Infusing industry, community, and the Coast Guard into the Civil Engineering Program at the United States Coast Guard Academy

Abstract

Educating Civil Engineers at the United States Coast Guard Academy (USCGA) presents its own unique challenges and opportunities. Given our dual mission to graduate civil engineers and officers for the United States Coast Guard, it is important that we infuse practices from industry into the Coast Guard Civil Engineering Program while ensuring that our graduates develop a sense of community and public service. In the Civil Engineering program at the USCGA, emphasis is placed on helping students make connections between theoretical fundamental principles and real engineering practice. It has been challenging to fit into our four year program of study the teaching of fundamental engineering principles, coverage of depth in four sub-fields of Civil Engineering, a large core curriculum required of all cadets, and an introduction to real-life engineering practice of industrial, community-based, and Coast Guard applications. To accomplish this, a strategy was adopted of infusing industrial and community relevance, and Coast Guard mission readiness into the curriculum through class assignments, field trips, guest speakers, capstone projects, community service, summer internships, and membership in professional organizations. Given this approach our graduates are able to most effectively serve the public as Civil Engineers, Coast Guard Officers, and community minded citizens.