It doesn’t take a lot of research to find out that there’s steady demand for civil engineers in Singapore. From the Green Plan 2030 to keeping up in Built-To-Order (BTO) housing and constructing new MRT lines, there’s a lot going on that needs the support of engineers. And these don’t even touch on maintenance of older projects!

If you want to be a part of this exciting infrastructure landscape, and contribute to Singapore’s built environment, whether from the nascent design stage, or all the way to logistics and construction, there’s really nothing better than joining the industry and landing a civil engineering job.

To be sure that this is the career you want, there are just a few things to consider before taking the leap to become a professional engineer (PE). After all, it can be a rigorous undertaking, which includes earning a Bachelor of Engineering at minimum (from an approved institution like the National University of Singapore (NUS)), possibly entering an employer’s graduate programme, passing the Fundamentals of Engineering Examination (FEE) to become an engineer-in-training (EIT) and finally successfully qualifying as a PE after sitting for the Practice of Professional Engineering Examination (PPE), among them.

Here are three of them to think over!

Factor #1: Are your degree modules and final-year project relevant to what you want to do?

Why: Your chosen degree modules and final-year thesis or project can significantly impact your chances of getting into a particular engineering specialisation or firm.

Some civil engineering multinational corporation (MNC) employers, such as GlobalFoundries, are known to hire across most (if not all) engineering disciplines. However, other firms, like the Land Transport Authority, will only onboard candidates with specific degrees or modules, as the roles on offer tend to be more specialised.

The good news: While taking modules most related to civil engineering can equip you with the needed technical knowledge in the long run, the relevancy of your modules or final-year thesis or project won’t necessarily make or break you. Recruiters understand that when you’re in university or doing up your projects, you’re still exploring options!

Take note: If you have the slightest inkling of what you want to do upon graduation, from bridge engineering, to wastewater plant design or highway engineering, you have the advantage of picking up classes that’ll work in your favour later down the line. For example, you can pick up modules and in areas much like structural and geotechnical engineering, and familiarise yourself with Building Information Modelling (BIM) software.

Tip: Although not all employers use your choice of degree modules as benchmarks, a few do refer to them to assess how interested you really are in your chosen field of civil engineering.

Factor #2: Which field of specialisation do you want to go into?

Why: Civil engineering isn’t just confined to malls, houses and transport infrastructure. In fact, the field of civil engineering is extremely vast, encompassing everything from railways to airports, and houses to the water supply running through pipes embedded in walls. As such, it’ll be in your best interest to concentrate on one field. This will give you the chance to build your expertise, which in turn can be used as leverage later on to advance your career.

Here are some areas of civil engineering you can consider:

Construction engineering: This field is most concerned with the cost and quality of a project. Engineers check on availability and prices of equipment, labour and materials, and are usually also responsible for pinpointing potential dangers in a project, as well as suggesting mitigating factors.

Popular international firms include Skanska and McConnell Dowell. But if you would prefer local opportunities, there’s Hwa Seng Builder and StarCity Construction. That’s not to say that small- or medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) aren’t common! Lih Ming Construction and Wee-Built are two such options you can consider.

Energy and power engineering: Engineers here design, build and decommission infrastructure used in the creation and transmission of energy. If you decide to enter this area, take note that you’ll be spending a lot of time in electric towers, power stations, oil platforms and solar farms, just to name a few!

Amplitude Consultants and Panasonic are top multinational employers in Singapore. If you’d rather go local, though, there’s also Teale.

Environmental engineering: Engineers in this area deal with urban waste, from solid waste to sewage and effluent waste, and ensure treated waste complies with environmental regulations. As such, this field looks at waste management, and a core function is to ensure levels of pollution stay low. In projects, environmental engineers tend to take on advisory roles, giving counsel on the ecological impact of projects, and suggesting ways to minimise damage to the environment. Further areas of specialisation include flood risk and chemical disposal.

Micron Semiconductor and ExxonMobil are just two international behemoths who bring on environmental engineers to reduce their carbon footprints. Locally, Advanced Holdings is a home-grown success story, alongside renowned firm, ST Engineering.

Geotechnical engineering: This is a crucial area of civil engineering for Singapore, as land reclamation is vital in ensuring continuing development and urbanisation for the growing population. It’s so important, the Geotechnical Society of Singapore was even founded in 2008 to promote geotechnical engineering! At present, 22 per cent of Singapore’s land is reclaimed, with plans for further reclamation in the pipeline.

In this part of civil engineering, you’ll perform site surveying and study soil types, calculate their capacities to uphold structures based on findings and even advice on possible land modification. From there, you’ll identify the best locations on the ground, among soil and rock, to place structure foundations. Later, you’ll also be involved in supervising on-site construction work. Tritech Group is an MNC you can consider. Surbana Jurong is another popular firm.

Take note that postgraduate study is highly encouraged for this field, as it’s highly specialised.

Material engineering: Engineers who specialise in this area study the properties of construction material, like concrete, steel and wood. Recently, there’s been a push to build more sustainably, and many material engineers are also turning their attention to it.

Locally, Singapore’s Green Building Masterplan has created a demand for sustainable building materials, like engineered wood and recycled metal. This is driving up the need for material engineers in turn, as they conduct research into these materials and check their viability. Popular employers you can apply to are Aibel and Agilent Technologies.

