What are your thoughts on civil engineering?

Will be replaced by automation. I'd rather go into finance than become a Civil Engineer.

>>8889797
How can it be automated? Aren't nearly all finance jobs besides CEO or economist more easy to automate?

>>8889815
Structural jobs for municipalitits are as easy as finding certain values that differ from house to house (reflected rafter length) and seeing if it can withstand the amount of loading deemed fit by the municipality.

The job could be done by a field engineer armed with nothing but a municipal code book, a tape measure and Microsoft Excel.

>>8889833
if you have ever taken a single geotech or structures class you would know this is complete bullshit. civil engineers are literally outsourcing and automation proof.

Easiest engineering (not considering meme engineerings), but one of the most importants.

>>8889833
>>8889845
Can you please both explain your points in more depth and how you know the information you're giving. I'm very interested in what both of you have to say.

>>8889852
Can I have a list of difficulty in engineering disciplines in descending order?

>>8889845
can confirm this is truth.

further consider that the law requires you have a licensed engineer stamp the designs before you build anything so you can not get rid of them.

>>8890008

Mechanical
Electrical
Software
Civil

>>8890073
Electrical is harder than Mechanical

>>8890073
>>8890075
of hell they're all identical up till the second half of junior year when you start taking different electives. Each of them takes a lot of pain in the ass work to actually get good at and its a pointless dick measuring contest to try to rank them.

except software engineers. Programmers aren't engineers, they're specialists in computer language and what they do is just a useful secondary skill for real engineers.

>>8890090
>programmers aren't engineers
Kek true.

I wasn't trying to make it a dick measuring contest. I'm talking as someone doing civil. But I have noticed that electrical engineers do more difficult mathematics, etc.

In my opinion it goes

-Aerospace (rocketry)
*gap*
-Electircal
*gap*
-Mechanical
-Civil
-Chemical
*gap*
-the rest (aeronautical, industrial, etc.)

But just because one is harder doesn't mean it is better. I.e people who train as electrical or rocketry might end up unemployed or employed in a different field due to lack of jobs

Brothers we must not fight amongst each other. It is just what the "hard science" people want.

>>8890110
A lot of it depends on the school. At some places ChemE might be harder than ME, etc.
Though, the hardest tends to be one of the following:
EE, ME, NukeE, ChemE

>>8890127
This. Stop comparing them.

The thread was created to discuss civil engineering

>>8890127
As a hard science person, can confirm

>>8889797
Please explain

>>8890152

As a biologist and part of the hard sciences I agree with this, we love to see people and communities tear apart themselves over their insecurities.

Mostly writing. Lots of politics doing Muni work which is bulk. Pretty gay

>>8890821
thats most engineering work. the actual "engineering" is less than a third of the job. i'm a mechanical and i spend most of my day answering emails, typing up reports, and coordinating technicians.

Politics are the worst part. Basically Muni project manager knows what report should say to justify their stupid pet project. Have to be complicit in wasting taxpayer money

>>8890073
you missed chemical. and nuclear. and materials.

>>8890858
How is politics involved ?

Structural Engineer here. AMA
I'm 26;
Working in the UK for 4 years now.
Masters in Civil Eng.

This is true:>>8890829


>>8891954
People politics.
Engineering is about:
>how to I justify the cost of this thing I'm doing so that I don't get fired

The problem is that you're always balancing that with being constantly over-extended and behind

>hire too few engineers
>compete to tender for jobs meaning that your fees are shitty
>have to make up for that with volume of jobs
>don't spend any time on a job
>have to justify the amount of work you have to do
>company you work for pockets the difference after you work an additional 20 h/week for free for 6 months sorting a project out

>>8889797
I doubt it mate. Geotech being one thing, second thing is that design development is very complicated and not always 'logical'.

>>8889852
This is sort of true.
Concepts are easy, implementation can be difficult.
Calculations are easy, but working out how exactly someone is going to fit a 10tonne beam inside a concrete shell 50 storeys above ground is quite difficult.

>AMA

How did you get "your foot in the door" for your job (or your first work experience)?

Could someone who has failed some subjects at uni and stayed on an extra year (but gotten above average results in the end) be hired at a decent structural firm?

What software do you need to know how to use for your job?

