B.S. in Construction Engineering
The Program
Construction Engineering involves the planning, design, and management of construction facilities, such as highways, bridges, airports, railroads, buildings, dams, and reservoirs. The construction of such projects requires the knowledge of engineering, management, economics, and business. Construction Engineering is differentiated from Construction Management from the standpoint of the use of math, science, and engineering to design projects and processes and analyze problems. Construction Engineering is involved in a variety of construction disciplines, including: commercial, residential, transportation, and infrastructure systems. Construction Engineers are also involved in the engineering design of temporary structures,cost estimating, planning and scheduling, material procurement, selection of equipment, and cost control. Due to their diverse skills, there is a very high demand for Construction Engineers.
The Department offers a Bachelor of Science in Construction Engineering degree which offers a blend of engineering and construction courses. The program is designed for those who want to work in the construction industry and enjoy the status of a professional engineer. A thorough knowledge of the physical sciences, math, and engineering is developed during the first two years followed by construction management and engineering courses. The technical side of the program is balanced with requirements in writing, humanities, social science, and communications. The program leading to the Bachelor of Science in Construction Engineering degree is accredited by the Engineering Accreditation Commission of ABET, www.abet.org.
Program Statistics
Enrollment Number: Fall 2016 - 44; Spring 2017 - 47. Fall 2017 - 52; Spring 2018 - 49; Fall 2018 - 54 (including 1 Pre-Construction Engineering); Spring 2019 - 48; Fall 2019 - 45; Spring 2020 - 39
Graduation Number: Fall 2016 - 1; Spring 2017 - 4. Fall 2017 - 1; Spring 2018 - 5; Fall 2018 - 0; Spring 2019 - 3; Fall 2019 - 8; Spring 2020 - 13
Program Educational Objectives (PEO)
Program educational objectives (PEO’s) are broad statements that describe what graduates are expected to attain within a few years after graduation. Program educational objectives are based on the needs of the program’s constituencies. Graduates from the Bachelor of Science in Construction Engineering program are expected to be productive construction engineers who, within the first few years after graduation:
- Begin to serve in a middle-level project leadership role in their construction engineering career.
- Acquire and use new knowledge and skills in the construction engineering field.
- Be respected construction engineers who are valued by their peers, customers, and the general public for their technical expertise and ethical conduct.
Student Outcomes (SO)
- an ability to identify, formulate, and solve complex engineering problems by applying principles of engineering, science, and mathematics
- an ability to apply engineering design to produce solutions that meet specified needs with consideration of public health, safety, and welfare, as well as global, cultural, social, environmental, and economic factors
- an ability to communicate effectively with a range of audiences
- an ability to recognize ethical and professional responsibilities in engineering situations and make informed judgments, which must consider the impact of engineering solutions in global, economic, environmental, and societal contexts
- an ability to function effectively on a team whose members together provide leadership, create a collaborative and inclusive environment, establish goals, plan tasks, and meet objectives
- an ability to develop and conduct appropriate experimentation, analyze and interpret data, and use engineering judgment to draw conclusions
- an ability to acquire and apply new knowledge as needed, using appropriate learning strategies.
Major Requirements
Major: Construction Engineering
Degree Type: Bachelor of Science in Construction Engineering
Required Degree Credits to Graduate: 131
University Degree Requirements
- Satisfactory completion of all requirements of the curriculum in which one is enrolled.
- Earn a minimum total of 120 credits in approved coursework. Some academic programs exceed this minimum.
- Satisfactory completion of the general education requirements as specific by the university.
- A minimum institutional GPA of 2.00 based on work taken at NDSU.
- At least 36 credits presented for graduation must be in courses number 300 or higher.
- Transfer Students: Must earn a minimum of 60 credits from a baccalaureate-degree granting or professional institution.
a. Of these 60, at least 36 must be NDSU residence credits as defined in #7.
b. Within the 36 resident credits, a minimum of 15 must be in courses numbered 300 or higher and 15 credits in the major field of study. - At least 36 credits must be NDSU resident credits. Residence credits include credits registered and paid for at NDSU.
For complete information, please refer to the Degree and Graduation Requirements section of this Bulletin.
