Graduate Programs

Master of Science in Civil and Infrastructure Engineering

Mason offers an innovative Master’s degree in Civil and Infrastructure Engineering (CIE). The CIE program resides at the crossroads of civil engineering, information technology (IT), and urban planning. The extended scope of the CIE program offers its graduates the opportunity to apply IT solutions in an arena which will directly impact the public’s well being: transportation, water resources, environment, structures, telecommunications, and energy. The CIE program focuses on how these interrelated systems are conceived, developed, designed, built, operated, maintained, and renewed in a complex urban environment such as the Washington, DC metropolitan area where Mason is located.

CIE Graduate Employment Opportunities

CIE graduates are expected to be competent in applying both the art and science of engineering, adept at understanding and using the tools available, and capable of examining problems from a variety of perspectives. George Mason CIE graduates work for a variety of organizations—public and private, small and large, local and international—including:

Degree Requirements

The M.S. in Civil and Infrastructure Engineering (MS-CIE) program includes three core courses, electives selected by the student with the aid of a faculty advisor, a thesis or civil and infrastructure engineering project, and a seminar requirement. Students must complete a faculty-approved plan of study with a minimum of 30 credits of graduate work, including the thesis (6 credits) or the research project (3 credits).

To assist in planning your studies, you should download a Plan of Study Form. By the end of your first semester in the MS program, working with your advisor, you should complete this form. If your plans change, a revised form can be completed at any time, with the approval of your advisor.

Core Courses

Students must complete the following three core courses. These courses provide a common background for understanding the breadth and complexity of civil and infrastructure engineering, and for introducing the application of information technology and the systems approach to analyzing and solving problems in civil and infrastructure engineering.

CEIE 601 Infrastructure Modeling
CEIE 605 Infrastructure Systems Analysis
CEIE 685 Civil Engineering Information Management

Concentration Areas

Each student must select an additional five or six electives that together constitute an emphasis area. With the prior approval of a faculty advisor, a student may design his or her own concentration or may select from one of several standard concentrations, including:

Project or Thesis

Students must complete a project (three credits) or thesis (six credits) under the direction of a CEIE faculty member.

Under the project option, the student completes three credits of CEIE 798 in which he or she prepares and presents a scholarly paper. The scholarly paper is a technical report on an independent study, laboratory or computer experimentation, or literature review on a current civil and infrastructure engineering topic, selected under the guidance of a faculty advisor. The student must demonstrate knowledge of the topic and make a satisfactory technical presentation of the paper in the CEIE Graduate Seminar.

Under the thesis option, the student completes six credits of CEIE 799. The master’s thesis should reflect a significant independent research effort. The work is conducted under the guidance of a faculty thesis advisor, and the final written thesis and oral defense are approved by a three-member faculty committee. The thesis is particularly recommended for those students who wish to develop and document their research skills, and/or who contemplate subsequent enrollment in a Ph.D. program.

Seminar Requirement

All degree candidates must attend a minimum of 10 graduate seminars approved by the CEIE department for the degree program. Seminars are advertised using electronic mail to each MS student’s GMU email address. Attendance is recorded at each department sanctioned seminar and several are offered each semester. Students pursing the thesis option, must register for CEIE 795 in the semester they intend to defend their theses and they are required to present their theses at an advertised seminar.

MS-CIE Concentration Area

INFRASTRUCTURE MANAGEMENT AND SECURITY ENGINEERING

An understanding of engineering management is critical to the successful design, construction and operational phases of civil and infrastructure systems. It is important to integrate the people, processes, tools, and systems in an infrastructure project to maximize their combined effectiveness. This emphasis area is intended for engineering professionals who regularly deal with schedule, cost, and performance issues. It is well suited for a wide variety of civil engineers such as environmental, water resources, transportation, and construction engineers who want to expand their knowledge of project management. This area also encompasses the study of infrastructure and security engineering, which in today’s world is an essential element of infrastructure asset management. The goal is to develop program graduates with the professional skills to improve immediately the security of critical civil infrastructure, with specific attention to risk and vulnerability assessments, and to creative solutions to providing improved system security. It is possible to earn the Graduate Certificate in Civil Infrastructure and Security Engineering while completing the MS-CIE degree requirements in this concentration area.

