Civil EngineeringAS DegreeCertificate of Achievement

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Community of interest
Science, Technology, Engineering & Mathematics
Award
AS Degree
Program code
44132.00AS
Department
Engineering
CIP code
14.0801: Civil Engineering, General.
TOP code
0901.00 - Engineering, General (requires Calculus) (Transfer)
This degree program is designed to cover the majority of the first two years of a four-year program leading to the Bachelor's Degree in Civil Engineering at CSU, Chico. Major requirements can vary by university and catalog year. Students should consult with a counselor and utilize Assist.org to ensure this is the most efficient pathway for their academic and career goals. While the Bachelor's Degree is usually the minimum needed to practice as a junior engineer, the Associate in Science Degree in Civil Engineering will permit an individual to find work in most engineering firms as an engineering aide or assistant. The curriculum includes core math and science courses as well as required lower-division courses in Civil Engineering.
Program detailsAward, code, department, CIP/TOP

Program Snapshot

Community of interest
STEM Science, Technology, Engineering & Mathematics
Award
AS Degree
Program code
44132.00AS
Department
Engineering
CIP code
14.0801: Civil Engineering, General.
TOP code
0901.00 - Engineering, General (requires Calculus) (Transfer)

Next Steps

Map Class Schedule

Pick a term:

Fall 2026Winter 2027Spring 2027Summer 2027

This will open the term course schedule not including GE requirements.

Program Schedule ReportMeet with a counselor
Civil Engineering
AS Degree — expand to learn about this award

The Associate of Science is typically awarded for Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics (STEM) and Career Technical Education (CTE) programs. Like every Butte College associate degree, it has two parts: a general-education curriculum that gives you a broad base of knowledge, and an academic program where you specialize.

About General Education. GE is an integrated program of learning designed to foster intellectual curiosity, cultural understanding, critical thinking, creative reasoning, oral and written communication, and the capacity for ethical reasoning. By graduation, you'll have developed the ability to think critically, communicate clearly, apply quantitative reasoning, understand how the major academic disciplines ask their questions, comprehend diverse cultures and historical periods, and assess ethical problems — alongside the depth you build in your major.

See the 2025-26 Catalog for official program details

Semester-by-Semester Map

Term 1

Class Schedules

Pick a term:

Fall 2026Winter 2027Spring 2027Summer 2027

This will open the term course schedule not including GE requirements.

17–19 units
ENGR 1
Introduction to Engineering
3 units
course details

The course explores the career branches of engineering including the functions of an engineer in various settings and the industries in which engineers work. Topics will span the life cycle of the engineering professions from education to career including guided exploration of educational pathways, time-management, study-skill development through engineering-skill building activities focused on design and creation of products and ethical practices. The engineering process will be used to develop essential project management skills in the context of being introduced to ubiquitous systems used by engineers such as sensors, pneumatics, hydraulics, AC and DC motor control, simple electrical circuits, machine controllers, programming, and computational tools for testing and analysis. A spreadsheet program and high-level computer language programs are integral parts of the course. (C-ID ENGR 110).

ENGR 3
Plane Surveying I
3 units
course details

The course applies theory and principles of plane surveying: office computations and design; operation of surveying field equipment; and production of engineering plans/maps. Topics include distances, angles, and directions; differential leveling; traversing; property/boundary surveys; topographic surveys/mapping; volume/earthwork; horizontal and vertical curves; land description techniques; and Global Positioning Systems (GPS). Extensive field work using tapes, levels, transits, theodolites, total stations, and GPS. (C-ID ENGR 180).

Prerequisite: MATH 20, MATH 28, MATH 28s or high school trigonometry

Select one: Meets Area 2

Required

5 units
Choose one of 2 choices
Choose one of 2 choices

General Education: Area 1A

about Area 1A

English Composition

Baccalaureate-level academic writing — expository and argumentative. The foundation for every other course you'll write in.

General Education: Area 3

about Area 3

Arts and Humanities

How people and cultures, across time, respond to themselves and the world through artistic and cultural creative production. Visual and performing arts, art history, foreign languages, literature, philosophy, religion.

Term 2

Class Schedules

Pick a term:

Fall 2026Winter 2027Spring 2027Summer 2027

This will open the term course schedule not including GE requirements.

