At the University of Newcastle we educate our engineers to meet the global challenges of the future. You'll learn to engineer energy-efficient buildings using the latest nano-materials and, help develop sustainable and resilient infrastructure in developing countries. Perhaps your study will lead you to design Australia’s first high-speed train network to connect communities and reduce carbon emissions. Your degree could even build a revolutionary water recycling plant to tackle water security issues.

What is civil engineering? Civil engineers are responsible for the physical infrastructure that enables modern societies to function. As a civil engineering student you will study buildings, highways and railways, tunnels, airports, power generation facilities and harbour facilities. Your courses will focus on preparing you to design, build and manage these structures as a fully qualified civil engineer.

What you will study

Build critical technical engineering skills by studying courses in:

• Structural engineering
• Water engineering
• Geomechanics

• Fluid dynamics
• Civil engineering materials
• Steel design

Connect with industry through guest lectures and interdisciplinary projects solving real world problems. Gain invaluable practical experience through your industry placement.

Become job-ready through our professional practice courses. You'll learn to tackle ‘wicked problems’ and develop essential workplace skills in finance, project management, sustainability, communication and entrepreneurism.

Develop your business skills in:

• accounting
• finance
• microeconomics for business decisions
• law

• management
• leadership and ethics
• entrepreneurship and Innovation

Civil engineers work for construction companies, consulting firms, project management companies, transport companies and governments. You could specialise in:

• structural engineering - design buildings, bridges, airports, railways, and towers, and the suitability of materials for infrastructure projects
• water engineering - design and manage water supply, control and treatment systems
• transport and traffic engineering – plan, investigate and optimise transport systems
• geotechnical engineering - design foundations, support structures, assess stability of slopes and tunnels.

Civil engineering is flexible and diverse. You might prefer to work onsite, in design and development, or a leadership role managing people and projects. Typical positions include:

• civil engineering designer
• structural engineer
• geotechnical engineer

• transport systems engineer
• stormwater engineer
• urban development engineer

Remarkably, engineering is the most commonly held degree among the highest performing Fortune 500 CEOs – the CEOs of companies such as Google, Microsoft, Amazon and Tesla Motors are all engineers.