Civil and Environmental Engineering

Program Overview

The Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering offers graduate degree and certificate programs designed to help students explore solutions facing critical issues in clean water access, traffic congestion, improving the crash-worthiness of cars; and designing bridges to become more resistant to earthquake.

Students choose from one of the following areas of focus:

  • Environmental engineering
  • Geoenvironmental engineering
  • Mechanics and materials engineering
  • Structural engineering
  • Transportation engineering
  • Water resources engineering

The Department collaborates with several entities throughout the greater D.C. metropolitan area for research, including:

  • the Center for Intelligence Systems Research (CISR) for developing intelligent transportation systems;
  • the Potomac River and Chesapeake Bay Watershed on improving water quality;
  • the National Crash Analysis Center for research in transportation engineering

In addition, the Science and Engineering Hall on GW's main campus features a new high bay (pictured above), in which students in civil and environmental engineering may apply their knowledge in testing the strength of heavy objects against a strong wall and strong floor.

The department offers the following types of programs in civil and environmental engineering:

Master of Science in Civil and Environmental Engineering (M.S.)

  • Credit hours: 33 (with thesis) or 30 (without thesis)
  • Duration: Full-time (enrolled min. 9 credit hours per semester) or part-time (min. 3 credit hours per semester)
  • Thesis options: Two - Students who choose to complete a thesis take 24 credit hours of course work and 6 credit hours for conducting thesis research. Students who choose the non-thesis option take 33 credit hours of course work.
  • More information on the department's website

Doctor of Philosophy in Civil & Environmental Engineering (Ph.D.)

  • Credit hours (for those with a master's degree): 30
  • Credit hours (for those without a master's degree): 54
  • Duration: 4-6 years
  • Other requirements:
    • Qualifying examination: Administered twice a year, the exam covers subject matters at both the master's and doctoral levels. Students should prepare for comprehensive questioning on all subject matters regardless of any particular course included in the actual doctoral coursework load. More information can be found in the CEE Doctoral Student Handbook
  • More information on the department's website

Graduate Certificates

Each certificate requires 12 to 15 credit hours for completion. Students who successfully complete a graduate certificate program have the option of applying these credits toward the full M.S. in Civil and Environmental Engineering program:

More information on the department's website

Admissions Requirements

To apply for any of these programs, please review the admissions requirements before submitting your application:

For any questions about the admissions process, contact the SEAS Office of Graduate Admissions at [email protected].

More Information

For more information on graduate programs in Civil and Environmental Engineering at SEAS, sign up to receive emails with additional information or visit the website of the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering.