Civil Engineering, B.S. | NYU Tandon School of Engineering

Civil Engineering, B.S.

Civil and Urban Engineering
Bachelor of Science
On Campus
Brooklyn Bridge

The Roman aqueducts, the London Bridge, the Hoover Dam, JFK airport — civil projects are found worldwide and throughout history. Civil engineers had a hand in the construction of each, and with quickly growing populations straining today’s infrastructures, they’re sure to spend time improving and building upon our built environment now and into the future.

Join Tandon's BS program in Civil Engineering and be a part of their ranks. You’ll train for a broad and exciting field with major impacts on society and its infrastructure. Our program is strongly practice-oriented, heavily emphasizing design, to prepare you for entry-level positions in any civil engineering sub-discipline or for graduate study.

The BS in Civil Engineering program is accredited by the Engineering Accreditation Commission (EAC) of ABET.

Program Information

The Department of Civil and Urban Engineering develops engineering graduates capable of contributing to and advancing the practice of civil engineering and its subdisciplines. Through its research programs, the department strives to be at the forefront in selected areas in the development of new knowledge and applications in civil engineering. 

The educational objectives of the undergraduate Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering (BSCE) program at the Tandon School of Engineering of New York University are for its graduates to:  

  1. Apply scientific principles, interdisciplinary knowledge, critical thinking skills, cutting-edge technology, and a passion for civil engineering to solve complex engineering and societal problems. 
  2. Demonstrate leadership in professional careers, pursue continuous and lifelong learning, and progress towards professional licensure.  
  3. Communicate and collaborate effectively with industry professionals, decision-makers, and community stakeholders.
  4. Work in an ethical and professional manner towards sustainable and resilient civil and urban infrastructure systems.
  5. Successfully perform functions of civil engineering practice, including analysis, design, project management, experimentation, interpretation of data, application of new knowledge, and use of sound engineering judgment to draw conclusions. 

Student outcomes for the BSCE program as presented in the NYU Bulletin are those abilities and skills that graduates are expected to have upon graduation with a BS in Civil Engineering degree. For these, the Department has adopted the seven fundamental outcomes specified by the Engineering Accreditation Commission of ABET. They cover the full breadth and depth of the abilities and skills needed by modern engineering professionals.

The BS in Civil Engineering degree is fulfilled by combining transfer credits, credits by examination and courses taken at Tandon. Transfer credits in mathematics, chemistry, physics, humanities and social sciences are evaluated by the Office of Academic Affairs with faculty guidance from specific departments. Transfer credits in civil engineering and other technical areas are evaluated by the faculty of the Department of Civil and Urban Engineering. The length of time for a transfer student to complete the BS in Civil Engineering depends upon 3 factors:

  • The total number of transfer credits awarded;
  • The particular courses required to complete degree requirements; and
  • Enrollment status (part-time or full-time).

Transfer students should understand that they can be awarded transfer credits for courses with a C grade or better and then only for courses that are applicable toward the BS in Civil Engineering curriculum.

You may register as a part-time student (fewer than 12 credits a semester), though the department does not offer many undergraduate courses in the evening. If you are enrolled as a part-time student, you should maintain close contact with your academic advisers to work out the details of course sequencing efficiently and effectively.

Curriculum

The undergraduate curriculum for the BS in Civil Engineering provides a solid foundation in all major subdisciplines through required courses. It also requires a concentration in one of five areas (structural engineering, transportation engineering, environmental engineering, urban informatics, or construction management). 

If a student has a combined GPA below 2.000 in the above seven classes, the student may not be allowed to remain in the major.  If a student has a combined GPA of at least 2.000 and below 2.333, the student will be required to re-take at least one of the courses to raise the GPA to 2.333 before being allowed to enroll in some junior-level required CE courses.

The following changes are approved and in effect and will be reflected in the next bulletin publication. Please contact the Undergraduate Advisor if you have any questions about course requirements.

Program Requirements -  pre-Fall 2024

Sample Course Schedule pre-Fall 2024

The undergraduate curriculum for the BS in Civil Engineering provides a solid foundation in all major subdisciplines through required courses. It also requires a concentration in one of five areas (structural engineering, transportation engineering, environmental engineering, urban informatics, or construction management). A typical four-year course of study for civil engineering majors is shown on the pages above which link to the 2023-2024 archived bulletin and the updated 2024-2024 bulletin.

Student have progressive design exposure throughout the curriculum. An introduction to design is provided by EG-UY 1004  in the freshman year. Courses CE-UY 2343, CE-UY 3183, CE-UY 3223, CE-UY 3243, and CE-UY 3153 have subdiscipline-specific design content. Many civil engineering elective courses also have strong design components. All students must complete two capstone design courses (CE-UY 4803 and CE-UY 4813 or CE-UY 4833 or CE-UY 4853 or CE-UY 4863​) during their senior year.

Undergraduate civil engineering elective courses are provided in structural, geotechnical, environmental, water resources and transportation engineering, and construction management and engineering. These allow students to gain significant depth in these areas. Selected students with sufficient gradepoint averages may take graduate courses in these areas. Special topics courses are provided in each major subdiscipline and are offered as needed.

Communication skills are emphasized throughout the curriculum. The humanities and social sciences portions of the curriculum focus strongly on developing writing and oral skills. The freshman engineering program also includes substantial emphasis on oral presentations and written report assignments. All courses with associated laboratories require written laboratory or project reports; many design courses require formal submission of design reports, some with oral presentations. The senior design-project experience includes many oral and written progress reports and is formally presented and defended as part of final submission.

Humanities and social sciences courses also help students to understand the societal context of their profession. CE-UY 1002 and CE-UY 4092 reinforce this understanding with specific civil engineering references and provides a focused treatment of professional ethics. These aspects are also highlighted in other civil-engineering curriculum courses.

 

If you were admitted prior to the Fall 2018 semester and are not following the new curriculum, please refer to the information below:

 

Retention, Graduation, & Placement Rates