Engineering
What can you do with a Civil Engineering degree?
Quick answer
A Civil Engineering degree commonly leads to roles such as graduate civil engineer, site engineer (entry) and structural technician. Five years after graduating, Civil Engineering graduates had median earnings of £41,400 (middle half: £33,700–£51,600), and 88.3% were in sustained work or further study (DfE LEO, 2023–24 tax year). The largest employer sector for Engineering graduates is professional, scientific and technical services (26.4% of those in work).
Civil engineering covers structures, infrastructure, and site constraints. Accredited programmes can support later professional registration. Official figures appear when an extract is loaded.
- Median pay after 1 year
- £30,700
- Median pay after 5 years
- £41,400
- In work or study after 5 years
- 88.3%
- Earnings rank at 5 years
- 25 of 146 subjects
- Top employer sector
- Professional, scientific and technical services
- Graduates in latest cohort
- 2,395
On this page
What jobs can you get with a Civil Engineering degree?
Graduates commonly start as graduate civil engineer, site engineer (entry), structural technician or highways technician. Civil Engineering also builds skills that employers outside the obvious routes ask for, so many graduates move into roles that do not name the subject at all.
Graduate civil engineer
Supports a project team with drawings, quantities, and compliance against a specification.
Skills these adverts often ask for
- calculations
- site diaries
- design checks
Site engineer (entry)
Skills these adverts often ask for
- setting out
- as-builts
- permits
Structural technician
Skills these adverts often ask for
- models
- connection details
- revisions
Highways technician
Skills these adverts often ask for
- inspections
- traffic management notes
- asset records
Role examples and skills are CourseToJob editorial guidance, not a guarantee of a job. Pay for individual roles varies by employer and location; we do not attach a salary to a role unless an official source publishes one.
Where do Civil Engineering graduates work?
Five years after graduating, the largest employer sectors for Engineering graduates in UK employment were professional, scientific and technical services (26.4%), manufacturing (24.3%) and information and communication (9.6%). One year after graduating, the most common sector was professional, scientific and technical services (28.7%).
| Industry sector | Share of graduates in work | Median earnings in that sector |
|---|---|---|
| Professional, scientific and technical services | 26.4% | £44,300 |
| Manufacturing | 24.3% | £45,800 |
| Information and communication | 9.6% | £48,300 |
| Construction | 5.8% | £48,700 |
| Wholesale and retail | 5.7% | £37,000 |
| Administrative and support services | 4.2% | £39,500 |
| Public administration and defence | 4.1% | £44,300 |
| Finance and insurance | 3.8% | £65,900 |
Most common specific industries
- Architectural and engineering activities and related technical consultancy — 15% of graduates in work, median £41,000
- Computer programming; consultancy and related activities — 6.7% of graduates in work, median £49,800
- Manufacture of air and spacecraft and related machinery — 4% of graduates in work, median £48,300
- Management consultancy activities — 3.4% of graduates in work, median £58,600
- Provision of services to the community as a whole — 2.9% of graduates in work, median £46,800
- Research and experimental development on natural sciences and engineering — 2.7% of graduates in work, median £47,200
How much do Civil Engineering graduates earn?
Official dataCivil Engineering graduates had median earnings of £30,700 one year after graduating and £41,400 five years after graduating in the 2023–24 tax year. The median across all first-degree graduates of GB higher education institutions was £33,700 at five years.
| Years after graduating | Median earnings | Middle half earned | In work or further study | All-subject median |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 year after graduatingGraduated 2021/2022 | £30,700DfE LEO, Tax year 2023-24 | £27,100–£35,500 | 91.6% | £26,400 |
| 3 years after graduatingGraduated 2019/2020 | £35,500DfE LEO, Tax year 2023-24 | £30,700–£43,200 | 89.9% | £30,000 |
| 5 years after graduatingGraduated 2017/2018 | £41,400DfE LEO, Tax year 2023-24 | £33,700–£51,600 | 88.3% | £33,700 |
| 10 years after graduatingGraduated 2012/2013 | £52,300DfE LEO, Tax year 2023-24 | £39,900–£68,800 | 86.4% | — |
How one-year earnings have changed
Which universities have the highest-earning Engineering graduates?
Among universities in our index with at least 50 Engineering graduates measured, University of Oxford had the highest median earnings five years after graduating (£73,600), followed by University of Cambridge (£64,400) and Imperial College London (£56,400).
| University | Median earnings | Graduates measured |
|---|---|---|
| University of Oxford | £73,600 | 95 |
| University of Cambridge | £64,400 | 230 |
| Imperial College London | £56,400 | 225 |
| University College London | £55,300 | 175 |
| Durham University | £54,000 | 130 |
| Open University | £52,300 | 335 |
| Wrexham University | £51,200 | 55 |
| University of Bath | £50,500 | 350 |
| University of Warwick | £50,100 | 240 |
| University of Bristol | £49,800 | 280 |
Is Civil Engineering the right degree for you?
