Mat, you are like a mentor i never had. Btw İ am currently experiencing what you have experienced in your grad school and seeing you a successful structural engineer gives me hope and motivation! Thank you ❣️
As a freshman pursuing Civil Engineering under the Texas A&M system, these tips and the advice is fantastic. Thank you for the material! It’s funny too because I see habits developing like study groups and getting involved in program related clubs and what not. I’m looking forward to learning and getting better over the next several years
Awesome video, Mat! Thanks a lot for making it! I am in the first year of the Civil Engineering faculty in Romania and this video just gave me a huge boost of motivation when i figured out that it is ok to make mistakes and that even the good engineers had low motivation moments in the school. I can't wait to see the classes in the second year! Keep going!
Hate to be that guy, but I’m a relatively new structural engineer (graduated in may) an with a huge wave of engineering job such as software, electrical, and computer engineering I feel like people are losing interest in civil/structural engineering... that being said you both are inspirations an essentially huge steps toward in making structural/civil engineering “trendy” again... probably not the best word but gets my point across
I wanna try an join you guys in making a “step toward” I’d really appreciate it if you both took a look at my Instagram Structural.hub (I thought the name would be catchy an kinda fun, if you disagree please tell me) either way Thank you both.
I 100% agree with you! I too halfway blame the teachers for how they teach in college. They teach as if we already know this stuff. But I also blame myself for the other 50% because I wouldn't put in the extra time to study and ask for help. Failing Calculus 1 three times has me reaching to other sources and taking the time to teach myself and fully learn and master the information before taking the class again and also switching up my study and homework habits. We all need that one class or experience to kick us in the butt so we can get back on path and do what needs to be done. I also agree, that once you start to realize why the general courses are needed in the major courses, it's like a push to want to learn those general courses. I like to always read ahead in the higher course descriptions and watch videos about what they are. When they mention that higher math and science is needed in those course, that's why I'm motivated to want to do good in those general courses. Even looking ahead at the FE and PE test outline and seeing the topics are pushing me to want to learn them so I can be prepared! Architectural Engineering Technology student here
Graduated UCD with my BS in Civil last June and now expecting to finish my MS in Structural Engineering from UCD this June! Hoping to land a job in my home county(OC) or anywhere in socal. Your videos definitely give me more and more confidence every time, thank you so much!
@@danialelyas4291 It can vary depending on the type of program and its length. I’d say the average tuition is around $13,000 per year, which can also vary depending on the institution.
Danial, yes, varies state to state, especially if you're an out of state student, its typically more expensive. When I did it, I was in-state already, and my M.S. program was accelerated (4 quarters) and I think I ended up around $30k tuition back then.
Interesting how the courses are grouped. Over here in Kenya the various civil engineering disciplines are split into 64 courses to be studied in 4 years. With 1st year covering the general courses.
As a long time follower I really enjoyed this video, we share so many things in regards of your grades and career path, I remember my B.Sc was really practical compared to my current M.Sc and I didn't really like the math and fluid mechanics courses that much and ended up not having good grades in those but once I started my design courses my marks were mostly A's. Spent one and a half year doing small interns and working in the field then got accepted in a M.Sc course which is VERY theoretical and mathematically demanding. My tip for the fresh engineers doing their B.Sc out there would be to always get involved in these mathematical courses specially if you're trying to get into Grade school. Thank you Eng. Mat for this wonderful video seeing someone with so much similarities gives me a refreshing sense of motivation to keep pushing through these courses knowing someone like you was once in my shoes and successfully graduated and worked in the industry. Keep up those great videos because WE ACTUALLY LOVE THEM!
Thank you very much for this awesome video, Mat. I graduated from a public University in the US, and subsequently returned home in South East Asia. One thing that I realized by working with engineers here is that they took much more engineering classes while in their undergraduate than I did in the US. Sometimes I feel really bad because I lack of technical skills e.g classes in Timber design, any Advance courses-- classes that I have not taken in the US. It seems like the US curriculum geared towards specialization in M.S degree.
I graduated from CPP in CE last year. Took me 6 years. They changed to a semester system and removed dynamics from the required courses. Was so relieved cause that course was a pain in the butt; failed twice. They also added I think was the equivalent of MAT 224 and PHY 133 to the curriculum and by that time I had already completed my math and physics like 4+ years ago, so that was a lot of refreshing to do... Doing a master's in transpo now. But yeah, you just gotta keep pushing. Took me 6 years but I finally made it. Once you get past those filter gatekeeper courses and get into the main CE courses if becomes much more interesting and fun.
hello Mat..just want to thanks for your videos uploaded regularly..I'm learning a lot and give more insight in our field. As a starter in the field of Structural Engineering, your videos inspired me.Thank you...Hope to finish my MS this year..
Thank you so much for making this video. I just finished my first year and I felt very lost and made a couple mistakes. Your video is giving me hope to continue and make me understand what should I be doing... thanks a lot 💙🥺
Hey Matt. I don’t know if you will see this comment but I wanted to say you’ve been putting out great content and motivational stuff that is engineers have gone through or will go through. I also want to enter the structural field and that adds more flavor to your videos for me. Nonetheless thank you very much for putting this content and effort for the people.
I just got accepted into UCSD for M.S. in Structural Engineering, and this was very helpful for me to know what the program is like! Thanks so much for making these videos!
Congratulations! That's where I went for both undergrad and grad school. It's a tough program, but worth it. The SE department has great people and everyone is always willing to help each other out.
Congrats Ana! Form your study groups and don't be a lone wolf like I first tried to do. Undergrad/grad school's a lot more fun that way and you'll learn a lot from your classmates as well!
I did my civil eng bs at UCLA and really wished I had the hands on classes at CPP, the degree was much more theoretical and I struggled to keep my interest and had a bad GPA, couldn’t find a job nor get into grad school because of that. Took me a while to do extension classes to get into cal poly Pomona’s computer science masters program and really liked the professors there! If I can do over again I would definitely prefer CPP’s approach to topics
@@Manny24_8 probably because my lower GPA (3.0) and at the time market was weak so harder for internships and jobs out of college (2011) I think the hard part for me was so much theory but not much hands-on projects. I was getting As in labs/project based classes but bad in the high theory ones. I couldn’t find a job for a couple month and pivoted to software engineering which was a lot more hands on coding and definitely regretted not going that route during undergrad
@tomschannel1568 how did you find the transition from Civil engineering to Computer science? Were you able to learn the fundamentals easily and were you able to land a CS job?
@@danielmm24 the tech and concepts were easy for me as I always had interest in computers. The hard part for everyone including myself is getting a foot in the door for entry level jobs. I was able to take advantage of the career fair at CPP to get a QA job at a small local company. Transitioned into SDE 2 years into that. After that recruiters started to reach out (this is late 2010s when tech was booming) and had interviews at most of faang. Failed all but Amazon and been here for 5 years now. So really the transition is getting the foot in the door I think!
Great video, when at university it is easy to miss the courses that will help you the most as a professional engineer. Also, almost at 50k subs you are doing great.
Thanks for giving us your insight on the courses you took as an undergrad/grad structural engineering student! My statics course starts next semester, so it's good to know just how important this course is for civil engineering students.
Thank you for sharing your experience in school! You've taught me a lot about what to expect coming out of school and how to be a better engineer. Thanks man, keep it up!
Thank you for this video. I would like to see more student life related videos as I am planning on going back to school for civil and then structural engineering. I already have undergrad degree in Landscape Architecture but would like to do a career change as I am definitely more technical and math oriented than design. Please make a video in more detail of what it's like to be a student, maybe how to prepare for school, books to read etc. Thank you again for posting your videos, I think I have seen all of them now.
I felt so familiar to your story. The first 2 years of university I also had bad learning habits and didn't feel motivated for the general subjects. I even was in a social/humanitarian class in high school.Then I failed my first and only course during Uni, in differential equations. Then I went off to the military for a year in a sergeants course, it's compulsory in Estonia. After that year I felt I need to make a change and wake up. At the 3rd year began all the good courses. I felt so motivated and got mostly A-s. And that differential course, I had to pay for taking the course again (higher education is otherwise free in Estonia), I got nearly 100 points on all the tests which made me feel really good. At the 4th year I took a part time job in a prefab concrete factory in the design team, got my first experience from there. Now I'm working in a consultation firm, got my first project working on a supermarket 80x45 m sized from first till last stages of the project almost all by myself. By now, all my courses are finished and I only need to finish my thesis by summer. The end feels so close, it's unbelievable. I already feel so used to school during these 5 years, it's kind of a shock and a relief it's all going to be over soon. I feel that the structural engineering career is a hard one by looking at my colleagues but it feels right for me. I can already see buildings I have contributed to and it feels amazing. Good luck with the youtube videos! Love your work :)
Thanks for sharing artur, I'm glad you could relate! It's a tough path, but if you know more about it and have the right goals and expectations, it's a very rewarding career, at least where I'm located! You got this!
Could you make a video about your first internships or all internships? Discussing what you've done and what it's like working in the industry as an undergrad? I remember my first intership was really eye opening because it was not what I was expecting 😂
i have 6 months left to start my bachelors but i still have decided to do master,s in structural.Until i reach to do my master,s i will have enough knowledge before i take the course. By the way love from india.
Definitely going to sign up for it! Thank you so much for posting that, I’m also a civil engineering major and taking linear algebra and DE, as well as physics 2 right now ! So it will be very helpful in this new normal world , thank you man!
You're welcome! I didn't always mesh with the professors teaching style, so I had to do a lot of self learning. Finding different resources and learning from them is what I do at work also. Many times I'm given a unique problem and I'll have to do the research and find the resources to learn it.
Thanks for the comment and for sharing, it's tough times for sure. If you're in the west coast, DCI Engineers is hiring project managers and other positions.
I failed Diff Eq (BAD TEACHER) and Structural Analysis (class was too damn hard). All in all I would say with some effort anyone can get this degree. Great vid
Thanks Justin, yeah just got to figure out how to learn it from different sources and extra work if you’re not meshing with the teachers teaching style
Construction manager is much more difficult to replace. Structural engineers are slowly becoming programmers and stamping monkeys. In my industry, steel detailers are now 3d modelers,outsourced to the Philippines or other low budget country. I know first hand. I see it every single day.
What about construction management jobs in Chicago, Arizona, louisana and Houston? Because iam going to do my masters in USA for fall 2021 in above states with construction management degree.
Really interesting. I used to think Mechanical Engineers couldn't possibly work as Civil Engineers, but it seems based on your coursework, that it could be the case. MEs also have to take Vector Statics and Dynamics as well as Strength of Materials, and you mentioned you use those concepts often. Seems MEs could also work in the Structural Engineering field. Have you ever worked with them in your area, or how feasible do you think this transition can be?
Thank you for sharing this! When watching your videos and hearing what you talk about, I thought you were get nothing but A's, and thus thought that to succeed in the structural engineering field I would have to do the same; but this video now made me feel more comfortable with my academic performances and relieves some of those doubts :)
I use OPENSEES for my research and I feel for anyone who has to learn the program for just one class. Even a simple model presents many challenges for beginners, and it takes a long time to be comfortable. It’s doable but I just question how much value it adds for a one time user. I’d see more benefit in running nonlinear time history in matlab than learning how to make a 2D model in OPENSEES. A lot of the math is hidden in OPENSEES and matlab would force you to program the math yourself. Idk just my opinion.
Agreed, luckily we ended up using it for 3 classes, so it wasn't a one and done and we got to use it more in depth for multiple assignments. Definitely learned a lot from it, but difficult to learn back then.
Hi Mat! I’m currently a transfer student at community college taking my GEs for free with the California Promise program. With the pandemic striking last year, I deferred admission from many schools I was accepted to including UCSD which was my dream school because of their major in structural engineering. Now that I’m getting into the flow of things, is it a good idea to major in JUST structural engineering or should I lean towards more to kind of do what you did and experience all these other types of engineering classes and see which best fits me? I ask because I know that choosing your area in civil engineering is more towards grad school and stuff like that. What would you think is best to do? Thanks, Jason A. Camorlinga
Mat Picardal hey mat! We also do a lot of drawing stuff by hand in my university does that apply in industry also or only softwares are used? And also, can you please make a detailed video about the sub fields of civil engineering covering all diff perspectives?
