University of Kentucky

Often considered the oldest practitioners within engineering, the intellectual ancestors of civil engineers have been around since the first cities were built by humans 10,000 years ago. Fast forward to the 18th century, when the development of the modern civil engineering profession led directly to many conveniences we enjoy every day. Civil engineering is part of our daily lives. From the water in your faucets every morning, to the roads and bridges that you use for transportation, to the energy distribution systems that power your home, civil engineers help make modern life possible. Civil engineering is a people-serving profession. Thanks to the development of technologies like clean water treatment plants, civil engineers have helped improve the quality of life around the world. From tunnels under the Earth’s surface to skyscrapers standing far above it, civil engineers plan, design, construct, operate, maintain, and rehabilitate the infrastructure of the world.