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Environmental Engineering Major

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Environmental Engineering

746 Master's Degrees Annually
149 Doctor's Degrees Annually
#133 in Popularity (Master's)
$93,630 Median Salary

Types of Degrees Environmental Engineering Majors Are Getting

The following table lists how many environmental engineering graduations there were in 2020-2021 for each degree level.

Education Level Number of Grads
Master’s Degree 746
Doctor’s Degree 149
Graduate Certificate 24

What Environmental Engineering Majors Need to Know

O*NET surveyed people in occupations related to environmental engineering and asked them what knowledge areas, skills, and abilities were important for their jobs. The responses were rated on a scale of 1 to 5 with 5 being most important.

Knowledge Areas for Environmental Engineering Majors

According to O*NET survey takers, a major in environmental engineering should prepare you for careers in which you will need to be knowledgeable in the following areas:

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  • Engineering and Technology - Knowledge of the practical application of engineering science and technology. This includes applying principles, techniques, procedures, and equipment to the design and production of various goods and services.
  • Design - Knowledge of design techniques, tools, and principles involved in production of precision technical plans, blueprints, drawings, and models.
  • Mathematics - Knowledge of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, statistics, and their applications.
  • English Language - Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.
  • Customer and Personal Service - Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.

Skills for Environmental Engineering Majors

When studying environmental engineering, you’ll learn many skills that will help you be successful in a wide range of jobs - even those that do not require a degree in the field. The following is a list of some of the most common skills needed for careers associated with this major:

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  • Reading Comprehension - Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work related documents.
  • Critical Thinking - Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions or approaches to problems.
  • Active Listening - Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.
  • Speaking - Talking to others to convey information effectively.
  • Writing - Communicating effectively in writing as appropriate for the needs of the audience.

Abilities for Environmental Engineering Majors

Some of the most crucial abilities to master while a environmental engineering student include the following:

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  • Written Comprehension - The ability to read and understand information and ideas presented in writing.
  • Oral Expression - The ability to communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand.
  • Oral Comprehension - The ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.
  • Problem Sensitivity - The ability to tell when something is wrong or is likely to go wrong. It does not involve solving the problem, only recognizing there is a problem.
  • Deductive Reasoning - The ability to apply general rules to specific problems to produce answers that make sense.

What Can You Do With a Environmental Engineering Major?

Below is a list of occupations associated with environmental engineering:

Job Title Job Growth Rate Median Salary
Architectural and Engineering Managers 5.5% $140,760
Engineering Professors 14.7% $101,720
Environmental Engineers 8.4% $87,620
Fire-Prevention and Protection Engineers 8.5% $89,130
Industrial Safety and Health Engineers 8.5% $89,130
Product Safety Engineers 8.5% $89,130
Water/Wastewater Engineers 8.4% $87,620

Who Is Getting a Master’s Degree in Environmental Engineering?

746 Master's Degrees Annually
52% Percent Women
21% Percent Racial-Ethnic Minorities*
According to recent stats this major attracts about equal numbers of men and women. Roughly 52% of the graduates are women, and 48% are men.

Racial-Ethnic Diversity

At the countrywide level, the racial-ethnic distribution of environmental engineering majors is as follows:

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Race/Ethnicity Number of Grads
Asian 59
Black or African American 23
Hispanic or Latino 53
White 294
International Students 279
Other Races/Ethnicities 38

Geographic Diversity

Students from other countries are interested in Environmental Engineering, too. About 37.4% of those with this major are international students. The most popular countries for students from outside the country are:

  • China
  • India
  • Kuwait
  • Iran
  • Saudi Arabia

How Much Do Environmental Engineering Majors Make?

Master’s Degree Starting Salary

The median starting salary of students who graduated in 2017-2019 with a master’s degree in environmental engineering was $69,585 per year. These stats come from the U.S. Department of Education. During this timeframe, most salaries fell between $62,701 (25th percentile) and $73,322 (75th percentile).

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It is possible that some of these people may have taken positions that were not related to environmental engineering.

Salaries According to BLS

Average salaries range from $92,640 to $113,680 (25th to 75th percentile) for careers related to environmental engineering. This range includes all degree levels, so you may expect those with a more advanced degree to make more while those with less advanced degrees will typically make less.

