Civil engineering career

If you want to be hired as a graduate civil or structural engineer, there are three decisions employers expect you to make before you apply for one of their vacancies.
Decisions: Designs or site? | Industry? |
Modules? | Be inspired by civil engineers in jobs
If you are on a civil engineering or structural engineering degree course, you have an abundance of career choices available to you. If you don’t think civil engineering is for you, you are able to apply for a range of general engineering graduate schemes, join a closely related profession such as transport planning or go into such professions as investment banking and accountancy and financial management. However, according to HECSU data, the vast majority of civil engineering graduates find work within the construction industry.
When you are applying for civil or structural engineering jobs, you are likely to apply for a role or graduate scheme in a particular specialism or industry (see below for an outline of the main specialisms). Larger employers usually hire graduates into a specialist division or business, while smaller organisations often focus on one or two specialisms in total. Whichever sector you choose, however, the nature of the job will differ depending on the type of employer you work for. We outline some of the decisions you’ll have to make – and hopefully make them easier for you.
Oh, and if you are wondering how much you can earn as a civil engineer and who has the highest salaries, check out our salary round up.
Decision one: working on designs or on site?
Most civil and structural engineers work for either a consultancy or a contractor.
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Consultants are involved with a project from the outset and work closely with the client, often managing the project on their behalf. Civil and structural engineers at consultancies are responsible for designing structures. Once building begins they help to resolve any design-related difficulties but, apart from the occasional visit to the site, are largely office-based.
Contractors, meanwhile, actually build the project once the designs are finalised. They may contract out some work to specialist subcontractors, but they are responsible for the construction process and based on site. Civil and structural engineers at contractors manage teams and oversee the implementation of designs.
Starting out at a consultancy, you might assist with designs or gather data under the supervision of a team leader. Working for a contractor, you would start out by managing a small section of the project or ‘package’ on site. Recruiters will expect you to know the difference between consultancies and contractors and have considered reasons for applying to their type of organisation.
Use our infographic to work out whether a consultant or contractor is right for you.
There are also some graduate jobs with very specialist contractors. For example, in coastal and marine, there are companies specialising in dredging and reclamation, off-shore installations and specialist shipping.
In some industry sectors, including water and rail, you can work for client organisations (such as Network Rail, a water supply company or a local authority). Depending on the organisation, you might be in a design-based, maintenance-based or project management role.
Decision two: which industry?
The main industries or specialisms you could work in are:
Airports: Typical projects involve modifying existing airports, including the runways and taxiways (‘airside infrastructure’), maintenance and cargo facilities (‘airside support services’), and terminal buildings.
Bridges: Engineers need a strong understanding of structural engineering and the ability to work closely with highways, geotechnical, railway and environmental engineers. In addition to contractors and consultants, specialist structural organisations are involved in the superstructure design. Geotechnical engineers advise on the substructure and foundations. Specialist subcontractors and suppliers focus on areas such as bearings or post-tensioning. Typical clients include the Highways Agency, Network Rail and local authorities.
Buildings: Sustainability is often a key consideration. Civil engineers work with building services engineers and other specialists to ensure buildings are designed with climate change in mind and to meet ever-evolving regulations.
Coastal and marine: Projects focus on protecting coastal communities against rising sea levels and erosion using sea defences – both hard defences, constructed from concrete, for example, and soft defences, which involve man-made or reconstructed beaches. Engineers may also be involved in building and maintaining ports, offshore wind farms and structures to harness tidal energy.
Energy and power: Engineers design and build the infrastructure needed to create energy. Graduates could work on projects such as the designs for an offshore wind facility, the maintenance of an oil platform or the decommissioning of an old nuclear power plant.
Environmental: Engineers can become environmental consultants, a role in which they will ascertain and then reduce the impacts of a proposed project on the environment. They can specialise in specific areas, such as flood risk.
Geotechnical: In this specialist area, engineers are responsible for the foundations of structures. They assess field data about the ground, soil, rock and boreholes, and find ways to make sure that foundations or slopes are safe and stable. They could specialise in completing site investigations, designing foundations or overseeing the on-site construction work. Specialist postgraduate study is often advantageous.