EditorialYou may enjoy it if
- You want to design or deliver things that have to stand up.
- You like site constraints as much as calculations.
- You are willing to learn Eurocodes and health-and-safety culture.
It may not suit you if
- You wanted a purely studio architecture course.
- You dislike mud, method statements, or mathematics.
- You expected to skip construction law and risk.
Interview questions for Civil Engineering graduate roles
EditorialGraduate civil and site-engineer interviews usually test safety, drawings, and how you communicate on a live site. These prompts are editorial illustrations.
You arrive on site and the setting-out looks wrong. What do you do first?
What it tests. Stop, check the drawing revision, and raise it — not pour anyway.
Explain a simple load path in a small structure from your course.
What it tests. Whether you understand how the building stands up.
A subcontractor asks you to sign something you did not inspect. How do you handle it?
What it tests. You do not sign what you have not seen.
How would you brief a temporary-works change in one paragraph?
What it tests. Clear, dated communication that a site team can act on.
What would you check before walking a live highway site?
What it tests. PPE, briefing, and traffic management — basic, non-negotiable.
Most Civil Engineering courses do not use a standard admissions interview. If a university invites you, it will say so — see UCAS on undergraduate interview invitations.
Illustrative question types for the roles above, not questions from a named employer.
Find Civil Engineering graduate jobs
Searched by the entry-level roles aboveSearch UK vacancies connected to civil engineering. These are role matches, not guaranteed graduate-level jobs: read the experience, qualifications and work-permission requirements in each full advert.
Salary filters and ordering use the provider’s data, which can include estimates. Cards below show employer-listed pay only. Cached searches can be up to 30 minutes old; the employer’s advert confirms availability.
Checking vacancies for Graduate civil engineer…
Prepare your application with graduate cv examples, student cv examples, the free CV builder and the application tracker.
Is there an apprenticeship alternative to Civil Engineering?
EditorialCivil engineer degree apprenticeships are widely advertised by contractors and consultancies. This note is editorial.
Research exact university programmes
We have not added verified programme records for this subject yet. Use the official university catalogue for current courses, fees and entry requirements.
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Planning to study Civil Engineering in the UK?
Check the exact programme, entry requirements and total cost before applying. International applicants should also confirm qualification equivalence, English-language evidence and visa requirements.
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Universities for Civil Engineering in our index
123 universitiesAn editorial provision index, not a live UCAS catalogue: confirm current courses on UCAS. CourseToJob is not UCAS.Open Civil Engineering in the full university explorer.
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Civil Engineering degree: frequently asked questions
What jobs can you do with a Civil Engineering degree?
Common starting roles include graduate civil engineer, site engineer (entry), structural technician and highways technician. Five years after graduating, the most common sectors for Engineering graduates in work were professional, scientific and technical services (26.4%), manufacturing (24.3%) and information and communication (9.6%). These are examples, not guaranteed jobs: your experience, location and further training matter.
How much do Civil Engineering graduates earn in the UK?
DfE Longitudinal Education Outcomes data for the 2023–24 tax year shows median earnings for UK-domiciled Civil Engineering graduates of £30,700 one year after graduating, £35,500 three years after graduating, £41,400 five years after graduating and £52,300 ten years after graduating. Each figure describes a different graduating cohort, not one person's pay rise, and it is gross pay for those in sustained employment, not a starting salary offer.
Is a Civil Engineering degree worth it?
It depends on what you want to do. On the official data, 88.3% of Civil Engineering graduates were in sustained employment or further study five years after graduating, with median earnings of £41,400. For comparison, the median across all first-degree graduates of GB higher education institutions was £33,700 at the same point. That places Civil Engineering 25 of 146 subject groups by five-year median earnings. Earnings are only one factor: enjoyment of the subject, accreditation and the route into your target job matter too.
Which universities have the highest-earning Engineering graduates?
Among universities in our index with at least 50 graduates measured, the highest five-year median earnings for Engineering were at University of Oxford (£73,600), University of Cambridge (£64,400) and Imperial College London (£56,400). These figures reflect entry grades, subject mix and where graduates work, so they are not a measure of teaching quality.
Can international students study Civil Engineering in the UK?
Yes, most UK universities accept international applicants, but entry requirements, recognised qualifications, English-language evidence and overseas tuition fees depend on the university and programme. Check the university course page and international admissions team, then check visa requirements on GOV.UK.
Skilled Worker visas
Sponsorship depends on the job's occupation code and the current Skilled Worker rules, not on a subject's median pay. A Skilled Worker decision uses the higher of the general threshold and the SOC going rate. Subject LEO medians are not sufficient. Read the Skilled Worker job rules on GOV.UK.