To put that into context, according to BLS data from the first quarter of 2020, the typical high school graduate makes between $30,000 and $57,900 a year (25th through 75th percentile). The average person with a bachelor’s degree (any field) makes between $45,600 and $99,000. Advanced degree holders make the most with salaries between $55,600 and $125,400.

Median Salary for an Environmental Engineering Major  ( 92640 to 113680 )
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250K
Median Salary for a High School Graduate  ( 30000 to 57900 )
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250K
Median Salary for a Bachelor's Degree Holder  ( 45600 to 99000 )
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250K
Median Salary for an Advanced Degree Holder  ( 55600 to 125400 )
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250K

Some degrees associated with environmental engineering may require an advanced degree, while others may not even require a bachelor’s in the field. In general, the more advanced your degree the more career options will open up to you. However, there is significant time and money that needs to be invested into your education so weigh the pros and cons.

Find out what the typical degree level is for environmental engineering careers below.

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Education Level Percentage of Workers
High School Diploma - or the equivalent (for example, GED) 1.0%
Post-Secondary Certificate - awarded for training completed after high school (for example, in agriculture or natural resources, computer services, personal or culinary services, engineering technologies, healthcare, construction trades, mechanic and repair technologies, or precision production) 1.5%
Some College Courses 2.1%
Associate’s Degree (or other 2-year degree) 2.9%
Bachelor’s Degree 57.8%
Post-Baccalaureate Certificate - awarded for completion of an organized program of study; designed for people who have completed a Baccalaureate degree but do not meet the requirements of academic degrees carrying the title of Master. 7.2%
Master’s Degree 19.7%
Post-Master’s Certificate - awarded for completion of an organized program of study; designed for people who have completed a Master’s degree but do not meet the requirements of academic degrees at the doctoral level. 2.5%
Doctoral Degree 5.3%
Post-Doctoral Training 1.4%

Online Environmental Engineering Programs

In the 2020-2021 academic year, 160 schools offered some type of environmental engineering program. The following table lists the number of programs by degree level, along with how many schools offered online courses in the field.

Degree Level Colleges Offering Programs Colleges Offering Online Classes
Certificate (Less Than 1 Year) 0 0
Certificate (1-2 years) 1 0
Certificate (2-4 Years) 0 0
Associate’s Degree 5 0
Bachelor’s Degree 11 1
Post-Baccalaureate 0 0
Master’s Degree 91 6
Post-Master’s 4 0
Doctor’s Degree (Research) 48 0
Doctor’s Degree (Professional Practice) 0 0
Doctor’s Degree (Other) 0 0

Is a Degree in Environmental Engineering Worth It?

The median salary for a environmental engineering grad is $93,630 per year. This is based on the weighted average of the most common careers associated with the major.

This is 135% more than the average salary for an individual holding a high school degree. This adds up to a gain of about $1,074,600 after 20 years!

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You may also be interested in one of the following majors related to environmental engineering.

Major Number of Grads
Electrical Engineering 11,021
Mechanical Engineering 9,007
Civil Engineering 6,042
Computer Engineering 5,557
Biomedical Engineering 4,252
General Engineering 3,548
Systems Engineering 3,068
Industrial Engineering 3,028
Chemical Engineering 2,662
Aerospace & Aeronautical Engineering 2,375
Other Engineering 1,820
Materials Engineering 1,810
Operations Research 1,191
Electrical and Computer Engineering. 928
Robotics Engineering 560
Engineering Science 451
Nuclear Engineering 437
Manufacturing Engineering 423
Petroleum Engineering 401
Agricultural Engineering 332
Construction Engineering 288
Engineering Physics 286
Architectural Engineering 243
Geoscience Engineering 173
Polymer & Plastics Engineering 167
Engineering Mechanics 144
Mining Engineering 132
Ocean Engineering 112
Textile Engineering 96
Biological Engineering 80
Energy Systems Engineering 79
Marine Engineering 44
Metallurgical Engineering 40
Biochemical Engineering 21
Ceramic Engineering 20
Electromechanical Engineering 16
Surveying Engineering 11
Paper Science & Engineering 7
Forest Engineering 0

References

*The racial-ethnic minorities count is calculated by taking the total number of students and subtracting white students, international students, and students whose race/ethnicity was unknown. This number is then divided by the total number of students at the school to obtain the racial-ethnic minorities percentage.

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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