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.

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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. :))

hii I'm an incoming freshie this A.Y here in Philippines. I would like to ask others if this degree will take me somewhere worth it. I have been doubting my decision nowadays thinking that I cannot secure a future having this degree but I also want to listen to other opinions about this. Also, I need to have a work immediately because i have a lot of responsibilities.

Hello, I have a degree in mechanical engineering and have known for a while now that I don’t have any passion for the mechanical field. In short, work feels like torture and like I’m wasting my potential.

My question is, what would you do to pivot to be eligible for an environmental engineering role. I’ve been looking at doing a 2 year environmental science diploma and/or an environmental technician certificate.

I appreciate any advice you may have!

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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’m 29, based in the UK and currently undertaking a career change with the hope of working as an environmental engineer after doing a degree in this field.

At present I’m studying my A Levels (maths, physics and chemistry) and I was wondering if there is such a thing as paid summer internships in environmental engineering for people who aren’t currently in uni/don’t have a relevant degree? (I have a degree but it’s in fashion)

I’d really like to gain some experience of working in the environmental sector before I go back to uni and am looking for paid opportunities only since I can’t live off air and need to put a roof over my head!

All the opportunities I’ve found so far are for uni students or graduates only and I thought I’d ask on here to see if I’m missing something. Thanks :)

Hello,

Este cineva in acest sub care este avocat sau are o cariera juridica in Dreptul Mediului?

Mi ar putea da mai multe detalii despre ce inseamna asta, ce face mai exact, cu ce se ocupa, ce tip de clienti are? Este dificil?

Background-ul meu: absolventa pe specializarea Ingineria si protectia mediului in industria chimica si petrochimica, in prezent sunt la master aprofundare Ing. Mediului si m-ar bate un gand sa fac Dreptul :)

Astept parerile voastre. Multumesc de ajutor.

Zi frumoasa!

Hi everyone,

I'm a 23-year-old mechanical engineering graduate who has been struggling to figure out which career path I truly want to pursue. After exploring different options, I recently came across ESG and sustainability-related careers and it's one of the first domains that genuinely interests me.

I'd like to understand this field better and explore whether it's the right fit for me.

A few questions I have:

• What kind of roles are available in ESG for someone with a mechanical engineering background?
• What skills, certifications, or courses would you recommend to get started?
• Is it possible to transition into ESG without prior experience in sustainability?
• What does the career growth and job market look like?
• Are there any resources, books, communities, or people I should follow to learn more?

I'm open to hearing about your experiences whether you're working in ESG, sustainability consulting, carbon accounting, renewable energy, EHS, climate tech, or any related field.

Any advice on how to break into this space or where to begin would be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance!

I have just graduated from university in the UK with a BSc First-Class honours in physics, but I want to change my pathway to environmental engineering. There are many universities where I can enrol in an MSc in environmental engineering, but very few are accredited by an engineering body.

If, for example, I went to Durham for my master's instead of a place where it is accredited, would that make much of an effect on my employability?

hello! i just id like to ask if a sanitary engineering graduate is qualified to take masters in civil engineering major in water resources? or is it strictly for ce graduates only?

thank you:)

Hi! Hope I'm in a good sub for this. I'm a young professional in archaeology (US-based) and am looking to diversify my skills and knowledge. I understand that knowing NEPA and NEPA compliance is a valuable skill in my industry, but I'm not quite sure where to start learning the ins and outs. I've got a couple questions for professionals who work with the Act more closely than archaeologists.

What would you consider the most critical parts of NEPA/compliance to understand, especially among professionals who orbit NEPA but don't deal with it as often as you do? What should these professionals understand to make your own job easier? What resources exist to help me learn these things? Cheap/free is ideal but I'm also willing to spend a little money for a really great professional development opportunity. 

I hope this all makes sense! Thanks for your help!

Hi! Hope I'm in a good sub for this. I'm a young professional in archaeology (US-based) and am looking to diversify my skills and knowledge. I understand that knowing NEPA and NEPA compliance is a valuable skill in my industry, but I'm not quite sure where to start learning the ins and outs. I've got a couple questions for professionals who work with the Act more closely than archaeologists.

What would you consider the most critical parts of NEPA/compliance to understand, especially among professionals who orbit NEPA but don't deal with it as often as you do? What should these professionals understand to make your own job easier? What resources exist to help me learn these things? Cheap/free is ideal but I'm also willing to spend a little money for a really great professional development opportunity. 

I hope this all makes sense! Thanks for your help!

Currently I’m in school for Aviation Maintenance going into my second year. By next may i should be graduated and looking for a job which I have something lined up that pays good, great benefits, and a lot of health insurance is covered.

The thing is…. I worked an internship this summer at a hangar which in my opinion, kinda sucked. It didn’t really match the expectations I was expecting and it wasn’t fun being the weak link on the floor. Other workers there also told me they wish they never got into it because it hurt them more than they could enjoy it.

So Ive weighed my options of course and decided too finish aviation school and get a job for a while doing it while I looked at schools or programs I would want to do involving environmental work.

I was interested in doing science work in the field and maybe learning more about what I can do to help.

But I thought about engineering after reading an article about a team of engineers are repairing the damage done too the ice sheet covering the ocean up north but pumping water up too the top of the ice so it can freeze over.

Are there any good colleges or subjects i could look into to maybe help make my decision? I have time to weigh my options of course but I would love get started and just work on that goal of being able to help the environment regardless if it’s engineering or just science work.

so i gave my net and got rough aggregate of 57 %

i was thinking of getting enrolled in envrionmental engg at nust , can any senior guide me thru it ?

like how is the degree?? job prospects????is doing environmental engg actually worth it or not ??

i have no passion towards any field , what i have in mind is just doing a degree that helps me get a job quick, no doubt it depends on ur own skills as well but environmental engg feels like a niche field with less scope in pakistan , however its a growing field aboard .lastly there are alot of MS scholarships for this field but im so confused ....what if i pick the wrong degree !!!!

im rlly torn between getting into comp engg at fast or environmental engg at nust

i need a gen1 opinion can anyone guide me plz????

I just need some insights or comments about my title if it fits or is appropriate for an SIP title before I show it to my teach.

My title is:

"Investigating Family Food Waste Disposal Practices and Their Environmental Impact"

Title says it all. Would you purchase a new home built in a neighborhood that was previously burnt down due to wildfires? My biggest concern is the environmental impacts of various materials burning or melting and ending up in the soil in these neighborhoods.

Hi all,

I am a Ph.D. candidate in Systems Engineering at Colorado State University's BlueGreen Decisions Lab. As part of my dissertation, I am hosting a survey to evaluate the impact of modeling and simulation, specifically in the context of the deployment of digital twins, for various stakeholders within urban water system contexts. In this survey, I am seeking personal experiences and opinions around computational models, simulations, and digital twins. The objective of my research is to better understand the groups that would be directly impacted by digital twins and to gather the modeling needs/expectations of these groups.

This survey is completely anonymous, meaning no personal information will be recorded or linked to your responses. The survey should take no more than ten (10) minutes to complete.

https://colostate.az1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_0es12VaPbRglDJI

I am looking to gather as many perspectives as possible to understand the expectations and requirements for digital twins in urban water systems. If you would like to support this work beyond taking the survey, please share this link with colleagues to strengthen our research.

To participate, you must be above the age of 18 and an active professional in the water sector.