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Major · Engineering

An ABET-accredited bachelor’s for project-side engineering

Construction Engineering (CIP 14.3301) prepares students for engineering work on building and infrastructure construction projects. About 898 students complete it across 33 institutions, exclusively as bachelor’s programs, with five-year graduates earning around $98,637 — the highest in the building-and-infrastructure CIP cluster.

Schools offering
33
Annual completions
898
Typical degree level
Bachelor's
Median earnings (5yr)
$99k

About this major

Construction Engineering (CIP 14.3301) is a specialized ABET-accredited engineering bachelor’s preparing students for engineering and project-management work on construction projects — buildings, infrastructure, and major facilities. The CIP definition organizes coursework around applying scientific, mathematical, and management principles to the planning, design, and building of facilities and structures. Programs blend civil engineering fundamentals (statics, structures, materials, geotechnical, hydraulics) with construction-management coursework (contracting, scheduling, cost estimating, safety, project leadership). The combination is distinctive: pure Civil Engineering programs cover the engineering side without the management depth, and Construction Management programs cover scheduling and cost control without the engineering credential.

The major fits students drawn to the project-execution side of construction — getting projects built on time, on budget, and to spec — comfortable with both the calculus-and-physics engineering load and the people-and-paperwork side of construction management. It rewards organizational discipline, comfort with ambiguity on project sites, and the patience to balance design intent against constructability and cost. The career path runs from project-engineer roles at construction firms into senior project-engineer and project-manager positions, with senior management at five to ten years and engineering-management or executive roles further out.

One grounded observation about pay and program list: 898 students complete this CIP across only 33 institutions, but bachelor’s graduates earn $98,637 in five-year tracked wages — the highest among building-and-infrastructure CIPs in this catalog. The premium reflects dual-track access: graduates compete for both engineering-track roles (civil engineer at $99,590) and project-management-track roles at major construction firms. Top producers — Kennesaw State (142 graduates, 16% of national output), UT Arlington (110), Oregon State (71), Virginia Tech (69), Cincinnati (56), Iowa State (54) — anchor the program list. Major construction recruiters (Turner, Skanska, Bechtel, Kiewit, Mortenson) draw heavily from this CIP because the credential maps to both engineering and construction-management internal tracks.

Section 3 · Careers

Where this major leads

Occupations most often associated with this major, from the federal BLS+O*NET crosswalk. Job-growth projections and median wages are national.

Occupation Median wage Job growth Typical education
Civil engineers $100k +5.0% Bachelor's degree
Cost estimators $77k -4.2% Bachelor's degree
Architectural and engineering managers $168k +3.8% Bachelor's degree
Engineers, all other $118k +2.1% Bachelor's degree
Engineering teachers, postsecondary $106k +8.1% Doctoral or professional degree
Section 4 · Earnings

Earnings at a glance

Median graduate earnings from the federal College Scorecard, 5 and 10 years out.

Median 5-year earnings

$99k

Who this major is for

You may thrive here if you’re drawn to the project-execution side of construction — getting buildings and infrastructure built on time, on budget, and to spec — and comfortable with both the calculus-and-physics engineering load and the people-and-paperwork side of construction management, you’re strategic about getting into one of the 33 schools offering this CIP (Kennesaw State, UT Arlington, Oregon State, Virginia Tech, Cincinnati, Iowa State are strong programs), you’re planning for the FE-then-PE engineering licensure ladder that drives mid-career pay, and you can see yourself spending early-career time on construction sites at major builders like Turner, Skanska, or Bechtel.

Think twice if your school doesn’t offer a dedicated, ABET-accredited Construction Engineering program — Civil Engineering, General (CIP 14.0801, 13,488 completions) is available at far more schools and covers similar engineering ground, with construction-focused electives offering a comparable career path. Reconsider if you want pure design or pure office-side project-management work; this CIP shines because it puts you on construction sites with engineering responsibility, and that’s its career-defining feature. Also pause if you saw the $167,740 manager wage and assumed it’s entry-level — that’s a mid-career outcome reached after PE licensure and major-project leadership experience.

Section 6 · Where to study

Top colleges for Construction Engineering

Ranked by annual completions at the associate's or bachelor's level — a proxy for program scale.

