GRADUATE

STUDY
WE ARE WHOLE-BRAIN THINKERS
SEEING SIMPLICITY IN THE COMPLEX,
THE COMPLEXITY OF THE SIMPLE.

WE ARE WHOLE-BRAIN ENGINEERS,

BIG-PICTURE THINKERS, REAL-TIME

COLLABORATORS, ALL-OUT INNOVATORS.

WE ARE
TAKING THE
WORLD IN
A WHOLE NEW
DIRECTION.
Driving progress through innovation and leadership.
Turning research into patented processes and
life-changing inventions. Bringing products to market
with smart risk-taking and entrepreneurship.

FIND YOUR DIRECTION HERE.

 Empowering students with
advanced analytical and
problem-solving skills

24
MS PROGRAMS
Analysis. Logic. Synthesis. Math. All are elements
of “left-brain” thinking, all critical to engineering
success. To lead today in a world of change,
engineers require more. They need “right-brain”
skills. Intuition. Metaphorical thinking. Creative
problem solving. At Northwestern Engineering,
we celebrate whole-brain thinking and empower
their career opportunities through career-focused
initiatives and cross-school partnerships that
expand their perspectives and strengthen business
management skills.

Graduate students choose from an array of programs

aligned with their career goals and personal
passions. Master’s degree programs, full- and part-
our students to become whole-brain engineers.
time, are designed to meet ever-changing industry
Master’s and PhD students at Northwestern and research environments. Doctoral programs
Engineering build on that philosophy. They conduct allow students to work side-by-side with world-class
interdisciplinary research and collaboration faculty across disciplines researching advanced
with peers and faculty in other highly ranked topics in engineering.

14
departments. They develop leadership skills inside
and outside the classroom and lab. And they expand see areas of graduate study >

Whichever direction our graduate students take, all

PHD PROGRAMS become prepared to change the world for the better
and to lead others to do the same.

OVERVIEW
 RESEARCHERS AND COLLABORATORS

> 20
ONGOING RESEARCH
BREAKING BARRIERS AND CREATING THE FUTURE

Northwestern Engineering’s more than

200 faculty systematically confront some
of the world’s most pressing and complex
challenges in systems, materials, health and
wellness, energy, and the environment. Our
MAJOR CENTERS INCLUDE:

• Center for Advanced Regenerative Engineering

• Center for Robotics and Biosystems
• Center for Synthetic Biology
INITIATIVES WITH
interdisciplinary collaboration is exemplified • International Institute for Nanotechnology
OTHER NORTHWESTERN by ongoing research initiatives with more than
• Materials Research Science and
DEPARTMENTS 20 other departments across our extended
Engineering Center
Northwestern campus and dozens of other
universities and research centers worldwide. • Northwestern-Argonne Institute for
Science and Engineering
While the majority of University research
• Northwestern Institute on Complex Systems
funding comes from government sources,
corporate-sponsored research represents • Northwestern University Transportation Center
a growing opportunity. • Segal Design Institute

CAREER-FOCUSED PROFESSIONALS
PREPARING FOR SUCCESS IN BUSINESS, INDUSTRY, AND ACADEMIA

Northwestern Engineering is committed to For doctoral students, Management for

developing students for successful careers Scientists and Engineers, an eight-week
as leaders and researchers in business, summer course drawn from the Kellogg School
industry, and academia. The Engineering Career of Management core MBA curriculum, equips
Development office identifies and works with researchers with the knowledge they need to
students to secure internship opportunities and become better managers and leaders.
provides other career advancement services,
including full-time employment after graduation.

