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Coastal and ocean engineering is the application of basic engineering principles to the analysis, design, construction, and management of systems that operate in the ocean environment. It is a hybrid technical area utilizing techniques from many branches of engineering. Typical coastal and ocean engineering application areas include: beach protection and nourishment, coastal structures, coastal erosion, development of ocean energy resources, instrumentation for coastal and offshore measurements, marine dredging and dredged material placement, moored and towed systems, ocean mining, offshore petroleum recovery, offshore structures, ports and harbors, search and salvage, suspended and dissolved constituent transport, subsea pipelines and cables, submersible vehicles, and underwater acoustics.
Employment opportunities exist with private industry, defense contractors, consulting firms, and government agencies. Coastal and ocean engineering students are encouraged to pursue summer internships and may participate in the university cooperative education program. Students receive hands-on experience in the classroom and in our world-class laboratory facilities, which include the Reta and Bill Haynes ‘46 Coastal Engineering Laboratory, Offshore Technology Research Center, Civil Engineering Laboratory Building, and the Hydromechanics Laboratory.
Please note that students following this academic track will earn a degree in civil engineering with an emphasis in coastal and ocean engineering. Those wishing to pursue in-depth study of ocean engineering can earn a degree in ocean engineering through the Ocean Engineering Degree Program, which is housed within the Coastal & Ocean Engineering Division of the Zachry Department of Civil Engineering.