Marine and offshore engineering: Engineers in this area of civil engineering primarily test the feasibility of, design and build oil production platforms, ports, sub-sea structures, offshore wind farms, underwater pipelines, permanent, temporary anchorages, tidal energy facilities and various deep-sea mining facilities, among others. Alternatively, you can help Singapore develop its sea defences – urban coastal areas to withstand rising sea levels and erosion made up of “hard defences” and “soft defences”, concrete barriers and man-made beaches respectively.

Shell is one of the top MNCs in this area. But if you’d rather stay on the regional side, Oceanic Offshore Engineering might be a good employer for you. Alternatively, smaller, more niche firms like Husky Engineering might appeal to you instead.

Structural engineering: This field of civil engineering involves engineers figuring out how to ensure that building structures, including bridges and high-rises, are kept safe and stable against external forces such as wind and rain. This is vital in Singapore, as while the country isn’t vulnerable to earthquakes, the city is still full of skyscrapers, residential and otherwise, and the need to ensure civilian safety is high. Recent trends also mean that most structural engineers work closely with environmental and material engineers to create more environmentally-sustainable buildings.

Due to high demand for structural engineers in Singapore, options range from large independent firms like Arup, and consultancies such as AECOM, all the way to rig-building and shipyard organisation, Keppel. Opportunities include designing new structures, and maintaining existing facilities.

Transportation engineering: In this part of civil engineering, engineers deal with transport infrastructure, much like railways, bridges, tunnels and roads. Usually, you’ll be concerned with finding ways – both temporary and permanent – of reducing traffic congestion and maintaining Singapore’s extensive network of roads and railway lines. In addition, transportation engineers ensure that infrastructure built is of good quality and safe for commuters to use.

As work usually encompasses drainage, earthworks, telecoms and power, transportation engineers also work with environmental engineers to lessen the environmental impact of transport infrastructure. You can contribute to Singapore’s transportation infrastructure through consultation companies like Mott MacDonald, to smaller firms like Xjera Labs. Alternatively, there’s Singapore’s public transport operator, SMRT.

Tunnelling engineering: Requiring specialist structural or geotechnical knowledge, tunnelling engineering also involves elements of underground engineering. As a tunnel engineer, you’ll be responsible for drilling underground to create rock tunnels, shafts, caverns and underground stations. Working in this area can be demanding, as you’ll need to take into account a project’s safety, cost and location, as well as ensure that it has minimal impact on nearby buildings and surrounding environment.

Shanghai Tunnelling Engineering is one of the most popular employers in Singapore, alongside Fukuyama Engineering and Construction. They aren’t the only large firms – there’s also Obayashi Corporation, Sato Kogyo and China Harbour Engineering Company to consider.

Water resources and public health engineering: When the area of specialty deals in economically treating wastewater, water resource management and safe disposal of effluent, it’s under the purview of water resources and public health engineering. In this area of civil engineering, you’ll figure out how to best implement drainage systems, deal with urban flooding, design and build energy efficient treatment plants and move water around infrastructure, like pipes.

Water resources engineering is crucial to Singapore, as the country has no natural water resources to speak of, yet needs an estimated 430 million gallons of water a day. In fact, this water demand is expected to double by 2060! Due to this, water resources engineers are needed in Singapore to treat, recycle and supply water reliably. Singapore’s National Water Agency, the Public Utilities Board (PUB), is the main employer in the country, though there are other options, like local company App Mec, and international giant, Veolia.

Take note: Most engineering employers tend to onboard graduate engineers when there are ready pipelines of projects in place, which means that you’re more likely to find open positions in segments of the industry that have been earmarked for growth or maintenance.

Tip: Keep your ear to the ground when looking for clues on which employers are hiring, as even segments of the industry that are struggling, or aren’t growing as rapidly, may have strong projects in their pipelines!

Factor #3: Do you want to work on designs or on site?

Why: Civil engineers in Singapore are typically snapped up by either a consultancy, firm or contractor, where the working environments can be quite different.

Consultancies: At companies such as Mott MacDonald, your core responsibility will be designing structures and following up on design-related problems once construction starts. As such, you’ll stick with a project from start to end, and form close working relationships with clients, sometimes even managing the whole project for them! Due to your responsibilities, you’ll be mostly office-bound.

Take note that at consultancies, you typically start with design assistance and data gathering under the guidance and mentorship of a senior engineer.

Firms: Some organisations like PUB and SMRT need the expertise of an in-house civil engineer. Although the job scope is similar to that of a consultant’s, you’ll also be expected to engage in certain project management roles.

Contractors: Making up the bulk of employers here, your job will be to realise consultants’ designs once they’re finalised! Other core responsibilities include supervising your team and implementing designs. As such, most of your work will be on-site. Although you’ll work closely with consultants, there’ll be occasional collaborations with specialist subcontractors. There are employers like Locallads General Contractor and Teambuild Construction Group for you to consider.

Alternative specialist contractors include those working in coastal and marine work, much like dredging, reclamation and specialist shipping. Firms include Hydroinformatics Institute.

However, it should be noted that if you decide to join a contractor, you might be required to be on-site for a segment of a project – but not the full project!

Tip: Recruiters will expect you to know the differences between joining a consultancy, contractor or firm!

With so many projects in the pipeline in Singapore, the future of civil engineering promises to be a dynamic scene. As such, with so many careers in the area worth investing in, take ample time to do your research in order to arrive to the best decision possible to start off your career.