Course description
Department Vision: "Engineering Sustainable Infrastructure for the Future"
This vision guides our research and teaching activities, which are to:
• Educate engineering leaders who can work in a multi-disciplinary environment to anticipate and address evolving challenges of the 21st century.
• Develop and apply high performance structural materials and systems
• Develop performance-based earthquake engineering as a new paradigm for analysis and design of disaster-resistant infrastructure
• Improve the reliability, performance, and disaster-resistance of water supplies, treatment processes, and distribution systems
• Create new engineering materials to improve the performance of infrastructure
• Characterize and mitigate natural and man-made hazards
• Improve fundamental knowledge of the inter-relationships between the built environment and natural systems
• Develop the technological innovations needed to safeguard, improve, and economize infrastructure and society
The following describes the educational objectives and intended outcomes for undergraduate students enrolled in UCLA’s C&EE department.
A. Civil Engineering Objectives
1. Fundamental Knowledge: Graduates of the program will be skilled in the fundamental principles of mathematics, science, and four sub-disciplines in Civil Engineering that are necessary for success in industry or graduate school.
2. Specialization: Graduates of the program will be proficient in at least two of the specialized sub-fields of Civil Engineering to an extent that they can pursue careers in those fields or in related inter-disciplinary fields that benefit from a strong background in applied sciences and engineering. The sub-fields emphasized by the UCLA CEE department are Environmental Engineering, Geotechnical Engineering, Structural Engineering and Mechanics, and Water Resources Engineering.
3. Design Skills: Graduates of the program will be skilled in problem solving, design and interpretation of experiments, and operating within a team environment for the solution of design problems in their chosen field.
4. Professional Skills: Graduates of the program will be capable of operating effectively in a professional environment by demonstrating technical communication skills, the ability to procure work, the ability to interact effectively with construction professionals, and an understanding of both ethical issues in Civil Engineering and the importance of Civil Engineering work to society.
5. Lifelong Learning: Graduates of the program will be prepared to continue their professional development based on their awareness of professional society activities, professional licensure requirements, and opportunities for further education in graduate school.
B. Civil Engineering Outcomes
a. Graduates will understand and be able to apply the basic mathematical and scientific concepts that underlie the modern field of Civil Engineering.
b. Graduates will possess the ability to design and conduct experiments and to analyze and interpret experimental data.
c. Graduates will possess the ability to meaningfully contribute to major Civil Engineering design projects.
d. Graduates will be capable of working productively with others as part of a team.
e. Graduates will possess critical thinking skills, problem solving abilities, and familiarity with the computational procedures essential to the field.
f. Graduates will understand the professional and ethical responsibilities of their profession.
g. Graduates will possess effective oral and written communication skills.
h. Graduates will have an appreciation for the scope, complexity, elegance and importance of the Civil Engineering field and its impact on society.
i. Graduates will have the skills and motivation for continuing education and professional growth after graduation.
j. Graduates will maintain an awareness of contemporary issues and will contribute to the well being of their communities.
k. Graduates will be proficient in the core principles of Civil Engineering as they pertain to the sub-fields of Environmental Engineering, Geotechnical Engineering, Structural Engineering and Water Resources Engineering, and will be able to apply these principles in engineering practice.
l. Graduates will have an understanding of critical issues for professional practice such as the procurement of work and the interaction with contractors during the construction phase of a project.
