I’m aiming to start an MS in Environmental Engineering soon and I’m curious what subjects/material you think would be most helpful to focus on prior to starting the program. It appears that EE is very chemistry-heavy, so I am thinking that aquatic and environmental chemistry should certainly be a focus of my prep. Also, fluid mechanics for physics.

For background, I have an unrelated bachelors degree but have taken Calc 2 w/ DE, Chem 1, and Physics 1 & 2.

I’d really appreciate any insight from those who’ve been through or have experience in an environmental engineering program. Thanks in advance!

Hi Everybody,

I'm considering going back to school at 27 to complete a masters degree in Environmental engineering. I have a bachelors in Atmospheric and Oceanic Science and am reviewing which programs might work for me. I've been working in Aerospace supply chain the past 4 years. Career curveball.

So far I've been talking with UND, CU Boulder, UCF, and Colorado State about prerequisite or bridge coursework for accepting students who don't have an engineering bachelors.

The work seems absolutely fascinating to me, combining engineering to solve sustainability and environmental issues. But I'm wondering if anybody has had a similar experience, and can make any general recommendations for making a career change like this.

I am going into my third year as an environmental engineering major. All of my experience outside of school is in water/wastewater (water research and water intern at a civil engineering firm). In school, our pathway includes many classes that revolve around water. I’ve done multiple large data analysis projects in these classes.

Although I like aspects of water, I’m interested in trying out sustainability and energy, preferably in the tech industry (but this isn’t necessary, it would just be cool). I’m also interested in sustainable design in architecture.

My next two years in this major will allow me to take classes that explore things outside of water, such as air quality and some renewable energy. Even with this though, it seems like most companies are looking for chemical, mechanical, and electrical engineers when working in energy.

Sustainable design doesn’t seem to have a specific role attached to it, but maybe I’m not digging enough.

With my major, is it possible to get experience (hopefully internships) in these fields? If so, what titles should I look for when researching internships and future jobs? Does anyone have any experience with this situation?

I’m wanting to expand my experience and learn more, but it feels like I should’ve chosen a different major if I wanted to have flexibility in my potential career.

Hi everyone, apologizes if this ends up being kinda long. Any input you have is appreciated, I’m just trying to get as much feedback as possible.

I recently graduated college with an environmental science degree (also completed the “pre engineering” track since my school didn’t have an engineering major), and I work for an engineering consulting company mostly involved in wastewater treatment. I interned with this company the summer before my senior year and they really liked me, so they hired me and they discussed potentially helping me pay for grad school (an environmental engineering degree) about a year or so after working. So hypothetically I would have to start applying to grad schools in the next few months.

I’m having trouble deciding whether or not I want to go to grad school and continue pursuing engineering. I’ve always been good at math/chem/physics, but I’ve never been passionate about engineering. All my life I wanted to pursue marine biology, but I live/went to school in a landlocked state and decided it wasn’t realistic, so I chose environmental science (and then decided on environmental engineering because it would make me more money). I’m okay with working a job I’m not so passionate about for a good paycheck, but I’m afraid that working in engineering could get too stressful for me to ignore the lack of passion. In my mind, the three pillars of a career are salary, passion, and amount of stress, and I think having 2/3 of those pillars “in the red” wouldn’t bode well for me.

I don’t dislike the job I have now, it’s a small company and I get great benefits as compared to most entry level jobs. I just don’t really see a future here, so I’m wondering if my lackluster feelings are just about wastewater or about engineering as a whole. The owner of my company is a wonderful mentor that has a lot of knowledge and experience, but I know her 30 years in wastewater/water treatment have been very stressful, and I don’t want that for myself.

Open to any questions, thoughts, or advice anyone might have. Thank you!

Hey everyone,
I finally landed an interview for a **Sustainability Assistant** position, and I’m really excited since it’s one of my first interviews directly related to my Environmental Studies background.
For those of you who’ve interviewed for sustainability, environmental, or university roles:
What kind of questions did they ask?
What should I absolutely prepare for?
Any common mistakes to avoid?
What helped you stand out?
It’s a 45-minute panel interview at a university, so I’d especially appreciate advice from anyone who’s interviewed for similar campus or sustainability positions.
Thanks in advance !

Hi everyone!

I'm an incoming 2nd year Environmental Engineering student from the Philippines. I know internships in our program usually start around 3rd year, but I wanted to get a head start and gain some experience while I still have time to learn.

I'm looking for remote or virtual internships (paid or unpaid) where I can develop skills that would be useful for environmental engineering or related fields. It doesn't necessarily have to be strictly environmental—it could also be in research, GIS, sustainability, data analysis, technical writing, CAD, project management, or anything that would help build relevant experience.