College Location Assoc. Bach. Total
Kennesaw State University Kennesaw, GA 0 142 142
The University of Texas at Arlington Arlington, TX 0 110 110
Oregon State University Corvallis, OR 0 71 71
Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University Blacksburg, VA 0 69 69
University of Cincinnati-Main Campus Cincinnati, OH 0 56 56
Iowa State University Ames, IA 0 54 54
Kent State University at Kent Kent, OH 0 53 53
Bowling Green State University-Main Campus Bowling Green, OH 0 43 43
Purdue University-Main Campus West Lafayette, IN 0 35 35
University of Delaware Newark, DE 0 31 31
Section 7 · Explore sideways

Related majors to explore

Mechanical Engineering

33,431 completions/yr

Electrical and Electronics Engineering

14,891 completions/yr

Civil Engineering, General

13,488 completions/yr

Computer Engineering, General

9,312 completions/yr

Bioengineering and Biomedical Engineering

8,569 completions/yr

Chemical Engineering

7,914 completions/yr

Aerospace, Aeronautical, and Astronautical/Space Engineering, General

6,386 completions/yr

Engineering, General

5,416 completions/yr
Section 9 · Frequently asked

Common questions

What do Construction Engineering majors actually study?
The CIP definition organizes coursework around applying scientific, mathematical, and management principles to the planning, design, and building of facilities and structures. Programs cover civil engineering fundamentals (structures, materials, geotechnical), site analysis, computer-assisted design, geology, evaluation and testing, contracting, project management, graphic communications, and applicable laws and regulations. The credential blends engineering fundamentals with construction-management coursework — a distinctive combination not present in pure Civil or Construction Management programs.
What jobs do graduates land — and at what pay?
Named destinations include civil engineers ($99,590, 5% growth), cost estimators ($77,070, -4.2% growth), architectural and engineering managers ($167,740, 3.8% growth — mid-career), and engineers, all other ($117,750, 2.1% growth) — all bachelor’s typical entry. Bachelor’s graduates earn $98,637 in five-year tracked wages, the highest among building-and-infrastructure CIPs in this catalog. The premium reflects employers paying for both the engineering fundamentals (PE-track ready) and the construction-management coursework that lets graduates move into project-engineer or project-manager roles directly.
How is this different from Civil Engineering or Construction Management?
Civil Engineering, General (CIP 14.0801, 13,488 completions) is the broader engineering discipline covering transportation, structures, geotechnical, water, and environmental work — leading to PE licensure. Construction Management, General (52.2001) is a business-side major focused on contracting, scheduling, cost control, and project leadership — typically not engineering-licensure track. Construction Engineering (14.3301) blends both: ABET-accredited engineering fundamentals plus construction-management coursework. Graduates can take either engineering-track or management-track roles, which is why early-career pay leads the cluster.
Do I need to take the FE and PE exams?
Yes if you want the licensed engineer title and stamp authority. Most Construction Engineering programs are ABET-accredited, which qualifies graduates to sit for the Fundamentals of Engineering (FE) exam senior year and become Engineers-in-Training. The Professional Engineer (PE) exam follows after four years of supervised engineering experience. If you take a project-management-only career path, the PE is optional but pay typically tops out lower without it. Many graduates pursue both tracks early — engineering experience first, then move toward project management with the PE in hand.
Why is the bachelor’s wage so high in this CIP?
$98,637 in five-year tracked wages is the highest among building-and-infrastructure CIPs because graduates have access to two career tracks at once. The engineering side pays civil-engineer wages ($99,590) with the licensure ladder. The management side pays project-engineer and project-manager wages, often with the same firms but on the construction side rather than design. Major construction firms (Turner, Skanska, Bechtel, Kiewit) recruit Construction Engineering graduates aggressively because the credential maps to both internal tracks — that demand drives starting and early-career compensation.
Why do only 33 schools offer this CIP?
Construction Engineering is a specialized ABET-accredited program that requires both engineering and construction-management faculty resources. Top producers are large public engineering schools — Kennesaw State (142), UT Arlington (110), Oregon State (71), Virginia Tech (69), Cincinnati (56), Iowa State (54), Kent State (53), Bowling Green (43), Purdue (35), Delaware (31). Most engineering schools cover building and infrastructure work through Civil Engineering, General. Choose 14.3301 if your target school has a dedicated, ABET-accredited Construction Engineering program; otherwise Civil Engineering plus a construction-management focus offers a similar career outcome.