You said that in grad school you thought bridge design was a key class to take, but as a structural engineer that specializes in buildings do you use the knowledge from bridge design at your job? Or maybe I’m mistaken and you do design bridges at your job? Thanks Mat, currently at cpp and saw you present for Seacpp. I appreciate the videos you make!
I used it in my FEM class, very powerful, but it's not too mainstream in the building design industry, unless you're in a firm that does specialty structural engineering, such as uniquely shaped structures or one-of-a-kind custom shapes and materials.
What did you find more difficult statics or dynamics? For me dynamics was crazy hard! And fluid mechanics too I just got through that last semester lord Jesus! Love your videos btw been a fan since I first started at FIU! I’m graduating this fall with BA in Structural
Back then, statics because it was the fist time I was learning it, but now that I do it every day, it's really easy. Dynamics is difficult for sure, but I was really no good at fluids mechanics either lol. Dynamics got really fun and interesting in grad school when we started applying it to building structures and earthquakes.
hey mat! We also do a lot of drawing stuff by hand in my university does that apply in industry also or only softwares are used? And also, can you please make a detailed video about the sub fields of civil engineering covering all diff perspectives?
Still helpful for doing sketches and preliminary detailing. More of it is being done in Bluebeam Revu (sketches), but hand drawn sketches still have their place in workplace communication.
Hey Mat, I m a Civil Engineer from Myanmar. First of all, Thanks you so much for making this video. This video made me a lot of encouragement. After seeing this video, I was confident to apply UCSD. I just got accepted to UCSD for Prof MS in structural engineering this year (Fall 2024). I’d like to know if you have any recommendation which courses I shouldn’t miss to take. Plus, how could I by any chance reach you? I hope you see my comment
Hai, mat, I have a question for you. You studied a lot of subjects in your grad school and masters programme, up to what point are you using them in your career daily. Along with that did you remember everything you learnt when it's required, like your designing a column manually did you need any reference or else you just do it spontaneously. please answer it will help a lot.
I use statics everyday, member design hand calcs I use for preliminary sizing, but a lot of the more tedious calcs, like deflections are checked on software. But as the engineer, when using new software, we need to know what it's doing, so I have to know the basic concepts anyway. I reference A LOT of my books, since I don't memorize the code and all the equations. Which is fine, as long as you know where to find them and what they are meant to do.
Yet at the end of day, I dun think getting examined on these mathematics will be useful in the future as a structural engineer, FEM softwares will basically take care of that. Learning how to be proficient in these softwares are more useful. Yet it is true that a master degree is a prerequisite for many structural design firms.
Hi, I graduated bachelor of science in architecture, and I am curious on taking a second bachelor on civil engineering. Do you think this is an ok decision ?
Wait, so there are core civil engineering courses? What does that mean? The reason I ask is because I'm about to major in civil engineering in the spring and go for structural engineering.
A lot of engineering disciplines take statics, dynamics, physics, fluid mechanics, strength of materials, etc. Core civil classes are gonna be environmental engineering, steel/concrete design, structural analysis hydrology, soil mechanics/soil foundations, and other classes that only civil engineers use. All are important, but make sure you pay a lot of attention to the first set I mentioned (the ones that everyone takes) because you need to master those concepts if you want to have a much easier time in the upper division harder classes. I’m currently going into my senior year of civil engineering undergrad and I’m preparing to go into my masters for structural engineering. Remember that classes won’t always be easy and you WILL struggle with some classes and that doesn’t mean you’re stupid, it just means you need to go to office hours, join study groups, and put in the extra effort to pass them. Best of luck to you!
I'm a high school senior planning to major in civil engineering in college this upcoming fall, and I'm still unsure of which field I want to go into, but your videos have been making me more interested in structural engineering!! I'm actually considering attending CPP myself since I got admission for it, but would you say it's worth attending if you have to live on-campus for all four years? I don't live in SoCal, so I'm worried about the costs of housing and how much that would accumulate, but CPP also seems like it has a great engineering program! Another question I have is is it difficult to get jobs outside of SoCal from CPP if I wanted to actually get a job in the region I live in now (Central Valley)?
Very interesting and useful, sir! we have some similar undergraduate story:') don't know about where would the early courses will be going, start to make the good study habits in the middle courses, find a very good geotech teachers, almost choose geotech concentration, not a veryfast-learner but want to spend more time to study:) Also thanks for sharing about your grad story and perspective in UCSD! i'm from indonesia and currently work after finished my undergraduate study last year (take minor in structural eng), also have a hope can take a master degree in usa:)
i am good at cal. got 96%. i am doing structural engineering but dont know anything what i am doing and what i will do. structural mechanics always make me roll. messed up
I realized that engineering have more on structural design. Some of my colleagues in work are mastering structural design. Have you experienced Midas gen and civil?
Heard of them but don’t use them. There’s a lot of software and it will depend on the firm you end up working in. But if you can figure out one software, you can pretty much figure them all out. The hard part is knowing if what the software is spitting out looks correct, that’s where the structural engineer will come in
@@MatPicardal oh I see, what is your preferred software that you are using to your projects? And your ideal software that you want to see in the future. Easy to optimize? Or easy to calculate, easy to maneuver? Apologies from my questions I am eager to learn something to help my idea to grow in the rise of structural engineering.
Haha i feel like you and I have the same geology prof. I thought it was gonna be boring, holy hell the prof was so passionate and everyone loves going to class just to listen to him and read interesting facts about rock and geotechnical, bro its volcano and limeston bro! Crazy how a passiaonte teacher can change your point of view on a subject
hey man i plan on going to college for civil engineering but i’m pretty horrible at math. i was wondering how you got better and what i can do to prep for it. thanks
Learn and practice from different sources. For example, calculus, I wasn’t meshing with my teachers teaching style so I went online to websites, RUclips, went to office hours, asked my classmates, and bought additional books on the subject, even summary books and calculus for dummies types of books.
I got a degree in History and its basically worthless. Now I’m 25 and I plan to go back to university for Civil engineering (Structural). I’m torn between taking out loans and going full time to get into the industry sooner or working part time and going to school part time. What would you recommend?
