Graduate Program

The graduate program is administered through six academic divisions: Environmental, Geotechnical, Irrigation, Structural, Transportation, and Water.

Environmental engineering is the branch of engineering concerned with the application of scientific and engineering principles for protection of human populations from the effects of adverse environmental factors, protection of environments both local and global from the potentially deleterious effects of natural and human activities, and improvement of environmental quality. The demand for environmental engineers is expected to grow much faster than the national average for the next 20 years.

The CEE Department offers MS, ME, and PhD degrees specializing in environmental engineering.

The Geotechnical Engineering Division offers MS, ME, and PhD degrees in the specialty of Geotechnical Engineering. In geotechnical engineering we study the properties and behavior of soil and rock. Using those properties and behavior we design and analyze: foundations, excavations, retaining walls, slopes, dikes, dams, levees. We also predict behavior of soil and rock during earthquake shaking.

Our graduate curriculum covers the theoretical behavior of soil, laboratory and field experimental methods, and current design practices.

Geomatics Engineering – Based on the science of geodesy, geomatics engineering develops the devices and methods for modeling of the geospatial geometry, the acquistiion of geospatial observations, and the estimating of geospatial positions and their accuracy. Research is typically focused on land surveys & design; geographic information systems; terrestrial mapping; remote sensor systems; positioning and navigation; and geodesy.

The Irrigation Engineering program at USU has long been recognized as the best such program in the USA, and possibly in the world. Many of the prominent irrigation engineers in the USA and around the world are graduates of the USU program. And the Irrigation Engineering faculty continues a tradition of leadership in international development projects in several dozen countries across the globe. Recent and current USU irrigation projects have been in the USA, and more than ten countries in Latin America, the Caribbean region, Asia, Europe, the Middle East, and Africa. Irrigation Engineering faculty at USU have published several books on a wide variety of irrigation topics. The International Irrigation Center is part of the Irrigation Engineering program and is in association with the Utah Water Research Laboratory. At USU, Irrigation Engineering students are exposed to classroom instruction, laboratory (hydraulics, remote-sensing, and others) work, and field work.

The structural engineer is involved in the design, construction, repair, and retrofit of all types of structures: buildings, bridges, dams, and many others. The safety of the structures we occupy and utilize every day is the responsibility of structural engineers. They must be able to evaluate the loads placed on a structure, determine their effects on elements, or repair strategy, to withstand these loads. Today's structural engineer is using new space materials in the design of new structures or the retrofit of older structures.

Mathematics, physics, and materials science constitute a foundation for structural engineering. Structural analysis and design are added to this foundation and become the focus of the structural engineering program. Graduate students in the structures program also engage in structural mechanics, numerical methods, strucutral dynamics, geotechnical engineering, and the study of new structural materials. Current research in the structures area is focusing on the dynamic characteristics of structures, their potential response to earthquakes, and new seismic retrofit measures, using advanced composite materials, for older structures. Materials research is focusing on cementious materials and constitutive modeling.

The primary goal of Transportation Division is to advance the understanding of transportation systems through teaching and research activities using theory, state-of-the-art computer tools, and best practices in the planning, design, operation, and management.

The undergraduate and graduate program are aimed at developing students skills at performing advanced analysis to solve current and future problems in the transportation industry while recognizing social, economic and environmental constraints.

The research activities encompass the development and application of analytical tools and field experience to improve efficiency and effectiveness of transportation systems in the movement of people and goods.

The graduate program in Transportation is designed to enable energetic and dedicated students to obtain Master of Science (MS), Master of Civil Engineering (ME), and/or Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) degrees. Students may emphasize in one of the following three areas:

• Transportation Systems Engineering
• Traffic Engineering
• Transportation Planning

Although coursework component for all degrees consists of a common core, each student has the option of designing his or her program of studies to meet ones own interests. The core courses in Transportation deal with planning, design, construction, operation, and management of transportation systems. Our courses emphasize on fundamental skills and knowledge in engineering, management, economics, operations research, and planning principles, combined with advanced technologies, to address pressing problems in transportation that affect every aspect of our daily life.

The Division of Water Engineering is a unit of the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering involved in teaching and research in the areas of Hydrology and Water Resources, and Fluid Mechanics and Hydraulics. Faculty and students in our division conduct state of the art research in the fields of hydrology and water resources, groundwater, dam safety risk management, hydraulics and fluid mechanics to address the water research needs of the state of Utah as well as nationally and internationally. Research to create new knowledge is an integral part of our academic education program. The program recognizes the multidisciplinary nature of many water research problems and seeks to foster and maintain collaborative links with other CEE divisions, other units on campus and other universities and research organizations in pursuing this research.

• Hydrology research area include: climate analysis, hydrologic modeling, nonparametric statistical methods, dam safety, risk management, extreme flood hydrology, snow and snowmelt, and risk based decision analysis for water quantity and quality management.
• Groundwater research area include: the interplay between surface groundwater interactions, environmental monitoring and modeling, fate and transport of contaminants in groundwater and groundwater remediation designs.
• Water Resources research area include: water institutions, water policies, water management, and water conservation.
• Dam safety risk management includes: potential failure modes identification, modeling of failure modes, characterization of flood and earthquake loading, life loss and economic consequences estimation, risk and uncertainty analysis, tolerability of risk, individual and portfolio dam safety management and decision making, and risk communication.

The Fluid Mechanics and Hydraulics focuses on: theoretical fluid mechanics and applied hydraulics, open channel hydraulics, closed conduit flow, transient and unsteady flow analysis, valve and pump engineering and testing, design and modeling of hydraulic structures, two phase flow, cavitation, sedimentation, flow resistance, flood plain management and control, and erosion control and protection. The fluid mechanics and hydraulics laboratory occupies a large section of the UWRL adjacent to the Logan River, as well as a new facility across the Logan River. The fluid mechanics and hydraulics laboratory supports an experimental research program involving hydraulic model studies, valve and flow meter testing, and erosion control testing / research.