Approved by: Graduate Council
Implementation Date: Spring 2017
Note: Deletions are strikethroughs. Insertions are underlined.
Catalog Copy
Civil and Environmental Engineering
- M.S. in Civil Engineering
- M.S. in Engineering
- Ph.D. in Infrastructure and Environmental Systems (see the Infrastructure and Environmental Systems heading)
Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering
cee.uncc.edu
Graduate Program Director
Dr. Srinivas S. Pulugurtha
Graduate Faculty
Dr. James E. Amburgey, Associate Professor
Dr. James D. Bowen, Associate Professor
Dr. Nicole Braxton, Assistant Professor
Dr. Shen-en Chen, P.E., Professor
Dr. John L. Daniels, P.E., Department Chair and Professor
Dr. Venkata R. Duddu, Faculty Associate
Dr. Wei Fan, P.E., Associate Professor
Dr. Janos I. Gergely, S.E., P.E., Associate Professor
Dr. Rajaram Janardhanam, Professor
Dr. Martin R. Kane, P.E., Associate Professor
Dr. Olya S. Keen, Assistant Professor
Dr. Milind V. Khire, P.E., Professor
Dr. Mariya Munir, Assistant Professor
Dr. David Naylor, P.E., Lecturer
Dr. Vincent O. Ogunro, Associate Professor
Dr. Shubhashini Oza, Faculty Associate
Dr. Miguel A. Pando, Associate Professor
Dr. Youngjin Park, Faculty Associate
Dr. Srinivas S. Pulugurtha, P.E., Professor
Dr. William Saunders, P.E., Lecturer
Dr. Mei Sun, Assistant Professor
Dr. Brett Q. Tempest, Assistant Professor
Dr. Kimberly A. Warren, Associate Professor
Dr. David C. Weggel, P.E., Professor
Dr. Matthew J. Whelan, Assistant Professor
Dr. Erika Weber, P.E., Lecturer
Dr. Jy S. Wu, P.E., P.H., Professor
Dr. David Young, P.E., Professor
P.E. = Professional Engineer
P.H. = Professional Hydrologist
S.E. = Structural Engineer
Programs of Study
The Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering (CEE) provides opportunities for discipline-specific and multidisciplinary graduate-level education in Civil and Environmental Engineering and closely related areas. Advanced coursework and research are used to enhance professional development, improve technical competency, and initiate a life-long learning experience. The Department has ongoing collaborative research and student exchange programs with several international institutions.
The Department offers graduate studies leading to a master’s degree (MSCE or MSE) in five areas of concentration:
- Environmental and water resources engineering
- Geo-environmental engineering
- Geotechnical engineering
- Structural engineering
- Transportation engineering
Doctoral studies leading to the Ph.D. in Infrastructure and Environmental Systems (INES) are available in an interdisciplinary, inter-college program. See the Infrastructure and Environmental Systems heading for details.
Master of Science in Civil Engineering (MSCE) and Master of Science in Engineering (MSE)
Admission Requirements
In addition to the general requirements for admission to the Graduate School, the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering seeks the following from applicants to the Master’s programs in Civil Engineering:
- An earned undergraduate degree in Civil Engineering for the MSCE master’s program or a closely related field for the MSE master’s program
- An undergraduate GPA of 3.0 or better
- A satisfactory score from the Aptitude Portion of the GRE
- Three letters of recommendation
- An acceptable TOEFL score as required by UNC Charlotte for international students
- And any other appropriate credentials as required by the Graduate School
Additional Admission Requirements
- Admission to the MSE program
mayrequirescompletionremediation of certain deficiencies as specified by the Department for each area of concentration - Admission to the Early Entry Program requires a minimum GPA of 3.2, completion of at least 75 hours toward the BSCE degree, and acceptance by the Graduate School to the MSCE program at UNC Charlotte.
Early Entry Program
Undergraduate students at UNC Charlotte with outstanding academic performance, and satisfying the requirements described above, may be admitted to the Early Entry Program to pursue graduate study while completing the undergraduate degree requirements. Early Entry students are dually enrolled with both undergraduate and graduate status, may request two graduate Civil Engineering (CEGR) courses to be applied to both their graduate and undergraduate programs (double-counting), and may complete up to 15 credits toward their MS degree prior to graduating with their BSCE degree.
