How To Become A Resident Engineer: What It Is and Career Path

What is a resident engineer and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

4 min read

Quoted experts

Esber Andiroglu PhD, PE, LEED AP,

Dr. Hugh Jack Ph.D.

Resident engineers, often known as civil engineers, oversee the construction process and staff for various projects, including buildings, roads, and bridges, and continually work on behalf of a contractor. They ensure all construction is up to date and usually work both in the office and out on the construction site itself.

They may be working with and communicating with teams. Resident engineers make staff schedules, watch over their work to ensure efficiency and accuracy, make sure everyone is safe, and offer advice on day-to-day activities at the site. They may be asked to lead project and progress meetings, coordinate with subcontractors and consultants, and recommend employees for promotions and bonuses.

If you aspire to become a Resident Engineer, a bachelor's degree in civil engineering is required at the very least. Most resident engineers in managerial positions will have a master's degree, leading to better pay which equals $83,818. Every resident engineer should be licensed to be able to work. To become licensed, you need four years of experience as an engineer in training and pass an engineering exam.

What general advice would you give to a resident engineer?

Esber Andiroglu PhD, PE, LEED AP

Associate Professor of Practice, Dept. of Civil & Architectural Engineering, Director of Construction Management Programs, University of Miami

Interdisciplinary and transformative design and construction approaches; integration of emerging technological innovations into practice; integration of software tools into everyday problem solving; solid knowledge about smart systems and AI applications; good understanding and ability to use data analytics

ScoreResident EngineerUS Average

Salary

7.5

Avg. Salary $96,425

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level

7.3

Growth rate 7%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity

6.5

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.31%

Asian 11.97%

Black or African American 4.14%

Hispanic or Latino 12.10%

Unknown 4.73%

White 66.75%

Gender

female 9.31%

male 90.69%

Age - 39

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%

Asian 7.00%

Black or African American 14.00%

Hispanic or Latino 19.00%

White 57.00%

Gender

female 47.00%

male 53.00%

Age - 39

Stress level

7.3

Stress level is high

7.1 - high

Complexity level

8.3

Complexity level is challenging

7 - challenging

Work life balance

5.1

Work life balance is fair

6.4 - fair

Key steps to become a resident engineer

Explore resident engineer education requirements

Most common resident engineer degrees

Bachelor's

73.2 %

Master's

13.0 %

Associate

8.6 %

Start to develop specific resident engineer skills

Skills	Percentages
Infrastructure	14.27%
PE	10.33%
Construction Projects	8.34%
Contract Administration	4.96%
Project Management	4.77%

Complete relevant resident engineer training and internships

Accountants spend an average of 6-12 months on post-employment, on-the-job training. New resident engineers learn the skills and techniques required for their job and employer during this time. The chart below shows how long it takes to gain competency as a resident engineer based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real resident engineer resumes.

Research resident engineer duties and responsibilities

Lead municipal construction projection for maintenance and rehabilitation of internal roads.
Implement safe working practices base on OSHA regulations.
Monitor demolition activities for compliance with OSHA, NESHAPS.
Check AutoCAD drawing sets and take-offs on a daily basis.

Prepare your resident engineer resume

When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your resident engineer resume.

You can use Zippia's AI resume builder to make the resume writing process easier while also making sure that you include key information that hiring managers expect to see on a resident engineer resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

Choose from 10+ customizable resident engineer resume templates

Build a professional resident engineer resume in minutes. Browse through our resume examples to identify the best way to word your resume. Then choose from 10+ resume templates to create your resident engineer resume.