Hi, I’m currently debating what college to attend to. I want to become a civil engineer mostly focusing on structural. My two top options are either UCSD or Calpoly SLO. Which one would you recommend?
Mat, would you suggest working with your B.S. as an EIT and then becoming a PE and then applying to grad school? Or do you suggest to just getting the masters degree out of the way and then become an EIT then PE? Thank you.
Depends a lot on the individual and the major discipline. I went to my master's as soon as I could because most reputable structural firms required (or at least highly desired) a master's for an entry level position. If you're able to find work without a master's and want to get it later that's fine as well and will probably make a better experience for you because you've worked in the industry. But, life is unpredictable, so I'd personally try to get all the education out of the way in my opinion. You might have kids, not have enough time, etc. to go back and get your master's, and "later" becomes never.
@@MatPicardal in my case, the firm I’m interning for is guaranteeing me a job after I get my degree. In regard to landing a nice job I have that covered (no masters necessary). And I’m also taking the FE in august. With that being said I don’t want to not get a masters, I do want it eventually, but in the case like you said “life happens” would I be at a disadvantage when trying to move forward with my career at say a different firm? Or do you think having the work experince alongside eventually becoming a PE will be enough to look past the lack of a masters? Thank you for the insight, I appreciate it!
Mat, you got any good resources on how to learn Wind Loads and ASCE-7? I started my entry level structural engineering job that requires a lot of these calculations and didn't learn any of this in my BS or MS degrees.
Here are the wind books I personally own and use at work: Affiliate links to Wind Design Manual: amzn.to/3j1iJcB Seismic and Wind Forces: amzn.to/2YtQs4Y
sir, I'm a CE student. I want to pursue structural engineering degree, can you give me some tips for getting into the industry as a beginner and required software to learn. if possible try to make a video on it, it will be helpful to so many students like me.
I have a MSc in civi engineering. I’m not sure what discipline to pursue between Structural, Geotechnical or Environmental. I’m looking for what I would enjoy, I know only I would know which one that would be, but if you could say what would you think is the most enjoyable between the 3?
Hello sir, sorry my English is not so good but i want to ask if you can suggest me some books bor building design. Also want to know, how to find the all step-by-step for a building ? Im going to graduate on July I'm in china actually. 谢谢你的帮忙🥰。
I've made some videos about books I recommend (they are U.S. based though) about steel, concrete, post-tensioned, and wood. Did you have a particular topic you wanted?
I personally wouldn’t, there’s so much liability and risk in the AEC industry, if you don’t know what you’re doing and how the industry works, really easy to get sued for all you’re worth, at least in the US
I'm Have done my Graduation in Civil Engineering(India) . Your all video are supporting for like Truss Member. I want to become a structure Engineer . Can you suggest me any important tips?
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Mat, you are like a mentor i never had. Btw İ am currently experiencing what you have experienced in your grad school and seeing you a successful structural engineer gives me hope and motivation! Thank you ❣️
I appreciate that glad you can relate! Thanks for sharing as well!
i'm a first year civil student and i can't wait to get into the real deal classes
You got it Justin! Design is what got me interested.
Statics, Strength of Materials, Fluid Mechanics. Yup, messed up on those too. Good to know I wasn't alone
Glad you could relate!
Me too
I’m currently a civil engineering student studying in China and this was really insightful for me. Thank you!!😬😬 love from Malaysia 🇲🇾
You're so welcome!
As a freshman pursuing Civil Engineering under the Texas A&M system, these tips and the advice is fantastic. Thank you for the material! It’s funny too because I see habits developing like study groups and getting involved in program related clubs and what not. I’m looking forward to learning and getting better over the next several years
Hello, good to see another Aggie Civil Engineer
Thank you for sharing your courses at university.
Keep going. I like to watch your contents.
Awesome video, Mat! Thanks a lot for making it! I am in the first year of the Civil Engineering faculty in Romania and this video just gave me a huge boost of motivation when i figured out that it is ok to make mistakes and that even the good engineers had low motivation moments in the school. I can't wait to see the classes in the second year! Keep going!
Congrats on your sponsor situation man !!
Thanks for all the support Jake! Rooting for your 75k and then 100k!
Hate to be that guy, but I’m a relatively new structural engineer (graduated in may) an with a huge wave of engineering job such as software, electrical, and computer engineering I feel like people are losing interest in civil/structural engineering... that being said you both are inspirations an essentially huge steps toward in making structural/civil engineering “trendy” again... probably not the best word but gets my point across
I wanna try an join you guys in making a “step toward” I’d really appreciate it if you both took a look at my Instagram Structural.hub (I thought the name would be catchy an kinda fun, if you disagree please tell me) either way Thank you both.
I 100% agree with you! I too halfway blame the teachers for how they teach in college. They teach as if we already know this stuff. But I also blame myself for the other 50% because I wouldn't put in the extra time to study and ask for help. Failing Calculus 1 three times has me reaching to other sources and taking the time to teach myself and fully learn and master the information before taking the class again and also switching up my study and homework habits. We all need that one class or experience to kick us in the butt so we can get back on path and do what needs to be done.
I also agree, that once you start to realize why the general courses are needed in the major courses, it's like a push to want to learn those general courses. I like to always read ahead in the higher course descriptions and watch videos about what they are. When they mention that higher math and science is needed in those course, that's why I'm motivated to want to do good in those general courses. Even looking ahead at the FE and PE test outline and seeing the topics are pushing me to want to learn them so I can be prepared!
Architectural Engineering Technology student here
Graduated UCD with my BS in Civil last June and now expecting to finish my MS in Structural Engineering from UCD this June! Hoping to land a job in my home county(OC) or anywhere in socal. Your videos definitely give me more and more confidence every time, thank you so much!
How much does it cost to do structures in the states? I'm talking about MS
@@danialelyas4291 It can vary depending on the type of program and its length. I’d say the average tuition is around $13,000 per year, which can also vary depending on the institution.
You can do it Miguel!
Danial, yes, varies state to state, especially if you're an out of state student, its typically more expensive. When I did it, I was in-state already, and my M.S. program was accelerated (4 quarters) and I think I ended up around $30k tuition back then.
