What does a civil engineering internship do?
Civil engineer interns work to improve their knowledge about construction and its relevant works. An internship provides them insight into various aspects of construction and how things run at the site. Through an internship, they learn how to differentiate between reality and engineering. Civil engineering interns will typically perform various tasks, including preparing and monitoring documents, working closely with the civil engineer to resolve issues and review complaints, and preparing plans and maps. They are also expected to visit construction sites to do their planning, quality control, documentation, and site execution.
Civil engineering internship responsibilities
Here are examples of responsibilities from real civil engineering internship resumes:
- Assist and manage in the design and installation of central hydraulic systems that utilize PLC's.
- Programme VBA tool to organize and manage operator-supply production data into a comprehensive data set.
- Prepare summonses and other writs.
- Create as-built drawings to reflect changes in the field during construction process.
- Prepare civil summonses and other writs by typing proper forms and creating envelopes.
- Field technician for QC of for concrete, pile, and structural backfill installation.
- Work with other discipline lead engineers and QC to resolve any outstanding interfaces and quality issues.
- Create and present a PowerPoint on the future of the energy industry to entire civil engineering department.
- Create RFI s in order to select high quality suppliers to meet the needs of the project.
- Assemble and test high power, solid-state RF amplifiers and assist in the design of new products.
- Oversee piping of new components in the field and draft and design in 2-D AutoCAD and 3-D SolidWorks.
- Assist with rigorous failure tests on starter and wiper motors, thereby analyzing and suggesting windows of improvements.
- Perform RF susceptibility and/or immunity tests on the above equipment to test for EMI / EMC compatibility and functionality.
- Utilize the GIS system to provide Cambridge residents and construction professionals with utility, water, sewer and parcel plans.
- Associate responsibilities include aiding to development, testing and implementation of MicroPAVER, as well as GIS mapping and field surveying.
Civil engineering internship skills and personality traits
We calculated that 23% of Civil Engineering Interns are proficient in Civil 3D, GIS, and Roadway Design. They’re also known for soft skills such as Leadership skills, Organizational skills, and Speaking skills.
We break down the percentage of Civil Engineering Interns that have these skills listed on their resume here:
- Civil 3D, 23%
Drafted design drawings in AutoCAD Civil 3D for various bridge components such as abutments, wing wall, and other details.
- GIS, 14%
Updated the Geographic Information System (GIS) database by adding scanned record drawings of water, storm and sewer utilities.
- Roadway Design, 6%
Assisted in roadway design for residential/commercial road.
- PowerPoint, 5%
Coordinated special projects and PowerPoint Presentations.
- Construction Management, 4%
Assisted engineers with various other construction projects from construction management to designing projects to field engineering.
- Cost Estimates, 3%
Designed and prepared cost estimates for relocation of underground utilities in preparation of Central Artery/Tunnel project.
Common skills that a civil engineering internship uses to do their job include "civil 3d," "gis," and "roadway design." You can find details on the most important civil engineering internship responsibilities below.
Organizational skills. Many civil engineering internship duties rely on organizational skills. "civil engineers often oversee several projects at the same time and must be able to allocate resources effectively.," so a civil engineering internship will need this skill often in their role. This resume example is just one of many ways civil engineering internship responsibilities rely on organizational skills: "apply outstanding technical, organizational and leadership talents toward overseeing full-scope project management for initiatives totaling $1m. "
Math skills. For certain civil engineering internship responsibilities to be completed, the job requires competence in "math skills." The day-to-day duties of a civil engineering internship rely on this skill, as "civil engineers use calculus, trigonometry, and other mathematics for analysis, design, and troubleshooting." For example, this snippet was taken directly from a resume about how this skill applies to what civil engineering interns do: "assisted town engineer with field work, customer service, math and engineering data computations and data entry. "
Problem-solving skills. A commonly-found skill in civil engineering internship job descriptions, "problem-solving skills" is essential to what civil engineering interns do. Civil engineering internship responsibilities rely on this skill because "civil engineers may encounter problems during each stage of their work." You can also see how civil engineering internship duties rely on problem-solving skills in this resume example: "assisted civil engineers with government projects involving roadway designs and improvements, solutions easing traffic congestion and replacement of deteriorating bridges. "
The three companies that hire the most civil engineering internships are:
- Kimley-Horn18 civil engineering interns jobs
- WGI7 civil engineering interns jobs
- Lochner
6 civil engineering interns jobs
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Compare different civil engineering interns
Civil engineering internship vs. Representative projects
A Structural Designer designs, develops, and supervises the construction of new buildings and bridges, or extensions to existing properties or other structures. They review and update construction drawings as well as communicate project problems and flaws to managers.