Highways: This job involves overseeing temporary works and permanent works and finding ways to ease traffic congestion, lessen environmental impact and improve road safety.
Offshore: This sector is concerned with the safe and profitable development of hydrocarbon resources. Engineers undertake the design and installation of oil production platforms, sub-sea structures, pipelines, permanent and temporary anchorages, and assessments of seabed stability. This can involve conceptual and feasibility studies, site assessments, design of foundations and structures, installation supervision and operational management. Projects can be in isolated locations.
Rail: Engineers use their technical knowledge to design, build and maintain the railway system’s infrastructure, including tracks, earthworks and drainage, and telecoms and power. Cost is a particular consideration for engineers in this sector.
Tunnelling: This area chiefly calls on specialist structural and geotechnical knowledge but can also involve many elements of underground engineering – rock tunnels, shafts, caverns and stations, for example, may come under the remit of a tunnelling engineer. Engineers also take decisions on a project’s viability in terms of safety, location and cost, and ensure it has a limited impact on the environment and any buildings nearby.
Water and public health: The ultimate objective of these projects is to provide clean drinking water and treat wastewater. Engineers might be involved in implementing sustainable water drainage systems, creating energy-efficient treatment plants or improving infrastructure to prevent urban flooding.
How do you choose which civil engineering field is best for you? A lot will depend on your personal preferences: what modules and projects did you enjoy from your course? What did you enjoy or not enjoy from your internships?
But it’s worth noting that the number of graduate jobs in each field varies each year. As engineering employers only hire into areas where they have a pipeline of projects in place, you may well find more vacancies in areas where there is stable demand, no matter what happens with Brexit or the wider economy.These areas include UK-based projects in infrastructure (bridges, highways, rail and so on), the energy sectors, water and public health. However, it’s worth investigating how individual employers are performing in different specialisms and locations; even parts of the industry that are suffering overall may have a handful of firms that are growing and need engineers.
Decision three: which modules?
Your choice of degree modules and final-year projects can boost your chances of getting hired into a particular division, so if you are still studying give some thought to the specialism you’d like to work in. Ecology, thermals and acoustics are becoming increasingly important in the buildings sector, for example, so modules in those areas would be advantageous if you want to specialise in buildings.
‘We look very closely at the modules that candidates have completed,’ says Melissa Hopper, graduate recruitment manager at Mott MacDonald. ‘If your modules are closely aligned to the position, it does give you an advantage as it shows that you already have an interest in the area we are looking to recruit into. For some very specialised roles, we require candidates to have completed modules in related areas.’
Aman Gill, graduate recruitment adviser at Arup, agrees: ‘It gives us an insight into a candidate’s interests by seeing which options they have chosen through their degree. If their career interests now sit elsewhere, they should explain that in the application form.'
Need more inspiration? Examples of what graduate engineers do at different employers
‘I work on bridges, creating designs to see whether the bridge would be technically sustainable. We start by making sketches of what we think the design would look like and then create computer models to test it: for example, applying loads (eg of traffic and air pressure) to ensure that the bridge would remain standing. I’m also working on a feasibility study where we are given a brief by a client to devise and evaluate options that will meet that brief and provide recommendations. I always work in a team and am mostly office based but also do visit sites to conduct inspections.’
Joshua McGregor, graduate bridge engineer at Jacobs (consultancy)
‘I work in a team of four specialising in water asset management. My current project is for a water company, creating a strategy to enhance the management of their assets (eg pipe networks, water pumping stations and water treatments plants) to inform their investment decisions. For instance, we look at how assets behaved in the past to create statistical models to predict how they will behave in the future.’
Joel Thai, engineer in the water asset management team at AECOM (consultancy)
‘One of my projects on the graduate programme was working on the Northern line extension: I built the two shafts at Kennington and the station box at Nine Elms. I was responsible for the reinforcement package (part of the project) on the pile construction, ensuring quality so the structure’s integrity wasn’t compromised. I made sure that the workforce was working safely and the activities planned for the day were delivered, I also managed budgets and had technical responsibilities. I worked with the client, the local stakeholders and the community to make sure the construction process didn’t impact on them.’
Sarah Leggett, now a section engineer at Laing O’Rourke (contractor), on working in rail