Thanks for the video. The simple fact that you were only ok with math gives me inspiration and confidence
Great to hear! You can do it!
Interesting how the courses are grouped. Over here in Kenya the various civil engineering disciplines are split into 64 courses to be studied in 4 years. With 1st year covering the general courses.
Yes, interesting to see how international universities do it, thanks for sharing!
As a long time follower I really enjoyed this video, we share so many things in regards of your grades and career path, I remember my B.Sc was really practical compared to my current M.Sc and I didn't really like the math and fluid mechanics courses that much and ended up not having good grades in those but once I started my design courses my marks were mostly A's.
Spent one and a half year doing small interns and working in the field then got accepted in a M.Sc course which is VERY theoretical and mathematically demanding.
My tip for the fresh engineers doing their B.Sc out there would be to always get involved in these mathematical courses specially if you're trying to get into Grade school.
Thank you Eng. Mat for this wonderful video seeing someone with so much similarities gives me a refreshing sense of motivation to keep pushing through these courses knowing someone like you was once in my shoes and successfully graduated and worked in the industry.
Keep up those great videos because WE ACTUALLY LOVE THEM!
I appreciate the support and comment Mohamad! Thanks for contributing!
This is really helpful. Thanks for making these kinds of contents. Love from India
My pleasure Amir!
Thank you very much for this awesome video, Mat. I graduated from a public University in the US, and subsequently returned home in South East Asia. One thing that I realized by working with engineers here is that they took much more engineering classes while in their undergraduate than I did in the US. Sometimes I feel really bad because I lack of technical skills e.g classes in Timber design, any Advance courses-- classes that I have not taken in the US. It seems like the US curriculum geared towards specialization in M.S degree.
I graduated from CPP in CE last year. Took me 6 years. They changed to a semester system and removed dynamics from the required courses. Was so relieved cause that course was a pain in the butt; failed twice. They also added I think was the equivalent of MAT 224 and PHY 133 to the curriculum and by that time I had already completed my math and physics like 4+ years ago, so that was a lot of refreshing to do... Doing a master's in transpo now. But yeah, you just gotta keep pushing. Took me 6 years but I finally made it. Once you get past those filter gatekeeper courses and get into the main CE courses if becomes much more interesting and fun.
Same, took me 6 all goodie!
hello Mat..just want to thanks for your videos uploaded regularly..I'm learning a lot and give more insight in our field. As a starter in the field of Structural Engineering, your videos inspired me.Thank you...Hope to finish my MS this year..
Thank you so much for making this video. I just finished my first year and I felt very lost and made a couple mistakes. Your video is giving me hope to continue and make me understand what should I be doing... thanks a lot 💙🥺
Hey Matt. I don’t know if you will see this comment but I wanted to say you’ve been putting out great content and motivational stuff that is engineers have gone through or will go through. I also want to enter the structural field and that adds more flavor to your videos for me. Nonetheless thank you very much for putting this content and effort for the people.
Thanks Chrys! Glad it helps, you'll do great!
I just got accepted into UCSD for M.S. in Structural Engineering, and this was very helpful for me to know what the program is like! Thanks so much for making these videos!
Congratulations! That's where I went for both undergrad and grad school. It's a tough program, but worth it. The SE department has great people and everyone is always willing to help each other out.
Congrats Ana! Form your study groups and don't be a lone wolf like I first tried to do. Undergrad/grad school's a lot more fun that way and you'll learn a lot from your classmates as well!
I got accepted on Jan 20th. I'm currently at Cal Poly SLO. See you soon !
How much does it cost? And for how long is it?
Probably around $30k+ and 4 quarters
I did my civil eng bs at UCLA and really wished I had the hands on classes at CPP, the degree was much more theoretical and I struggled to keep my interest and had a bad GPA, couldn’t find a job nor get into grad school because of that. Took me a while to do extension classes to get into cal poly Pomona’s computer science masters program and really liked the professors there! If I can do over again I would definitely prefer CPP’s approach to topics
This is interesting. You’d recommend CPP over UCLA for engineering? You’d think a degree from UCLA would easily land you a job
@@Manny24_8 probably because my lower GPA (3.0) and at the time market was weak so harder for internships and jobs out of college (2011)
I think the hard part for me was so much theory but not much hands-on projects. I was getting As in labs/project based classes but bad in the high theory ones. I couldn’t find a job for a couple month and pivoted to software engineering which was a lot more hands on coding and definitely regretted not going that route during undergrad
@tomschannel1568 how did you find the transition from Civil engineering to Computer science? Were you able to learn the fundamentals easily and were you able to land a CS job?
@@danielmm24 the tech and concepts were easy for me as I always had interest in computers. The hard part for everyone including myself is getting a foot in the door for entry level jobs. I was able to take advantage of the career fair at CPP to get a QA job at a small local company. Transitioned into SDE 2 years into that. After that recruiters started to reach out (this is late 2010s when tech was booming) and had interviews at most of faang. Failed all but Amazon and been here for 5 years now. So really the transition is getting the foot in the door I think!
Love from Bangladesh, Dear brother. I am also a Civil Engineering student (B.S.C in 3rd year). I feel so good when I see your video.
Great video, when at university it is easy to miss the courses that will help you the most as a professional engineer. Also, almost at 50k subs you are doing great.
Thanks Brendan, great job on your channel as well!
Thanks for giving us your insight on the courses you took as an undergrad/grad structural engineering student! My statics course starts next semester, so it's good to know just how important this course is for civil engineering students.
Thank you for sharing your experience in school! You've taught me a lot about what to expect coming out of school and how to be a better engineer. Thanks man, keep it up!
Thanks for the support Daniel, I'm glad that it helps!
Thank you for this video. I would like to see more student life related videos as I am planning on going back to school for civil and then structural engineering. I already have undergrad degree in Landscape Architecture but would like to do a career change as I am definitely more technical and math oriented than design. Please make a video in more detail of what it's like to be a student, maybe how to prepare for school, books to read etc.
Thank you again for posting your videos, I think I have seen all of them now.
