Course overview

Civil engineering is key to economic and social stability throughout the world and civil engineering education is aimed at producing professionals who plan, design, construct and manage large-scale public works and amenities that underpin society. Here at Portsmouth, our course is designed to produce graduates who can:

• Use a combination of general and specialist civil engineering knowledge and understanding to apply existing and emerging technology.
• Apply appropriate theoretical and practical methods to design, develop, construct, commission, operate and maintain (as appropriate) civil engineering products, processes, systems and services.
• Provide technical and commercial management in the construction industry.
• Demonstrate effective interpersonal skills and a personal commitment to professional standards, recognising obligations to society, the profession and the environment.

This degree will lead you to a recognised professional qualification in civil engineering. It is accredited by the Institution of Civil Engineers (ICE), the Institution of Structural Engineers (IStructE), the Chartered Institution of Highways and Transportation (CIHT) and the Institute of Highway Engineers (IHE). The course partially satisfies the educational base for a Chartered Engineer (CEng) under the United Kingdom Standard for Professional Engineering Competence (UK-SPEC). Further learning such as an accredited MSc would be required to fully satisfy the educational base. Students on the BEng programme may transfer to the MEng programme at the end of Year One or Two subject to satisfactory performance. The MEng programme is accredited by the above institutions and fully satisfies the educational base for a Chartered Engineer (CEng). The School maintains excellent links with these professional bodies and regularly updates and advises students on matters relating to their progress to professional status.

Career focused

The entrance criteria of this degree have been designed to comply with the requirements of major engineering graduate programmes. Competent students can have the opportunity to apply their skills to real-life practical problems as part of the department’s partnership scheme with charities, local and global organisations. Please view the 'Career prospects' section for further details.

To find out more about placement opportunities in the Faculty of Technology, please visit our Placements Office pages.

Placement and fieldwork

The course can be taken in sandwich mode, enabling you to take a year in industry to gain experience. The sandwich year is usually taken between Year two and three of the degree programme. Close links are maintained with a wide range of organisations in the civil engineering industry and the School has an excellent record of obtaining suitable industrial training. In addition to the experience gained on a placement, you will also gain valuable experience during field trips. All students undertake field studies in surveying, soil mechanics, environmental hydraulics and construction. The course makes extensive use of the ‘real-world laboratory’.

Exchange opportunities

Opportunities exist for part of your studies to be undertaken in France, Germany, Spain, the Czech Republic or Turkey. The School has developed educational links with a number of institutions including Grand Ecole d’Ingenieur at St Etienne in France, Ecole Superieure at Cachen in France, Fachhochschule Trier in Germany, Universidad de Granada in Spain, Universidad de A Coruna in Spain, Technical University of Ostrava in the Czech Republic and Yildiz Technical University in Istanbul, Turkey.

Course content

The BEng (Hons) Civil Engineering degree is completed over three years. The course may also be taken as a sandwich course, with approved year-long industrial training undertaken at the end of year one or two. The course is unitised and credit is given for each unit successfully completed. Each year is made up of a number of compulsory (core) and optional units.

Year one

During your first year you will be introduced to the key theories and principles upon which civil engineering practice is based. Year one comprises 120 credits, all of which are compulsory. You will study fundamental engineering principles in topics such as:

• Structures: the behaviour and modelling of simple structural elements.
• Soils and Materials: the nature and performance of soils and major construction materials.
• Engineering Analysis: the fundamental mathematical techniques that have application in civil engineering.
• Hydraulic and Environmental Engineering: the behaviour of fluids at rest and in motion and also the fundamental concepts in environmental science and their relevance to civil engineering.
• Construction Management: the construction processes and their implications for health, safety and welfare of project participants and the environment.
• Surveying: the theory and practice of measuring angles, distances and heights and their application in data collection and construction site setting out.

In addition, you will study the technical, practical and people skills required for effective communication in the construction industry.