University General Education Requirements
| Communication (C) | 12 | |
| ENGL 110 | College Composition I | |
| ENGL 120 | College Composition II | |
| COMM 110 | Fundamentals of Public Speaking | |
| Upper Division Writing† | ||
| Quantitative Reasoning (R)† | 3 | |
| Science and Technology (S)† | 10 | |
| Humanities and Fine Arts (A)† | 6 | |
| Social and Behavioral Sciences (B)† | 6 | |
| Wellness (W)† | 2 | |
| Cultural Diversity (D)*† | ||
| Global Perspectives (G)*† | ||
| Total Credits | 39 | |
| * | May be satisfied by completing courses in another General Education category. |
| † | General education courses may be used to satisfy requirements for both general education and the major, minor, and program emphases, where applicable. Students should carefully review major requirements to determine if specific courses can also satisfy these general education categories. |
- A list of university approved general education courses and administrative policies are available here.
Major Requirements
| Construction Engineering Core Requirements | ||
| CM&E 111 | Introduction to Construction Management and Engineering | 1 |
| CM&E 200 | Construction Documents and Codes | 3 |
| CM&E 204 | Construction Surveying | 3 |
| CM&E 212 | Construction Graphic Communications | 3 |
| CM&E 240 | Financial Cost Concepts for Construction Managers | 3 |
| CM&E 301 | Construction Technology and Equipment | 3 |
| CM&E 305 | Pre-Construction Management | 3 |
| CM&E 315 | Specifications and Contracts | 3 |
| CM&E 380 | Construction Estimating: Quantities and Costs | 3 |
| CM&E 403 | Scheduling and Project Control | 3 |
| CM&E 405 | Construction Support Operations | 3 |
| CM&E 489 | Construction Design Capstone | 3 |
| CE Courses: | ||
| CE 303 & 303L | Civil Engineering Materials and Civil Engineering Materials Laboratory | 3 |
| CE 309 | Fluid Mechanics | 3 |
| CE 316 | Soil Mechanics | 3 |
| CE 343 | Structural Engineering and Analysis | 4 |
| CE 400 Level Courses: Select 12 credits from the following: | 12 | |
| CM&E 465 | Bridge Engineering and Management | |
| CM&E 475 | Design of Site Erosion Control | |
| CE 404 | Reinforced Concrete | |
| CE 408 | Water Resources and Supply | |
| CE 411 | Design of Pre-stressed Concrete | |
| CE 417 | Slope Stability and Retaining Walls | |
| CE 419 | Pavement Design | |
| CE 421 | Open Channel Flow | |
| CE 430 | Timber and Form Design | |
| CE 441 | Finite Element Analysis | |
| CE 444 | Structural Steel Design | |
| CE 461 | Foundation Engineering | |
| CE 462 | Designing with Geosynthetics | |
| CE 478 | Water Quality Management | |
| ME Courses Required: | ||
| ME 221 | Engineering Mechanics I | 3 |
| ME 222 | Engineering Mechanics II | 3 |
| ME 223 | Mechanics of Materials | 3 |
| Math Courses Required: | ||
| MATH 128 | Introduction to Linear Algebra | 1 |
| MATH 165 | Calculus I (May satisfy general education category R) | 4 |
| MATH 166 | Calculus II | 4 |
| MATH 259 | Multivariate Calculus | 3 |
| MATH 266 | Introduction to Differential Equations | 3 |
| Additional Courses: | ||
| BUSN 431 | Business Law I-Contracts, Property and Torts | 3 |
| CHEM 121 & 121L | General Chemistry I and General Chemistry I Laboratory (May satisfy general education category S) | 4 |
| CHEM 122 | General Chemistry II (May satisfy general education category S) | 3 |
| ENGR 402 | Engineering Ethics and Social Responsibility | 1 |
| ENGL 320 | Business and Professional Writing (May satisfy general education category C) | 3 |
| or ENGL 321 | Writing in the Technical Professions | |
| GEOL 105 | Physical Geology (May satisfy general education category S) | 3 |
| or GEOL 106 | The Earth Through Time | |
| PHYS 252 | University Physics II (May satisfy general education category S) | 4 |
| STAT 330 | Introductory Statistics (May satisfy general education category R) | 3 |
| Select one from the following (May satisfy general education category B & G): | 3 or 6 | |
| ECON 105 | Elements of Economics | |
| ECON 201 & ECON 202 | Principles of Microeconomics and Principles of Macroeconomics | |
| Total Credits | 110-113 | |
Degree Requirements and Notes
- A student must complete at least 60 semester credits of professional level course work in his/her program while in residence and enrolled in the college. Students transferring into the college from programs with professional accreditation are exempt from this residency requirement but are subject to the residency requirement of NDSU.
