Civil, Environmental, & Architectural Engineering
For the period 2016-2026, Civil Engineers are #1 in U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics projections for new jobs and total employment in engineering.
Civil Engineering and its subfields are 5 of the top 6 jobs in the 2020 U.S. News and World Report listing of “Best Engineering Jobs”
Civil Engineering is #5 in Kiplinger’s listing of top 25 majors overall in the U.S. for most lucrative careers; our subfields are also in the top 25.
The Department of Civil, Environmental, & Architectural Engineering (CEAE) at WPI empowers students to become global stewards of the planet and work toward a better, sustainable tomorrow. CEAE’s flexible, project-based curriculum lets students explore multiple disciplines, emphasizing civic responsibility and leadership.
Working with our world-class faculty and using WPI’s state-of-the-art facilities, our students conduct research with global implications in areas like structural design, construction, infrastructure, health monitoring, sustainability, water resources, and pollution prevention and remediation. This important work moves outside our walls to Project Centers in Panama City and with Stantec Inc. as students address real-world civil engineering problems, such as maintaining sustainable infrastructure and protecting the earth’s resources.
We spend 93% of our time in buildings or vehicles, and only 7% outdoors! The built environment touches all of us more than other engineered aspects of our lives, the more so for climate change, infrastructure renewal, and energy transition. Join us—the built environment needs our best engineers!
Area of Study | Bachelor | Minor | Certificate | Master | PhD |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Architectural Engineering | bachelor | minor | |||
Architecture | master | ||||
Civil Engineering | bachelor | master | phd | ||
Civil Engineering (MEng) | master | ||||
Community Climate Adaptation | master | ||||
Construction Project Management | certificate | master | |||
Environmental Engineering | bachelor | master |
Undergraduate Research Projects Showcase
A celebration of research, design, and creative theses—a requirement of every graduating senior through the Major Qualifying Project (MQP)—takes place each spring on campus. Student teams representing all academic departments present their work to their faculty advisors, external sponsors, and the community-at-large, and the public is invited.
CEAE Networking Event November 7th, 5-8 p.m.
The Civil, Environmental, and Architectural Department will host our annual Networking Event on November 7th from 5:00 to 8:00 in the Odeum Room in the Rubin Campus Center.
Media Coverage
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From the University Magazine
A Welcome Invasion of City Walls
Lizard-like robots sneak into small spaces for mapping and inspections.
Fire Safety as a Human Right
Danielle Antonellis founded a nonprofit to reduce risk in vulnerable communities around the world.
Sustainability of the Built Environment
Researchers seek solutions for a source of 40 percent of carbon emissions worldwide—human-made infrastructure.
Alumni Success Stories
Working Smarter, Not Harder
Derrick Morse ’01, MS ’03 works with robots that tackle the back-breaking, detailed work of layout transfer.
Kristophe Zephyrin '21
Even as a child, Zephyrin had grand ambitions to save the world and improve the human condition, starting with a dream of creating urban green spaces in his hometown of Houston, Texas.
Arthur and Roberta Bodwell '64
“We knew how the financial help I received as a student impacted the quality of our lives,” Arthur says, “so we established the Arthur R. and Roberta M. Bodwell Scholarship as our way of offering gratitude to the university.”
Susan and William Rutherford ’73
Philanthropic giving in support of gender equity through the William A. ’73 and Susan Rutherford Civil Engineering Scholarship for women in civil engineering