Many things in our surroundings have been planned and designed by civil engineers. As a civil engineer, you may be involved in the planning of such diverse projects as residential and commercial buildings, urban renewal and development projects, transportation systems, water and waste-disposal systems, dams, power plants, harbors, offshore facilities, coastal protection structures, flood, and pollution-control systems, and even the design of space vehicles. As you work to control and improve our environment, you may often find yourself teamed with scientists and engineers from other disciplines.

Civil engineering has been offered at GW for more than 100 years. We update courses frequently so you can immerse yourself in the latest knowledge and advances in the field, developing a strong analytical background and a foundation in the design of systems.

Implementing numerical techniques coupled with the use of personal computers, computer workstations, and mainframe computers, you analyze large and complex civil engineering systems. Beginning with a strong foundation in fundamentals, you select courses of study that enable you to specialize in a selected area.

Environmental engineers must combine knowledge and techniques from many different disciplines with the civil engineer's purview over water, soil, and public works facilities to achieve environmentally compatible design and construction.

GW's environmental engineering programs explore solutions to problems in the protection and control of the environment. In these programs, you develop an understanding of numerical techniques, a strong analytical background, and an awareness of the many considerations and potential problems in design. In consultation with your advisor, you develop an individual program of study, which may include multidisciplinary study in other departments in the University.

The Master of Science Degree Program

Because many technologically related problems facing society today bring multiple disciplines into their solutions, Civil and Environmental Engineering graduate programs at the School of Engineering and Applied Science (SEAS) are flexible.

In the thesis option, you complete 24 credit hours plus 6 credit hours of thesis research. In the nonthesis option, you complete at least 33 credit hours with a 3.0 GPA.

Admissions Requirements
Undergraduate degree in engineering, physical sciences, or applied mathematics from an accredited university.
GPA of 3.0/4.0 for the last two years of undergraduate study.

top 

Areas of Concentration

Engineering Mechanics
Courses in this concentration teach you to develop and apply means of describing and predicting the mechanical behavior of materials (crystalline and polycrystalline metals, insulators, semiconductors, amorphous materials, and composites) and structures (individual elements or the whole of machine, spacecraft, bridge, or other structure) in their interaction with physical environments. The study of engineering mechanics allows you to draw on the resources of the GW Departments of Physics and Chemistry, while featuring concentrated study of:

Mechanics of continua with emphasis on solids
Science of materials and materials behavior
Applied mathematical analysis
Numerical and finite element analysis

top 

Environmental Engineering
This program is designed to provide students with the fundamentals and knowledge about the various specializations within environmental engineering. These include among others, water, wastewater, hazardous wastes, industrial wastes and pertinent regulatory requirements. The students are given a broad overview of each area, which enables them to select specific areas for advanced study, if they should choose to do so. In this program, the students have to take a number of required courses, along with courses selected from the following subject areas:

Environmental Chemistry
Water and Wastewater Treatment Processes
Advanced Sanitary Engineering Design
Industrial Waste Treatment
Hazardous Waste Management
Environmental Impact Assessment
Environmental Microbiology
Advanced Treatment Processes

top 

Geotechnical Engineering
The main goal in this area of concentration is to provide essential tools for civil engineers who want to specialize in foundation engineering, rock mechanics, and soil mechanics. A variety of courses in the theoretical and practical aspects of geomechanics are available. Students are trained to undertake the analysis and design of such geotechnical structures as earth dams, embankments, and abutments. The program also provides the knowledge necessary to design geo-environmental structures such as landfills and general infrastructure systems constructed on or in geomaterials. Some of the main topics covered in this area are:

Theoretical soil mechanics
Groundwater and seepage
Physicochemical aspects of soil behavior
Foundation engineering
Geotechnical earthquake engineering
Finite element methods in solid mechanics
Rock mechanics
Environmental geotechnology
Soil dynamics

top 

Structural Engineering
This area enables you to specialize in computer-aided structural design or structural dynamics. You develop specialized methods to analyze the effects of the environment, large-scale human occupancy, heavy traffic, and various types of dynamic excitation on the infra-and super-structures of complex building and bridge systems. You'll focus on topics such as:

Reinforced concrete and prestressed concrete design
Metal structure design with emphasis on steel structures>
Soil mechanics and geotechnical engineering
Advanced mechanics and materials science
Composite materials
Analysis of plates and shells
Vibration and stability analysis
Structural analysis
Probabilistic methods and random vibrations
Numerical and finite element methods
Computer applications

top 

Transportation Engineering
This program offers a focused and comprehensive study of vehicle crashworthiness including finite element modeling, occupant safety, restraint systems, government regulations, injury analysis, and crash test analysis. Students will utilize all the facilities at the NCAC including the Crash Film Library, supercomputers and workstations, commercial and public domain crash codes, crash test databases and files, and the Vehicle Digitization Laboratory.

