The undergraduate program leading to the Bachelor of Applied Science (B.A.Sc.) degree in Civil Engineering is designed to provide students with a solid foundation in both basic sciences and specific civil engineering skills.
Initially, students complete either the First Year Engineering program at UBC, common to all first-year engineering students at UBC, or the Engineering Transfer Program, taken at other institutions, as the basis for entering the second-year program in Civil Engineering.
First-year Civil Engineering includes fundamental courses in mathematics, physics, chemistry, solid mechanics, fluid mechanics, and structures. In the second year, students are introduced to Civil Engineering through a design course focusing on the conceptual design of a civil engineering project.
Visual Guide
How to use the Visual Guide
The Visual Guide helps students to understand pre/corequisites of each course and how a specific course applies to future courses in the program.
It is recommended you make the guide full screen (arrows on the top right) in order to fully utilize the information.
Course Plan & Registration Guide
Below is the standard course plan that CIVL students are recommended to follow if they plan to graduate in 4 years. If you are not using the standard course plan for any reason, please refer to your APR to determine your remaining degree requirements.
Reserved capacity seats will be set up for CIVL students in the sections listed below. Students are expected to register in all required courses by July 31. After this date, any unused reserved capacity seats will be released to students on the waitlist.
Some courses may have additional sections offered beyond those listed below; however, these sections may conflict with your timetable and will not have seats reserved specifically for CIVL students. If you choose to take an alternate section, you may need to join the waitlist and are not guaranteed a seat.
Some students choose to complete their degree over a longer period of time for a variety of personal and professional reasons. If you intend on taking a reduced course load, please review our general advice on reduced courseload for BASc students.
You can also find your degree requirements on the UBC Calendar.
Year 2
| Year 2 | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Term 1 | ||||||
| Course Number | Course Name | Credits | Lecture Section | Lab Section | Discussion Section | Registration Notes |
| EOSC 210 | Earth Science for Engineers | 3 | 101 | L1A, L1B, L1C, L1D, L1F, L1G | – | |
| MATH 253 | Multivariable Calculus | 3 | 10R | – | – | |
| CIVL 204 | Fundamentals of Environmental Engineering | 3 | 101 | – | – | |
| CIVL 215 | Fluid Mechanics I | 4 | 101 | – | T1A, T1B | |
| CIVL 230 | Solid Mechanics | 4 | 101 | – | T1A | |
| Total Credits | 17 | |||||
| Term 2 | ||||||
| Course Number | Course Name | Credits | Lecture Section | Lab Section | Discussion Section | Registration Notes |
| CIVL 201 | Introduction to Civil Engineering | 3 | 201 | – | – | |
| CIVL 203 | Technical Communication in Civil Engineering | 3 | 201, 202, 203, 204 | – | T2A | |
| CIVL 210 | Soil Mechanics I | 4 | 201 | L2A, L2B, L2C, L2D, L2E, L2F, L2G, L2H | T2A | |
| CIVL 231 | Structural Mechanics | 4 | 201 | – | T2A | |
| CIVL 235 | Plane Surveying | 4 | 201 | – | – | Note: this course begins on May 3, 2027 which in the 2027 Summer Session. Registration in this course will occur starting in March 2027. |
| Total Credits | 18 | |||||
| Term 1 or 2 | ||||||
| Course Number | Course Name | Credits | Lecture Section | Lab Section | Discussion Section | Registration Notes |
| APSC 278 | Engineering Materials | 3 | 101, 201 | – | – | |
| APSC 279 | Engineering Materials Laboratory | 1 | – | 114, 115, 201, 202, 203, 204, 206 | – | |
| STAT 251 | Introductory Probability and Statistics | 3 | 101, 201 | – | – | |
| MATH 256 | Differential Equations | 3 | 101, 201 | – | – | |
| Total Credits | 10 | |||||
Year 3
| Year 3 | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Term 1 | ||||||
| Course Number | Course Name | Credits | Lecture Section | Lab Section | Discussion Section | Registration Notes |
| CIVL 301 | Modelling and Decision-Making in Civil Engineering | 3 | 101 | T1A | ||
| CIVL 303 | Computational Tools in Civil Engineering | 3 | 101 | – | T1A | |
| CIVL 311 | Soil Mechanics II | 4 | 101 | L1A, L1B, L1C, L1D, L1E, L1F, L1G, L1H | T1A, T1B, T1C, T1D, T1E, T1F | |
| CIVL 315 | Fluid Mechanics II | 4 | 101 | L1B, L1D, L1E, L1F, L1G, L1H, L1J, L1L, L1M, L1N, L1O, L1P | T1A | |
| CIVL 320 | Civil Engineering Materials | 3 | 101 | |||
| CIVL 332 | Structural Analysis | 3 | 101 | – | T1A | |
| Total Credits | 20 | |||||
| Term 2 | ||||||
| Course Number | Course Name | Credits | Lecture Section | Lab Section | Discussion Section | Registration Notes |
| CIVL 300 | Construction Engineering and Management | 3 | 201 | – | – | |
| CIVL 302 | Civil Engineering Impacts | 3 | 201 | – | – | This course satisfies the impact of technology on society requirement within the Complementary Studies Courses. See here for further details. |
| CIVL 305 | Introduction to Environmental Engineering Applications | 3 | 201 | – | – | |