15 units
CHEM 1
General Chemistry I
5 units

Meets Area 5A/5C.

course details

This course introduces students to the basic principles of chemistry with a quantitative emphasis. Topics include atomic theory, chemical bonding, molecular geometry, chemical reactions, stoichiometry, gases, thermochemistry, intermolecular forces and solutions. This is the first semester of a one-year course in chemistry intended for majors in the natural sciences (chemistry, biochemistry, biology, physics, pre-medicine), mathematics, and engineering. The two-semester sequence of CHEM 1 and CHEM 2 provides the basic chemical background needed for further investigations into our physical environment. Graded only. (C-ID CHEM 110/CHEM 120S).

Prerequisite: CHEM 11 or CHEM 51 or one year of high school Chemistry; and Intermediate Algebra or equivalent

ENGR 4
Plane Surveying II
3 units
course details

This course introduces students to civil engineering design standards, concepts and procedures related to transportation engineering and construction management. Topics include the standards and design of horizontal curves, vertical curves and earthwork related to transportation projects in addition to survey staking, state plane coordinates, geographic information systems and Global Positioning Systems (GPS) related to project surveying. The laboratory portion of the course includes the application of 3-dimensional graphic modeling software requiring creativity in design, development of construction plans, and operation of modern surveying equipment, such as total stations and GPS.

Prerequisite: ENGR 3

MATH 31
Analytic Geometry and Calculus II
4 units

Meets Area 2.

course details

This course is the second of a series in differential and integral calculus of a single variable. Topics will include the concept, techniques and applications of integration, infinite sequences and series, as well as polar and parametric equations. Intended for Science, Technology, Engineering & Math Majors. (C-ID MATH 220).

Prerequisite: MATH 30 or MATH 30s

General Education: Area 1B

about Area 1B

Oral Communication and Critical Thinking

Baccalaureate-level oral communication and/or critical thinking — speaking with structure to a live audience, analyzing arguments, identifying assumptions.

Term 3

Class Schedules

Pick a term:

Fall 2026Winter 2027Spring 2027Summer 2027

This will open the term course schedule not including GE requirements.

18 units
DFT 12
Beginning AutoCAD Drafting
3 units
course details

This course introduces students to basic drafting concepts using both freehand sketching and AutoCAD, an industry-standard computer-aided drafting (CAD) application. It is intended for drafting majors, engineering majors, interior design majors and pre-architectural students. Topics include line and geometric shape development, freehand sketching, basic AutoCAD commands, text commands, file management, orthographic and pictorial projection, dimensioning, sectioning, auxiliaries, and architectural drawings using sketching and a two-dimensional (2D) drafting application. Document reproduction, printing and plotting will be introduced and practiced.

ENGR 2
Programming and Problem-Solving in MATLAB
3 units
course details

This course utilizes the MATLAB environment and commercial electronic spreadsheets to provide students with a working knowledge of computer-based problem-solving methods relevant to science and engineering. It introduces the fundamentals of procedural and object-oriented programming, numerical analysis, and data structures. Examples and assignments in the course are drawn from practical applications in engineering, physics, and mathematics. (C-ID ENGR 220).

Prerequisite: MATH 30 or MATH 30s

ENGR 8
Statics
3 units
course details

A first course in engineering mechanics: properties of forces, moments, couples and resultants; two- and three-dimensional force systems acting on engineering structures in equilibrium; analysis of trusses, and beams; distributed forces, shear and bending moment diagrams, center of gravity, centroids, friction, and area and mass moments of inertia. Optional additional topics include fluid statics, cables, Mohr's circle and virtual work. (C-ID ENGR 130).

Prerequisite: MATH 31, PHYS 41

PHYS 41
Physics for Scientists and Engineers I
4 units

Meets Area 5A/5C.

course details

This course, intended for students majoring in physical sciences and engineering, is part of a three-semester course whose contents may be offered in other sequences or combinations. Core topics include an introduction to kinematics, dynamics, work and energy, momentum, gravitation and simple harmonic motion. Graded only. (C-ID PHYS 205/PHYS 100S).

Prerequisite: MATH 30 or MATH 30s

General Education: Area 4

about Area 4

Social and Behavioral Sciences

The systematic study of people as members of society — cultural anthropology, cultural geography, economics, history, political science, psychology, sociology — and the methods these disciplines use to ask their questions.

Graduation Requirement Choice (See GE Guide)

Term 4

Class Schedules

Pick a term:

Fall 2026Winter 2027Spring 2027Summer 2027

This will open the term course schedule not including GE requirements.

