how much math is required on the job in civil engineering?

Question

i am wanting to get my degree in civil engineering but i am struggling in my pre-cal trig class...i enjoy the math that i understand and love science..i really want to be an engineer but im really stressing about all of the math im going to have to take (not that im am moron, ive been able to keep a b or c average in my math classes but those are my worst grades in college) I was wondering what kinds of math i will most likely use on the job...thanks

Answer 1

The hardest math I use on a daily basis is the addition of negative numbers. We deal with General Civil Engineering, including land development, grading of parking lots, sizing of detnetion ponds, roadway design, etc.

None of the math that a general civil engineer deals with is difficult on a daily basis...

...it's getting through the math in school that's difficult.

I don't think that the other people answering have any practical experience, or are structural engineers.

Stick with it. Civil is a cool profession.

Answer 2

Maths is a fundamental subject in most engineering courses - whether Civil Engineering or Computer Science. To understand why - think about answers to the following questions:

As a qualified Civil Engineer:

1. How would you start to design a domed stadium that should have a capacity to seat 25000 people?

2. How would you determine the thickness at the base and the inclination of the wall of a dam on a river that flows at 15 meters/second?

3. What should the thickness of the walls on each floor be for a parking garage that will hold 900 cars at peak capacity and must be 7 floors high?

You see why you need a solid base in Mathematics to be a good Civil Engineer?

Answer 3

You have to take roughly 4 semesters of math beginning with calculus 1.

The civil engineering curriculum is all about using math to model things like determine beam stress and deflection, water flow in pipes, laying out curves in surveying, the allowable load on a building foundation, etc.

Civil engineers use computers to do a good deal of the complicated calculations, but you should have an understanding of how the answers are derived. This is what you learn in engineering school.

It can be exciting using science and math to solve problems like the ones I have stated above, but if you have trepidation about the math, civil engineering may not be the best field of endeavor for you.

Good luck

Answer 4

I disagree .. there are MANY unemployed teachers, regardless of their expertise, but the pool of available Civil engineers is much smaller so, simply by the laws of supply and demand, there are fewer unemployed engineers. BOTH jobs, however, are difficult to get in. A teacher requires the proper credentials issued by the state after the proper training and internship. They also have other related requirements of health and expertise . In addition there is an entirely different level of socialization and communication skills which need to be mastered in order to convey YOUR knowledge to someone else. All states in the USA have a license procedure for Civil Engineers.. generally this requires a BS in engineering, (or equivalent), passing 16 hours of examination and between four and 6 years of internship before you can obtain the professional credentials which are required to legally call yourself an engineer. So, in effect, neither job is 'easy' to get into and both have substantial entry requirements of both time and education. As such, your choice really needs to be made EARLY in your career ladder as there is generally not enough time in life to backtrack. So it becomes not a choice of what is easier, but of what you really want to do in life that should drive your decision...That is what makes the difference between a JOB and a CAREER. .

Answer 5

I am a environmental engineering student in Arizona State University. At ASU, environmental is part of civil engineering. I had a hard time to understand pre-calc when I was taking it. Hey, but you know what? As long as you enjoy the math and love science, you will do good in the future. I ended up got all A's for the rest of my math classes. To me, pre-calc was my hardest math class, since it involves both college algebra and trig, and they make you learn them all in one semester!! Pre-calc is a hard class in general. I am in my third year, to answer your question, here are the math classes you probably need to take...
1) Pre-calc
2) Calc 1
3) Calc 2
4) Calc 3
5) Differential equations
6) Linear Algebra
7) Statistics and Probability

For civil engineers, they probably will need a lot trigonometry and calculus, but lots of physic in general. Depends on which branch of civil you want to be in.

Don't be discourage my friend, follow your heart!!

Good luck and God bless!!

Answer 6

just wait til you get calc 1-3 and differential equations...

youll definitely need to know trig, though

it more depends on what branch you are going with as for on the job math

Answer 7

If you cannot handle trigonometry, you will not likely make it in engineering. You need to take at least junior level math courses in college to do well in engineering.

Answer 8

Pick up some more on computers and let the computer do it for u.