Bachelor of Environmental Engineering at Missouri University of Science and Technology

Environmental engineers uphold the dual goals of minimizing our impact on the local, regional, and global environment and concurrently improving public health and our standard of living. In this role of preserving environmental and public well-being, environmental engineers face unique issues and must have a strong background in the earth sciences to understand complex environmental problems and then pose and design appropriate engineering solutions. As problem solvers for something as diverse as "the environment," environmental engineers also need to understand the most current technologies used in practice and have a desire to maintain a high level of learning in this rapidly evolving field.

Drinking water and wastewater treatment are cornerstones of the environmental engineering field, and students' education in these areas is thorough. Turning river, lake, or even sea water into drinking water requires a unique expertise because each water source offers distinctive challenges. Air pollution is a growing concern on scales ranging from the global atmosphere to the indoor environment. From a fundamental understanding of the chemistry and dynamics of air pollution, students learn how human activities degrade air quality and also how to evaluate and design control technology to reduce emissions from industry and other sources. The geology of a location greatly impacts its water resources, and comprehension of hydrogeology is important to an environmental engineer. The amount and quality of water a geologic formation can produce can influence and limit development of a region. Subsurface hydrology can be the most critical aspect in remediation of contaminated groundwater. Sustainable infrastructure, in themes of energy and environment, is yet another challenge that environmental engineers will have the opportunity to address in their careers and our faculty are engaged in the S&T sustainability minor and teach the core coursework in sustainability at S&T.

The environmental engineering work place is diverse. Consulting firms represent a large portion of the work force and many specialize in areas of drinking water and wastewater treatment. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, state departments of natural resources, departments of health, and the U.S. Departments of Energy and Defense all have positions that require a wide array of skills and expertise.

The courses and skills learned as an undergraduate student also provide preparation for graduate studies and advanced leadership roles. Many specialized positions require a graduate education. Within the Missouri S&T environmental engineering program, elective courses include topics such as water and wastewater; geo-environmental; air pollution and control; environmental chemistry and processes; environmental laws and regulation; and environmental microbiology and processes. Some courses are required in each of these areas to provide breadth, which allows graduates to interact with the wide range of professionals in this particularly interdisciplinary field. Project teams may include health care professionals, city planners, developers, and all types of engineers. Additionally, the ever-developing field of environmental engineering is saturated with legal issues, many of which are yet to have precedents or legal statutes established.

Many courses include laboratory exercises in the environmental engineering program laboratories in the Butler-Carlton Civil Engineering Building. In addition to teaching laboratories, the laboratory facilities include a pilot-scale unit-operations laboratory, temperature control facilities, a roof-top greenhouse, and state of the art analytical facilities. Undergraduate-level research is encouraged and promotes participation in environmental research carried out, largely in the Center for Research in Energy and Environment. In summary, the diverse curricula, interdisciplinary faculty, and superb facilities afford students an excellent opportunity for an unparalleled education and prepare them for a bright future of solving tomorrow's problems in environmental engineering.

Mission Statement

The environmental engineering program will prepare students for a career in the global, interdisciplinary field of environmental engineering and for life-long development in the profession. The program's fundamental base in biological and earth sciences and development of specific engineering application skills prepares graduates to approach unique, atypical problems with a true problem-solving approach, develop solutions to benefit society and the environment, and promote these solutions.

Environmental Engineering Program Educational Objectives

Consistent with the mission statement, graduates of the Missouri S&T environmental engineering program will demonstrate, within a few years of graduation:

1. professional development,
2. technical competency,
3. responsibility and knowledge of leadership,
4. an ability to communicate effectively,
5. an ability to work in teams, and
6. a holistic view of problems within their field.

Consistent with the program educational objectives listed above, the Missouri S&T environmental engineering program graduates will have:

1. an ability to identify, formulate, and solve complex engineering problems by applying principles of engineering, science, and mathematics
2. an ability to apply engineering design to produce solutions that meet specified needs with consideration of public health, safety, and welfare, as well as global, cultural, social, environmental, and economic factors
3. an ability to communicate effectively with a range of audiences
4. an ability to recognize ethical and professional responsibilities in engineering situations and make informed judgments, which must consider the impact of engineering solutions in global, economic, environmental, and societal contexts
5. an ability to function effectively on a team whose members together provide leadership, create a collaborative and inclusive environment, establish goals, plan tasks, and meet objectives
6. an ability to develop and conduct appropriate experimentation, analyze and interpret data, and use engineering judgment to draw conclusions
7. an ability to acquire and apply new knowledge as needed, using appropriate learning strategies