The construction industry has been faced with a problem: a need for workers who understand both construction and engineering in order to make educated decisions on the job. The U is helping to remedy this by offering a Construction Engineering B.S.
The development of this new degree had been underway for two years, with Professor and Chair of Civil & Environmental Engineering Michael Barber leading the effort. It was approved this August and is currently enrolling freshmen.
According to Barber, the Construction Engineering degree runs fairly close to the Civil Engineering degree, but differs in eight classes, mostly in the junior and senior year of the program. These classes will educate students on basic construction, vertical and horizontal construction, and façades — topics that Civil Engineering does not cover. Students will also be working with 3-D design, computer design, and computer programs.
This new degree is also different from Construction Management since it covers engineering aspects of the job.
Barber spoke to construction companies in the area such as Wadsworth, Jacobsen, and Kiewit, all of which are interested in students with Construction Engineering degrees. Currently, companies are providing years of addition training to structural engineers in order to help them understand the construction aspect of industry.
The aim is for students who earn the Construction Engineering degree to eventually become project managers for construction companies.
“We think that construction is a very up-and-coming career,” Barber said. He pointed out Utah’s projected population growth, adding that “Those folks are going to have to live, work, drive or commute in some manner.”
This degree focuses on heavy construction such as buildings, bridges, roads, mass transit systems, and water treatment systems.
Barber recommends this program to people who “like to work outdoors, like to see things built, aren’t afraid to be creative on the fly, and want to put technology to work”.
The U is currently the only school in the state that offers a Construction Engineering program.
After the first students obtain the degree, the U will work to get the program accredited by the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology, Inc. (ABET). There are only 20 programs in the country that are accredited. This will involve a comprehensive review of course exams and homework, professors, and documentation.
The program is currently prepared to accept freshman students and is hoping to be ready next year for upper-level students, as the process of hiring professors for the upper-level classes has already begun. The degree was intended to attract new students, but current or transfer students are also welcome to pursue the major.
High school students with high enough GPAs and ACT or SAT scores will be accepted directly into the program if they are ready to take calculus their freshman year. Otherwise, students will be directed to take pre-engineering classes and become admitted to the program at a later date. The department is working to hire advisors to talk to prospective students.
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