ENTREPRENEURS AND INNOVATORS

CHANGING THE WORLD FOR THE BETTER EVERY DAY

Northwestern Engineering students and faculty drive progress through innovation and leadership,
turning research into patented processes and life-changing inventions, bringing products to market
NUVENTION COURSES
through smart risk-taking and entrepreneurship. They typically account for a lion’s share of the
These courses are a visionary University’s inventions and faculty startups.
academic partnership created
to expand upon Northwestern’s ENTREPRENEURSHIP RESOURCES
excellence in interdisciplinary • The Farley Center for Entrepreneurship and • The Innovation and New Ventures Office
study and to foster a sense of Innovation provides incubators, mentorships, (INVO) advises faculty and students on the
collaboration throughout the and seminars and encourages the ongoing development of research with commercial
University. development of new, interdisciplinary curricula. potential and conducts seminars and
educational programs on entrepreneurship
• NUvention courses engage interdisciplinary
and innovation.
teams from across the University in the entire
innovation and entrepreneurial life cycle, • The Garage is an entrepreneurship space
including how to transform innovations into for Northwestern students to experiment,
viable business. collaborate, and build their ideas.

OVERVIEW
A DIVERSE COMMUNITY OF LEADERS
GAINING EXPERIENCE INSIDE AND OUTSIDE THE CLASSROOMS AND LAB

The McCormick Graduate Leadership • Black Graduate Student Association (BGSA)

Council helps solidify a graduate student • Chinese Students and Scholars Assoc. (CSSA)
community among the nine departments within
• Graduate Student Association for Latino
Northwestern Engineering by organizing social,
and Spanish Activities (G-SALSA)
academic, and professional activities, and
• Indian Graduate Student and Scholars
facilitating communication with administration.
Assoc. (IGSSA)
Students can also participate in the Graduate
• International Society for Optics and Photonics
Student Association, department-centered
(SPIE)
student groups, and other student associations
• Queer Pride Graduate Student Assoc. (QPGSA)
that promote interactions among graduate
students, provide academic and social programs, • Society of Women Engineers (GradSWE)
and serve as student advocates. These include: • Women in Science and Engineering Research
(WISER)

OVERVIEW
 COLLEAGUES, FRIENDS, AND FAMILIES

12
MILES
LIVING AND LEARNING IN ONE OF THE WORLD’ S
MOST DYNAMIC METROPOLITAN AREAS

Stretching along the shore of spectacular Lake

Michigan, Northwestern’s Evanston campus
provides an environment conducive to serious
shuttle, Northwestern students have easy
access to the wealth of professional sports,
music, art, and cultural diversity that the
scholarship and rich in rewarding opportunities nation’s third-largest city offers.
FROM DOWNTOWN
for every lifestyle. Evanston boasts the amenities
CHICAGO Northwestern’s location also means
of a big city in a manageable suburban setting.
unsurpassed access to major corporations,
With Northwestern’s downtown Chicago campus research centers, and other organizations eager
only 12 miles away and readily accessible to engage Northwestern Engineering students in
by public transportation or the intercampus experiential learning, internships, and careers.

OVERVIEW
 MS IN

CIVIL AND
ENVIRONMENTAL
ENGINEERING
 Creating a sustainable future through
QUICK FACTS
innovation, analysis, and design
DEGREE EARNED
Master of Science in Civil and
Environmental Engineering Ranked among the nation’s premier research and The CEE master’s program prepares students to
academic departments in the field, the Department become the next generation of leaders in research,
of Civil and Environmental Engineering (CEE) at academic, corporate, and public service settings
LOCATION
Northwestern University develops fundamental who will create a healthier, more prosperous future.
Northwestern University’s
tools and conducts innovative research by creating
Evanston campus This program has three major components:
new techniques to interrogate complex systems.
Easy access to world-class • COURSEWORK delves into the advanced
Chicago NGOs, engineering The result is disruptive technologies tied to
fundamentals of the field, including mechanics,
and architecture firms, equitable social policy and adaptive and resilient
and labs analysis, design, computer methods, and
climate action, including robotics in construction,
modeling. Students also have extensive options
autonomous mobility systems, large-scale 3D
to take courses outside the department.
TIMING printing, combined structural, geo-energy, and
9 months waste recovery systems, and predictive and • RESEARCH can be a part of the MS program
innovative responses to extreme events. if students so choose. Students have the option
of conducting innovative research that leads to
Based in Evanston, Illinois, the department has
a thesis.
deep connections to various other subdisciplines
and fields at Northwestern, as well as to Chicago’s • PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT
architecture and engineering firms, laboratories, includes career fairs, résumé workshops, and
and nonprofit agencies. presentations by engineering professionals.
Students have full access to Northwestern’s
extensive career placement resources.

