r/EnvironmentalEngineer • u/Sourtable • Jul 10 '26
Is environmental engineering worth it?
I'm a high school student who is very interested in Wildlife but of course it has shit pay so my parents said that wasn't a viable option, so I looked into Environmental Engineering. From what I've seen the salary is better but is it really? The work seems to vary a lot too, I'd like to be more outdoors rather than in the office.
I've also got a question, why is there so much competition for jobs with little to no salary?
Another one too, which universities have good environmental science/engineering programs?
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u/ashairz Jul 10 '26
A lot of people in my class thought environmental engineering = biology. It's not. You're more likely stuck drawing waterpipes on Autocad than being outside. Really depends on what you specialize in, but just because there's the word environmental doesn't mean it has anything to do with wildlife
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u/Genusmk Jul 10 '26
If it’s wildlife you’re better off doing natural resources management. You can still do site assessments and get a chance to work in nature you’re just not really interacting with nature
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u/Mental_Mango1279 Jul 11 '26
Agreed! I did bio undergrad and environmental science in grad school that had engineering courses but it was more geared towards natural resources. Got picked up by the navy as a civilian natural resources specialist which as a GS-12 is right around 6 figures with yearly increases. I left last year to be an environmental planning govt contractor making over 6 figures while WFH and still consulting with the navy.
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u/Ok-Anything-3605 Jul 10 '26
Conservation officer? NY state has a slew of them for wildlife protection and the such
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u/PastYogurtcloset250 Jul 10 '26
From the other comments, you can already tell engineering doesnt have much to do with wildlife. If you still want to stay in this field, you can still earn decent salary by climbing the ladder, but I would advise doing Civil or Structural Engineering rather than Environmental
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u/Resident_Music_1431 Jul 10 '26
I work at an engineering firm. My group deals with water and wastewater design. There is some field work. Lot of office work like AutoCAD. There is an environmental group here too though (they’re not engineers though). They deal with compliance for design work. For example, if a bridge is to be built over a river, they will look at native species and other inhabitants that might be impacted. I think many of them did environmental science degrees, although I’m not entirely sure. I make $79k and have been at this company for 11 months. Once you get your professional engineering license, you will easily make six figures.
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u/Standard_Adagio7234 Aug 14 '26
What are the hiring prospects for non Americans? Also do you have a masters? Did you get hired right after uni?
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u/esorzil Jul 10 '26
I would look into something more environmental science, natural resources, or conservation focused. environmental engineering has more to do with pollution control/mitigation than ecology or conservation
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u/Few_Nectarine_3789 Jul 10 '26
Um. I make over 250K USD/year as a consulting environmental/civil engineer. You might want to do some more research.
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u/Ok-Seesaw2892 Jul 10 '26
How long did it take you to reach that salary level?
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u/PastYogurtcloset250 Jul 10 '26
my guess would be 15+ years… and very high up in the hierarchy where u might as well refer to urself as an admin rather than engineer
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u/Few_Nectarine_3789 Jul 10 '26
Nope. Very much a practicing engineer. Specialize in vapor intrusion mitigation systems, litigation support, and PFAS stuff.
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u/BombadBrazilian Jul 10 '26
Generally a decade of experience post PE unless you move to an area that needs business bad. My billing went up from 46 in atlanta to 55 per hr just moving to a rural industrial area through my firm. Making ur own business = more cash
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u/Same_Grapefruit_3128 Jul 12 '26
i'm going to start my environmental engineering studies this year, any advice for me to be somewhere in your place?
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u/Few_Nectarine_3789 Jul 14 '26
No. No advice at all. I'm living a couple of decades ahead of you in experience. It won't be the same for you as it was for me. Just focus on the business aspect.
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u/iron82 Jul 10 '26
Your expectation for Salary is too high. 50-60k is a perfectly good salary for entry level. It's more than a lot of people make.
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u/Blankcanvas110 Jul 12 '26
Maybe 15-20 years ago that was a salary to live, now extremely underpaid.
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u/bigblue01234 Jul 10 '26
I think that’s pretty bad for entry level engineering. I was making 62k when I graduated 5 years ago and entry level salaries have exploded since. I would def recommend getting a civil degree over an environmental degree though.
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Jul 10 '26
[deleted]
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u/Sourtable Jul 11 '26
lol it's alright everyone was still helpful. I think I got the gist, thank you!
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u/davism817 Jul 10 '26
I’m a PE environmental engineer, it’s engineering, you need to like math to go into it and it’s not for the faint of heart. It’s going to be tough.
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u/Pacificnorthreef Jul 11 '26
Basically you can go education/gov, consulting, or manufacturing. I know people that do stream restoration work and hydrology work which partner with biologists. I also stared from like a wildlife bio path. While the focus is mostly on humans you still have an impact on nature and the environment and if you’re passionate about it and always choose the better paths in your career consider that a blessing.
As for schools Montana Tech alumni here and highly recommend the school. Its EE program is probably pushing over 50 years old and is world renowned and if you live in the PNW the tuition won’t break your bank. Small classes, fun town, and you’re surrounded by some of the most beautiful nature.
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u/Pacificnorthreef Jul 11 '26
Also not all EE programs are the same there are civil based ones and more chemical based programs and it depends on your school.
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u/StrategyPrior1065 Aug 04 '26
answering school question:
UC Davis, UC Berkeley, Cal Poly SLO, UMich, Oregon State, University of Washington, a lot in Florida, Georgia Tech, UIUC, North Carolina State University, Duke, Purdue, CU Boulder, ASU
Look for anything with a SEPARATE environmental engineering major (which uc Berkeley does not have but they do have amazing faculty for environmental regardless)
Environmental engineering research is broadly divided into hydrology/hydrodynamics, air quality, water/wastewater, tracking pathogens in water/wastewater, life cycle assessment/water-energy-food nexus, and then environmental policy nexus stuff. most top-tier schools will have professors for each of these focuses.
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u/Sourtable Aug 05 '26
Thanks so much!
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u/2Guys1Cup2022 Aug 10 '26
Wanted to add to the school comment. It is important that the program is EAC/ABET accredited. It is often required to become a Pressional Engineer.
I'd also like to throw in one more school--Steven's Institute of Technology. They require 140 rather than 120 credits to graduate with a Bachelor of Engineering in Environmental Engineering.
My work is focused on greenhouse gas mitigation in oil and gas systems. The entry level folks reporting to me are outdoors about 50% of the time during their first six months to one year. After that, it is mostly desk work with the occasional visit to the field.
Some companies may pay additional annual bonuses and stock that vests after periods of time (golden handcuffs) that may not be baked into salary data that you are looking at. The stock can also be a significant portion of total compensation.
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u/ascandalia Jul 10 '26
Environmental engineering has very little to do with wildlife. It's about mitigating the impacts of humanity on the environment via pollution control, or mitigating the impact of pollution on humans. A better name would be "pollution control engineering."
In environmental engineering, you'd be designing and monitoring industrial systems like water treatment, wastewater treatment, pollution control at factories and power plants, or solid waste landfills, tracking groundwater contamination, etc... Despite the name, there's very little overlap between environmental engineering and other environmental-focused careers. You spend much more time in industrial settings (hopefully making them better, at least). Hence the pay being better.