Dirt, steel, and concrete

by Stewart McCoy

Dirt. Steel. Concrete.

That’s what Ryan Weidemann likes about civil engineering.

“I grew up building stuff,” he says. And unlike some other fields in engineering, civil is very hands on. He also really likes that his work is “outdoors half the time.”

Weidemann, who is a certified Engineering Intern (EI), now works as an assistant to the county engineer of Webster County, Iowa. After he’s spent the required time working as an EI (about 4 years in most states), he hopes to become a Professional Engineer (PE). He also wants to become a certified Land Surveyor (LS).

Weidemann says there are a lot of job opportunities in civil engineering right now. He says there’s a big age gap, and a lot of guys in the field are in their 50s, 60s, and 70s—especially in land surveying. So while the field is competitive, he says this helped in gaining his position as assistant to the county engineer.

On the job

The engineer who used to be in charge of land surveying left around the time Weidemann was hired on. And because he gained land surveying experience through an internship in college he took over many of the land surveying responsibilities.

Before a project begins, Weidemann goes out and tries to figure out what the ground is like. His crew is looking at how the ground will need to be changed to put in a culvert, a bridge, pavement, or adjust the grade of a slope near a road.

An instrument the survey crew uses is called a Total Station to help calculate slopes and distances on the survey site. He then downloads Information from the Total Station to a computer. Using a program called AutoCAD, Weidemann is able to figure out the amount of dirt and materials needed for a project.

After ground is broken and projects are in progress, Weidemann visits all the job sites and makes sure projects are on schedule, being accomplished as planned, and that the construction workers have necessary supplies. Weidemann says that projects are often long term, and sometimes last years.

Building bridges

Because projects often take so long, Weidemann was really impressed to see a bridge his office recently built go up in about 3 months. After the Iowa flood of 2008, his office received money from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to replace a bridge that failed due to the flooding.

“It’s really neat to see a bridge go from washed out, caved in, and no longer passable, to something that can take an 80,000 pound grain wagon without a problem,” Weidemann says.

Getting the job

Although Weidemann has the preferred bachelor’s degree in civil engineering, only a 2-year degree in civil engineering technology is required.

To be considered for the position of assistant to the county engineer, applicants must pass the Fundamentals of Engineering (FE) exam and become a certified EI.

Weidemann advises that while higher math and science are always a good idea, he needs to be really good at calculating off the top of his head. He did take Calculus 3, but the math he uses daily is trigonometry and algebra.

Communication is also another important aspect of engineering. Weidemann says he didn’t realize it, but there’s a lot of writing involved. He’s always drafting reports, memos, and professional e-mails. He also has to write legal descriptions for right of way purchases for construction projects.

Weidemann also says he typically has about six projects he’s working on at any given time and that he generally works about 40 hours per week. He likes the fairly regular schedule because it affords him time with his family.

For those thinking about civil engineering as a major, Weidemann recommends looking for an internship or coop as early as their freshman year.

“The amount of stuff you learn in the first week of working in the field is equivalent to what you would learn in one semester [of college],” Weidemann says.

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