Civil Engineer Corps (CEC)

As part of the Navy Civil Engineer Corps, you can receive unrivaled hands-on experience and advanced training in civil engineering areas including architecture, construction engineering, environmental engineering, water resources engineering, geotechnical engineering, hydraulic engineering, land surveying, structural engineering, transportation engineering and community planning. You’ll quickly find yourself in charge of vital Navy projects, where you might:

• Oversee construction of everything from runways to docks to buildings of all kinds
• Supervise and manage utilities and other critical services
• Manage a variety of skilled construction workers (Seabees)
• Arrange budgets and schedules
• Approve completed work

More specifically, you can focus your work on any or all of the following areas:

Contract Management – Be the primary contact between Navy and civilian contractors, managing contracts worth up to hundreds of millions of dollars. Handle every aspect of a project, from overseeing construction, to resolving design problems, to ensuring that payments are correctly processed.

Public Works – Assume responsibility for any of the hundreds of Navy shore facilities – some as large as entire cities. Supervise and maintain utilities. Oversee construction and repair, manage budgets, approve public works plans and provide services to visiting ships.

Construction Battalions – Command up to 600 Enlisted Seabee construction workers in the construction of airfields, bridges, ports or buildings – all in support of both humanitarian outreach and military deployment.

CEC Officers work at Navy and Marine Corps bases all around the world. They are exposed to a variety of work environments, from large scale construction project sites, office spaces, academic classroom settings and in the field with Seabee and Naval Special Warfare commands. You may be deployed to help develop or rebuild areas affected by natural disasters or to construct buildings and/or roadways throughout the world. Your day-to-day work may be indoors, outdoors, in a shop environment or in office surroundings.

Upon graduation from college, the first step is Officer Candidate School (OCS) in Newport, RI. OCS provides a comprehensive and intense introduction to the responsibilities of Naval Officers over the course of approximately three months. Here they learn about the U.S. Navy military structure, its rich history of traditions and customs, leadership development and military etiquette.

Following OCS, newly commissioned Ensigns receive advanced training at the Civil Engineer Corps Officers School (CECOS) in Port Hueneme, CA. They will complete the CECOS Basic Qualification Course which is approximately three months in duration. This course is designed to provide junior CEC officers with the fundamental knowledge and skills necessary to manage construction projects and facilities, utility systems, contract administration and specialized military roles such as leading Seabees in Construction Battalions.

Post-Service Opportunities

Specialized training received and work experience gained in the course of service can lead to valuable credentialing and occupational opportunities in related fields in the civilian sector. CEC Officers are encouraged to earn their Professional Engineer (PE) or Registered Architect (RA) licensure.

Current undergraduate and masters students enrolled in ABET-accredited engineering programs or accredited architecture programs (both professional and pre-professional) and meet the prerequisite background have the opportunity to get paid while finishing school through the CEC Collegiate Program.

If accepted into this Collegiate Program as an aspiring CEC Officer, you can:

• Receive a salary in excess of $5,000 per month for up to 24 months prior to your college graduation
• Enjoy military health-care benefits while you are a student in the program
• Have your college years enrolled in the program count towards retirement
• Be a full-time student with no military drill duties while in college
• Attain unparalleled leadership, managerial and operational experience

Interested candidates should connect with a recruiter and ask about joining the Civil Engineer Corps (CEC). They will help you learn more about what the job entails and get answers for any of your questions.

Postgraduate Education Opportunities

Within 10 years of commissioning, CEC officers are provided the opportunity to return to college and complete a master’s degree in the field of engineering or urban planning. There are also options to attend the Naval Postgraduate School (NPS) in Monterey, CA to complete their master’s degree.

Opportunities for further education include:

• Joint Professional Military Education (JPME)
• Navy War College (NWC)

To be an eligible candidate, you must:

• Be a U.S. citizen
• Be at least 19 years of age and less than 36 years of age at the time of commissioning—waivers up to 42 years of age may be available
• Meet physical fitness standards of the Navy

Education

• Candidates must be graduates or students of an ABET-accredited engineering program or accredited architecture program (either professional or pre-professional) at a college or university
• Cumulative GPA of 2.70 or higher (includes all college classes taken)—waivers down to 2.50 may be available

General qualifications may vary depending upon whether you’re currently serving, whether you’ve served before or whether you’ve never served before.

Serving part-time as a Reserve Sailor, your duties will be carried out during your scheduled drilling and training periods. During monthly drilling, Civil Engineers in the Navy Reserve typically work at a location close to their homes.

For annual training, Civil Engineers may serve anywhere in the world, whether at sea, stateside, or in bases and camps in countries around the world.

Take a moment to learn more about the general roles and responsibilities of Navy Reserve Sailors.

Most of what you do in the Navy Reserve is considered training. The basic Navy Reserve commitment involves training a minimum of one weekend a month (referred to as drilling) and two weeks a year (referred to as Annual Training) – or the equivalent.

Civil Engineers in the Navy Reserve serve in an Officer role. Before receiving the ongoing professional training that comes with this job, initial training requirements must first be met.

For current or former Navy Officers (NAVET): Prior experience satisfies the initial leadership training requirement – so you will not need to go through Officer Training again.

Officers who previously held a commission in another United States Military Service, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Public Health Service, or United States Coast Guard are exempt from attending ODS or LDO/CWO Academy.