I felt so familiar to your story. The first 2 years of university I also had bad learning habits and didn't feel motivated for the general subjects. I even was in a social/humanitarian class in high school.Then I failed my first and only course during Uni, in differential equations. Then I went off to the military for a year in a sergeants course, it's compulsory in Estonia. After that year I felt I need to make a change and wake up. At the 3rd year began all the good courses. I felt so motivated and got mostly A-s. And that differential course, I had to pay for taking the course again (higher education is otherwise free in Estonia), I got nearly 100 points on all the tests which made me feel really good. At the 4th year I took a part time job in a prefab concrete factory in the design team, got my first experience from there. Now I'm working in a consultation firm, got my first project working on a supermarket 80x45 m sized from first till last stages of the project almost all by myself. By now, all my courses are finished and I only need to finish my thesis by summer. The end feels so close, it's unbelievable. I already feel so used to school during these 5 years, it's kind of a shock and a relief it's all going to be over soon. I feel that the structural engineering career is a hard one by looking at my colleagues but it feels right for me. I can already see buildings I have contributed to and it feels amazing. Good luck with the youtube videos! Love your work :)
Thanks for sharing artur, I'm glad you could relate! It's a tough path, but if you know more about it and have the right goals and expectations, it's a very rewarding career, at least where I'm located! You got this!
I finally find a normal person like me with real grade in collage, haha, I like you man!! By the way, I am in Cal Poly Pomona study Civil now. peace
Thanks for the support, best of luck in CPP!
Very helpful! Makes me want to pursue M.S. Structural.
w00t! you're welcome!
Good job, if your a civil engineer like me or a engineering student, ur awsome! Good luck
Yup, civil engineer, you're awesome, best of luck!
Thank you for your very useful information Mat!
Could you make a video about your first internships or all internships? Discussing what you've done and what it's like working in the industry as an undergrad? I remember my first intership was really eye opening because it was not what I was expecting 😂
Thanks for the great suggestion Charles, I'll take that into account!
Thanks for these videos man
My pleasure!
Prof. Uang is the real deal👍🏿
For sure!!!
Very inspiring Mat! This video motivates me to get my PE and do the transition from Construction to Structural World.
You can do it Phan!
i have 6 months left to start my bachelors but i still have decided to do master,s in structural.Until i reach to do my master,s i will have enough knowledge before i take the course.
By the way love from india.
Best of luck!
Definitely going to sign up for it! Thank you so much for posting that, I’m also a civil engineering major and taking linear algebra and DE, as well as physics 2 right now ! So it will be very helpful in this new normal world , thank you man!
You're welcome! I didn't always mesh with the professors teaching style, so I had to do a lot of self learning. Finding different resources and learning from them is what I do at work also. Many times I'm given a unique problem and I'll have to do the research and find the resources to learn it.
Thank you so much for this Mat. I thought I’m the only one that has to put the extra work just to fully understand the concepts.
You're very welcome! Glad you could relate!
Sir. Mat. Request ko lang po thesis ideas specially for structural engineers. salamat po!
Long time fan and structural project manager. I just got laid off because my company is dying. Good to hear your academics
Thanks for the comment and for sharing, it's tough times for sure. If you're in the west coast, DCI Engineers is hiring project managers and other positions.
I failed Diff Eq (BAD TEACHER) and Structural Analysis (class was too damn hard). All in all I would say with some effort anyone can get this degree. Great vid
Thanks Justin, yeah just got to figure out how to learn it from different sources and extra work if you’re not meshing with the teachers teaching style
Just got my Civil Engineering degree from Cal Poly Pomona. Start my career at a land development firm next week
Congrats Kevin! Go Broncos!
Construction manager vs structural engineer which role is better especially in USA. Please make a video on this.
Construction manager if you wanna see the big bucks faster.
Construction manager is much more difficult to replace. Structural engineers are slowly becoming programmers and stamping monkeys. In my industry, steel detailers are now 3d modelers,outsourced to the Philippines or other low budget country. I know first hand. I see it every single day.
@@justina8143 Tqq
@@bensmith8240 Tqq
What about construction management jobs in Chicago, Arizona, louisana and Houston? Because iam going to do my masters in USA for fall 2021 in above states with construction management degree.
wow. I need thiis! thank you
Glad it was helpful Renz!
Really interesting. I used to think Mechanical Engineers couldn't possibly work as Civil Engineers, but it seems based on your coursework, that it could be the case. MEs also have to take Vector Statics and Dynamics as well as Strength of Materials, and you mentioned you use those concepts often.
Seems MEs could also work in the Structural Engineering field. Have you ever worked with them in your area, or how feasible do you think this transition can be?
I just finished watching the rest of the video, and my assumption may be a stretch...LOL. Thank you for sharing. Very insightful
Great insights, I really enjoyed hearing about your grad school journey. Thanks for making this video!
Glad you enjoyed it!
Thanks a lot mat
You're welcome Karl!
Thank you for sharing this! When watching your videos and hearing what you talk about, I thought you were get nothing but A's, and thus thought that to succeed in the structural engineering field I would have to do the same; but this video now made me feel more comfortable with my academic performances and relieves some of those doubts :)
Glad you could relate Joci, I know it's a common (but rarely talked about) experience for engineers, so you're not alone.
I failed Fluid Mechanics too. Blamed the Teacher (11 years later and I still do). Till date I avoid any project that deals with lamb in a flow
I use OPENSEES for my research and I feel for anyone who has to learn the program for just one class. Even a simple model presents many challenges for beginners, and it takes a long time to be comfortable. It’s doable but I just question how much value it adds for a one time user. I’d see more benefit in running nonlinear time history in matlab than learning how to make a 2D model in OPENSEES. A lot of the math is hidden in OPENSEES and matlab would force you to program the math yourself. Idk just my opinion.
Agreed, luckily we ended up using it for 3 classes, so it wasn't a one and done and we got to use it more in depth for multiple assignments. Definitely learned a lot from it, but difficult to learn back then.
Hey I am graduating from cpp as a civil engineering major as well!
Professor Uang is the God of Steel ❤❤❤ #GreatestOfAllTime
Haha, yes Aniket!!
I failed twice in steel structure but finally i got A grade in 3rd attempt
Phi*M_p dude that’s what it’s all about
Nice! Just learn to keep getting better and learn from your mistakes.
Hi Mat!
