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What should I focus on in college to prepare for Civil Engineering, and what’s the job really like day to day?

I was wondering if the actual career is as difficult as the coursework for it in university. Is Calculus/physics actively used, or is that just to provide a foundation?

fall25 civil-engineering
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Ray’s Answer

Your curriculum in college will be standard engineering fair until upper division (junior and senior year.) Look at any college curriculum guide to see what is in store for you. The amount of math you use in your career will depend on what direction you take which you will start to consider in your junior year. In civil engineering it can lead in many directions. Structural engineering requires more math. Traffic engineering not as much higher math. I am a sanitary engineer. I took a lot of biology, chemistry, hydraulics and ecological classes. Programming became important for me, because water doesn’t behave by nice neat equations. I did a lot of physical modeling and computer modeling to see how water behaved.

Then things can get complicated, but that’s life. You’ll be fine, because you are already asking questions about stuff and not bumping into things and then trying to figure them out then. Here’s a few things I know: You need to be nosy. Why to things work the way they do? Why did that happen that way? Then the next time, you will be ready. Next: Why did he or she do that like that? Did it work? Uh oh, I didn’t. Get past who to blame and solve the problem. Worrying about who’s to blame is a huge waste of time unless you are a politician. Solve the problem. That’s why you are an engineer. Communicate your ideas well. The key to whether someone is an average engineer or a good engineer is how well they communicate.

There is so much more, Brian, but don’t worry about it. If you like figuring things out, if you like solving problems, if you like working with people, even weird ones, then you picked a good career. It isn’t all fun, but for me most of it is a kick.
Thank you comment icon I did half of the course, so I'm not the best person to say something about it. But, what I can say is that calculus and pyhsics are so crucial to have a good development in Civil engineering. They are useful for future subjects like Construction and Paving Analysis,strength of materials,fluid mechanics, and soil mechanics. They are like pillars of a house and should be studied. Guilherme
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