Environmental Engineering Degrees

Overview

Environmental engineering is the application of science and engineering principles to improve the environment by providing healthy water, air, and land for humans and other organisms. Environmental engineering degree focuses on training students on problem solving technique, which range from looking into waste management to testing the water and the air. The environmental engineers are on the front line of preventive measures to protect community health and safety. They also look out for adverse impacts on the quality of water and air, social impacts, ecological impacts, noise impacts, and visual (landscape) impacts.

The environmental engineering curriculum includes general biology, earth science, fluid economics, engineering economics, environmental measures and analysis, fundamentals of environmental engineering, design projects for environmental engineers, operations research systems, nonpoint source pollution, waste disposal and utilization, air pollution control, geo-environmental engineering, and landfill engineering. This degree can be obtained either as an associate, bachelor's, master's, or doctorate degree. The duration of the environmental engineering degree varies from two to five years, depending on the program and the school you have enrolled.

Benefits

After pursuing the environmental engineering degree, you can enter into varied fields like environmental sales, prevention of environmental problems, management, and research. The average median salary for environmental engineers is around $70,000 annually, out of which the technicians earn a little lower of $40,000 to $50,000 per annum. Apart from salary, they also get additional benefits like medical insurance, life insurance, paid vacations, and holidays.

Costs

The cost of the environmental engineering degree depends on the college or the university in which you have enrolled. A bachelor's degree in environmental science costs around $24,000 a year and a master's degree costs roughly $14,370 for 15 credit hours. The average fee of a PhD degree in environmental engineering would approximately around $600 per semester. This includes only the tuition fee. Food and accommodation may result in additional expenses.

Schools

There are many schools in the US that provides environmental engineering degrees. University of Maryland, University of Florida, and University of California are some of the universities that provide bachelor's and master's degree in environmental engineering.

Testing & Preparation

The applicants in environmental engineering should have a remarkable academic performance in high school with a grade point average of 3.5. You should also qualify at the American College Test (ACT) or the Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) with a reasonable score. If you are an international student, you should also take up Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL).

Financial Aid

Financial aid is available and information can be requested from specific colleges. The Malcolm Pirnie Corporate Scholarshipsprovides a scholarship for students pursuing environmental engineering under stipulated conditions. The Federal Student Aid and USA Funds are the federal provisions of financial aid and scholarships for which students may apply.