| CIVL 316 | Hydrology and Open Channel Flow | 4 | 201 | L2A, L2B, L2C, L2D, L2E, L2F, L2G, L2H, L2I, L2J, L2K, L2L, L2M, L2N, L2O, L2P | T2A | |
| CIVL 331 | Steel and Timber Design | 4 | 201 | – | T2A | |
| CIVL 340 | Transportation Engineering I | 3 | 201 | – | – | |
| Total Credits | 20 | |||||
Year 4
| Year 4 | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Term 1 | ||||||
| Course Number | Course Name | Credits | Lecture Section | Lab Section | Discussion Section | Registration Notes |
| CIVL 402 | Professionalism and Law in Civil Engineering | 3 | 101 | – | – | This course counts towards the professional development requirements within the Complementary Studies Courses. |
| CIVL 430 | Design of Concrete Structures | 4 | 101 | L1A, L1B | – | |
| CIVL 445 | Civil Engineering Design Project I | 3 | 101 | – | T1A, T1B, T1C, T1D | |
| Total Credits | 10 | |||||
| Term 2 | ||||||
| Course Number | Course Name | Credits | Lecture Section | Lab Section | Discussion Section | Registration Notes |
| CIVL 403 | Engineering Economic Analysis | 3 | 201 | – | – | |
| CIVL 409 | Municipal Engineering | 3 | 201 | – | – | |
| CIVL 446 | Civil Engineering Design Project II | 2 | 201 | – | T2A, T2B, T2C, T2D | |
| Total Credits | 8 | |||||
| Term 1 or 2 | ||||||
| Course Number | Course Name | Credits | Lecture Section | Lab Section | Discussion Section | Registration Notes |
| Humanities and Social Sciences Electives | 3 | Find out more about complementary studies | ||||
| Technical electives | 15 | See below for more information on technical electives | ||||
| Total Credits | 18 | |||||
Technical Electives
Students in the Civil Engineering program are required to complete 15 credits (five courses) of technical electives to meet their graduation requirements.
For any technical elective, students must meet the prerequisite requirements before registering for the course.
Technical electives are divided into two categories:
- List A: Engineering courses
- List B: Business, economics, or professional development courses
Students may complete their technical elective requirement in one of the following ways:
- 15 credits from List A, or
- 12 credits from List A and 3 credits from List B
Courses from the pre-approved lists will automatically apply to the Technical Elective requirement in the student’s Academic Progress Report (APR) on Workday.
List of Approved Fourth Year Technical Electives
List A – Engineering Courses
| Course Code | Course Title |
|---|---|
| CIVL_V 406 | Water Treatment and Waste Management |
| CIVL_V 408 | Geo-Environmental Engineering |
| CIVL_V 410 | Foundation Engineering I |
| CIVL_V 411 | Foundation Engineering II |
| CIVL_V 413 | Design of Earth Dams and Containment Structures |
| CIVL_V 415 | Water Resource Engineering |
| CIVL_V 416 | Environmental Hydraulics |
| CIVL_V 417 | Coastal Engineering |
| CIVL_V 418 | Engineering Hydrology |
| CIVL_V 420 | Concrete Technology |
| CIVL_V 425 | Case Studies of Construction Methods |
| CIVL_V 426 | Virtual Design and Construction |
| CIVL_V 432 | Advanced Structural Steel Design |
| CIVL_V 433 | Advanced Concrete Design |
| CIVL_V 435 | Advanced Structural Analysis |
| CIVL_V 436 | Matrix Structural Analysis and Dynamics |
| CIVL_V 437 | Introduction to Ship Structures |
| CIVL_V 439 | Design of Timber Structures |
| CIVL_V 440 | Transportation Engineering II |
| CIVL_V 441 | Transportation Planning and Analysis |
| CIVL_V 475 | Environmental Stewardship in Civil Engineering |
| CIVL_V 478 | Building Science |
| CIVL_V 498 | Topics in Civil Engineering |
| CHBE_V 485 | Air Pollution Prevention and Control |
| IGEN_V 450 | Pipeline Engineering |
| IGEN_V 451 | Pipeline Systems and Infrastructure |
| IGEN_V 452 | Pipeline Design |
| EOSC_V 329 | Quantitative Groundwater Hydrology |
| EOSC_V 429 | Groundwater Contamination |
| EOSC_V 433 | Geological Engineering Practice I – Rock Engineering |
List A courses sorted by subdiscipline
| Subdiscipline | Applicable Courses |
|---|---|
| Environmental Fluid Mechanics | CIVL 416, CIVL 417 |
| Environmental Systems Engineering | CIVL 406, CIVL 407, CHBE 485 |
| Geo-Environmental Engineering | CIVL 408, EOSC 329, EOSC 429 |
| Geotechnical Engineering | CIVL 410, CIVL 411, CIVL 413, IGEN 450, EOSC 433 |
| Hydrotechnical Engineering | CIVL 415, CIVL 416, CIVL 417, CIVL 418 |
| Materials Engineering | CIVL 420 |
| Project & Construction Management | CIVL 425, CIVL 426, CIVL 478 |
| Structural Engineering | CIVL 432, CIVL 433, CIVL 435, CIVL 436, CIVL 437, CIVL 439 |
| Transportation Engineering | CIVL 440, CIVL 441 |
List B – Business, Economics, or Professional Discipline
| Course Code | Course Title |
|---|---|
| APSC_V 367 | Humanitarian Engineering |
| APSC_V 440 | Management Fundamentals for Technology-Based Product Marketing and Development |
| APSC_V 461 | Global Engineering Leadership |
| APSC_V 462 | Global Engineering Leadership Practicum |
| COMR_V 329 | Principals of Organizational Behaviour |
| COMR_V 434 | Land Law |
| COMR_V 457 | Fundamentals of Financial Accounting |
| COMR_V 458 | Fundamentals of Managerial Accounting |
| COMR_V 465 | Marketing Management |
| COMR_V 473 | Business Finance |
