Civil engineers held about 281,400 jobs in 2014. The industries that employed the most civil engineers were as follows:
Engineering services
46%
State government, excluding education and hospitals
13
Local government, excluding education and hospitals
11
Nonresidential building construction
5
Federal government, excluding postal service
4
Civil engineers work in a variety of locations and conditions. When working on designs, civil engineers may spend most of their time indoors in offices. However, construction engineers may spend much of their time outdoors at construction sites monitoring operations or solving onsite problems. Some jobs may require frequent relocation to different areas and offices in job site trailers.
Civil engineers who function as project managers may work from cars or trucks as they move from site to site. Many civil engineers work for governments agencies in government office buildings or facilities. Occasionally, civil engineers travel abroad to work on large engineering projects in other countries.
Work Schedules
Civil engineers typically work full time, and about 1 in 4 worked more than 40 hours per week in 2014. Engineers who direct projects may need to work extra hours to monitor progress on the projects, to ensure that designs meet requirements, and to guarantee that deadlines are met.
Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Department of Labor, Occupational Outlook Handbook, 2014-2024 Edition
Interesting Fact
Dentists have one of the highest suicide rates of all professions. Their rate of suicide is 6.64 times greater than the rest of the working population.