Civil Engineering B.S. (BSCE)
The BSCE degree includes required courses in the analysis and design of structures, applied hydraulics, surveying, soil mechanics and foundations, engineering project management, transportation engineering and environmental/water resources engineering.
Students often choose a specialty area in their senior year: structural analysis and design, environmental engineering, water resources, transportation engineering or geotechnical engineering. Students are encouraged to speak with faculty members in specialty areas to find out more about these fields.
The BSCE curriculum at Portland State University is accredited by the Engineering Accreditation Commission of ABET, 111 Market Place, Suite 1050, Baltimore, MD 21202-4012 – telephone: 410-347-7700. This national organization sets standards for engineering education defined in terms of curricular content, quality of faculty, and adequacy of facilities.
BSCE Program Educational Objectives
Educational objectives describe the “career and professional accomplishments that the program is preparing graduates to achieve” (ABET, 2010) within a few years of their graduation.
The educational objectives of the Civil Engineering program at Portland State University are as follows:
Graduates are expected to practice civil engineering responsibly and ethically by (1) working effectively in the professional engineering community and (2) continuing to learn and enhance their abilities in civil engineering.
BSCE Program Outcomes
Graduates of the Civil Engineering program at Portland State University will have the skills and abilities to prepare them to begin professional practice or to succeed in graduate studies.
Graduates will have:
(A) An ability to apply principles of mathematics, science, and engineering to the analysis and design of civil engineering projects.
(B) An ability to design and conduct experiments, as well as to analyze and interpret data.
(C) An ability to design a system, component, or process to meet desired needs within realistic constraints such as economic, environmental, social, political, ethical, health and safety, manufacturability and sustainability.
(D) An ability to participate in projects that cross disciplines and to function on multi-disciplinary teams.
(E) An ability to identify, formulate, and solve engineering problems.
(F) An understanding of the professional and ethical responsibility of engineers in a broad societal context.
(G) An ability to communicate effectively.
(H) The broad education necessary to understand the impact of engineering solutions in a global, economic, environmental and societal context.
(I) A recognition of the need for, and an ability to engage in continuing professional development and life-long learning.
(J) Knowledge of relevant contemporary issues.
(K) An ability to use the modern techniques, skills, and engineering tools necessary for engineering practice.
(L) An ability to apply knowledge in the following civil engineering discipline areas: structural, geotechnical, environmental/water resources, and transportation.
(M) An awareness of the need for professional registration in career development.
Requirements
BSCE majors must complete the following University and department degree requirements as follows for their upper division engineering coursework:
- Junior and senior engineering courses must be completed with a minimum grade of C-;
- Prerequisite courses must be passed with a grade of C- or better in order to move ahead in the sequence;
- The student’s cumulative PSU GPA must be 2.33 or higher to graduate from the BSCE program;
- Any deviation from the required courses including engineering and mathematics substitutions must be approved in writing by the chair of the department.
Transfer students should follow the requirements as listed under the "Eligibility - BSCE" section above.
Freshman Year
| CE 111 | Introduction to Civil and Environmental Engineering | 3 |
| CE 112 | Civil and Environmental Engineering Computations | 3 |
| CE 115 | Civil Engineering Drawing and Spatial Analysis | 3 |
| Ch 221 | General Chemistry I | 4 |
| Ch 222 | General Chemistry II | 4 |
| Ch 227 | General Chemistry Laboratory | 1 |
| Ch 228 | General Chemistry Laboratory | 1 |
| Mth 251 | Calculus I | 0-4 |
| Mth 252 | Calculus II | 4 |
| Mth 261 | Introduction to Linear Algebra | 0-4 |
| | Freshman Inquiry | 15 |
| Total Credit Hours: | 46 |
Sophomore Year
| EAS 211 | Statics | 4 |
| EAS 212 | Strength of Materials | 4 |
| EAS 215 | Dynamics | 4 |
| CE 211 | Plane Surveying and Mapping | 3 |
| CE 212 | Field Problems in Plane Surveying | 1 |
| Mth 254 | Calculus IV | 4 |
| Mth 256 | Applied Differential Equations I | 4 |
| Ph 221 | General Physics (with Calculus) | 3 |
| Ph 222 | General Physics (with Calculus) | 3 |
| Ph 223 | General Physics (with Calculus) | 3 |
| Ph 214 | Lab for Ph 201, 202, 203 or Ph 211, 212, 213 or Ph 221, 222, 223 | 1 |
| Ph 215 | Lab for Ph 201, 202, 203 or Ph 211, 212, 213 or Ph 221, 222, 223 | 1 |
| Ph 216 | Lab for Ph 201, 202, 203 or Ph 211, 212, 213 or Ph 221, 222, 223 | 1 |
| | Sophomore Inquiry | 12 |
| Total Credit Hours: | 48 |
Junior Year
| CE 315 | The Civil and Environmental Engineering Profession | 1 |
| CE 321 | CEE Properties of Materials | 4 |
| CE 361 | Fluid Mechanics | 4 |
| CE 324 | Elementary Structural Analysis | 4 |
| CE 325 | Indeterminate Structures | 4 |
| CE 341 | Soil Classification and Properties | 4 |
| CE 351 | Introduction to Transportation Engineering | 4 |
| CE 362 | Engineering Hydraulics | 4 |
| CE 364 | Water Resources Engineering | 4 |
| CE 371 | Environmental Engineering | 4 |
| G 301 | Geology for Engineers | 3 |
| ME 321 | Engineering Thermodynamics I | 4 |
| Stat 451 | Applied Statistics for Engineers and Scientists I | 4 |
| Ec 314 | Private and Public Investment Analysis | 4 |
| Total Credit Hours: | 52 |
EC 314 is a required course that can be taken as a part of some upper-division clusters.
Senior Year
| CE 444 | Geotechnical Design | 4 |
| CE 454 | Urban Transportation Systems | 4 |
| CE 484 | Civil Engineering Project Management and Design I | 3 |
| CE 494 | Civil Engineering Project Management and Design II | 3 |
| CE 432 | Structural Steel Design-LRFD Method | 4 |
| | Approved civil engineering electives | 19 |
| | Upper-division cluster | 8 |
| Total Credit Hours: | 45 |
Approved Civil Engineering Electives:
| CE 401 | Research | 1-6 |
| CE 403 | Honors Thesis | 1-4 |
| CE 404 | Cooperative Education/Internship | 1-12 |
| CE 405 | Reading and Conference | 1-6 |
| CE 406 | Special Projects | 1-6 |
| CE 407 | Seminar | 1-6 |
| CE 410-499 | | |
| CE 510-599 | | |
Courses outside CEE Department require prior approval of CEE Chair.
CE 401 – CE 406: 4 credits maximum
CE 407/CE 507: 3 credits maximum
Total Credit Hours: 191