Civil Engineering MSCE

Major: Civil Engineering
Degree Awarded: Master of Science in Civil Engineering (MSCE)
Calendar Type: Quarter
Total Credit Hours: 45.0 
Co-op Option: MSCE: Available for full-time, on-campus master's-level students
Classification of Instructional Programs (CIP) code: 14.0801
Standard Occupational Classification (SOC) code: 17-2015

About the Program

Objectives

The graduate program in civil engineering offers students the opportunity to develop a more fundamental and complete understanding of the principles that govern their field as well as current design methodology. Students are encouraged to be innovative and imaginative in their quest for recognizing, stating, analyzing and solving engineering problems.

The goal of the Master’s program is to develop technical depth of expertise for a professional career in the planning, design, construction and operation of large-scale infrastructure systems, built facilities, and water resources management. 

General Information

The civil engineering programs comprise the following areas of specialization: geotechnical engineering, structural engineering and water resource engineering.

Students in this program are eligible to participate in Graduate Co-op to enhance experience in the field. For more information, visit the Drexel Engineering Graduate Co-op webpage.

Additional Information

For more information, visit the MS in Civil Engineering program and Department of Civil, Architectural and Environmental Engineering webpages.

Admission Requirements

MS admission is based on an academic record demonstrating adequate preparation and potential for successful graduate study. This typically includes a BS from an engineering curriculum accredited by the Accrediting Board for Engineering and Technology (ABET) or the equivalent from a non-U.S. institution. Submission of results from the Graduate Record Exam (GRE) is optional. A grade point average (GPA) of 3.0 is usually required. Graduates who do not have a bachelor's degree in either Civil, Architectural or Environmental Engineering may be required to take preparatory undergraduate courses.

The application package should include:

• undergraduate and graduate transcripts as applicable
• two letters of recommendation from faculty or professionals who can evaluate the applicant’s promise as a graduate student
• GRE scores (optional)
• a written statement of career and educational goals

For additional information on how to apply, visit Drexel's Admissions page for Civil Engineering.

Master of Science in Civil Engineering

The programs of study at the master’s level continue the specialization developed at the senior level of the undergraduate program or newly developed interests. The Master of Science in Civil Engineering program may be elected by graduates of ABET-accredited undergraduate programs in civil engineering and related fields. Admission and prerequisites are determined on the basis of a student’s undergraduate transcript.

Most MSCE graduates work as professional engineers in consulting firms, industry, or governmental agencies. A number of our graduates have started consulting and construction firms in the Philadelphia area and have been very successful. Other former students hold prominent positions in public utilities, local government agencies, and industry.

Both full- and part-time students are welcome in the MSCE program. The full-time graduate academic program is closely associated with the research efforts of the faculty. Full-time master’s degree candidates are encouraged to base their master’s thesis on some aspect of faculty research. The one-to-one relationship between student and faculty member provides an invaluable learning experience. The General (Aptitude) Test of the Graduate Record Examination (GRE) is required for applicants pursuing full-time study.

The master’s degree requires a total of 45.0 credits, of which 15.0 credits are Required Theme Courses within the major field of interest, 15.0 credits are Core Technical Electives within the major field of interest, and the remaining 15.0 credits are taken as Additional Technical Electives in the related areas or in combination with research and thesis credits or from approved certificate programs (up to a maximum of 15.0 credits). The choice of Core Technical Electives and Additional Technical Elective courses is made in consultation with the student’s graduate advisor.

Areas of concentration include:

• Geotechnical Engineering
• Structural Engineering
• Water Resources Engineering

Co-op

Students have the option to pursue a co-op as part of their master's program. In conjunction with the Steinbright Career Development Center, students will be provided an overview of professionalism, resume writing, and the job search process. Co-op will be for a six-month position running in the summer/fall terms. Students will not earn academic credit for the co-op but will earn 9.0 non-academic co-op units per term.

Geotechnical Engineering Requirements

*

Must achieve grade of B or better.

**

It should be noted that up to 15 credits from an approved certificate program can be applied to meet the requirements for the “Additional Technical Electives”.