| BUSI_V 400 | Residential Property Analysis |
| BUSI_V 401 | Commerical Property Analysis |
| BUSI_V 445 | Real Estate Development I |
| PLAN_V 321 | Indigeneity and the City |
| PLAN_V 331 | The Just City in a Divided World |
| PLAN_V 351 | Green Cities |
| PLAN_V 425 | Urban Planning Issues and Concepts |
Alternative Fourth-Year Elective Options
Students may request approval for up to two alternative elective courses by following the applicable process below:
Courses Not Listed in the Pre-approved Standard Technical Elective Course Lists
If you would like to take an undergraduate course that is not currently listed on the pre -approved standard technical elective course list, contact an Engineering Academic Advisor. They will review the rationale for your request and assist in obtaining the necessary approval before you register.
- Courses from List A can only be replaced with another 400-level engineering course (primarily engineering science or engineering design).
- Courses from List B may be replaced with either a 400-level engineering course or a 300- or 400-level non-engineering course related to science, business, or professional development.
Please note that any course selected may not contain content that substantially overlaps with core courses or other elective courses that are taken.
Graduate Course as Technical Elective Course
If you would like to take a graduate course as a technical elective, contact an Engineering Academic Advisor. They will review the rationale for your request and assist in obtaining the necessary approval before you register. If approved, you will then need to follow the Enrolment of Undergraduate Students in Graduate Courses process to be registered in the course.
Note: If you take a graduate course towards your undergraduate degree requirements, you will not be able to use the same course as transfer credit to a graduate program.
Directed Studies Course
If you would like to take CIVL 492, Directed Studies, as a technical elective you should contact an Engineering Academic Advisor.
Taking More than 15 credits of Elective Courses
A student who wishes to take more than 15 credits for technical elective courses during an academic year should contact an Engineering Academic Advisor. Without prior approval, you will be de-registered from any extra electives above 15 credits of technical electives.
Camosun Bridge Program
The Camosun Bridge Program provides a pathway for students who hold a Civil Engineering Technology diploma from an accredited Canadian technical college to continue their studies toward an engineering degree.
Through an 8-month bridge program at Camosun College in Victoria, British Columbia, students strengthen their theoretical and academic foundation in civil engineering. Upon successful completion of the bridge program, students may gain admission into the third year of the Bachelor of Applied Science (B.A.Sc.) in Civil Engineering at the University of British Columbia.
Degree Requirements After the Bridge Program
- Students admitted through the Camosun Bridge pathway must complete all core and elective requirements in the third and fourth years of the B.A.Sc. Civil Engineering curriculum, in addition to taking CIVL_V 204, to graduate.
Impact of Technology on Society Requirement
- All students must complete an eligible “Impact of Technology on Society” course before graduation. CIVL_V 302 is the impact of technology course civil engineering students are required to take.
English Requirement
- Students who have not previously completed an English course must take WRDS 150 (Writing and Research in the Disciplines) or an equivalent course.
Humanities and Social Sciences Requirement
- Students are also required to complete six credits of Humanities or Social Sciences electives to graduate.
Stream/Specialization information
The Civil Engineering degree does not have formal streams. Students develop areas of special expertise by taking technical elective courses within one or more subdisciplines of Civil Engineering.
Please refer to the List A technical electives by subdiscipline above, and Civil Engineering – Research Area for more information about the subdisciplines..
Coordinated International Exchange & Co-op
Coordinated International Experience (CIE) exchange program is a specific term-based Go Global exchange program, which is customized for Applied Science undergraduate students.
Co-op is the best way to develop technical skills, make industry connections, gain hands-on experience, explore career options, and apply what you learn in the classroom to real-world problems. The UBC Applied Science Co-op Program is an optional program available to engineering students.
When to contact Civil Engineering directly
Engineering Academic Services is available to support Civil Engineering students with questions about course planning and registration.
Please contact Civil Engineering directly (studentservices@civil.ubc.ca) for:
- Student groups
- Awards
- TA assignments
- Finance/reimbursement forms
- Student employment
- Room/lab access requests
In case of any discrepancies between this page and the UBC Academic Calendar, the Calendar is to be considered correct.