I’m currently a transfer student at community college taking my GEs for free with the California Promise program. With the pandemic striking last year, I deferred admission from many schools I was accepted to including UCSD which was my dream school because of their major in structural engineering. Now that I’m getting into the flow of things, is it a good idea to major in JUST structural engineering or should I lean towards more to kind of do what you did and experience all these other types of engineering classes and see which best fits me? I ask because I know that choosing your area in civil engineering is more towards grad school and stuff like that. What would you think is best to do?
Thanks,
Jason A. Camorlinga
i am also STUDYING BS CIVIL ENGINEERING.
CIVIL ENGINEER'S are best
Nice! Best of luck!
What about drawing? Did you do a lot of drawing projects, by hand?
We used CAD back then. I'm sure there's Revit now, but I actually learned Revit myself for my senior project.
Mat Picardal hey mat! We also do a lot of drawing stuff by hand in my university does that apply in industry also or only softwares are used?
And also, can you please make a detailed video about the sub fields of civil engineering covering all diff perspectives?
This is very helpful
Glad it helped!
You said that in grad school you thought bridge design was a key class to take, but as a structural engineer that specializes in buildings do you use the knowledge from bridge design at your job? Or maybe I’m mistaken and you do design bridges at your job? Thanks Mat, currently at cpp and saw you present for Seacpp. I appreciate the videos you make!
Have you had a chance to use Abaqus? It’s a game changer for structural design
I used it in my FEM class, very powerful, but it's not too mainstream in the building design industry, unless you're in a firm that does specialty structural engineering, such as uniquely shaped structures or one-of-a-kind custom shapes and materials.
What did you find more difficult statics or dynamics? For me dynamics was crazy hard! And fluid mechanics too I just got through that last semester lord Jesus! Love your videos btw been a fan since I first started at FIU! I’m graduating this fall with BA in Structural
Back then, statics because it was the fist time I was learning it, but now that I do it every day, it's really easy. Dynamics is difficult for sure, but I was really no good at fluids mechanics either lol. Dynamics got really fun and interesting in grad school when we started applying it to building structures and earthquakes.
useful ..also working architectural draftsman
Hi Mat! Thx for the info. Im going to cal for MS but not sure if i can take the FE exam as i got a foreign bachelor's degree
Great video
Glad you enjoyed it!
if that C for strength of materials was with prof. izadi thats really an A
Haha, don't think it was him :) Lepisto???
Thinking about applying to the structural MEng program at USCD next year.
Great program, best of luck! There's an accelerated one (I think it was M.S.) geared towards those wanting to go into industry.
hey mat! We also do a lot of drawing stuff by hand in my university does that apply in industry also or only softwares are used?
And also, can you please make a detailed video about the sub fields of civil engineering covering all diff perspectives?
Still helpful for doing sketches and preliminary detailing. More of it is being done in Bluebeam Revu (sketches), but hand drawn sketches still have their place in workplace communication.
@@MatPicardal thanks for the answer man , appreciate the great work!!
Hey Mat,
I m a Civil Engineer from Myanmar.
First of all, Thanks you so much for making this video. This video made me a lot of encouragement.
After seeing this video, I was confident to apply UCSD.
I just got accepted to UCSD for Prof MS in structural engineering this year (Fall 2024).
I’d like to know if you have any recommendation which courses I shouldn’t miss to take.
Plus, how could I by any chance reach you?
I hope you see my comment
If I'm working towards a materials engineering degree, would you say I can land a structural engineering internship. If so, how?
Hai, mat,
I have a question for you.
You studied a lot of subjects in your grad school and masters programme, up to what point are you using them in your career daily. Along with that did you remember everything you learnt when it's required, like your designing a column manually did you need any reference or else you just do it spontaneously.
please answer it will help a lot.
I use statics everyday, member design hand calcs I use for preliminary sizing, but a lot of the more tedious calcs, like deflections are checked on software. But as the engineer, when using new software, we need to know what it's doing, so I have to know the basic concepts anyway. I reference A LOT of my books, since I don't memorize the code and all the equations. Which is fine, as long as you know where to find them and what they are meant to do.
Yet at the end of day, I dun think getting examined on these mathematics will be useful in the future as a structural engineer, FEM softwares will basically take care of that. Learning how to be proficient in these softwares are more useful. Yet it is true that a master degree is a prerequisite for many structural design firms.
Hi, I graduated bachelor of science in architecture, and I am curious on taking a second bachelor on civil engineering. Do you think this is an ok decision ?
Wait, so there are core civil engineering courses? What does that mean? The reason I ask is because I'm about to major in civil engineering in the spring and go for structural engineering.
A lot of engineering disciplines take statics, dynamics, physics, fluid mechanics, strength of materials, etc. Core civil classes are gonna be environmental engineering, steel/concrete design, structural analysis hydrology, soil mechanics/soil foundations, and other classes that only civil engineers use. All are important, but make sure you pay a lot of attention to the first set I mentioned (the ones that everyone takes) because you need to master those concepts if you want to have a much easier time in the upper division harder classes. I’m currently going into my senior year of civil engineering undergrad and I’m preparing to go into my masters for structural engineering. Remember that classes won’t always be easy and you WILL struggle with some classes and that doesn’t mean you’re stupid, it just means you need to go to office hours, join study groups, and put in the extra effort to pass them. Best of luck to you!
@@joshuahenson4812 thanks man, I appreciate the information.
I'm a high school senior planning to major in civil engineering in college this upcoming fall, and I'm still unsure of which field I want to go into, but your videos have been making me more interested in structural engineering!! I'm actually considering attending CPP myself since I got admission for it, but would you say it's worth attending if you have to live on-campus for all four years? I don't live in SoCal, so I'm worried about the costs of housing and how much that would accumulate, but CPP also seems like it has a great engineering program! Another question I have is is it difficult to get jobs outside of SoCal from CPP if I wanted to actually get a job in the region I live in now (Central Valley)?
