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Civil Engineering

The baccalaureate program in civil engineering is accredited by the Engineering Accreditation Commission of ABET.

FACULTY Emeritus Professors Muvdi, Rebholz; Professors Al-Khafaji, Elhouar (chair), Maillacheruvu, Schattler; Associate Professors Khodair, Lee; Assistant Professors Al Zarrad, Ashraf, Hossain, Kim, Soltani, Spelman; Assistant Professors in Residence George, Wolfe.

The Department of Civil Engineering and Construction offers undergraduate programs in both civil engineering (B.S.C.E.) and construction (B.S.C.).

Mission and Objectives

Produce graduates who possess a keen awareness of the global dimensions of our profession, leadership skills required to serve our society, and the technical knowledge to pursue multiple career paths, including advanced degrees. To achieve our mission, our department will strive to achieve the following civil engineering program objectives:

  1. Our alumni have the skills to become leaders and stewards in their chosen profession and in society through their contributions to professional practice, research, entrepreneurial initiatives, or policy.
  2. Our alumni apply ethics and sustainability principles in their profession and commit to life-long learning, earn licensure and become experts and mentors in their chosen profession.
  3. Our alumni have the needed awareness of relevant global issues and cultures in order to thrive in a complex and multicultural world.

The Department

Facilities

Facilities. The curriculum is supported by 14 cutting-edge laboratory and computer facilities equipped with modern hardware and software. Laboratories include multimedia, emerging technologies, fluid mechanics/hydraulics, surveying, concrete design, asphalt pavement design, construction, structural, geotechnical, estimating, design projects, machine shop, and a research laboratory. The department has four computer laboratories, completely networked with printers, plotters, and scanners. Two of the computer laboratories are project laboratories used for senior capstone courses. Laptops are also available to students for senior project courses. The computers have a wide range of up-to-date software, including AutoCAD, Revit, Microstation, Visual MODFLOW, Biowin, Photoshop, Dreamweaver, Fireworks, SAP 2000, Robot, word processing, spreadsheets, PowerPoint, database management programs, etc. The computer facilities are available to CEC students on a 24-hour basis.

Internationalization. The CEC department strongly believes that exposure to different world cultures can expand the professional capabilities, stimulate intellectual growth, and broaden the personal perspective of all participants. The CEC department and the university are committed to giving all of our students the opportunity to study overseas. Arrangements have been made with universities around the world to send our students overseas either for short courses, a semester, or an entire year. Students with financial need have received financial support that enables them to study abroad for equal to or less than what it would cost to study on campus. Financial aid is available to students choosing to study for a semester or a year overseas at another institution. Through the CEC department’s Global Explorer Program (GEP) initiative, groups of up to 42 students and faculty have visited various countries including England, France, Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Egypt, Jordan and Malta to study under the guidance of CEC faculty. Since 1995, more than 250 CEC students have studied overseas.

Scholarships. Currently nearly 30 annual and endowed scholarships are available to students through the department. The total endowed scholarship from industry exceeds 1.8 million dollars dedicated specifically to CEC students. This reflects the faith and trust that industry has in the quality of our programs.

Placement. For the past 16 years job placement in CEC has been over 95% and has been 100% placement for most of those years. Starting salaries for CEC graduates are very competitive nationwide. Employers recognize that our students have the knowledge, experience, and intellectual curiosity to succeed in their profession. High placement and scholarship opportunities for our students are a direct benefit from the strong partnerships that CEC has developed over the past 30 years with our professional partners in industry, government, and academe.

Leadership. A focus of the department is the development of leadership skills in our students. Students are encouraged to participate in student professional organizations and academic honorary organizations by being officers or committee chairs. Leadership skills are also developed through service and outreach programs that teach good citizenship. Our students have been involved in many different community outreach activities such as school playgrounds, Women’s Strength, the South Side Mission, Easter Seals, and Pocket Parks. Many of our students, both in civil engineering and construction, participate in the outstanding “Bridge Pal” program designed to foster an interest in engineering in high school and middle school students. CEC is the only department that offers scholarships for leadership. This scholarship is offered to applicants whose academic and leadership skills meet the standards:
(http://www.bradley.edu/admissions/freshman/cost/sources/cecles/index.dot).

