Launch of Undergraduate Civil Engineering at Texas State University

September 5, 2019

With the fall 2019 semester, Texas State University will begin offering a Bachelor of Science degree program with a major in Civil Engineering (CE). Graduates of this program will have a strong foundation in traditional CE principles, thus preparing them for the Fundamentals of Engineering (EIT) and Principles and Practices of Engineering (PE) licensure examinations. Unlike other programs, the civil engineering curriculum at Texas State was holistically built upon on the concept of Technology-enhanced Infrastructure (TEI), leading to the emergence of a new sub-discipline, Smart Infrastructure Technologies. As students’ progress through this forward-thinking curriculum, they will study event detection systems, data management systems, analytic methodologies, and infrastructure management technologies. This includes device programming, secure data transfer and storage, predictive analytic tools, and application-based maintenance protocols. A survey of the profession clearly indicates that consulting firms are beginning to offer sensor driven life-cycle maintenance services for the civil infrastructure systems they design. The primary objective of the innovative undergraduate program is to prepare students to enter the civil engineering workforce with an ability to implement "smart technology” solutions.