And what do you mean about the company pocketing the difference and working you for free?

>>8892070
Meant for >>8891982

>>8889887
no two soils are the same and soil composition can change over time. houses have literally sunk into the ground before because the foundation wasn't right. also, engineers do this thing called a factor of safety which is basically an estimate of the maximum loads a system can bear that is beyond the desired loading. it has to take into account all the unknown variables and unforeseeable problems of that system. no way a computer can do that. plus there's absolutely no way a computer can do cost analysis or finite element analysts completely automatically.

another thing i should add is that during the construction process general contractors like to do things their own way a lot, sometimes not according to the drawings. a structural engineer has to account for real time changes made to the drawings and plans made by general contractors or other actors on the site.

>>8892070
>How did you get "your foot in the door" for your job (or your first work experience)?

I graduated in 2013.
Prior to that, had no internships, no experience etc.

Just applied, bolstered my CV with some good sketches, had a portfolio ready.

I knew I was attacking niche fancy pants design consultancies who appreciate someone who can draw, design and learn quickly.

3.5-4 years later, in addition to my regular job, I also invest time (and the company's money) in light R&D with 3d printers, a little programming and some other parametric design stuff.

>Could someone who has failed some subjects at uni and stayed on an extra year (but gotten above average results in the end) be hired at a decent structural firm?
I failed my 4th year structures exam. lel

>What software do you need to know how to use for your job?
Autodesk:
Learn CAD & CAD standards/conventions
Robot Structural Analysis
ETABS
SAP2000
SAFE
Oasys GSA
SCIA


>And what do you mean about the company pocketing the difference and working you for free?
Your job is to see the project through.
When you're stretched for time and resources, you have to find the time. That time comes out of your life generally. It's pretty shitty and I wonder sometimes if it's just the firm I work for (it's not) - but you get paid the same regardless, and the company is better for it whilst your life suffers. They underpay and stretch you to complete, pocketing the difference between the hours you work and the hours they actually pay you for.
It's not unique to engineering.

>>8892136
Nice. I'm studying civil atm and I'm half way through my degree. I haven't decided yet which type to specialise in. I'm leaning towards structural, but would also like geotechnical or transportation. What advice would you have about the different types for somone in my position.

>currently doing R&D for 3D printing
I've heard that 3D printing and muscular construction are the next "big thing" for the industry, in the next decade. Would you say that's true? I've never used one but I know that they're developing them to print bigger things and out of more materials. It sounds pretty cool to me.

>failed 4th
That's reassuring. I guess employers aren't too concerned with the exams once they see you know what you're doing in the workforce.

>software. Okay. I've just started using AutoCAD literally this week. I'll have a look into the others.
Do you use finite analysis software like strand7? Or is that built into the other software you mentioned? And should I learn things like Matlab and general programming C++, java, etc?

>work hour shift into your own time
Yeah that does sound bad. But like you said, it's like that in most industries if you're an employee

>>8892366
>And should I learn things like Matlab and general programming C++, java, etc?

not him, but every engineer needs to know how to program nowadays.

>>8891982
Do you need to know any laws or legal codes in depth? e.g zoning, property law, engineering/construction law

>>8892494
yes. liability is of huge concern to any stamp carrying engineer. engineering is like law and medicine in it is legally defined.

>>8892506
Okay, so how do you learn them and know which ones to learn? Do you read the actual Act of legislation, an authored book on the legal area, or just learn from word of mouth of superiors, etc.

>>8889797
I don't think this is true.

>>8892366
3d printing is a meme, but fun.

>once they see you know what you're doing in the workforce
Yes. exactly.
I took an entrance 'test' for the job im in.

Shit like 'draw a spiral staircase', density of materials like glass or how much a sack of potatos weighs etc. There were also technical questions.

>FE
Most of what I listed was FE. Keep in mind - if you can't simplify something to the point where you can do it by hand, you don't understand it.

>>And should I learn things like Matlab and general programming C++, java, etc?
I know python. Can't say I've used it much.

>Do you need to know any laws or legal codes in depth? e.g zoning, property law, engineering/construction law
Some. This varies massively based on where you're practicing.

I'm working on projects in other countries - there's no way I know anything about law or zoning in some Arabian desert.