Faculty Qualifications. The award winning CEC faculty have published more textbooks than any other civil engineering or construction department of a similar size in the United States. These textbooks are used at a large number of highly regarded institutions. CEC faculty have received numerous awards for teaching excellence and scholarship, as well as for their professional contributions. They have conducted research for national, state, and local sponsors, benefitting society and our students. CEC Faculty conduct research for national, state, and local sponsors, benefit our students in terms of scholarships and research opportunities.

Graduation. To graduate, students must meet all university and college graduation requirements. Additionally, CE students must achieve a minimum GPA of 2.25 in civil engineering courses. Every academic year, CE students are required to attend a number of seminars and other events that promote leadership and service.

Graduate Program. In addition to the undergraduate program described above, the Department offers a graduate program leading to the Master of Science in Civil Engineering degree. Details of this program may be found in the Graduate Catalog. The graduate program allows talented undergraduate students to engage in scholarly research activities and to enroll in advanced courses to meet their special interests and needs.

Civil Engineering Program Emphases and Requirements

The Department of Civil Engineering and Construction offers an ABET-accredited BSCE program that provides students the necessary background for continued professional growth and prepares them for engineering careers. The program offers a broad spectrum of specialties including structures, water resources, environmental engineering, transportation, highway and pavement design, geotechnical engineering, and construction management. The curriculum is designed to give students the broad technical background required for modern civil engineering practice and/or to pursue higher education. Students are trained to be leaders who understand their critical roles in the development of sustainability and maintenance of society's infrastructure.

The program is founded on a strong core in mathematics as well as natural and engineering sciences. Design practices in civil engineering are integrated throughout the curriculum, culminating in a two-semester capstone design course sequence under the supervision of well-qualified faculty and industrial partners. A sequence of courses in the humanities and social sciences helps students understand the impact of engineering solutions on society and are chosen to meet Bradley Core Curriculum requirements. An approved list of courses that satisfy these requirements may be obtained from the student's academic advisor. The curriculum gives students as much flexibility in technical electives as possible while meeting all accreditation requirements.

Areas of Emphasis

Students may choose to take their electives in one of the following areas of emphasis. Students also have the flexibility of taking courses from each emphasis plus other courses approved as technical electives. Students not selecting any of the emphases below must still meet ABET requirements for their technical electives as explained in the section titled Typical Program below.

Internationalization

Students take two courses through the CEC Department Global Explorer Program and/or Bradley Study Abroad program, and take an approved semester abroad.

Sustainability

Students take four courses, chosen from:

  • CE 541 Pollution Modeling
  • CE 542 Advanced Water Treatment
  • CE 543 Advanced Wastewater Treatment
  • CE 546 Groundwater Hydrology
  • CE 555 Sustainability and Environmental Regulations
  • CE 558 Solid Waste Management
  • CON 352 Sustainable Urban Environment
  • ME 537 Building Energy Management

Infrastructure

Students take four courses, chosen from:

  • BLW 395 Real Estate Law
  • ECO 325 Urban Economics
  • CE 422 Foundation Analysis and Design
  • CE 430 Water Supply and Hydraulic Engineering
  • CE 465 Surface Water Hydrology
  • CE 508 Advanced Soil Mechanics
  • CE 515 Advanced Foundation Engineering
  • CE 560 Advanced Structural Analysis
  • CE 562 Advanced Steel Design
  • CE 565 Advanced Concrete Design
  • CE 567 Prestressed Concrete Design
  • CE 577 Seismic Design
  • CE 580 Highway Safety
  • CE 583 Geometric Highway Design
  • CE 587 Traffic Signal Design 
  • CE 588 Transportation Economics 
  • CON 526 Advanced Construction Estimating

Typical Program

Note: Students must make sure that among the courses they take to meet graduation requirements, at least two are designated as Writing Intensive courses.  With some exceptions, a course approved to satisfy an Area of Inquiry may also carry Core Practices tags. However, courses approved for an Area of Inquiry may not also carry the tag of a cognate Core Practice, e.g., courses satisfying the Communication writing requirement cannot also carry the writing intensive tag.  A list of courses approved for the Writing Intensive tag can be obtained from the advisor.

