Unfortunately, the L&S student's belief that every engineering graduate already has a job lined up isn’t exactly true. You may be lucky enough to have been offered a job before you graduate, but if you're not, you'll have a lot of work to do to find your first real engineering job. There are various ways to find a job, some of which are discussed below. 

On Campus Recruiting 

There are two possible places to go for on-campus recruiting: Career and Graduate School Services and the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering. 

Career and Graduate School Services (CGSS) 

CGSS provides many, many services to any student looking for a job or graduate school. They run the on-campus recruiting service that is one possible place to find a job. There is no point in going into any detail about their program here, since you are required to attend one of their hour-long orientations before you can use any of their services. These orientations are usually held about once a week at various locations on campus. We recommend you attend one of these orientations early in your academic career--don’t wait until right before you graduate. They offer many services that will be of use to you while you're still in school. Also, you can use CGSS services after you graduate, so anytime you're out of work, check out what they have to offer. For more info, contact CGSS at 2111 Bancroft Way (but keep in mind--they won't let you use any of their services until you attend an orientation). 

Unfortunately, CGSS rarely has positions for CEEs. Occasionally very large firms (e.g., Bechtel, CH2M Hill) will recruit for CEE positions through CGSS. However, you will probably be very disappointed with the opportunities for finding jobs through this service. We do NOT recommend that you ignore CGSS, there is a possibility that you can find a good job there, but you should definitely look to other sources to find employment. 

Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering 

Actually, the Department of CEE doesn't really have an on-campus recruiting service. However, many companies that are interested in hiring CEEs will contact the Department or Group that they are interested in. Sometimes the Department or Group offices will hear of an opening and publicize the position, usually through flyers posted outside the respective offices or at various locations in Davis Hall (get in the habit of scanning the bulletin boards whenever you're waiting for an elevator). Other times the company will contact a specific professor who will then announce the position in a way that he or she feels is appropriate. This is why it is always a good idea to speak with the professors within your area of emphasis: they often know of juicy job opportunities that you will not find elsewhere. Some of these companies may decide to interview on campus, which provides you with the opportunity to get all dressed up and walk around impressing your friends and instructors. Sometimes you will simply have to sign up for an interview, other times you will have to turn in a resume and you will be contacted to schedule an interview if they want to speak to you. 

Civil and Environmental Engineering Career Night 

During the 1996-1997 school year, a group of ASCE and XE members were frustrated with the lack of CEE firms at all the various career fairs and job placement services on campus. They decided to organize their own job fair just for CEE students. In April 1997, the first annual ASCE/XE CEE Career Night was held at the Faculty Club on campus. About 60 students and 40 professionals--representing CEE firms from every specialty -- were in attendance. The event, which featured a company tabling session followed by a dinner, was a great success. Although the event was advertised as an "informational fair" (as opposed to a "job fair") at which students could meet professionals to learn more about career opportunities available to them, many students found permanent and temporary jobs through contacts they made at the event. This is probably the single most important event of the year for any CEE student looking for a job. 

Plans are already being made for the next career fair. The event promises to be even better than before, as each company that attending the first plans on returning, along with additional companies. If you're a member of ASCE and are on their e-mail list, you will definitely be notified about signing up for the fair. If you're not an ASCE member (for shame!), keep an eye out for flyers and an ear open for announcements about the event. This is one you should not miss if you're looking for a job. 

Job Fairs 

In addition to the CEE Career Night, several other job fairs are held throughout the year which CEE firms attend. As noted above, CEE companies are rarely represented at these fairs (you'll be lucky if there are more than one or two at each). However, if you have the time, it's always a good idea to check these out and speak with the few CEE companies that are there. It is not impossible to find a job this way. Some of the possible sponsors of job fairs are CGSS, minority engineering programs, and the Engineering Alumni Society. Look for announcements in the Daily Cal, Engineering News, and flyers. 

Networking 

A wise man (James Wiseman, to be exact) once said: "You won't find civil engineering jobs in the Classifieds. You get engineering jobs through networking." Although this is not entirely true (you can find a few CEE jobs in the classified sections of the newspaper), it is true that most jobs you find will be through contacts you have made throughout your academic and professional career. There are various ways in which you can develop contacts in the CEE professional world that will help you find both your first and other jobs. 

• Previous Employers - Keep in contact with employees from your previous engineering jobs. They usually know if their company is hiring and may also know of other companies that are looking for people.
• Professors - Your professors sometimes hear of positions open in the various companies that they work with. Ask them if they know of anybody that may hire somebody with your qualifications.
• Peers - When your engineering buddies from Cal get jobs, you immediately gain contacts in the professional world. If you know anybody that has already graduated and is working in an engineering field, ask them for help on your job search. Keep in touch with all of the people that you meet while you're at Berkeley--many Cal graduates go on to hold leadership roles in the industry and will serve as excellent contacts to you.
• Professional Societies - Participating in student and local chapters of professional societies (e.g., ASCE and WEF, for example) will provide you with countless opportunities to network. These organizations hold various meetings and events that will give you the chance to meet engineers at all different levels--from entry level junior engineers to presidents and CEOs of engineering firms.

The University maintains an on-line job listings at are only accessible by Cal students. This list contains all types of jobs: permanent and temporary, technical and non-technical, on campus and off, boring and exciting, well paid and underpaid, and so on. Sometimes you will find some good opportunities for CEEs. The site can be found at http://jobs.berkeley.edu/ 

Your Advisor and Teachers 

It is amazing how many students looking for a job, permanent or summer, never ask their advisors or teachers about where and how to look. These people have many contacts with the professional world and know where the hot spots are. Frequently, your advisor and your teachers can tell you who and how to make the ‘slam dunk’ contacts. This includes leads not only to permanent jobs, but as importantly, to summer jobs that can make your career at Cal more meaningful and productive.