Texas Tech University

Graduate Programs

The Department of Civil, Environmental and Construction Engineering offers a Doctor of Philosophy in Civil Engineering and two master's degrees: Master of Science in Civil Engineering (M.S.C.E.) and Master of Environmental Engineering (M.Env.E). The M.Env.E. degree program includes a two-semester capstone team design project, but no thesis.

For master's and doctoral degrees in civil engineering, students may choose one or more of several areas of concentration including environmental engineering, water resources engineering, structural engineering, wind engineering, engineering mechanics, geoenvironmental engineering, geotechnical engineering, transportation engineering, and construction engineering and management. Professors and instructors reserve the right to restrict the use and type of calculators used during class hours and tests.

Degree Programs

Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.)

Doctoral studies consist of selected courses and independent research culminating in a dissertation (minimum 60 coursework hours plus 12 dissertation hours). Each student's degree plan is individually formulated through consultation with a faculty advisory committee.  Applicants to the program must apply to one of the following doctoral tracks:

Master of Science in Civil Engineering (M.S.C.E.)

A student specializes in one of the principal subdisciplines of civil engineering (e.g., environmental engineering, structural engineering, etc.) in this degree program. Two degree options are available: the thesis-option student completes 24 hours of coursework, performs 6 credit hours of independent research, and writes a thesis based on the findings of the research; the non-thesis student completes 30 hours of graduate level coursework and a comprehensive written exam or completes 27 hours of graduate level coursework and a 3 credit hour technical report on a selected topic or approved internship.

Online CE Master's Degree

The CECE Department offers a completely online MS program in Civil Engineering. This is a 30-hour program with a final comprehensive component equivalent to the 3 options of our in-person MSCE program. This is a general MS Program that is not concentration dependent. For a list of courses, please visit the Online CE Master's Degree page.

Master of Environmental Engineering (MEV)

A uniquly design-oriented 5-year professional degree program that prepares the graduate to specialize in an environmental engineering career. Because students enter this program as undergraduates, the program is administered as an undergraduate offering. For more information on this degree program, please see MEV.

Graduate Certificate in Construction Engineering and Management

The department offers a 12-hour Graduate Certificate in Construction Engineering and Management. The certificate is designed for professionals who have a bachelor's degree in civil engineering, architecture, landscape architecture, interior design, or business and are seeking a senior management position in the construction industry. It is ideal for students interested in pursuing graduate study without committing to a full master's program.

University Scholarships


Scholarships available from the Graduate School are available at this link. These scolarships are provided in the Fall term and provide out-of-state tuition waivers for the full year. Application for these scholarships are generally due every January 15th. You do not need to have your application fully accepted at the time of the application, but you will need to be enrolled in the Fall term to receive the scholarship.

Admission Requirements

Admission requirements to Texas Tech University and the Whitacre College of Engineering are detailed in the latest Texas Tech University Graduate Catalog. Specific admission requirements to graduate programs administered by the Department of Civil, Environmental, and Construction Engineering include an examination of Graduate Record Examination (GRE) scores, review of the last sixty hours of undergraduate work, and acceptance by the Graduate Faculty. In addition, students entering the M.S.C.E. or Ph.D. programs not possessing a baccalaureate degree from an engineering program will be required to take leveling engineering courses to prepare them for advanced course work. Additionally, applicants for the doctoral program should secure funding prior to completing their application. Individual faculty manage their own research funding and as such should be contacted directly to determine a fit to their research program and acceptance with funding. If you are supported by other external funding, you will need to provide details of that funding and it should be equivalent to all fees, tuition, and housing costs as found on the Student Business Services Tuition Estimator page. Admission will not be granted if full funding support is not provided by some means.

Laboratories and Research

Facilities, Equipment, and Other Resources

The Environmental Engineering laboratory occupies the Maddox Engineering Research Center and has approximately 30,000 ft2 of space, including 12,000 ft2 of laboratory space, offices and a state of the art classroom with distance learning audio and video capabilities. The space is now occupied by Maddox Chair Danny Reible and seven environmental engineering faculty. The space is available as needed to support the projects proposed.

