Environmental Engineering BS

The curriculum is designed to meet several educational objectives. These broad statements describe what we expect our graduates to achieve within a few years of graduation. Our program educational objectives are:

• Satisfy the requirements of their employers for professional practice in environmental engineering
• Continue their professional development in environmental engineering, including professional licensure, continuing education, and/or graduate study

In addition, the curriculum provides opportunities for students to develop the following knowledge, skills, and behaviors by the time of graduation:

1. an ability to identify, formulate, and solve complex engineering problems by applying principles of engineering, science, and mathematics

2. an ability to apply engineering design to produce solutions that meet specified needs with consideration of public health, safety, and welfare, as well as global, cultural, social, environmental, and economic factors

3. an ability to communicate effectively with a range of audiences

4. an ability to recognize ethical and professional responsibilities in engineering situations and make informed judgments, which must consider the impact of engineering solutions in global, economic, environmental, and societal contexts

5. an ability to function effectively on a team whose members together provide leadership, create a collaborative and inclusive environment, establish goals, plan tasks, and meet objectives

6. an ability to develop and conduct appropriate experimentation, analyze and interpret data, and use engineering judgment to draw conclusions

7. an ability to acquire and apply new knowledge as needed, using appropriate learning strategies.

The School of Engineering and Applied Sciences occupies six buildings on UB's north campus: Bell, Bonner, Davis, Furnas, Jarvis, and Ketter Hall.

Together, these buildings form an outstanding educational and research facility, comprising 275,000 square feet of laboratory and office space.

The Environmental Engineering BS program has dedicated teaching laboratories for lab experiences in wet chemistry, environmental microbiology, fluid mechanics, hydraulics and soil mechanics. In addition, the program has dedicated computing space with software specific to environmental engineering.

We have 32 full-time faculty members (all with PhD degrees) and approximately 5 adjunct faculty members. Our faculty members are actively engaged in teaching, research, and service, and have received national and international recognition from some of the most influential civil and environmental engineering organizations including the American Society of Civil Engineers and the National Science Foundation. They also have been recognized for their teaching, research, and creativity at both the SUNY and SEAS levels, including three SUNY Chancellor's Awards for Excellence in Teaching and three SUNY Distinguished Professorships, the highest rank in the SUNY system.

Our faculty's dedication to teaching and research have had an impact on our national and international ranking as well. According to U.S. News and World Report, we are the 32nd ranked department in the United States, and according to the Academic Ranking of World Universities, the Department is ranked 12th globally and 5th in the U.S.

Environmental engineers choose from a broad spectrum of employment opportunities in private consulting firms, industry, governmental agencies, and research/development. BS graduates also have the skills and most prerequisites to pursue further education in law, management, public health or other professional fields.

Environmental engineering jobs are diverse and include consulting engineering firms, government, and industry. Here is a partial list of companies and agencies who recruit students from this program: ALCOA, Buffalo Sewer Authority, CH2M Hill, DuPont, Ecology and Environment, Inc., Erie County Water Authority, GHD, Arcadis, NYS Department of Environmental Conservation, Parsons Engineering Science, URS Corp., and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.

Degree level required: A significant number of employers require or reward an MS degree for environmental engineering jobs. Thus, some students continue their studies at the graduate level.

Average starting salary: $55,000.