BE (Civil) Degree
Civil Engineering at UCC is a four-year full-time honours degree course leading to the degree of Bachelor of Engineering (Civil) of the National University of Ireland. Honours in the degree are awarded on the basis of performance in the third and fourth year of the degree course. Honours graduates may proceed to the higher degrees of Master of Engineering Science and Doctor of Philosophy.
The degree course provides a foundation for those who wish to specialise later in their careers or wish to undertake research.
The approach pioneered by the Ecole Politechnique in Paris is followed, namely, competitive entry to the degree course with emphasis on mathematical ability, initial foundation in mathematics, science, and engineering sciences, followed by the art of practice of different sub-specialities of engineering in later years.
In the current first year programme, students take modules in mathematics, mechanics, physics and chemistry, which provide a sound basis in physical science and laboratory methods. Further modules introduce students to the practice of engineering, technical drawing and computing.
The current second year of the degree course is divided between mathematical modules and engineering science modules such as thermodynamics, mechanics of fluids and solids, surveying.
Modules relating to professional and civil engineering practice, with emphasis on practical applications and design, form a common core for all students in their third and final years. Additional modules are also taken from structures, construction, infrastructure, environment, building services, informatics and management, depending on the student’s choice of specialisation. These modules may be subject to a competitive quota.
The honours degree programme in Civil and Environmental Engineering is designed for aspiring Professional Engineers who seek employment in all sectors of the civil engineering and construction industry, both in Ireland and abroad.
The curriculum is broad in scope and streaming commences in 3rd Year. In the current year, the streams are as follows:
- Structural Engineering and Construction
- Infrastructure and Environmental Engineering
- Environmental Services in Buildings, and
- Informatics Systems and Engineering Management
The Second Stream: Infrastructure and Environmental Engineering, is concerned with infrastructural networks (water, transport, etc.), the minimisation, collection, treatment, and disposal of solid, liquid and gaseous wastes, and the sensitive design of infrastructure, so as to minimise its impact on the natural and built environment.
The Third Stream: Environmental Services in Buildings, deals with the heating, lighting air-conditioning, ventilation, acoustic design and fire protection of buildings, including their networks of water, waste residuals (solid, liquid and gaseous), power circulation and telecommunications systems.
The Fourth Stream: Informatic Systems and Engineering Management, relates to the remote capture of data, its transmission over a telecommunications network to computer-based decision-support systems for application in the public and private sectors of the economy, and concerned inter alia with construction, traffic, wastewater and water treatment plants, flood warming, hydropower, “intelligent” buildings, etc.