The general-purpose equipment owned by the laboratory includes analytical balances, vacuum desiccators, ovens, bath incubators, shaker tables, centrifuges, water bath, peristaltic and syringe pumps, ultrasonic cleaners, and electrode probes and meters for pH, dissolved oxygen and voltammetry measurements. Additionally, a variety of state-of-the-art analytical instruments are available and include the following capabilities:

  • Gas Chromatography (Agilent GC)
  • Liquid Chromatography (Agilent 1200 HPLC)
  • Ion Chromatography (Dionex IC)
  • IC Triple quadrapole (SciEx ICMS )
  • Triple quadrapole and single quadrapole Gas Chromatograph-Mass Spectrometry (Agilent)
  • Atomic Absorption (Perkin Elmer AA) Spectrometer
  • Total Organic Carbon/Total Nitrogen (Elementar TOC) Analyzer
  • Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometry (Agilent and Perkin-Elmer ICP-MS) 
  • Inductively Coupled Plasma- Optical Emission Spectrometry (Analytic-Jena)
  • Liquid Chromatograph- Quantitative Time of Flight Mass Spectrometry (Sciex LC-MS-QTOF)
  • Combustion ion chromatograph total organic fluorine (Metroohm CIC TOF)
  • Liquid Chromatograph- Q Exactive high resolution Orbitrap MS (Thermal Scientific) 
  • Cold vapor atomic fluorescence spectroscopy for Hg/MeHg analysis (Brooks Rand)

The geotechnical engineering laboratory occupies 2300 ft2 of floor space and contains all equipment needed to conduct soil characterization testing as well as shear and consolidation tests. The triaxial equipment is state-of-the-art Trautwein equipment with latest-generation Brainard-Kilman loading frames. Direct shear devices include WyckhamFarrance equipment. Consolidation load frame positions can apply loading pressures to 64 psf. Shear testing and consolidation tests are monitored with a computerized data acquisition system. Extensive measurement capabilities exist for evaluating unsaturated soils. A single cell TEXAM pressuremeter and a flat-plate dilatometer are available to measure in situ stress-strain properties of soil.

The structures and materials laboratory has a 30x60 ft. structural test deck available for structural testing of structural elements or components. Hydraulic loading equipment is capable of applying both static and dynamic forces. Microcomputers are available for monitoring load, strain, pressure, displacement, and acceleration transducers. MTS and Tinius-Olsen testing equipment with capability for both static and dynamic loading are available in addition to specialized torsion, rotating-beam, fatigue, and impact devices.

The wind engineering field research facility is one of a kind in the country. It consists of a 160 ft. high meteorological tower and a 30x45 ft. test building. The tower is equipped with wind speed anemometers and wind direction sensors. The unique test building can be rotated in a full circle to achieve the proper wind orientation. The field facility is used to obtain wind pressures on a full-size building. Wind tunnel and tow-tank facilities are also available to pursue research.

Computers and Computational Capability


Key equipment includes high speed internet (100+Mbps) and several Dell Precision 7920 workstations as well as a variety of other computer, printer and mass storage facilities. All TTU faculty and students have 100 Gb of core cloud storage with more available as needed. All graduate students and postdoctoral fellows have personal computers provided by the lab.

Office

There is approximately 5,000-ft2 office space in the Maddox Engineering Research Center available to the faculty, students, and postdoctoral fellows.

Financial Assistance

Graduate Scholarships are available on a competitive basis to new and continuing graduate students. Scholarships qualify the recipient for a waiver of out-of-state tuition fees. Research assistantships (RA) are only provided by individual faculty so you should request a position directly from the faculty. Teaching assistantships (TA) are granted only by the department Chair. Applications for financial aid and assistantships should be submitted as far in advance, usually 1 year. Typically, RA and TA positions are granted for the Fall term only.

Student Housing

 Graduate students have several options for housing while studying at Texas Tech.

All graduate students are eligible to sign up to live in any of University Student Housing's 18 halls or their on-campus apartment complex. Graduate students are encouraged to consider housing in the Carpenter/Wells Complex or Murray Hall. Once you've been admitted to the university, use the Priority Room Selection system to sign up for a room online. There is no deadline for signing up, but all rooms are selected on a first-come, first-serve basis.

If you have any questions about signing up for a room and dining plan, you can contact University Student Housing directly by phone at 806.742.2661 or email them at housing@ttu.edu.

Further Information

Office of the Dean
Graduate School
Texas Tech University
Box 41033
Lubbock, TX 79409-1033
T: 806.742.2781

You are welcome to visit the Department of Civil, Environmental, and Construction Engineering and its facilities and discuss career opportunities. We suggest calling beforehand to ensure that faculty advisors are available when you arrive on campus.

Texas Tech University is committed to the principle that in no aspects of its programs shall there be differences in the treatment of persons because of race, creed, national origin, age, sex, or disability, and that equal opportunity and access to facilities shall be available to all.

Graduate Links

Department of Civil, Environmental, & Construction Engineering

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