Application Deadline
Applications for admission must be submitted online directly to the Graduate School. They may be submitted any time prior April 1 for Fall admission, and October 1 for Spring admission. To be considered for assistantships and tuition grants for the following academic year, students should apply by February 15 because the Department makes the first round of award decisions by March 15.
Assistantships
Research and teaching assistantships are available from the Department on a competitive basis to highly qualified applicants/students. Interested students are encouraged to directly contact faculty in their area of interest for research assistantships.
Tuition Grants
Tuition grants including Non-Resident Tuition Differentials and Resident Tuition Aids are available on a competitive basis for both out-of-state and in-state students, respectively.
Degree Requirements
A minimum of 30 approved graduate credit hours is required for graduation. At least half of the approved graduate credit hours must be in courses numbered 6000 or above. A student may fulfill the 30-hour requirement by pursuing one of the three study options: (a) 24 hours of coursework plus 6 hours of thesis, (b) 27 hours of coursework plus 3 hours of a directed project, or (c) 30 hours of coursework and a comprehensive examination. Each student is limited to one individual study class within the 30-hour requirement.
Concentration Requirements
Required core courses for the five concentrations are listed below.
Environmental and Water Resources Engineering Concentration
CEGR 6243 Physical Processes in Environmental Systems (3)
CEGR 6245 Chemical and Biological Processes in Environmental Systems (3)
Geo-Environmental Engineering Concentration
CEGR 5145 Groundwater Resources Engineering (3)
CEGR 5264 Landfill Design and Site Remediation (3)
Geotechnical Engineering Concentration
CEGR 5270 Earth Pressures and Retaining Structures (3)
CEGR 6251 Foundation Engineering (3)
CEGR 6254 Experimental Soil Mechanics (3)
CEGR 6255 Slope Stability and Earth Structures (3)
CEGR 6268 Advanced Soil Mechanics (3)
Structural Engineering Concentration
CEGR 5108 Finite Element Analysis and Applications (3)
CEGR 5222 Structural Steel Design II (3)
CEGR 5224 Advanced Structural Analysis (3)
CEGR 5226 Reinforced Concrete Design II (3)
CEGR 6129 Structural Dynamics (3)
Transportation Engineering Concentration
CEGR 5161 Advanced Traffic Engineering (3)
CEGR 5162 Transportation Planning (3)
CEGR 5185 Geometric Design of Highways (3)
CEGR 6161 Traffic Control and Operation (3)
GEOG 6100 Quantitative Methods in Geography (3)
Additional recommended courses (does not include CEGR 6891, CEGR 6892, or CEGR 6991) for each concentration are shown next in the table.
|
Concentration |
Additional Recommended Courses |
|
Environmental and Water Resources Engineering |
CEGR 5141: Process Engineering, CEGR 5142: Water Treatment Engineering, CEGR 5143: Solid Waste Management, CEGR 5144: Engineering Hydrology, CEGR 5145: Groundwater Resources Engineering, CEGR 5146: Advanced Engineering Hydraulics, CEGR 5147: Stormwater Management, CEGR 5234: Hazardous Waste Management, CEGR 5235: Industrial Pollution Control, CEGR 5237: Environmental Risk Management, CEGR 5241: Chemical Processes in Water and Wastewater Treatment, CEGR 5242: Wastewater Treatment Plant Design, CEGR 5243: Topics in Environmental Health, CEGR 5247: Sustainability, CEGR 6141: Water Quality Modeling, CEGR 6142: Bioenvironmental Engineering, CEGR 6144: Environmental Biotechnology, CEGR 6145: Waste Incineration, CEGR 6146: Advanced Groundwater Analysis, CEGR 6147: Watershed Modeling, CEGR 6148: Water Conservation, CEGR 6149: Watershed Analysis, CEGR 6171: Air Quality Control, CEGR 6172: Air Dispersion Modeling, CEGR 6173: Environmental Aquatic Chemistry, CEGR 6244: Chemical Fate and Transport, and CEGR 5090 / 6090 special topics courses in environmental and water resources engineering |
|
Geo-environmental Engineering |
