Our highways and roads have been the main source of providing us a platform for transportation in this fast-paced world. Although other modes of transport, i.e., the sea and the sky, are also used, transportation of any sort using the road is highly convenient and cheap. In fact, using land for transporting goods, people or animals has been dated back since the birth of man on earth. However, these heavily used roads need Maintenance. New roads and highways are required to be built every few years due to the increase in population needs and to avoid congestion. Building new highways not only save time but also money. A group of highly efficient civil engineers is responsible for making this happen. If you want to be one of those highly competent engineers, below given is a road map for you to unlock this career opportunity for you.
Basic Educational Requirements
To become a road engineer you must first complete high school and apply for college. You then need to get accepted by the Civil engineering department. After four years, you will graduate with a degree of bachelor’s in civil engineering. As highway engineering is a specialized category of civil engineers, some employers also demand a master’s degree.
Internship
Like every other field, this major also demands experience prior to working as a licensed engineer. For this, you have to apply for internships at your local municipal transportation department. If you have a minimum of a bachelor’s degree with some experience in the practical field, chances are you will be accepted by some firm.
What do road engineers do?
Roads engineers basically direct and manage the road construction, maintenance activities, and operations at the construction site. They test the soil for strength for adequacy and strength at the proposed site of construction. The people are also in charge of conducting different studies like traffic inflow, patterns, environmental hazards, etc. they design safe and environment-friendly civil structures. A road engineer is therefore responsible for the programs that are to be processed to ensure a safe and sound road or even a highway bridge for that matter.
They are responsible for communication outside the organization for approvals and other concerned matters. A road engineer analyses all byproducts of carbon emissions and other waste and finds a way to dispose of properly. The concrete strength quality everything is inspected by a road engineer. Since it is basically a specialization of civil engineering, so it doesn’t require a person to know every aspect of this vast field but only the one that is concerned with ensuring proper roads and all related matters.
IMPORTANT QUALITIES
We have listed down some of the qualities you need to acquire to become a road engineer.
Leadership skills
One must have mastered the art of leading people to become a road engineer. The engineer is the leader in any construction related project, and all technicians, managers, surveyors, civil engineering technologists, and all other related people come under his command. Therefore you should definitely possess the skill to lead projects and people in a programmed manner
Basic Knowledge in Math’s
The principal of trigonometry, calculus, and other advanced level mathematics is required for designing and analyzing any project.
Decision-making ability
Roads engineers are responsible and held accountable for the feasibility safety and quality of the projects they handle. Therefore possessing a firm decision making quality and having the confidence to trust your decision is mandatory. As the safety of many people lies in your hand and is compromised because of any wrong decision.
Communication skills
As an engineer, you need to communicate with a lot of people with or without a background of technical knowledge. You have present reports and presentations to officials, translate engineering terms with people of different knowledge. Moreover, you have to also submit written reports and survey analysis to the elected official, architects, etc. You should be able to speak and write in clear and concise terms for a better understanding of everyone outside the field of engineering.
Problem-solving and organizational skills
At the sites of construction, problems can arise anytime without prior notice. The engineer should always be ready to solve complex problems that come up abruptly. Since you work at the highest level of planning, designing, analyzing, and construction of multifaceted projects. One must acquire the ability to organize and plan every step in a controlled manner and also be mentally available to solve any problem that arises.
Finances
Make sure you have a good enough academic record of getting yourself a scholarship for civil engineering granted. Student loans are a burden for life, and you won’t be able to pay your tuition fees without them unless you are financially very sound. Yes, it can cost around $59,725 to almost $320,977 in some universities to get a civil engineering degree.
License
Luckily in most cases, a license is not required for entry-level civil engineering posts. However, a professional engineers license (PEs) is required later if you want growth in your career. One must have at least an experience of working for 4 years under a licensed engineer. A passing score in both fundamentals of engineering (FE) and professional engineering exam (PE). A recognized accredited engineering degree from your university will also be required.
IN CONCLUSION
The field of construction is a never-ending market. Every minute a new project is launched and the same is for roads and highway reengineering. Roads and highways need back to back maintenance and growth. Congestion and wasting of resources is a major problem in areas where roads are used to their full capacity. This field itself is very demanding and requires a set of professional skills. You can be a successful road engineer if you are good at planning, managing, proposing new projects, analyzing, and leading, etc. You need to at least have a basic degree of bachelor’s in civil engineering to be able to practically work in the field initially. Furthermore, specialization and masters in this field are available for interested people. Although you will definitely need a license to become a senior engineer for starters, basic work in the field is also offered to people without a license but with basic internship experience and a degree.