Rice University

Civil and Environmental Engineering (CEE) is a broad and diverse field of study that offers students an education with several degree options. The most flexible degree options are at the bachelor’s level, where students can pursue either the Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering (BSCE) degree or the Bachelor of Arts (BA) degree. The more scientific BSCE includes four areas of specialization while the BA, with its two distinct major concentrations, affords students more flexibility, including the possibility to complete a double major with any other Rice University major.

At the graduate level, the department offers one non-thesis graduate degree, the Master of Civil and Environmental Engineering (MCEE), to students who desire additional education and specialization in the practice of civil engineering or environmental sciences and engineering. Students admitted for graduate study leading to a Master of Science (MS) or Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) degree must complete a rigorous course of study that combines advanced coursework with scholarly research culminating in the public defense of a written thesis. Graduate research is carried out in a range of areas reflecting the interests of the department’s faculty. Examples include environmental engineering, geotechnical engineering, structural engineering and mechanics, infrastructure reliability, hydrology, water resources and water quality management, air pollution and its control, and hazardous waste treatment.