CV talk

Monday- Let's talk about your CV;
Before, I start, I would want to tell us this. The era of copying someone elses CV and editing names and qualifications is over. There's nothing wrong in paying a professional to help with your curriculum vitae, just make sure, you aid the creation. Make sure everything written on it came from you. Don't copy other persons CV word for word.
Your ability and theirs aren't the same.
Now, there are common mistakes we make with CVs and believe me, this things might be the reason why you've not been getting call backs after forwarding them to your supposed employer.
One is, after creating your CV. Make sure, the 'document name' has your name on it. Something like "OKEKE SEDIAT ADERONKE" And not "My CV" check the name of your document and change it.
When you send your CV through mails, the document name shows. If you have your full name on it, it would be easier for your intended employer to locate while printing.
Secondly, If you are out to look for a job, create an email address that bears your name. I understand some of us are using emails we opened a long time ago but then, you can still make a change. A HR personnel that looks at your email name and sees "Itzpreetygirl@
gmail.com' won't take you serious.
Another thing, the heading of your CV should start with your name, written boldly on it. Followed by your address, phone number {make sure it's a functional phone number. If you have more than one phone number, do include it} and then your email address.
Personal informations about you should be the first thing that embraces the eye anytime anyone clicks on your CV.
Some of us include pictures to our CV. To what end? When you are not a graphic designer? Including pictures won't make it look professional.
Do Not include unnecessary hobbies and references. Whatever hobbies you plan to add to your CV, make sure it goes in line with your career.
There is no need including your class of degree in your CV. When I mean class of degree, I mean you putting down something like.
"Bsc, philosophy (second class upper)
The above information isint necessary.
"Bsc, philosophy" is enough info. If they need a particular class of degree they will specify.
Some of us just write down our qualifications without work experience. I can tell you that 80% of employer's are not looking for who to train. They need you to be experienced.
Do not under estimate the power of little beginnings. Those experiences you think ain't worth it might actually be the one to land you your dream job.
Make sure while listing your experiences, you include your portfolio for each job.
Explain at least, three essential job role.
Avoid the use of ambiguous words.
Things to pay attention to;
•CV layouts.
•Typographical errors
•Font and font size- Use new time Roman. The double spacing should be 1.5 preferably. Font size should be 12.
•Personalize each page.
The arrangement of your CV can be done in the order below;
•FULL NAME.
•PERSONAL DETAILS-
-Gender
-state
-DOB
-Marital status
-Nationality
•CONTACT
-email
-Phone Number
-Address
•CAREER OBJECTIVES
•PERSONAL ATTRIBUTES
•EDUCATION
Starting from the most recent with dates.
•EMOLOYMENT HISTORY.
Starting from the most recent with dates.
•OTHER CERTIFICATION
•LEADERSHIP EXPERIENCE
•AWARDS AND ACHIEVEMENT
•INTERESTS
•SKILLS.
•SPOKEN LANGUAGES
•REFEREES
Good Morning and Have a Beautiful Week Ahead!!!
PS; there are lots of job openings online. Send in at least 5 applications daily.
PSS: check your email and messages regularly.
Do share the post please! Someone might need this.

Ifenabo ifeanyi

Ifenabo ifeanyi

Ifenabo ifeanyi was born on the 21st of February 1990 in the family of six(3 boys 3 girls).
He is a native of Ebe, in udi local government of Enugu state.
He has a bachelor's degree in building.
He is a dealer of all kinds of aluminum roofing sheet. You can meet him for a satisfactory aluminum and building construction works.

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Ifenabo ifeanyi

Ifenabo ifeanyi

Ifenabo ifeanyi