Year two

Year two will extend your understanding and ability to analyse complex civil engineering systems. It also comprises 120 credits (100 from core units and 20 from optional units). You will study units that enable you to:

• Model the behaviour of complex structural elements.
• Design structural elements in reinforced concrete and steel.
• Analyse the performance of soils and major construction materials and their subsequent impact on civil engineering structures.
• Apply mathematical, probabilistic and numerical techniques to civil engineering problems.
• Analyse and manage closed conduit and open channel flow of fluids.
• Apply the knowledge and techniques to the design and management of water and wastewater treatment systems.

In addition, you will be encouraged to study options from a range of courses on offer throughout the University, including the Institution-Wide Language Programme which enables students to study a second language or develop existing language skills.

Year three

Year three builds on all the knowledge acquired in previous years so that you are able to design and manage civil engineering systems (such as buildings, hydraulic structures, highways, etc) in an integrated manner. It comprises 120 credits of core units. In your final year you will also be expected to complete Research Methods and Individual Project (40 credits). This is completed over a full academic year, and includes the application of knowledge, techniques and skills to solve a civil engineering problem and/or create new knowledge through a systematic research process.

Teaching and assessment

We use a variety of teaching such as lectures, seminars, tutorials, site visits and laboratory and field exercises. Teaching is also enhanced by the extensive research, consultancy and other scholarly activities carried out by academic staff, and we increasingly use the internet to support independent learning.

You will be assessed in each individual unit by either coursework or examination or by a weighted combination of both. Assessment takes place within the teaching period or at the end of the academic year and your results are published once approved and verified. Feedback is provided on all assessment artefacts to show you what you did well, what you didn’t do well and how you can improve your performance.

Career prospects

Placement opportunities

In the Faculty of Technology we feel that students should be given as many opportunities as possible to gain meaningful work experience and build employability skills throughout their studies to make them more attractive to future employers.

Working with other University services, the Faculty’s Student Placement and Employability Centre (SPEC) ensure students have access to a range of volunteering and work experience opportunities, including year-long industrial placements, and provide support for the different types of application processes.

Examples of companies our students have taken up a placement with include:

• Blair Rains M&E Design
• Portsmouth Water
• Bardon Contractin
• Cemex Rail Productions Ltd
• LeadBitter

Types of placement roles that could be relevant to this course include:

• Trainee Site Engineer
• Trainee Highway Engineer
• Assistant Project Manager

To find out more about how you can gain work experience whilst studying BEng (Hons) Civil Engineering, please visit our Placements Office pages.

Graduate roles

Since commencing degree courses more than 30 years ago, the School of Civil Engineering and Surveying has enjoyed a sound reputation with employers. Graduates have been outstandingly successful in finding employment in the construction industry, but the qualification is designed to be equally valuable as a means of securing employment in other sectors of the economy such as business, banking, IT and local government.

What the employers say

'Having recruited three Industrial Placement students from the University of Portsmouth who performed exceptionally whilst with us, BAM Nuttall are keen to continue working closely with the University. The students demonstrated excellent standards in safety awareness, were extremely conscientious, reliable and motivated. They showed a good attitude towards supervision and all got on well with their peers on site. They were honest and punctual. As a result of their performance on site, they have now been sponsored by us for the remainder of their degree courses and will join us as graduates when they finish. Since their return to university, I have heard from the sites that they are very much missed!'

Nicola Young, Student Liaison Officer, BAM Nuttall Ltd

Facilities and features

You will have use of the University Library with learning resources including books, periodicals, journals, trade magazines, electronic databases and an interlibrary loan facility. The School also has laboratories for materials and structures testing, fluid flow modelling and chemical investigation, as well as an onsite environmental laboratory located at a real sewage treatment works. We also have an extensive network of computers with general and specialist software.

Our team of experienced academic, support and administration staff are always willing to help. We also have a long-established network of civil engineering consulting and contracting organisations that provide real-world case studies, curriculum advice, feedback on your work and employment opportunities.

Maths Café

The Maths Café is a daily drop-in facility, where ANY student of the University can receive help on any maths or statistics problem they encounter in their studies. We operate in a friendly, informal location which we hope will encourage students to visit us. Handouts on key topics are available to take away. Students can be shown how to use computer aided learning packages, which can be accessed from any computer attached to the University's computer network.

Entry requirements

View all the entry requirements for BEng (Hons) Civil Engineering for the academic year 2013/14 (opens in new window).