Undergraduate Course Catalog 2008-2009

College of Engineering and Physical Sciences

» http://www.ceps.unh.edu

Civil Engineering (CIE)

Chairperson: Jean Benoit
Professor: Jean Benoit, M. Robin Collins, Pedro A. De Alba, David L. Gress, Nancy E. Kinner, James P. Malley Jr.
Research Professor: T. Taylor Eighmy
Associate Professor: Thomas P. Ballestero, Raymond A. Cook, Jo S. Daniel, Kevin H. Gardner, Charles H. Goodspeed, Robert M. Henry, Jennifer M. Jacobs
Research Associate Professor: Jeffrey S. Metten
Assistant Professor: Erin S. Bell, Ricardo A. Medina
Research Assistant Professor: Jenna R. Jambeck, Jeffrey S. Melton, Robert M. Roseen

Civil engineering involves the planning, design, and construction of public works: buildings, bridges, roads, dams, water transmission systems, water treatment systems, tunnels, and more. These facilities must provide efficient service, be cost-effective, and be compatible with the environment. Moreover, civil engineers work under a code of ethics in which their primary, overriding responsibility is to uphold the public’s trust by working to plan, design, build, and restore safe and environmentally responsible public works.

Civil engineers work as private consultants and for government agencies in a wide variety of indoor and outdoor settings around the world. There is a strong and constant market for civil engineers due to the demands placed on the profession to construct, maintain, and repair the infrastructure (e.g., bridges, buildings, roads, water transmission lines, water treatment plants, and power plants).

As civil engineering is such a broad field, it is traditionally divided into several sub-disciplines. At the University of New Hampshire, five are offered: civil engineering materials, environmental engineering, geotechnical engineering, structural engineering, and water resources engineering. Civil engineering majors may choose the sub-discipline in which to focus their studies during their senior year. Additionally, the College of Engineering and Physical Sciences, through the Departments of Civil Engineering and Chemical Engineering, offers a B.S. in environmental engineering (ENE) which is a major for students who choose to specifically focus their attention solely in that area. (Students who are interested in environmental engineering but who also want a broader or more traditional civil engineering focus should pursue the civil engineering major and elect environmental engineering courses in their senior year.) Students may readily transfer between the civil engineering (CIE) and ENE programs within the first two semesters. Both the B.S. in civil engineering and the B.S. in environmental engineering provide a firm base in mathematics, science, and engineering and all majors are expected to develop excellent communication and computer skills. Graduates are prepared to enter the profession and to pursue advanced study. Because of the broad technical background attained, some graduates also successfully pursue further education in business, law, and medicine.

Mission
The mission of the Department of Civil Engineering is to pursue and disseminate knowledge through teaching, research, and public service. As part of its teaching mission, the department provides rigorous, yet flexible, undergraduate and graduate education for both traditional and nontraditional students through classical and creative instruction in the classroom, laboratory, and field. While preparing students for the profession, the department offers an education in civil engineering that includes working in multidisciplinary teams that critically analyze and formulate solutions to civil engineering problems and apply engineering principles that provide social, economic, and environmental benefits to the public. The department encourages in its students a lifelong desire to keep abreast of new developments in the field and teaches them the skills necessary to continue learning. As part of its research mission, the department maintains a rigorous multidisciplinary program of scholarship advancing the state of the art in civil engineering. As part of its mission in public service, the department enhances the quality of life for people, especially in New England and specifically New Hampshire, by providing expert services; advancing and transferring knowledge and technology; and serving as a resource for information.

Educational Objectives
In accordance with its University, college, and department missions, the faculty of the Department of Civil Engineering has established clear objectives for students to help them become successful professionals after graduation. To assist graduates to become practicing civil engineers, the program helps students achieve a basic competence in math, science, and engineering principles; learn how to apply this knowledge to solve engineering problems; achieve a working knowledge in the basic civil engineering areas of structural engineering, geotechnical engineering, civil engineering materials, water resources, environmental engineering, and project engineering; and extend their knowledge in one or more of these areas. As part of this process, students learn how to critically analyze and design equipment, structures, systems, or processes to meet desired needs; to use current, and be able to independently learn new, engineering software. Engineers also need to be effective communicators. Engineering students learn how to communicate and defend ideas in technical reports and correspondence; how to speak before a group and convey information to technical and non-technical audiences; and how to create and effectively use graphics in support of a presentation or report. Students also learn how to work effectively as good team players who are also capable of being members of multidisciplinary teams.

As part of finding engineering solutions, students learn to locate, compile, and use existing information; design and perform experiments to gather new information; critically analyze information; and draw conclusions. Due to the nature of civil engineering efforts, which involve the public, public safety, and significant financing, it is imperative that graduates become good engineering citizens. Students develop an awareness of the interaction between engineering practice and social, economic, and environmental issues; the importance of the ASCE Code of Ethics; an awareness of contemporary issues in their interaction with civil engineering practice; and the importance of broadening their education by being familiar with topics outside of the math, science, and engineering areas. Civil engineers are also professionals who are often licensed practitioners. Students are prepared to take the Fundamentals of Engineering examination (which is required for professional licensure), understand the need for lifelong learning and actively participate in organizations such as ASCE, SWE, SWB, Tau Beta Pi, and the Order of the Engineer.

Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering

Matriculating students should have strong aptitudes in mathematics and science along with imagination, spatial and graphic abilities, communication skills, and creativity. Students then follow a four-year program which conforms to the guidelines of, and is accredited by, the Engineering Accreditation Commission of ABET, 111 Market Place, Suite 1050, Baltimore, MD 21202-4012, telephone (410) 347-7700.

