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Shaping the Future

The School of Civil and Environmental Engineering and Earth Sciences

Creating new knowledge and preparing the next generation of scholars, innovators, and entrepreneurs.

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A surveyor with wind farm in background

About the School

We are pursuing relevant and impactful work that will help solve the most pressing problems of today and anticipate the challenges of tomorrow.

We are laser-focused on the infrastructure and environmental issues that directly impact how we build, work and create the quality of our planet. In the process, we create new knowledge and prepare the next generation of scholars, innovators, and entrepreneurs to solve the most complex and challenging problems at the nexus of these disciplines.

Video Transcript

0:00-0:04

An aerial view over campus buildings is shown on a sunny morning.

0:05-0:09

Two men in hard hats and safety vests look up at a wind turbine.

0:10-0:13

Two men discuss the interior of a large conduit with light coming in from outside the large opening.

0:14-0:18

Many students walk across the Library Bridge. The bridge is often crowded with students as they make their way between classes.

0:19-0:32

Purple letters spelling "Clemson University Civil Engineering" are on the side of a golf cart. Two graduate civil engineering students are using the cart as they prepare to survey the campus sidewalks for an accessibility project. They both help to set up the surveying equipment.

0:33-0:36

Four females are in a lab, looking over a blue device that holds samples.

0:37-0:46

The same device is seen again with two males and one female sitting in front of it, with a pen, paper, and a calculator. The students fade as a white Tiger Paw comes into focus in the center of the screen. The video concludes.

News and Events

Career Opportunities

Clemson University has consistently been ranked among the top public institutions by U.S. News & World Report. Our growing national recognition means additional career opportunities across campus, from teaching to research.

Remembrance

Keinath profileThe Clemson University community is remembering one of its own, Dean Emeritus Thomas M. Keinath, following his death on March 15 at age 83, as an esteemed leader, caring mentor, exemplary scholar and gentleman to the core. To honor his many enduring contributions, there will be a celebration of his life on May 18, 2024, at the Madren Center Grand Ballroom, from 1:30 to 4:30 pm. You are welcome to join us as we reminisce about the many ways that Dr. Keinath impacted our lives.

When: May 18, 2024
Where: Madren Center - 1:30 to 4:30 pm


Upcoming Events

    Research Thrusts

    A scientist tests the water supply.

    The Surface & Subsurface

    Developing the tools critical for managing the impacts of climate change and extreme events and stressors on water and land quantity and quality

    An engineer monitors the operation of a wind farm.

    The Earth’s Ecosphere

    Developing strategies for reducing our carbon footprint and mitigating the impact of greenhouse gas emissions on our local and global environments

    An interconnected modern city.

    Smart City Service

    Assessing the risks in smart cities/regions; identify the business, legal, and social contexts of security threats; and engineer strategic solutions

    A coastal structure amidst a severe weather event.

    Resilient Communities

    Addressing the challenges involved in creating more resilient communities, particularly at the interface of the natural and built environments

    Students working on a civil engineering project.

    School Mission

    Our guiding principles

    The mission of the school is to create and disseminate new knowledge in the fields of Civil Engineering, Environmental Engineering and Earth Sciences; to educate and engage our students in critical thinking to inspire new discoveries; and to underpin society with the cutting-edge innovations of tomorrow that will address society’s grand challenges related to infrastructure, sustainability, and environmental quality.

    Director's Message

    The School of Civil and Environmental Engineering and Earth Sciences has limitless possibilities, better capable of addressing society's infrastructure and environmental Grand Challenges. Our core pillars and impactful research allow us to be committed to producing in-demand graduates who will be leaders and innovators of the future.

    View Guiding Principles
    School researchers working on a test bed that was developed for their research.

    Meet the School Director

    Jesus de la Garza profile

    Jesus M. de la Garza

    Civil and environmental engineers/scientists touch the lives of all people every single day. We are the ones who make sure the world has clean water, safe roads, soil free of pollutants, clean air, sturdy buildings, railways to carry cargo, and towers to distribute electricity. The list could go on almost forever, but the point is undeniable: civil and environmental engineers/scientists underpin modern society by enabling people’s basic needs, allowing us all to live and prosper.

    Clemson University has placed under a single tent the Glenn Department of Civil Engineering and the Department of Environmental Engineering and Earth Sciences. The two departments now make up the School of Civil and Environmental Engineering and Earth Sciences (CEEES). A successful School will serve as a tool that shapes some of the best civil and environmental engineers/scientists in the world and accelerate Clemson’s push to be one of the best universities in the nation.

    I am honored by the confidence and trust bestowed on me to lead the CEEES School, an honor that I intend to earn every single day.  The School’s North Star is Top 10 status among public universities. To earn this standing, the School will focus on what we are calling Things That Matter—society’s grand challenges related to infrastructure and the environment.  The march to prominence will require the unequivocal commitment and unwavering effort of all the School’s faculty, staff, students, and alumni.  A successful CEEES School will cement Clemson’s position as a Carnegie R1 research university. 

    I know Clemson engineers/scientists are up to the challenge.

    Majors Offered

    CE & EEES Academic Majors
    Degree B.S. M.S. MEng Ph.D.
    Biosystems Engineering X X X
    Civil Engineering X X X X
    Environmental Engineering X
    Environmental Engineering and Science X
    Environmental Engineering and Earth Sciences X
    Environmental Health Physics X
    Geology X
    Hydrogeology X
    Risk Engineering & Systems Analytics X
    Kelli Trotter profile

    “I like protecting people. I like making sure that people know that what we as environmental and nuclear engineers are doing isn’t scary,” she explains. “I want to facilitate conversations between scientists and the average person to explain the importance of environmental engineering.”

    Kelli Trotter
    Environmental Engineering, BS ’21, MS ‘22
    School of Civil and Environmental Engr. and Earth Sciences
    School of Civil and Environmental Engr. and Earth Sciences | Lowry Hall, S Palmetto Blvd, Clemson, SC 29634