- A minimum 2.50 cumulative GPA is required for transfer students to be admitted to the Bachelor of Science in Construction Engineering program.
- To satisfy the Gen Ed Category B requirements, a student can choose between two options: ECON 105 plus an additional course within Category B OR ECON 201 and ECON 202. Both options satisfy the Gen Ed Category G requirement.
Plan of Study
Please note this is a sample plan of study and not an official curriculum. Actual student schedules for each semester will vary depending on start year, education goals, applicable transfer credit, and course availability. Students are encouraged to work with their academic advisor on a regular basis to review degree progress and customize an individual plan of study.
| Freshman | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Fall | Credits | Spring | Credits |
| CM&E 111 | 1 | CM&E 212 | 3 |
| CM&E 200 | 3 | MATH 166 | 4 |
| MATH 165 (Gen Ed R Category) | 4 | ENGL 120 (Gen Ed C Category) | 3 |
| ENGL 110 (Gen Ed C Category) | 4 | CHEM 122 (Gen Ed S Category) | 3 |
| CHEM 121 (Gen Ed S Category) | 3 | ME 221 | 3 |
| CHEM 121L (Gen Ed L Category) | 1 | Economics (Gen Ed B/G Category)* | 3 |
| 16 | 19 | ||
| Sophomore | |||
| Fall | Credits | Spring | Credits |
| CM&E 204 | 3 | CM&E 240 | 3 |
| Social Behavior (Gen Ed B Category) | 3 | PHYS 252 (Gen Ed S Category) | 4 |
| MATH 128 | 1 | COMM 110 (Gen Ed C Category) | 3 |
| MATH 259 | 3 | MATH 266 | 3 |
| ME 222 | 3 | ME 223 | 3 |
| GEOL 105 or 106 (Gen Ed S Category) | 3 | Wellness (Gen Ed W Category) | 2 |
| 16 | 18 | ||
| Junior | |||
| Fall | Credits | Spring | Credits |
| CM&E 305 | 3 | CM&E 301 | 3 |
| CM&E 380 | 3 | CM&E 315 | 3 |
| CE 309 | 3 | CE 303 | 2 |
| CE 316 | 3 | CE 303L | 1 |
| STAT 330 (Gen Ed R Category) | 3 | CE 343 | 4 |
| CM&E 405 | 3 | ||
| 15 | 16 | ||
| Senior | |||
| Fall | Credits | Spring | Credits |
| CM&E 403 | 3 | CM&E 489 | 3 |
| 4XX Technical Elective** | 3 | 4XX Technical Elective** | 3 |
| 4XX Technical Elective** | 3 | 4XX Technical Elective** | 3 |
| ENGL 320 or 321 (Gen Ed C Category) | 3 | Humanities/Fine Arts (Gen Ed A Category) | 3 |
| Humanities & Diversity (Gen Ed A&D Category) | 3 | BUSN 431 | 3 |
| ENGR 402 | 1 | ||
| 16 | 15 | ||
| Total Credits: 131 | |||
*To satisfy the Gen Ed Category B requirements, a student can choose between two options: ECON 105 plus an additional course within Category B OR ECON 201 and ECON 202. Both options satisfy the Gen Ed Category G.
** Refer to list of Construction Engineering Technical Electives (CE 400 Level Courses) Minimum 12 Credits)
Gen Ed Category description can be found on the General Education page.
Admission Requirements
Prospective students can find university admission requirements for freshman and transfer students on the NDSU Website. Additional transfer student admission requirements can be found at the university transfer student website. A 2.50 cumulative GPA is required for any prospective student who has taken college level coursework to be admitted in the construction engineering program. Construction Engineering requires a minimum 2.50 cumulative GPA for graduation.
A complete Bachelor of Science in Construction Engineering can be found in NDSU Bulletin. Additional curriculum information can be found in Curriculum Guide, Course Descriptions (https://bulletin.ndsu.edu/course-catalog/), CM&E Course Prerequisites, CE Course Prerequisites, and Technical Elective Course List. After admitted to the program, each student will be assigned to a faculty member. The faculty member will work with the student to develop a plan of study, the road map to earn the BS in Construction Engineering degree.