Areas in which students may conduct thesis or project research are reflected by the research interests and publications of the faculty. These areas include concrete and steel structures, structural mechanics and dynamics, experimental and theoretical stress analysis, elasticity, constitutive modeling, composite materials, stress-wave propagation, ultrasonics, nondestructive evaluation, finite elements, fracture mechanics, soil mechanics, foundations, water resources, hydraulics, transportation and highway engineering, and construction materials.

Graduates of the MS in Civil Engineering program work as project engineers for consulting firms; perform research in government laboratories; conduct analysis, design, and research in industry; and manage public works facilities. Recent graduates are working as a structural designer, a ceramics researcher, and a stress analyst. Job prospects for those with advanced degrees in civil engineering are excellent.

The Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering also offers an Accelerated Program that would enable students to a earn a Bachelor of Civil Engineering degree as well as a Master of Science in Civil Engineering in 5 years. Students are eligible to apply after they have completed sixty credit hours in their undergraduate program, with at least 30 credit hours earned at CSU. Once admitted to the combined program, the student may complete up to 11 credit hours of graduate courses while enrolled in the undergraduate program.