Freshman Year

First Semester

  • CE 100 Intro. to Civil Engineering - 1 hr.
  • Core Curr. - Communication (W1): ENG 101 English Composition - 3 hrs.
  • Core Curr. – Quantitative Reasoning (QR1): MTH 121 Calculus I - 4 hrs.
  • Core Curr. - Communication (OC): COM 103 Oral Communication Process - 3 hrs.
  • 1 Core Curr. - Multidisciplinary Integration (MI)- 3 hrs.
  • 1Core Curr. - Global Perspectives (GP)- 3 hrs.

17 hours

Second Semester

  • CE 150 Mechanics I - 3 hrs.
  • Core Curr. – Quantitative Reasoning (QR2): MTH 122 Calculus II - 4 hrs.
  • Core Curr. – Natural Sciences (NS1): PHY 110 University Physics I - 4 hrs.
  • CON 132 - Construction Graphics - 2 hrs.
  • 2Core Curr. – Natural Sciences (NS2): Biology/Astronomy/Geology - 3 hrs.

16 hours

Sophomore Year

First Semester

  • CE 205 Computing in Civil Engineering - 1 hr.
  • CE 250 Mechanics II - 3 hrs.
  • CHM 110 General Chemistry I - 3 hrs.
  • CHM 111 General Chemistry I Lab - 1 hr.
  • MTH 223 Calculus III - 4 hrs.
  • CE 224 CADD - 3 hrs.

15 hours

Second Semester

  • CE 210 Numerical Methods in CE - 3 hrs.
  • CE 270 Mechanics of Materials - 3 hrs.
  • CE 260 Fluid Mechanics - 3 hrs.
  • 1Core Curr. —Social and Behavioral Sciences (SB) - 3 hrs.
  • 1Core Curr. —Fine Arts (FA) - 3 hrs.
  • MTH 224 Differential Equations - 3 hrs.

18 hours

Junior Year

First Semester

  • CON 326 Construction Estimating - 3 hrs.
  • CE 359 Structural Analysis - 4 hrs.
  • CE 360 Introduction to Environmental Engineering - 4 hrs.
  • CE 350 Geotechnical Engineering - 4 hrs.
  • CE 383 Ethics and Sustainability – 1 hr.

16 hours

Second Semester

  • CE 310 Probability, Statistics and Decision Making in CE - 3 hrs.
  • ENG 305 Technical Writing - 3 hrs. (Bradley Core Communication – W2)
  • CE 393 Sustainability and Public Policy - 2 hrs.
  • CE 365 Reinforced Concrete Design - 4 hrs.
  • CE 356 Pavement Design - 4 hrs.

16 hours

Senior Year

First Semester

  • CE 480 Transportation Engineering - 3 hrs.
  • CE 442 Design of Steel Structures - 3 hrs.
  • 3CE Electives - 6 hrs.
  • CE 493 Senior Design Project I (WI) - 3 hrs.

15 hours

Second Semester

  • CE 498 CE Design Project II (WI) - 3 hrs.
  • CE 422 Foundation Analysis and Design - 3 hrs. 
  • 4Approved Technical Electives - 6 hrs.
  • 1 Core Curr. - Humanities (HU) - 3 hrs.

15 hours

Total Hours: 128

1 Bradley University Core Curriculum education courses may be selected from an approved list for each category. They may be taken in any sequence, not necessarily in the semester indicated. Other University general education requirements are satisfied by specific courses required above.

2 Any biology or astronomy or geology course. See Technical Electives I. Math and Basic Sciences.

3 CE Technical electives must be selected from an approved list. See Technical Electives II. Civil Engineering Electives.

4 Approved Technical electives may be Basic Science, Civil Engineering, or Program Electives as shown in approved lists. See Technical Electives I. Mathematics and Basic Science, II. Civil Engineering, or III. Program Electives.

Technical Electives — 15 credit hours

All electives selected by the student should be approved by the student's academic advisor. The student should select technical electives that reflect career objectives. Students wishing to enroll in a CEC graduate-level course must have a minimum 2.75 GPA overall. The advisor will select the appropriate elective category for each offering of project and topic courses: CE 481, CE 482, CE 491, CE 492, CE 591, CE 592, CE 593, and CE 594. 

Math and Basic Science

  Students must take 3 semester hours from the following courses:

  • Any biology course
  • Any astronomy course
  • Any geological science course

    Students may take an additional 6 semester hours from the following courses:
  • Any biology course
  • Any astronomy course
  • Any geological science course
  • Any mathematics course above MTH 224
  • Any physics course above PHY 110
  • Any chemistry course above CHM 110

    Civil Engineering Electives

  Students must select a minimum of 6 semester hours.