Plan of Study

All courses are divided into four clusters:

Core courses (3 courses, 9 credit hours)
Required concentration area courses (1 course, 3 credit hours)
Elective concentration area courses (4-5 courses, 12-15 credit hours)
M.S. thesis (6 credit hours) or project (3 credit hours)

Core Courses

Three courses required for all MS-CIE degree candidates:

CEIE 601 Infrastructure Modeling
CEIE 605 Infrastructure Systems Analysis
CEIE 685 Civil Engineering Information Management

Required Concentration Area Course

CEIE 680 Introduction to Infrastructure and Security Engineering

Elective Concentration Area Courses

CEIE 500  Land Development Engineering
CEIE 510  Geographical Information Systems in Engineering
CEIE 516  Engineering Law and Ethics
CEIE 556  Environmental Law
CEIE 610  Construction Systems and Management
CEIE 670  Civil Engineering Decision Methods and Tools
CEIE 671  Best Engineering Management Practices
CEIE 681  Security of Structural Systems
CEIE 683  Water and Wastewater Systems Security
CEIE 686  Transportation System Security and Safety
CEIE 690  Asset Management
CEIE 690  Infrastructure Finance
CEIE 690  Technical Entrepreneurship
PUAD 502 Administration in Public and Nonprofit Organizations
PUAD 620 Organization Theory and Management Behavior
PUAD 622 Program Planning and Implementation
PUAD 640 Public Policy Process
PUAD 661 Public Budgeting Systems
PUAD 720 Performance Evaluation for Managers
PUBP 710 Pricing, Management, and Privatization of Public Assets
SYST 530 Systems Management and Evaluation
SYST 571 Systems Engineering Management
IT 894       Design and Inventive Engineering

Thesis or Project

Students may complete their thesis or project requirement by performing independent study under the guidance of a faculty advisor.

MS-CIE Concentration Area

INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY IN CIVIL ENGINEERING

Civil engineering practice is undergoing significant changes driven by the Information Technology (IT) Revolution. Emerging IT methods and tools are becoming an ever more important part of civil engineering, not only through automation of existing methods but also through development of new, powerful analysis, design and management strategies utilizing IT. In the context of these rapid changes in civil engineering, the competitive position of the individual engineer or engineering organization that first embraces new methods and IT tools will be significantly improved.

This area is intended for all civil engineers who want to improve their understanding and professional skills in Information Technology, particularly as applied to analysis and design. This emphasis area has been developed especially for all civil engineers who strive to be IT leaders in their organizations.

Plan of Study

All courses are divided into four clusters:

Core courses (3 courses, 9 credit hours)
Required concentration area courses (1 course, 3 credit hours)
Elective concentration area courses (4-5 courses, 12-15 credit hours)
M.S. thesis (6 credit hours) or project (3 credit hours)

Core Courses

Three courses required for all MS-CIE degree candidates:

CEIE 601 Infrastructure Modeling
CEIE 605 Infrastructure Systems Analysis
CEIE 685 Civil Engineering Information Management

Required Concentration Area Courses

CEIE 510 Geographic Information Systems in Engineering

Elective Concentration Area Courses CEIE 511   Introduction to Design and Inventive Engineering
CEIE 670   Civil Engineering Decision Methods and Tools
CEIE 690   Intelligent Infrastructure Systems
CEIE 563  Intelligent Transportation Systems
SYST 555  Introduction to Intelligent Systems Engineering
SYST 672 Intelligent Systems for Robots
CS 580      Introduction to Artificial Intelligence
CS 650      Database Engineering
CS 785      Knowledge Acquisition and Problem Solving
STAT 510   Statistical Foundations for Technical Decision Making
GEOG 563 Geographic Information Systems Applications
IT 894         Design and Inventive Engineering

 

Other appropriate electives may be selected with the approval of a faculty advisor.

Thesis or Project

Students may complete their thesis or project requirement by performing independent study under the guidance of a faculty advisor, on topics such as evolutionary computation in civil engineering, IT in inventive design, optimization of complex civil engineering systems, modeling of civil and environmental systems, etc.