MS CIVIL AND ENVIRONMENTAL ENGINEERING

 CURRICULUM view more online >

MS programs are offered in these academic areas:

• Geotechnical engineering • Environmental engineering and science

• Structural engineering and design • Project management
• Transportation systems analysis • Global and Ecological Health Engineering
and planning Certificate

KIMBERLY GRAY FACULTY meet our faculty >

Roxelyn And Richard Pepper
Family Chair In Civil And With award-winning, internationally renowned and careers in a scholarly community that’s
Environmental Engineering faculty members, CEE provides graduate small enough to assure individual attention
students with an exceptional range of and effective mentoring.
Civil and environmental
opportunities to advance their knowledge
engineers at Northwestern
tackle the pressing systems
challenges of the day with
systems thinking. Our
CAREER PATHS
teaching and research
are collaboratively and Many MS graduates go into engineering practice, while others pursue research, consulting, or teaching.
innovatively focused on a
variety of systems: material
systems, ecosystems, urban
systems and human systems. AREAS OF RESEARCH EXCELLENCE view more online >

We seek to understand
the fundamental aspects MATERIAL SYSTEMS URBAN SYSTEMS
of problems and to craft • Advanced materials testing • Automation
solutions that anticipate • Biomaterials • Climate mitigation, adaptation, and resilience
unexpected outcomes.” • Geomaterials • Energy
• Infrastructure materials • Geosystems
• Nanomaterials • Resource recovery and reuse
• Reactive materials • Structure and infrastructure
• Theory and computation • Water treatment

ECOSYSTEMS HUMAN SYSTEMS

• Biofilms and microbial communities • Data science and smart cities
• Ecosystem health • Modeling and network analysis
• Engineered ecosystems • Policy
• Natural ecosystems • Public health
• Urban planning and design

Come and experience NU’s educational paradigm where you will hone skills
in one of the department’s academic areas while working on socially and
environmentally relevant systems problems that transcend all disciplinary
boundaries, and that will contribute to shaping a better future.”

PABLO DURANGO-COHEN
Associate Professor

MS CIVIL AND ENVIRONMENTAL ENGINEERING

TIMELINE ADMISSIONS
SUBMIT APPLICATION Applications and all supplemental materials for Northwestern Engineering’s Admissions
Recommended: January 15 admission are submitted through the Graduate instructions and the department’s Admissions
Final: July 1 School’s online application system. Please view FAQs page for more information.

RECEIVE DECISION
Decisions made on a rolling basis,
completed by June 1

START PROGRAM
APPLICATION CHECKLIST
September

ONLINE APPLICATION FORM

ACADEMIC TRANSCRIPTS
START YOUR
APPLICATION > TWO OR MORE LETTERS OF RECOMMENDATION

STATEMENT OF PURPOSE

TOEFL SCORES/IELTS SCORES (if applicable)

RÉSUMÉ OR CV

WRITING SAMPLES AND DIVERSITY STATEMENTS

APPLICATION FEE

PLEASE DO NOT SEND HARD COPIES OF MATERIALS.

FINANCIAL AID
To ensure our graduate students can fund their The Evanston Office of Graduate Financial Aid
education regardless of personal financial assists with these funding processes.
circumstances, Northwestern Engineering
gradfinaid@northwestern.edu >
provides opportunities for access to a variety of
federal and private loan and funding options. view funding resources >

LEARN MORE
MORE INFO QUESTIONS
CEE.northwestern.edu CEEgrad@northwestern.edu

MS CIVIL AND ENVIRONMENTAL ENGINEERING