***

For students writing a master’s thesis, nine credits should consist of a minimum of 8 research credits (CIVE 997) and a minimum of 1 thesis credit (CIVE 898). Full time master’s students are encouraged to do a thesis. Students opting not to do a thesis could do a research project which would consist of a minimum of 5 research credits (CIVE 997) and a minimum of 1 thesis credit (CIVE 898) or would require the completion of an additional 9.0 graduate technical elective credits from the list above, therefore, the total graduate technical elective credits required will be 15.0.

†

Co-op is an option for this degree for full-time on-campus students. To prepare for the 6-month co-op experience, students will complete: COOP 500. The total credits required for this degree with the co-op experience is 46.
Students not participating in the co-op experience will need 45.0 credits to graduate

Structural Engineering Requirements

*

Must achieve grade of B or better.

**

It should be noted that up to 15 credits from an approved certificate program can be applied to meet the requirements for the “Additional Technical Electives”.

***

For students writing an master’s thesis, nine credits should consist of a minimum of 8 research credits (CIVE 997) and a minimum of 1 thesis credit (CIVE 898). Full time master’s students are encouraged to do a thesis. Students opting not to do a thesis could do a research project which would consist of a minimum of 5 research credits (CIVE 997) and a minimum of 1 thesis credit (CIVE 898) or would require the completion of an additional 9.0 graduate technical elective credits from the list above, therefore, the total graduate technical elective credits required will be 21.0.

†

Co-op is an option for this degree for full-time on-campus students. To prepare for the 6-month co-op experience, students will complete: COOP 500. The total credits required for this degree with the co-op experience is 46.
Students not participating in the co-op experience will need 45.0 credits to graduate

Water Resources Engineering Requirements

*

Must achieve grade of B or better.

**

It should be noted that up to 15 credits from an approved certificate program can be applied to meet the requirements for the “Additional Technical Electives”.

***

For students writing an master’s thesis, nine credits should consist of a minimum of 8 research credits (CIVE 997) and a minimum of 1 thesis credit (CIVE 898). Full time master’s students are encouraged to do a thesis. Students opting not to do a thesis could do a research project which would consist of a minimum of 5 research credits (CIVE 997) and a minimum of 1 thesis credit (CIVE 898) or would require the completion of an additional 9.0 graduate technical elective credits from the list above, therefore, the total graduate technical elective credits required will be 21.0.

†

Co-op is an option for this degree for full-time on-campus students. To prepare for the 6-month co-op experience, students will complete: COOP 500. The total credits required for this degree with the co-op experience is 46.
Students not participating in the co-op experience will need 45.0 credits to graduate

Sample Plan of Study (MS)

MSCE No CO-OP, with Thesis Option

MSCE CO-OP Option, No Thesis

Facilities

The Civil, Architectural, and Environmental Engineering Department laboratories provide students with fully equipped space for education and research opportunities. 

Structural and Geotechnical Research Laboratory Facilities and Equipment

The geotechnical and structural engineering research labs at Drexel University provide a forum to perform large-scale experimentation across a broad range of areas including infrastructure preservation and renewal, structural health monitoring, geosynthetics, nondestructive evaluation, earthquake engineering, and novel ground modification approaches among others.

The laboratory is equipped with different data acquisition systems (MTS, Campbell Scientific, and National Instruments) capable of recording strain, displacement, tilt, load and acceleration time histories. An array of sensors including LVDTs, wire potentiometers, linear and rotational accelerometers, and load cells are also available. Structural testing capabilities include two 220kips capacity loading frames (MTS 311 and Tinius Olsen), in addition to several medium capacity testing frames (Instron 1331 and 567 and MTS 370 testing frames), two 5-kips MTS actuators for dynamic testing and one degree of freedom 22kips ANCO shake table. The laboratory also features a phenomenological physical model which resembles the dynamic features of common highway bridges and is used for field testing preparation and for testing different measurement devices.  

The Woodring Laboratory hosts a wide variety of geotechnical, geosynthetics, and materials engineering testing equipment. The geotechnical engineering testing equipment includes Geotac unconfined compression and a triaxial compression testing device, ring shear apparatus, constant rate of strain consolidometer, an automated incremental consolidometer, an automated Geotac direct shear device and a large-scale consolidometer (12” by 12” sample size). Other equipment includes a Fisher pH and conductivity meter as well as a Brookfield rotating viscometer. Electronic and digital equipment include FLIR SC 325 infrared camera for thermal measurements, NI Function generators, acoustic emission sensors and ultrasonic transducers, signal conditioners, and impulse hammers for nondestructive testing.

