Career prospects

Civil engineers are equally concerned with the expansion and maintenance of infrastructure and the protection of natural resources. As structural engineers, they work together with architects to design imposing high-rise buildings and wide-span bridges.

As employees of construction companies, they are not only responsible for the timely, cost-effective and high-quality completion of construction projects, but also for the economic operation of buildings. They are also responsible for supplying the population with drinking water, cleaning waste water and treating waste in an environmentally friendly manner. In this context, civil engineers are responsible for the planning, execution and operation of facilities to protect the environment and keep it clean. Other areas of responsibility include flood protection and the maintenance of natural bodies of water. Transportation deals with the causes and scope of passenger and freight transport and, building on this, with the transport infrastructure for the road, rail, water and air modes of transport.

Civil engineering graduates are still very much in demand. In addition to the traditional construction industry, engineering firms in urban water and waste management, for example, are looking for Master's graduates for the structural management of infrastructure and technical facilities (as of 2019).

Civil engineering graduates from the University of Kassel are predominantly employed in the construction industry (42-58%) or in engineering offices (8-18%) 1.5 years after graduation. Over 40% of Bachelor's graduates are employed in construction planning and management.

Compared to Bachelor's graduates from other STEM degree programmes, such as environmental engineering, Bachelor's graduates in civil engineering benefit from higher starting salaries, better employment contract conditions (71% have a permanent employment contract) and more realistic chances (22%) of a management position.
Despite these good conditions for a direct career entry after the Bachelor's degree, a majority of 65% of students at the University of Kassel go on to complete the corresponding Master's degree in order to specialize in a specific content area.