19 units
ENGR 45
Materials Science
4 units
course details

This course presents the internal structures and resulting behaviors of materials used in engineering applications, including metals, ceramics, polymers, composites, and semiconductors. The emphasis is upon developing the ability both to select appropriate materials to meet engineering design criteria and to understand the effects of heat, stress, imperfections, and chemical environments upon material properties and performance. Laboratories provide opportunities to directly observe the structures and behaviors discussed in the course, to operate testing equipment, to analyze experimental data, and to prepare reports. (C-ID ENGR 140B).

Prerequisite: PHYS 41, CHEM 1

GEOL 32
Physical Geology with Lab
4 units

Meets Area 5A/5C.

course details

This course introduces students to the internal and external processes that are at work changing the earth today. Within the context of modern plate tectonics theory, students will explore the origins of rocks and minerals and dynamic earth processes such as volcanism, seismicity and mountain building that are driven by the release of Earth's internal heat. It also examines how wind, running water, and glaciers move in response to gravity and energy from the sun and the sculpting of Earth's surface by erosion. These concepts as well as the interpretation of topographic and geologic maps will be reinforced with an integrated laboratory program. (C-ID GEOL 101).

MATH 40
Differential Equations
4 units

Meets Area 2.

course details

The course is an introduction to ordinary differential equations including both quantitative and qualitative methods as well as applications from a variety of disciplines. Introduces the theoretical aspects of differential equations, including establishing when solution(s) exist, and techniques for obtaining solutions, including, series solutions, and singular points, Laplace transforms and linear systems. (C-ID MATH 240).

Prerequisite: MATH 31

PHYS 42
Physics for Scientists and Engineers II
4 units

Meets Area 5A/5C.

course details

This course, intended for students majoring in physical sciences and engineering, is part of a three-semester course whose contents may be offered in other sequences or combinations. Core topics include electrostatics, magnetism, DC and AC circuits, and Maxwell's equations. Graded only. (C-ID PHYS 210/PHYS 200S).

Prerequisite: PHYS 41, MATH 31

General Education: Area 6

about Area 6

Ethnic Studies

The histories, experiences, and contributions of the four autonomous disciplines: Black / African American / Africana studies, Native American studies, Chicano/a/x and Latino/a/x studies, and Asian American studies.

Career Connections

2-Year Degree Paths

Entry points students may pursue after associate-level study, technical preparation, or licensure pathways.

No locally mapped occupations in the current dataset point cleanly to an immediate 2-year outcome for this program.

4-Year Degree Paths

Roles that more often open up after transfer and a bachelor's degree.

Example roles: 1

  • Civil Engineers

Graduate School Paths

Advanced roles commonly associated with graduate, professional, or post-baccalaureate study.

No locally mapped occupations in the current dataset are grouped into the graduate-school pathway for this program.

Local Job Market

Civil EngineersSOC 17-20515 nearby openings

Search keyword used: civil engineer · Search window: last 30 days, 25-mile radius · Avg listed salary: $112,213/yr

Top employers in sample

  • City of Chico 2
  • California Water Group 1
  • Psomas 1
  • River Partners 1

Where the postings are

  • Chico, Butte County 3
  • Butte Creek, Butte County 2

Sample current postings

  1. Experienced Office Engineer / Field EngineerPsomas · Chico, Butte County · 6 days ago
  2. Water Utility EngineerCalifornia Water Group · Chico, Butte County · 6 days ago
  3. Senior Plans ExaminerCity of Chico · Butte Creek, Butte County · 10 days ago
  4. Geographic Information Systems AnalystCity of Chico · Butte Creek, Butte County · 2 weeks ago
  5. EstimatorRiver Partners · Chico, Butte County · 4 weeks ago

See all openings on Adzuna

Posting counts come from Adzuna's index of US job boards, covering the last 30 days within 25 miles of ZIP 95965. Coverage and salary visibility vary by employer. Empty searches expand the radius and posting window before the section gives up.

Source Notes

Course sequencing is generated from the Acadia Program Mapper cache. Career groupings use local CIP-to-SOC mappings and BLS occupation data when available. Confirm education plans with Counseling and Advising.

Live wage data was not available from the BLS helper for the mapped occupations, so some pay fields may be blank.

Last generated 2026-06-12T23:23+00:00