The geosynthetics testing equipment in the Woodring lab includes pressure cells for incubation and a new differential scanning calorimetry device including the standard-OIT. Materials testing equipment that is available through the materials and chemical engineering departments includes a scanning electron microscope, liquid chromatography, and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy.

The Building Science and Engineering Group (BSEG) research space is also located in the Woodring Laboratory. This is a collaborative research unit working at Drexel University with the objective of achieving more comprehensive and innovative approaches to sustainable building design and operation through the promotion of greater collaboration between diverse sets of research expertise. Much of the BSEG work is simulation or model based.  Researchers in this lab also share some instrumentation with the DARRL lab (see below). 

Environmental Engineering Laboratory Facilities and Equipment

The environmental engineering laboratories at Drexel University allow faculty and student researchers access to state-of-the-art equipment needed to execute a variety of experiments. These facilities are located in the Alumni Engineering Laboratory Building and includes approximately 2000 SF shared laboratory space, and a 400 SF clean room for cell culture and PCR.

The major equipment used in this laboratory space consists of: Roche Applied Science LightCyclerÔ 480 Real-time PCR System, Leica fluorescence microscope with phase contrast and video camera, Spectrophotometer, Zeiss stereo microscope with heavy duty boom stand, fluorescence capability, and a SPOT cooled color camera, BIORAD iCycler thermocycler for PCR, gel readers, transilluminator and electrophoresis setups, temperature controlled circulator with immersion stirrers suitable for inactivation studies at volumes up to 2 L per reactor, BSL level 2 fume hood, laminar hood, soil sampling equipment, Percival Scientific environmental chamber (model 1-35LLVL), custom-built rainfall simulator.

The Drexel Air Resources Research Laboratory (DARRL) is located in the Alumni Engineering Laboratory Building and contains state-of-the-art aerosol measurement instrumentation including a Soot Particle Aerosol Mass Spectrometer (Aerodyne Research Inc.), mini-Aerosol Mass Spectrometer, (Aerodyne Research Inc.), Scanning Electrical Mobility Sizer (Brechtel Manufacturing), Scanning Mobility Particle Sizer (TSI Inc.), Fast Mobility Particle Sizer (TSI Inc.), Centrifugal Particle Mass Analyzer (Cambustion Ltd.), GC-FID, ozone monitors, and other instrumentation. These instruments are used for the detailed characterization of the properties of particles less than 1 micrometer in diameter including: chemical composition, size, density, and shape or morphology. 

In addition to the analytical instrumentation in DARRL, the laboratory houses several reaction chambers. These chambers are used for controlled experiments meant to simulate chemical reactions that occur in the indoor and outdoor environments. The reaction chambers vary in size from 15 L to 1 m3, and allow for a range of experimental conditions to be conducted in the laboratory.

Computer Equipment and Software

The Civil, Architectural, and Environmental Engineering (CAEE) Department at Drexel University has hardware and software capabilities for students to conduct research. The CAEE department operates a computer lab that is divided into two sections; one open access room, and a section dedicated to teaching. The current computer lab has 25 desktop computers that are recently updated to handle resource intensive GIS (Geographic Information Systems) and image processing software. There are a sufficient number of B&W and color laser printers that can be utilized for basic printing purposes.

Drexel University has site-licenses for a number of software, such as ESRITM ArcGIS 10, Visual Studio, SAP 2000, STAAD, Abaqus and MathworksTM Matlab. The Information Resources & Technology (IRT) department at Drexel University provides support (e.g., installation, maintenance and troubleshooting) to the above-mentioned software. It is currently supporting the lab by hosting a software image configuration that provides a series of commonly used software packages, such as MS Office and ADOBE Acrobat among others. As a part of ESRI campus license (the primary maker of GIS applications, i.e. ArcGIS) the department has access to a suite of seated licenses for GIS software with necessary extensions (e.g., LIDAR Analyst) required for conducting research.  

Civil, Architectural and Environmental Engineering Faculty

Emeritus Faculty