CEGR 5270: Earth Pressure and Retaining Structures, CEGR 5271: Pavement Design, CEGR 5272: Design with Geosynthetics, CEGR 5273: Soil Improvement, CEGR 5274: Site Characterization, CEGR 5278: Geotechnical Engineering II, CEGR 6146: Advanced Groundwater Analysis, CEGR 6243: Physical Processes in Environmental Systems, CEGR 6244: Chemical Fate and Transport, CEGR 6245: Chemical & Biological Processes in Environmental Systems, CEGR 6251: Foundation Engineering, CEGR 6252: Soil Dynamics and Earthquake Engineering, CEGR 6254: Experimental Soil Mechanics, CEGR 6255: Slope Stability and Earth Structures, CEGR 6268: Advanced Soil Mechanics and CEGR 5090 / 6090 special topics courses in geo-environmental engineering |
|
Geotechnical Engineering |
CEGR 5145: Groundwater Resources Engineering, CEGR 5264: Landfill Design and Site Remediation, CEGR 5271: Pavement Design, CEGR 5272: Design with Geosynthetics, CEGR 5273: Engineering Ground Improvement |
|
Structural Engineering |
CEGR 5121: Prestressed Concrete Design, CEGR 5123: Bridge Design, CEGR 5125: Forensic Engineering, CEGR 5126: Codes, Nodes and Loads, CEGR 5127: Green Building and Integrative Design, CEGR 5128: Matrix Methods of Structural Analysis, CEGR 5223: Timber Design, CEGR 6122: Advanced Topics in Structural Steel, CEGR 6124: Masonry Design, CEGR 6125: Structural Strengthening, CEGR 6126: Analysis of Plates and Shells, CEGR 6127: Fracture Mechanics and Fatigue, CEGR 6128: Structural Optimization, CEGR 6222: Experimental Structural Mechanics and Nondestructive Evaluation, MEGR 6141: Theory of Elasticity I and CEGR 5090 / 6090 special topics courses in structural engineering |
|
Transportation Engineering |
CEGR 5171: Urban Public Transportation, CEGR 5181: Human Factors in Traffic Engineering, CEGR 5182: Transportation Environmental Assessment, CEGR 5183: Traffic Engineering Studies, |
Note: Undergraduate students who have taken any of the courses listed above, or equivalent material, as part of their undergraduate program need not take the corresponding 5000-level graduate courses. Instead, they may choose other graduate courses as part of their master’s degree plan of study. Courses without designated course numbers are currently being offered as Special Topic classes with appropriate course numbers yet to be provided.
Admission to Candidacy Requirements
Each student is required to submit a Plan of Study to the Graduate Program Director before completing 18 hours of graduate credits. The Plan of Study will streamline coordination of the required coursework and research work between the student and his/her advisor before submitting the Admission to Candidacy.
Upon completion of a substantial amount of graduate work, each student must file an Admission to Candidacy form to the Graduate School by the filing date, typically at the beginning of the semester for graduation specified in the University Academic Calendar.
Application for Degree
Students preparing to graduate must submit an online Application for Degree by the filing date specified in the University Academic Calendar. If a student does not graduate in the semester identified on the Application for Degree, then the student must update his/her Admission to Candidacy and submit a new Application for Degree for graduation in a subsequent semester.
Transfer Credit
The Department accepts the transfer of related graduate courses (6 credits maximum) taken at another institution or from UNC Charlotte prior to admission to the master’s program in Civil Engineering.
Electives
With advisor and Graduate/or Program Committee’s Director’s approval, a maximum of two one graduate courses (outside CEGR or within CEGR) related to thesis topic or project topic or student’s concentration may be incorporated into the 30-hour requirement. A student with a non-CEGR background is encouraged to fulfill the 30-hour requirement by taking all CEGR courses.
Advising
Each student is assigned an initial academic advisor. Upon developing a program of study, the student shall be supervised by his/her graduate advisor and a program committee.
Program Committee
The Program Committee shall consist of at least three UNC Charlotte graduate faculty members. At most one graduate faculty member (CEGR or non-CEGR) from outside the student’s concentration may serve as a member of the Program Committee. The student’s CEE graduate advisor shall chair the committee.