MS-CIE Concentration Area

LAND DEVELOPMENT ENGINEERING

Land development engineering is a vital, complex, and evolving field within the traditional civil engineering domain. It includes not only the technical knowledge and skills necessary to engineer the landform, but also a command of the economic, political, social, and environmental ramifications of land development. This emphasis area is designed for professionals who want to expand their abilities in the development of land.

Plan of Study

All courses are divided into four clusters:

Core courses (3 courses, 9 credit hours)
Required concentration area courses (1 course, 3 credit hours)
Elective concentration area courses (4-5 courses, 12-15 credit hours)
M.S. thesis (6 credit hours) or project (3 credit hours)

Core Courses

Three courses required for all MS-CIE degree candidates:

CEIE 601 Infrastructure Modeling
CEIE 605 Infrastructure Systems Analysis
CEIE 685 Civil Engineering Information Management

Required Concentration Area Course

CEIE 500 Land Development Engineering

Elective Concentration Area Courses

CEIE 510  Geographic Information Systems in Engineering
CEIE 516  Engineering Law and Ethics
CEIE 530  Water Resource Systems Analysis
CEIE 550  Environmental Engineering Systems
CEIE 555  Introduction to Environmental Engineering
CEIE 556  Environmental Law
CEIE 561  Traffic Engineering
CEIE 562  Urban Transportation Planning
CEIE 610  Construction Systems Management
CEIE 680  Introduction to Infrastructure and Security Engineering
CEIE 563  Intelligent Transportation Systems
CEIE 690  Asset Management
PUAD 502 Administration in Public and Nonprofit Organizations
PUAD 615 Administrative Law
PUAD 651 Virginia Politics, Policy, and Administration
PUBP 601 Theory and Practice of Regional Economic Development
STAT 554  Applied Statistics
EVPP 675 Environmental Planning and Administration
IT 894        Design and Inventive Engineering

Thesis or Project

Students may complete their thesis or project requirement by performing independent study under the guidance of a faculty advisor.

MS-CIE Concentration Area

TRANSPORTATION ENGINEERING

The economic strength of any nation is very much dependent on its physical infrastructure, the most significant of which is the transportation infrastructure. The extensive transportation infrastructure of the United States is one of the main reasons for the enviable position of this nation among the world’s nations today. On another front, the rapid innovation, buildup and growth of information technology (IT) infrastructure, especially in recent years, is seen as one of the major driving forces behind the worldwide economic boom in the 90s. Transportation engineers deal with the planning, design, construction, operation and maintenance of the transportation infrastructure. The transportation engineering program at Mason emphasizes integration of transportation system studies with information technology applications. The areas of concentration for M.S. and Ph.D. programs in transportation include the following:

Transportation planning and travel demand forecasting
Traffic engineering
Transportation system security
Intelligent Transportation Systems
Highway design, operations and maintenance
Public transportation planning and management
Transportation and the environment
Transportation economics
Intermodal transportation systems

Plan of Study

All courses are divided into four clusters:

Core courses (3 courses, 9 credit hours)
Required concentration area courses (2 courses, 6 credit hours)
Elective concentration area courses (3-4 courses, 9-12 credit hours)
M.S. thesis (6 credit hours) or project (3 credit hours)

Core Courses

Three courses required for all MS-CIE degree candidates:

CEIE 601 Infrastructure Modeling
CEIE 605 Infrastructure Systems Analysis
CEIE 685 Civil Engineering Information Management

Required Concentration Area Courses

CEIE 561 Traffic Engineering
CEIE 562 Urban Transportation Planning

Elective Concentration Area Courses

CEIE 510 Geographic Information Systems in Engineering
CEIE 560 Public Transportation Systems
CEIE 563 Intelligent Transportation Systems
CEIE 567Traffic Engineering Modeling and Analysis
CEIE 680 Introduction to Infrastructure and Security Engineering
CEIE 686 Transportation System Security and Safety
CEIE 690Economic Analysis of Infrastructure Systems
CEIE 690 Transportation and the Environment
CEIE 565 Geometric Design of Highways
CEIE 690 Infrastructure Finance
CEIE 761 Traffic System Models
CEIE 762 Transportation Planning Models
STAT 544 Applied Probability
STAT 554 Applied Statistics
STAT 574 Survey Sampling I
STAT 656 Regression Analysis

Thesis or Project

Students may complete their thesis or project requirement by performing independent study under the guidance of a faculty advisor, on topics such as transportation and land use, traffic safety, air quality and environmental analysis of transport systems, IT applications to traffic management, etc.