Very interesting and useful, sir! we have some similar undergraduate story:') don't know about where would the early courses will be going, start to make the good study habits in the middle courses, find a very good geotech teachers, almost choose geotech concentration, not a veryfast-learner but want to spend more time to study:)
Also thanks for sharing about your grad story and perspective in UCSD! i'm from indonesia and currently work after finished my undergraduate study last year (take minor in structural eng), also have a hope can take a master degree in usa:)
Thanks for sharing Imam, best of luck!
i am good at cal. got 96%. i am doing structural engineering but dont know anything what i am doing and what i will do. structural mechanics always make me roll. messed up
I realized that engineering have more on structural design. Some of my colleagues in work are mastering structural design.
Have you experienced Midas gen and civil?
Heard of them but don’t use them. There’s a lot of software and it will depend on the firm you end up working in. But if you can figure out one software, you can pretty much figure them all out. The hard part is knowing if what the software is spitting out looks correct, that’s where the structural engineer will come in
@@MatPicardal oh I see, what is your preferred software that you are using to your projects? And your ideal software that you want to see in the future. Easy to optimize? Or easy to calculate, easy to maneuver? Apologies from my questions I am eager to learn something to help my idea to grow in the rise of structural engineering.
Haha i feel like you and I have the same geology prof. I thought it was gonna be boring, holy hell the prof was so passionate and everyone loves going to class just to listen to him and read interesting facts about rock and geotechnical, bro its volcano and limeston bro! Crazy how a passiaonte teacher can change your point of view on a subject
Haha yeah he made geology rocks!
hey man i plan on going to college for civil engineering but i’m pretty horrible at math. i was wondering how you got better and what i can do to prep for it. thanks
Learn and practice from different sources. For example, calculus, I wasn’t meshing with my teachers teaching style so I went online to websites, RUclips, went to office hours, asked my classmates, and bought additional books on the subject, even summary books and calculus for dummies types of books.
Can you please advise us for the best performance based design books/guides ?
Here's the one I have (affiliate link) Performance-Based Seismic Design For Tall Buildings: amzn.to/37z9ig2
I got a degree in History and its basically worthless. Now I’m 25 and I plan to go back to university for Civil engineering (Structural). I’m torn between taking out loans and going full time to get into the industry sooner or working part time and going to school part time. What would you recommend?
Would yo please post the subjects covered in the PBD Course?
Great topic!
Hi, I’m currently debating what college to attend to. I want to become a civil engineer mostly focusing on structural. My two top options are either UCSD or Calpoly SLO. Which one would you recommend?
Mat, would you suggest working with your B.S. as an EIT and then becoming a PE and then applying to grad school? Or do you suggest to just getting the masters degree out of the way and then become an EIT then PE? Thank you.
Depends a lot on the individual and the major discipline. I went to my master's as soon as I could because most reputable structural firms required (or at least highly desired) a master's for an entry level position. If you're able to find work without a master's and want to get it later that's fine as well and will probably make a better experience for you because you've worked in the industry. But, life is unpredictable, so I'd personally try to get all the education out of the way in my opinion. You might have kids, not have enough time, etc. to go back and get your master's, and "later" becomes never.
@@MatPicardal in my case, the firm I’m interning for is guaranteeing me a job after I get my degree. In regard to landing a nice job I have that covered (no masters necessary). And I’m also taking the FE in august. With that being said I don’t want to not get a masters, I do want it eventually, but in the case like you said “life happens” would I be at a disadvantage when trying to move forward with my career at say a different firm? Or do you think having the work experince alongside eventually becoming a PE will be enough to look past the lack of a masters? Thank you for the insight, I appreciate it!
Hey Mat, what is your opinion on the masters program at UCLA?
Good school! I had UC Berkeley and UCSD on the top of my list but I know plenty of UCLA engineering alum
Mat, you got any good resources on how to learn Wind Loads and ASCE-7? I started my entry level structural engineering job that requires a lot of these calculations and didn't learn any of this in my BS or MS degrees.
Here are the wind books I personally own and use at work:
Affiliate links to Wind Design Manual: amzn.to/3j1iJcB
Seismic and Wind Forces: amzn.to/2YtQs4Y
Great
Thanks for the support!
Which University’s have masters in structural engineering with a practical focus instead of theorical ??
sir, I'm a CE student. I want to pursue structural engineering degree, can you give me some tips for getting into the industry as a beginner and required software to learn. if possible try to make a video on it, it will be helpful to so many students like me.
Can someone explain to me why these are B.S. & M.S. instead of B.Eng & M.Eng?
Can you tell me about the Good reference book for Bridge engineering
I have a MSc in civi engineering.
I’m not sure what discipline to pursue between Structural, Geotechnical or Environmental. I’m looking for what I would enjoy, I know only I would know which one that would be, but if you could say what would you think is the most enjoyable between the 3?
I'm so biased, so really depends on you, but for me, it was Structural, then Geotech, and I never really got into environmental.
Hello sir, sorry my English is not so good but i want to ask if you can suggest me some books bor building design. Also want to know, how to find the all step-by-step for a building ?
Im going to graduate on July I'm in china actually.
谢谢你的帮忙🥰。
I've made some videos about books I recommend (they are U.S. based though) about steel, concrete, post-tensioned, and wood. Did you have a particular topic you wanted?
@@MatPicardal YES IHAVE, CONCRETE STRUCTURE(OFFICE CONCRETE BUILDING, SCHOOL, SUPERT MARCKET. APPARTMENT BUILDING ...)
Check out CRSI design guides and books (ACI code)
After graduation,
Can you start your construction company without experience?
I personally wouldn’t, there’s so much liability and risk in the AEC industry, if you don’t know what you’re doing and how the industry works, really easy to get sued for all you’re worth, at least in the US
@@MatPicardal How many years of experience is required?
Really depends on what construction industry you’re in, you’ll know you’re ready when you don’t have to ask that question anymore :)
How important is being good at Calculus in the upper division classes such as structural engineering?
Calculus is everything in structural engineering.
Structural engineer just dont like fm as fluid analysis is a lil complex than solid analysis..
Yeah, it was harder for me to visualize fluids.
I'm Have done my Graduation in Civil Engineering(India) . Your all video are supporting for like Truss Member. I want to become a structure Engineer . Can you suggest me any important tips?
u're my friend
Hi Mat,
Would you say that having an average IQ will affect how well the person does in engineering school and industry?
How’s the pay for a structural engineer in California?