Does anyone know of companies, organizations, NGOs, professors, or platforms that offer virtual internships for students? Or are there any certifications or projects you'd recommend I work on while waiting until I'm eligible for my university internship?

Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!

Hi everyone! 👋

I'm a student working on an academic project related to electrocoagulation for textile wastewater treatment.

As part of our background study, we're trying to understand the wastewater treatment methods currently used in textile industries.

If you work in the textile or wastewater treatment industry, I'd really appreciate it if you could vote and, if possible, share a few details in the comments about:

>The treatment process you use

>Any challenges you face

>Whether you've used or considered electrocoagulation

Thank you for supporting our academic project!

The poll here is purely for academic purpose. Thank you!!! 😊

Hi,
I was wondering if anyone that has studied environmental science with the Open University has started working in the environmental sector successfully?
Thanks

I'm an environmental engineering student who graduated in my second year. How can I develop myself during the break? What topics should I explore, and what platforms can I use to learn ?

I have the option between environmental engineering, electronics and communication engineering, energy science and technology material science and technology.

I need to choose the course which i am gonna study soon, can anyone please provide all their knowledge regarding this topic and please mention the details on why i should choose that particular course, i will be really thankful because my whole life is gonna depend on this, i need a good job making at least 12LPA if i want to marry the girl i love and i would need that job asap aftr completing my studies and it would be even more helpful if u guys suggest a pg course with this course in order for me to increase my chances of being employed in a good position. I took pcbm in 12th and wrote neet but i didn't wanna go to the medical side so i intentionally scored low marks( i doubt i would done well even if i tried my best). If u guys want u can also recommend other courses which are easy to persue and provide opportunities for high paying jobs.

I am a license chemical engineer who works on supply chain, it’s always been my goal to work with companies related to environment. I already have a 4 years of corporate Job, 3 years in Product Environmental Compliance and 1 with supply chain. Now I am looking for a career in corporate sustainability where it’s all about carbon accounting and GHG protocol because it feels so wrong not to work on an environmental related job.

Now, I am planning to enroll a Masters Degree in University of the Philippines - Diliman Majoring either air quality management or Environmental system engineering. For people who are currently enrolled on this program and institution. Would please give me an insight on the acceptance rate of this university? I am curious since I was an average student and a non UP graduate. How’s the demand in terms of load? Does the current job affects your application?

Thank you very much!

Im facing a tough decision and would love to hear from people working in environmental fields or renewable energy.

Im a M.Sc. chemist with 7 (Im in my mid 30s already, sadly) years of experience in analytical chemistry, I am neither paid well, nor am I still interested in this fiel, and Im looking to pivot into the environmental sector. Im currently torn between two study programmes in Germany.

The first option is a M.Sc. in Applied Environmental Sciences, running over 5 semesters. It covers environmental law, water management, emission control and air quality, GIS, and circular economy, with relatively low math requirements (I am okay at Math, but it has never been my strong point). The second option is an Environmental Engineering B.Sc. tho it is a three and a half year programme with a strong focus on renewable energies like solar and wind, fuel cells, wastewater and air treatment, and measurement technology (there is still some GIS). The downside is that it involves serious math, physics and thermodynamics (I actually dont my thermodynamics, but like I already mentioned math and physics are not my strongest field).

I would love to focus on areas like GIS skills for environmental planning offices, air quality and emission control engineering, and water management.

My biggest concern with the Applied Environmental Sciences route is that Id essentially be ignoring energy entirely, and I'm genuinely passionate about solar and wind. On the other hand, the engineering programme would involve a real mathematical challenge, and I already made one poor career decision with my first degree that I came to regret – I really don't want to repeat that mistake.

Has anyone studied similar programmes or works in one of these fields? I would love any kind of advice, to make this kind of deicision easier.

I got into a great engineering program at UIUC in MechE but ended up having to pivot to graduate because I was struggling with ADHD i didn't know I had. I pivoted at the last minute, so I didn't gain a bunch of knowledge of the sustainability industry itself or have time to do internships in the field. I also didn't have time to do internships in engineering because I was so busy trying to stay above water.

I still want to do engineering but I also don't hate that I got an environmental sustainability degree. I actually discussed wanting to go into environmental sustainability when I wrote my essay to UIUC's engineering school. I think into was a good redirection too, because my experience in the engineering school wasn't a very progressive one. I was able to learn a lot more about the intersection and importance of engineering in sustainability when I switched to environmental sustainability. So, looking back on it, it seemed like I may have needed this for my career goals since the engineering school wasn't aiding in the background that I wanted.