MS-CIE Concentration Area

ENVIRONMENTAL ENGINEERING

Society cannot thrive—or indeed survive—without sustaining a healthy environment. Reliable provision of a clean source of water; adequate control of extreme environmental conditions (e.g. floods, droughts); safe disposal of solid, liquid, and gaseous waste; appropriate balance of environmental objectives with economic, political, social, and other objectives; and long-term sustainability of the environment in which we live are essential to the continued growth, health, and success of society. This is the focus of this emphasis area, which is appropriate for professionals eager to address these fundamental but complex problems.

Plan of Study

All courses are divided into four clusters:

Core courses (3 courses, 9 credit hours)
Required concentration area courses (2 courses, 6 credit hours)
Elective concentration area courses (3-4 courses, 9-12 credit hours)
M.S. thesis (6 credit hours) or project (3 credit hours)

Core Courses

Three courses required for all MS-CIE degree candidates:

CEIE 601 Infrastructure Modeling
CEIE 605 Infrastructure Systems Analysis
CEIE 685 Civil Engineering Information Management

Required Concentration Area Courses

CEIE 530 Water Resource Systems Analysis
CEIE 555 Introduction to Environmental Engineering

Elective Concentration Area Courses

CEIE 500 Land Development Engineering
CEIE 510 Geographic Information Systems in Engineering
CEIE 516 Engineering Law and Ethics
CEIE 550 Environmental Engineering Systems
CEIE 556 Environmental Law
CEIE 562 Urban Transportation Planning
CEIE 632 Groundwater Systems Modeling
CEIE 680 Introduction to Infrastructure and Security Engineering
CEIE 683 Water and Wastewater Systems Security
CEIE 690 Asset Management
BIOL 607 Fundamentals of Ecology
BIOL 640 Environmental Biology
BIOL 641 Environmental Science and Public Policy
PUAD 615 Administrative Law
PUAD 651 Virginia Politics, Policy, and Administration
PUBP 601 Theory and Practice of Regional Economic Development
STAT 554 Applied Statistics
EVPP 675 Environmental Planning and Administration

Thesis or Project

Students may complete their thesis or project requirement by performing independent study under the guidance of a faculty advisor.

M.S. Undergraduate Coursework Articulation Program

To ensure that all MS-CIE graduates have an understanding of the fundamentals of civil engineering, undergraduate coursework—that does not count toward the MS-CIE degree—may be required. Requirements for students who do not have an undergraduate degree in engineering vary, depending on the student’s prior coursework. Any student who has successfully passed the Fundamentals of Engineering or Engineer-in-Training (FE or EIT) exam or is a licensed Professional Engineer is exempt from these articulation requirements.

Courses Required

Based upon the requirements for a B.S. degree in Civil and Infrastructure Engineering at George Mason University (see catalog or website for details), the undergraduate articulation program normally requires the following courses:

• ENGR 210 Engineering Mechanics
• ENGR 310 Mechanics of Materials
• CEIE 230 Hydraulics
• CEIE 360 Transportation Engineering
• CEIE 455 Introduction to Environmental Engineering
• CEIE 463 Construction Systems

Courses Recommended

Depending on the student’s background and interests, these courses are also recommended:

• CEIE 305 Soil Mechanics
• CEIE 311 Structural Analysis
• CEIE 340 Water Resource Engineering
• CEIE 367 Structural Design
• CEIE 400 Civil Engineering Planning and Management
• CEIE 440 Water Supply and Distribution

Notes

The courses listed must be taken over and above the course requirements for the MS-CIE degree.

The first list has courses that have prerequisites, such as calculus, physics, chemistry, or engineering graphics (computer aided drafting). Students should be able to satisfy some of the prerequisites by enrolling in courses immediately at George Mason University, or by taking the equivalent courses elsewhere (e.g., Northern Virginia Community College, NVCC).

Ph.D. in Information Technology (Civil Engineering Concentration)

Students wishing to pursue Ph.D. studies in Civil Engineering may choose the Civil Engineering concentration in the Ph.D. in Information Technology program administered by the Volgenau School.