a look at the average salary of civil engineers.
According tothe 2013 Alberta Wage and Salary Survey Overview, the average annual salary working as part of the Civil Engineers Professional Group in Alberta is $92,054.
According tostatistics from PayScale,the average annual salary for entry-level civil engineers in Canada is $59,786.

Picture from PayScale

What do Canadian civil engineering students learn?

As a civil engineering student, you will have the opportunity to apply your knowledge through coursework and projects. In order to further develop the professional skills of the civil engineering profession, the degree program includes co-op opportunities in different periods.
Generally speaking, the courses of civil engineering include:

• Applied Hydrology
• Civil Engineering Chemistry
• Closed Hydraulic Systems
• Computer Aided Drawing
• Concrete Technology
• Civil Engineering Differential Analysis
• Geotechnical Analysis
• Graphical Communication
• Introduction to Civil Engineering
• Land Development Modeling
• Linear Algebra for Civil Engineering
• Material Mechanics
• Civil Engineering Physics
• Road Design
• Earth Mechanics
• Subdivision Design
• Civil Engineering Survey
• Wood and Steel Design

》Three civil engineering qualifications: college diploma, undergraduate degree, and graduate degree

Traditionally, a civil engineering credential can be obtained in three ways in Canada:

• Specialized Diploma:generally 2-3 years
• Bachelor's Degree:generally 4 years to complete
• Master’s degree:generally 2 years to complete

》What are the employment skills of civil engineering graduates?

Once you graduate from civil engineering, you need to prove that you have the following technical skills in order to be successfully recruited. The following list is what a company looks for when recruiting a civil engineer:

• Mathematical ability
• Project management skills
• Ability to analyze data, review calculations and prepare cost estimates
• Ability to work within budgets and deadlines
• Full understanding of the relevant laws and regulations
• Applicability of general construction methods and materials
• Ability to read blueprints, schematics, site drawings and plans
• Proficiency in basic Microsoft Office applications
• Ability to study complex technical problems and find innovative solutions

Best Schools for Civil Engineering

According toMacLean's latest program rankings of Canadian universities, the top 20 schools in engineering majors are:
1、University of Toronto (Engineering major)
2、University of Waterloo(Engineering major)
3、UBC(Engineering major)
4、University of Alberta(Engineering major)
5、McGill University(Engineering major)
6、University of Ottawa(Engineering major)
7、 Queen’s University(Engineering major)
8、Université de Montréal(University of Montreal Engineering major)
9、McMaster University(Engineering major)
10、University of Calgary （Engineering major )
11、University of Victoria (Engineering major)
12、Université Laval (Laval University - French institution)
13、Ryerson University（Ryerson UniversityEngineering major)
14、 University of Saskatchewan（University of SaskatchewanEngineering major)
15、Western University （Engineering major )
16、York University （Engineering major)
17、Dalhousie University （Dalhousie UniversityEngineering major)
18、Lakehead University （Engineering major)
19、Simon Fraser University（Engineering major)
20、Concordia University（Engineering major)