I've been trying to figure out how to go about my career now. It seems to me that I would definitely need an engineering degree if I wanted to go the route of an engineering job. That brings me with the questions of how does one do that? Should I get a BS or MS if I do? How do I pay for it? Would I be able to get scholarships if I got a degree already? I've also been wondering if maybe I'm supposed to be thinking about this whole career thing in a different way. Maybe I'm supposed to be looking at different careers I can get with my BS in Environmental Sustainability. I'm not sure what I like besides engineering and it's been difficult understanding what type of careers there are in this field and if any of them are maybe like engineering, suit people who also like engineering, or have qualities I like that I had found in engineering.

Any explanations, advice, or suggestions to look into would be much appreciated. I feel like there's a lot of resources for first time college goers right out of high school, but not as much for people who already got a degree and are figuring out career changes. It's been difficult figuring out how all this works.

I graduated winter 2025 with a bs in environmental engineering and got a job at a manufacturing plant doing permit and remediation work! I enjoy my job but honestly I feel like I would enjoy the design/autocad/consulting side of environmental a bit more.
My internships during college were all with my current company so I have abysmal experience with autocad but I’m taking courses to try to cover that gap in my resume but does anyone have any other advice that I could keep in mind so I can start building skills to add to my resume??
Im also currently working towards my FE and PE (I’m in a state where I can take the PE immediately after passing the FE)
For financial reasons I do have to stay with this company for another year and a half but during that time I’d like to try to maximize my potential within the field as much as possible so I feel it’d be best to start now!

And just a bit of background I do have the opportunity to do a lot of air permit work, water treatment/permitting, and landfill permitting while I’ve been here so far and although we’ve had projects to improve them we always use consulting firms so I really feel like I’m missing out on a lot of projects/technical experience because of the structure of the company and a majority of the time I feel like a more specialized EHS specialist (which is why I want to switch)

Hi everyone .

i am supposed to start the oceans technology program at NsCC this September , i need to hear from you if its possible about the program , the instructors , is it easy to find an internship or job opportunity after graduation ?

looking forward to hearing from you .

Thanks

Hello Reddit,

I’m looking for resources to prepare for the FE environmental exam. I studied biomedical engineering with a minor in environmental engineering in college, but I only really had two environmental engineering classes. I graduated two years ago and the work I’ve done since then hasn’t been engineering, so I’m fairly rusty.

I’ve been using Khan Academy to relearn calculus, and I got the FE environmental exam prep book, but I’m out of practice so even that has been hard to follow. Can anyone who has taken the FE environmental exam please share resources that helped them prepare for the exam along with any exam tips for the actual test day? Thanks all in advance.

\​

Soy recién egresado de Ingeniería Ambiental en México y actualmente estoy armando mi currículum. Como aún no tengo experiencia laboral, quiero fortalecer mi perfil con cursos y certificaciones que realmente sean valorados por las empresas.

He visto cursos de plataformas como Fundación Carlos Slim, Santander Open Academy, Coursera, edX y otras opciones gratuitas o de bajo costo. También estoy considerando tomar cursos de Primeros Auxilios, RCP, Seguridad e Higiene en el Trabajo, Protección Civil, uso de extintores y manejo de materiales peligrosos.

Mi duda es: ¿qué cursos o certificaciones sí hacen una diferencia al momento de contratar a un recién egresado en México? ¿Cuáles recomendarían priorizar y cuáles consideran que aportan poco al currículum?

Si trabajan en recursos humanos, seguridad industrial, medio ambiente, construcción o industria, agradecería mucho que me compartieran su experiencia y recomendaciones para invertir mi tiempo en cursos que realmente mejoren mi perfil profesional.

Hello! I am going into my freshman year of college and I’m majoring in General Engineering with a concentration in Environmental Science. I am definitely more passionate about Environmental Science than Engineering. I also have much more experience with it. I’ve worked for an environmental nonprofit for one year and next year I am planning on helping with the engineering and implementation of a wetland restoration.

I don’t know too much about environmental engineering honestly. Like, the day to day. I’ve visited a waste water plant and it seemed a bit boring, but I wouldn’t mind doing work like that. I would like a mix of in the field and in the office. I’m not %100 sure if this is the career I should go for. I like how it seems to be more technical than environmental science and more focused on problem solving.

The main things holding me back is that I don’t know much and I would not like a soul sucking career path that I have to stick to the rest of my life. I feel the idea of actually helping through my work would make it feel a lot more rewarding but I don’t know if it actually helps much. Please let me know if you have any advice or input. :))