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Construction management and civil engineering sound interchangeable. However, the jobs are very different. While a construction site might see both a construction engineer and a civil engineer they’re going to be separate people. They require different levels of education, the jobs require different areas of expertise, and the career paths are different. With reported job growth of 11%, construction engineering is a rapidly increasing field and bound to have opportunities for those interested. Which is why it’s important to know the differences between construction management and civil engineering.
The civil engineer is the person who designs the foundations, develops the structural scheme, sizes structural members, designs wastewater and stormwater systems etc…. This person will almost always have completed a real engineering course and will either be licensed or be on the way to be licensed. Some of these guys are onsite on larger projects, where they would have the title of resident engineer or something along those lines. While construction engineers are generally onsite managers who do things (additional to the superintendents role) like set out pile locations, some instrumentation work, check on rebar before a concrete pour etc. I often think of them as having more of a technician’s role. Finally, Construction managers coordinate and supervise a wide variety of projects, including the building of all types of residential, commercial, and industrial structures, roads, bridges, power plants, schools, and hospitals. They oversee specialized contractors and other personnel.
