Environmental Engineering

With the rapid degradation of the environment all around the world due to various factors like air and water pollution, deforestation, rampant encroachments, waste disposal, etc, the need for environmental engineers is on a rise. Environmental engineers specialize in basic sciences, economics, social sciences, ecology, radiology, etc with an aim to protect the environment and lower the hazardous effects. Through courses related to this field, the prospective students can learn about various scientific and engineering principles to find probable solutions to the existing crisis so that the people have access to healthy and safe land, water and air. If you are someone who wants to contribute your bit in protecting the ecology and environment and want to pursue a rewarding career in environmental studies, then through this blog, we will provide you with an insight into the key details you need to know about Environmental Engineering.    

What is Environmental Engineering?

Environmental Engineering is one of the engineering branches which deals with the application of scientific and technological principles to protect the environment from issues like air and water pollution, climate change, global warming, hazardous wastes, etc. An Applied Science specialization, it addresses the issue of waste management and the preservation of energy in the environment by using the principles of chemistry, biology and soil science in order to find solutions for complex environmental problems. 

Why Study Environmental Engineering?

Following are some of the reasons that environmental engineering should be taken up: 

• Environmental Engineering guides us over the developmental and daily activities that affect the environment and how human beings are affected by these conditions.
• It works in guiding us to create a pollution-free environment by utilising various methods of prevention and pollution control.
• It allows the industry to operate in an environment-friendly manner by adopting clean and efficient technology.
• Career opportunities in the field of environmental engineering are constantly on a rise.

Duties of an Environmental Engineering

• Prepare and review environmental reports
• Design projects around environmental protection 
• Quality and safety checks in projects 
• Monitoring the progress of environmental improvement programs 
• Obtain, update, and maintain plans, permits, and standard operating procedures

Course Structure

When we talk about the course structure of Environmental Engineering programs, the universities provide the students with all the necessary skills and knowledge through various topics pertaining to the field. Enlisted are some of the topics that a prospective student will study: 

Computational Method and Probability Statistics	Research Methodology	Air and Noise Pollution
Wastewater Treatment	Environmental Accounting	Geo-Environmental Engineering
Disaster Management	Hazardous Waste Management	Climate Change and Sustainable Development
Climatology	Groundwater Contamination and Remediation	Environmental Remote Sensing
Water Treatment and Supply Systems	Building Environment and Services	System Analysis and Management
Environmental Chemistry	Environmental Geology	Earth and Environment
Microbiology	Water Supply Systems	Environmental Law

Note: This a generalized list. It may vary from one university to another. 

Environmental Engineering: Specializations

The field of Environmental Engineering is very broad and this allows the students to choose their own areas of specializations to pursue. Enlisted are some of the prominent electives you can choose from:

• Coastal Engineering
• Geophysical Engineering
• Ocean Engineering
• Solid Waste Engineering
• Ecological Engineering
• Water Resources Engineering
• Groundwater Hydrology
• Environmental Chemodynamics
• Climatology
• Geomorphology
• Collections System Design
• Environmental Management

Eligibility Criteria

Different universities offering courses in Environmental Engineering have set their own parameters for eligibility for granting admission. Listed below are some of the general prerequisites that the students have to satisfy: 

• The candidates must have completed their 10+2 level of studies with MPC subjects, and have scored a minimum aggregate as mentioned in the university guidelines.
• For admission to postgraduate level courses, the candidate must hold a BTech, BEng or equivalent degree in a related discipline. 
• The candidate must have secured an exceptional score in GRE for enrolling in masters programs or other such exams as mandated by the university. 
• The candidate must have secured a good score in English language proficiency tests like IELTS/TOEFL/PTE.

Environmental Engineering: Top Universities 

With the impending environmental issues, the need for professionals having exceptional knowldege and skills in this field are in demand. so that they can use their professional knowledge and skills to reduce these dangerous impacts. Given below are some of the universities that offer high-quality courses in the field of Environmental Engineering: 

• Stanford University
• ETH Zurich
• University of Alberta
• Technical University of Denmark
• Tsinghua University
• Wageningen University and Research
• Technical University Munich
• Georgia Institute of Technology
• University of Cambridge
• National University of Singapore
• The University of Melbourne
• University of California-Los Angeles

What Kind of Jobs do Environmental Engineers do?

Environmental Engineering is an emerging field and carries tons of career opportunities in an array of industries under various job profiles. From waste management and policy formulation to water treatment and state regulatory agencies, specialists in this field can find employment in both public and private sector companies.  Following are some of the industries followed by job profiles an environmental engineer can work in: 

Universities and Educational Institutes	Research Centres
Laboratories	Pollution control boards at the state and national levels
Government Agencies	NGOs
Corporate world	Infrastructure Projects

Work Profiles

• University Professor
• Process Operator
• Research Assistant
• Health And Safety Administrator
• Water Engineer
• Drilling Personnel
• BioResearch Assistant
• Technical Test Engineer
• Air Quality Specialist
• Environmental Officer
• Lead Project Engineer
• ROV Technician
• Project Assistant/Associate

FAQs

Thus, a career in Environmental Engineering can offer innumerable opportunities across industries. Needless to say, selecting the right set of universities and courses can be a daunting task. Take the assistance of Leverage Edu’s AI tool which will curate a list of educational institutes and programs that align with your professional goals!