Students are required to complete the following courses:

Crash Investigation and Analysis
Biomechanics
Vehicle Standards and Crash Test Analysis
Vehicle Dynamics
Finite Element Methods in Engineering Mechanics
Advanced Finite Element Methods
Advanced Strength of Materials
Deformation and Failure of Materials
Numerical Methods in Engineering
Computational Methods and High Performance Computing
Analytical Methods in Engineering
Statistical Data Analysis

For additional information, please see the Graduate Program at The National Crash Analysis Center.

top 

Water Resources Engineering
In this area, you deal with the increasingly complex problem of planning and designing sustainable physical systems for water storage, delivery, and utilization. You develop special skills needed to design water supplies for domestic, industrial, and agricultural use; flood hazard mitigation; control of rivers for navigation, water conveyance, flood control, and recreation; and manage soil loss from watersheds and its impact on waterways and storage dams. You follow a program of required courses specific to this area and a carefully selected list of courses covering topics such as:

Open channel flow
Groundwater and seepage
Advanced hydrology
Water resources planning and control
Hydraulic engineering
Design of dams
Ocean and coastal engineering
Pollution transport systems
Sedimentation engineering
Mechanics of alluvial channels
Hydraulic modeling
Numerical methods in water resources engineering

top 

The Professional Degree Program:

Applied Scientist or Engineer
The professional degree program is designed for individuals who want in-depth study in their field beyond a master's degree, but who want to concentrate on applied subject material rather than on basic science. This post-master's program provides advanced study in preparation for pragmatic application and leads to the degree of Engineer or of Applied Scientist. In addition to the requirements listed in Graduate Programs Bulletin, you plan and undertake a six credit-hour design project or prepare a comprehensive technical report demonstration your ability to make independent use of the knowledge you have acquired.

top 

The Doctor of Science Degree Program

The Doctor of Science program is designed for individuals who want to focus on careers in creative scholarship or research. You acquire a broad but balanced background combined with guidance in research. The two-stage program begins with course work in your general area of original research project that is documented in a dissertation and defended in a final examination.

top 

Financial Assistance

You may be eligible for financial assistance in the form of a research assistantship for specialized work under a sponsored research contract. Aid consists of a tuition award and a stipend. Often, thesis and dissertation research is conducted as an integral part of the assistantship. In addition, as a graduate engineering student, you may apply for a cooperative education position, which is a salaried, professional employment academic program.

Research Opportunities

An important objective of the graduate program is to encourage research. Join the faculty in exploring research topics such as geotechnics, environmental and structural engineering, solid mechanics and materials engineering, water resources, and computer-aided design. In addition, employment possibilities at government laboratories, in local and federal government agencies, and with contractors in the Washington area offer you exciting opportunities to interact with experts in engineering and science.

Research Institutes and Centers

Aviation Institute
Center for Intelligent Systems Research
FHWA / NHTSA National Crash Analysis Center
GW Transportation Research Institute

University Policy on Equal Opportunity

The George Washington University does not unlawfully discriminate against any person on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age handicap, veteran status, or sexual orientation. This policy covers all programs, services, policies, and procedures of the University, including admissions to education programs and employment. The University is subject to the District of Columbia Human Rights Law.

Inquiries concerning the application of this policy and federal laws and regulations regarding discrimination in education or employment programs and activities may be addressed to Susan B. Kaplan, Associate Vice President for Human Resources, The George Washington University, Washington, D.C. 20052, (202) 994-6503, or to the Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights of the U.S. Department of Education.

Disabled individuals who require special information may direct inquiries to Disabled Student Services, (202) 994-8250 (TDD/voice).

top 

Inquiries

For more information, please contact the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering.

top