Capstone Experiences
Students pursuing a master’s degree in Civil and Environmental Engineering have three options to complete the 30-credit hour program. Students may elect to complete 24 credit hours of coursework plus 6 credit hours of thesis (CEGR 6991); 27 credit hours of coursework plus 3 credit hours of a directed project (CEGR 6891); or 30 credit hours of coursework plus a written and/or oral comprehensive examination. All three options require the formation of a program committee as described above. The thesis and project options require students to submit a written thesis or project report, and orally defend their work before their program committee.
A student’s comprehensive exam may be taken once all core courses are completed, and at least 18 hours of graduate coursework are either completed or in progress. Core courses taken at the graduate level may be included in the 18 hours. The student’s graduate advisor and the examining committee coordinate the examination (typically offered once in the Fall semester and once in the Spring semester), preparing the exam with the assistance of members of the student’s Program Committee. The exam measures the student’s mastery of theories and applications in core courses and/or in the selected area of specialization within the discipline. Students have only two attempts to pass the examination. All students passing the written examination are assessed further on their oral communication effectiveness.
Research Opportunity/Experience
Students in Civil and Environmental Engineering enjoy a curriculum with opportunities for interdisciplinary research, study abroad, and active participation in a growing research program. Programs of study can be tailored to suit individual needs and interests. The CEE website (cee.uncc.edu) provides current areas of research conducted by the Civil and Environmental Engineering faculty.
Program Learning Outcomes
Students completing master’s degree will demonstrate abilities to analyze and evaluate advanced topics in engineering, and to communicate technical information effectively. Achievement of these outcomes will prepare students to function professionally in their chosen careers.
Program learning outcomes for doctoral students are described in the “Infrastructure and Environmental Systems” section of this Catalog.
Courses in Civil and Environmental Engineering (CEGR)
CEGR 5184. Highway Safety. (3) Prerequisites: CEGR 3161 and permission of department. Engineering responses at the state and local levels to the problem of highway safety. Extent of the highway safety problem, elements of traffic accidents, common accident countermeasures, collection and analysis of accident data, evaluation of safety-related projects and programs, and litigation issues. (On demand)
CEGR 5273. Engineering Ground ImprovementSoil Improvement. (3) Prerequisites: CEGR 3278 and permission of department. Engineering principles of soil improvement as they relate to applications in both geotechnical and geoenvironmental engineering; innovative techniques to improve soils to meet technical and economic requirements. (On demand)
CEGR 6166. Urban Transportation Networks: Operations & Optimization. (3). Prerequisites: CEGR 3161 and permission of department, Consent of the instructor, graduate student status. Introduction to planning and optimization techniques for the analysis of transportation networks; Principles of precise algorithms for finding transport network equilibrium flows and applications that relate to these flows; Topics include basic optimization skills, shortest path algorithms, user equilibrium, system optimal, elastic demand, OD matrix estimation, network design, congestion pricing, and stochastic user equilibrium. (On demand)
CEGR 6167. Discrete Choice Modeling. (3). Prerequisites: CEGR 3161 and permission of department, graduate student status. Introduction to elements of the choice process; utility-based choice theory; principles of binary choice models; multinomial logit models; nested logit models; and ordered response models. (On demand)
CEGR 6891. Graduate Master Project. (3) Prerequisite: permission of department. Individual investigation or exposition of results for the 3-hour Master project. (Fall, Spring, Summer)
CEGR 6892. Individualized Study and Projects. (1-36) Prerequisite: permission of department. Individual investigation or exposition of results for the 3-hour MS projectstudy. May be repeated for credit. (Fall, Spring, Summer)
CEGR 6991. Graduate Master Thesis Research. (1-6) Prerequisite: permission of department. Individual investigation culminating in the preparation and presentation of a thesis. May be repeated for credit. (Fall, Spring, Summer)
CEGR 6999. Graduate Master Additional Work. (1-3) Prerequisite: permission of department. Each student will initiate or continue an individual investigation culminating in the preparation and presentation of a deliverable (could be part of Master Thesis or Project), upon meeting the 30-credit hours degree requirement. Graded on a Pass/Unsatisfactory or IP basis. May be repeated for credits. (Fall, Spring, Summer)