100% of civil and environmental engineering students were employed or enrolled in a continuing education program upon graduation, the newly published Illini Success Report shows.
The Illini Success Report is an annual initiative used to collect, summarize, and share information about the immediate post-graduation outcomes of bachelor’s degree recipients, which is often referred to as first destination data. For the 2024-2025 year, 178 seniors in the department of civil and environmental engineering responded to the survey and all 178 reported securing their next destination after graduation. 60% of students found employment, while 40% pursued graduate education.
To put students in the best position possible to secure their next-steps after graduation, CEE offers several career-prep programs and opportunities throughout the year. The pinnacle of these efforts, the CEE Job Fair, is hosted twice a year and gives students the opportunity to connect with over a hundred recruiters specifically seeking to employ civil and environmental engineers. The department also offers alumni-hosted Backpack to Briefcase sessions, which teach students valuable job-search skills like writing resumes and navigating interviews, and the newly developed Spring Break Job Shadow Program, which allows students to follow a day-in-the-life of professional engineers working at top companies throughout the state.
Students pursuing graduate education find themselves equally prepared to take on the next phase of their career as a result of CEE’s rigorous and diverse course offerings, the opportunities to pursue research with world-class faculty, and participation in student organizations making real-world impacts.
As a whole, The Grainger College of Engineering reported that 95% of its students secured their first destination upon graduation. The 2024-2025 Illini Success Report can be read here.