Group A: Civil Engineering Science Courses

Students may apply up to a maximum of 9 semester hours.

  • CE 206 Surveying
  • CE 465 Surface Water Hydrology
  • CE 481 Projects I
  • CE 482 Projects II
  • CE 491 Special Topics I
  • CE 492 Special Topics II
  • CE 508 Advanced Soil Mechanics
  • CE 541 Pollution Modeling
  • CE 546 Groundwater Hydrology
  • CE 555 Sustainability and Environmental Regulations
  • CE 558 Solid Waste Management
  • CE 560 Advanced Structural Analysis
  • CE 570 Advanced Mechanics of Materials
  • CE 575 Structural Dynamics
  • CE 580 Highway Safety
  • CE 588 Transportation Economics
  • CE 591 Advanced Topics I
  • CE 592 Advanced Topics II
  • CE 593 Advanced Project I
  • CE 594 Advanced Project II

Group B: Civil Engineering Design

  Students may apply up to a maximum of 12 semester hours and not less than 3 semester hours.

  • CE 430 Water Supply and Hydraulic Engineering
  • CE 481 Projects I
  • CE 482 Projects II
  • CE 491 Special Topics I
  • CE 492 Special Topics II
  • CE 515 Advanced Foundation Engineering
  • CE 542 Advanced Water Treatment
  • CE 543 Advanced Wastewater Treatment
  • CE 562 Advanced Steel Design
  • CE 565 Advanced Concrete Design
  • CE 567 Prestressed Concrete Design
  • CE 577 Seismic Design
  • CE 583 Geometric Highway Design
  • CE 587 Traffic Signal Design
  • CE 591 Advanced  Topics I
  • CE 592 Advanced  Topics II
  • CE 593 Advanced Project I
  • CE 594 Advanced Project II

Program Electives

Students may apply up to a maximum of 6 semester hours.

Engineering Science

  • ME 301 Thermodynamics I
  • ME 302 Thermodynamics II
  • ME 521 Intermediate Fluid Mechanics
  • ME 537 Building Energy Management
  • ME 556 Mechanics of Composite Materials
  • ME 577 Finite Element Methods in Engineering
  • IME 301 Engineering Economy I
  • IME 313 Operations Research I
  • EE 205 Fundamentals of Circuit Analysis
  • EE 327 Fundamentals of Electrical Engineering I
  • EE 328 Fundamentals of Electrical Engineering II

 Other

  • Any BUS, BSA, ATG, ECO, BLW, BMA, ENT, MIS, FIN, ML, MTG, or IB course
  • Any computer science course above CS 202
  • CE 481 Projects I
  • CE 482 Projects II
  • CE 491 Special Topics I
  • CE 492 Special Topics II
  • CE 520 Advanced Numerical Methods
  • CE 591 Advanced Topics I
  • CE 592 Advanced Topics II
  • CE 593 Advanced Project I
  • CE 594 Advanced Project II
  • CON 352 Sustainable Urban Environment
  • CON 356 Construction Safety
  • CON 380 Construction Contracts
  • CON 392 Construction Scheduling
  • CON 394 Construction Labor and Unions
  • CON 395 Construction Claims and Change Orders
  • CON 489 Design of Wood and Masonry Structures
  • CON 494 Construction Practices
  • CON 520 Advanced Construction Practice
  • CON 522 Advanced CADD
  • CON 524 Building Information Modeling
  • CON 526 Advanced Construction  Estimating
  • CON 528 Advanced Construction Scheduling
  • CON 529 Advanced Construction  Contracts
  • CON 536 TQM Principles
  • CON 537 Construction Simulation
  • CON 540 Project and Company Management

This is the official catalog for the 2019-2020 academic year. This catalog serves as a contract between a student and Bradley University. Should changes in a program of study become necessary prior to the next academic year every effort will be made to keep students advised of any such changes via the Dean of the College or Chair of the Department concerned, the Registrar's Office, u.Achieve degree audit system, and the Schedule of Classes. It is the responsibility of each student to be aware of the current program and graduation requirements for particular degree programs.