These skill sets are where the common ground ends though. The responsibilities of a civil engineering internship are more likely to require skills like "civil 3d," "gis," "roadway design," and "powerpoint." On the other hand, a job as a representative projects requires skills like "infrastructure," "osha," "autocad," and "construction observation." As you can see, what employees do in each career varies considerably.
Representative projects tend to make the most money working in the technology industry, where they earn an average salary of $64,096. In contrast, civil engineering interns make the biggest average salary, $65,780, in the construction industry.The education levels that representative projects earn slightly differ from civil engineering interns. In particular, representative projects are 1.1% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree than a civil engineering internship. Additionally, they're 1.1% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Civil engineering internship vs. Structural designer
A Structural Design Engineer designs drawings, specifications, and computer models of structures for building contractors. They help design hospitals, office blocks, houses, bridges, ships, and other structures.
In addition to the difference in salary, there are some other key differences worth noting. For example, civil engineering internship responsibilities are more likely to require skills like "gis," "roadway design," "construction management," and "cost estimates." Meanwhile, a structural designer has duties that require skills in areas such as "bim," "navisworks," "ladders," and "steel structures." These differences highlight just how different the day-to-day in each role looks.
Structural designers earn a higher average salary than civil engineering interns. But structural designers earn the highest pay in the construction industry, with an average salary of $69,802. Additionally, civil engineering interns earn the highest salaries in the construction with average pay of $65,780 annually.In general, structural designers achieve similar levels of education than civil engineering interns. They're 2.8% less likely to obtain a Master's Degree while being 1.1% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.What technology do you think will become more important and prevalent for civil engineering internships in the next 3-5 years?
Karen Panetta Ph.D.
Dean of Graduate Education, School of Engineering, Tufts University
The pandemic has also renewed our sense of need for internet security, privacy, and access to service. When all our social and educational interactions had to move to virtual platforms, we became aware of just how small and ill-prepared the world was and how inequitable the availability of these services was to parts of the world.
Civil engineering internship vs. Structural design engineer
An assistant project engineer performs support tasks to assist project engineers in overseeing and managing engineering projects. Their responsibilities include conducting inspections and assessments, performing research and analyses, processing documents and certifications, managing schedules, liaising with internal and external parties, and providing technical support to staff as necessary. Besides reporting directly to the project engineer, they also work together in implementing policies and monitoring operations to ensure that engineering projects adhere to project guidelines and requirements.
There are many key differences between these two careers, including some of the skills required to perform responsibilities within each role. For example, a civil engineering internship is likely to be skilled in "civil 3d," "gis," "roadway design," and "powerpoint," while a typical structural design engineer is skilled in "cad," "autocad," "aerospace," and "gd."
Structural design engineers earn the highest salary when working in the manufacturing industry, where they receive an average salary of $88,526. Comparatively, civil engineering interns have the highest earning potential in the construction industry, with an average salary of $65,780.When it comes to education, structural design engineers tend to earn higher degree levels compared to civil engineering interns. In fact, they're 5.0% more likely to earn a Master's Degree, and 1.2% more likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.Civil engineering internship vs. Assistant project engineer
Even though a few skill sets overlap between civil engineering interns and assistant project engineers, there are some differences that are important to note. For one, a civil engineering internship might have more use for skills like "civil 3d," "gis," "roadway design," and "powerpoint." Meanwhile, some responsibilities of assistant project engineers require skills like "contract drawings," "meeting minutes," "hvac," and "construction schedule. "
Assistant project engineers enjoy the best pay in the manufacturing industry, with an average salary of $81,856. For comparison, civil engineering interns earn the highest salary in the construction industry.In general, assistant project engineers hold similar degree levels compared to civil engineering interns. Assistant project engineers are 0.3% more likely to earn their Master's Degree and 2.2% less likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.Types of civil engineering internship
Updated January 8, 2025
