Welcome to the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering!
Civil and Environmental Engineering encompasses an extremely diverse range of expertise in engineering design and construction, including bridges and buildings, roadways, highways, rapid transit alternatives, processes to clean our drinking water and our wastewater and the foundations on which all structures stand.
Portland State University is dynamic. The Civil and Environmental Engineering Department has undergone significant changes in the last several years: growth of faculty, doubling of externally funded research, growth in students and degree programs, and the relocation of the Department into a building where state-of-the-art laboratories and sustainability are a primary focus.
Within our Department, we have over 10 full-time faculty, 6 full-time research faculty, and a full-time technician. Our faculty specialize in research in the following areas:
The Department offers undergraduate degrees in Civil Engineering and Environmental Engineering, as well as M.S., M.Eng., and Ph.D. degrees in Civil and Environmental Engineering.
The undergraduate Environmental Engineering degree program is more focused strictly on environmental concerns and relies on coursework within the Department as well as broad-based in the sciences: environmental science, chemistry, biology, geology, and physics.
The undergraduate Civil Engineering program incorporates elements from transportation engineering, structural engineering, geotechnical engineering and environmental/water resources engineering.
Within the Department we encourage undergraduate research and provide the opportunity for involvement in student organizations such as the American Society of Civil Engineering, Engineers Without Borders, and the Society of Women Engineers. In addition to these groups, we recognize achievement of our students through the Tau Beta Pi national engineering honor society, the Chi Epsilon Civil Engineering honor society, and an honors program within the Department that recognizes high achieving students and pairs them with faculty to perform a senior research project.
The Department strives for excellence in teaching, research and community service and we are committed to making your academic experience with us a success.
I would be glad to answer any of your questions you may have about our programs by email (wellss@pdx.edu) or by setting up an appointment through the Civil and Environmental Engineering Department office (503-725-4282).
Sincerely,
Scott Wells, Chair and Professor