The first two years of the program provide the necessary technical knowledge in mathematics, chemistry, and physics, while introducing and developing civil engineering problem solving techniques. The junior year provides courses in each of the civil engineering sub-disciplines providing students with skills in each and allowing students to determine which they wish to pursue further. The senior year is flexible, allowing students to choose where to focus attention by selecting from more than thirty elective courses in civil and environmental engineering.

The required curriculum includes seven writing intensive courses thereby not only satisfying but exceeding the University’s writing requirement. (See University Academic Requirements.)

Electives
Approximately one third of the major’s total credits and more than half of the senior-level courses are elected by the student. Of these, there are general education electives required by the University and other electives required by the department in order to satisfy departmental objectives and accreditation requirements.

1. The General Education Program is described in University Academic Requirements. Courses required by the civil engineering major fulfill the Group 1 through Group 3 general education requirements. Therefore, students select electives to satisfy the Group 4 through Group 8 courses—one elective per group.

2. The civil engineering major also requires students to select one math and basic sciences elective. A list of courses that fulfill this elective is available from the department.

3. Civil engineering majors wishing to participate in exchange programs must achieve a cumulative grade point average of 3.00 or better in all MATH, PHYS, CHEM, CIE, and ENE courses taken to date at the end of each of the second and third semesters prior to their exchange semester.

4. In the senior year, students take four courses specific to civil engineering sub-disciplines, and a senior science elective. Students can use these electives to focus on a particular civil engineering area or can acquire a broader perspective by taking courses in a variety of areas. At least one of these four elective courses must also qualify as a civil engineering design elective, and no more than three courses may be taken in one sub-discipline. Lists of courses that fulfill these electives are available from the department.

Additional program policies and requirements

1. To transfer into the civil engineering major, a student must have the following:

a. an overall grade point average of 2.30 or greater,

b. 16 credits or more of MATH, PHYS, CHEM, CIE, and ENE courses,

c. an overall grade point average of 2.00 or greater for all MATH, PHYS, CHEM, CIE, and ENE courses taken to date,

d. an overall grade point average of 2.50 or greater for 16 credits of the MATH, PHYS, CHEM, CIE, and ENE courses taken to date.

2. Students who are transferring into the civil engineering major may only transfer in the following:

a. a maximum of 20 credits for CIE and ENE 600- and 700-level coursework,

b. CIE and ENE 600- and 700-level courses in which the student has received a grade of C- or better.

3. To continue as a civil engineering major, a student must adhere to the following restrictions:

a. a maximum of two CIE or ENE courses may be repeated (though each of these may be repeated more than once),

b. a semester grade point average lower than 2.00 may be earned for a maximum of two consecutive semesters,

c. a cumulative grade point average of less than 2.00 for CIE and ENE courses may be earned for a maximum of any two semesters.

4. CIE and ENE 600- and 700-level courses are intended for CIE and ENE majors only. All others may enroll in these courses only with the permission of the instructor but others may take no more than 20 credits of these courses.

5. To enter the required 600-level courses in the junior year, students must achieve the following:

a. the completion of CIE 525, CIE 526, MATH 425, PHYS 407, and CHEM 405 or CHEM 403,

b. an overall grade point average of 2.00 or greater for these courses,

c. a grade of C or better in each of CIE 525 and CIE 526.

6. To graduate with a bachelor of science in civil engineering, a student must achieve the following:

a. 129 or more credits,

b. credit for the civil engineering program’s major and elective courses,

c. satisfaction of the University’s general education requirements,

d. satisfaction of the University’s writing intensive course requirements,

e. a cumulative grade point average of 2.00 or better for all courses,

f. a cumulative grade point average of 2.00 or better for all CIE and ENE courses.

First Year

Abbreviation	Course Number	Title	Fall	Spring
CIE	402	Intro. to Civil Engineering	3	-
ENGL	401	First-Year Writing	4	-
TECH	564	Fundamentals of CAD	3	-
Elective (2)		general education requirement*	4	4
CIE	505	Surveying and Mapping	-	4
MATH	425	Calculus I	-	4
PHYS	407	General Physics I	-	4
Total			14	16

Sophomore Year

Abbreviation	Course Number	Title	Fall	Spring
CIE	525	Statics	3	-
PHYS	408	General Physics II	4	-
CHEM	405	General Chemistry	-	4
CIE	526	Strength of Materials	-	3
CIE	533	Project Engineering	-	3
MATH	527	Differential Equations with Linear Algebra	-	4
Elective (1)		general education requirement*	-	4
Total			19	18
ENE	520	Environmental Pollution and Protection	4	-
MATH	426	Calculus II	4	-
ENGL	502	Technical Writing	4	-

Junior Year

Abbreviation	Course Number	Title	Fall	Spring
CIE	622	Engineering Materials	4	-
CIE	642	Fluid Mechanics	4	-
MATH	644	Statistics for Engineers and Scientists	4	-
Elective (1)		math and basic sciences**	4	-
CIE	665	Soil Mechanics	-	4
CIE	681	Classical Structural Analysis	-	3
ENE	645	Fundamental Aspects of Environmental Engineering	-	4
Elective (1)		general education requirement*	-	4
Total			16	15

Senior Year

Abbreviation	Course Number	Title	Fall	Spring
CIE	760	Foundation Design I	4	-
CIE	744	Reinforced Concrete Design	4	-
CIE	784	Intro. to Project Planning and Design	1	-
Elective (1)		senior science**	3	-
CIE or ENE	788	Project Planning and Design	-	3
Elective (4)		civil engineering**	3	9
Elective (1)		general education requirement*	-	4
Total			15	16

*See University Academic Requirements for general education requirements.

** Approved list available in the CIE office.

» Click to view course offerings

^ back to top