Civil and Environmental Engineering at Illinois

What Civil and Environmental Engineering at Illinois does

Civil and Environmental Engineering at Illinois (CEE at Illinois) is an academic department within the Grainger College of Engineering at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, headquartered in Urbana, Illinois and tracing its origins to 1867. The department delivers undergraduate degrees (BS in Civil Engineering and, as of 2025, BS in Environmental Engineering), graduate degrees (MS, PhD, and a Professional MS), an online MS program ranked #2 nationally by U.S. News & World Report, and specialized AI+CEE graduate programs integrating artificial intelligence with civil and environmental engineering disciplines. Its primary customers are prospective and current undergraduate and graduate students, with secondary engagement from industry employers through the Industry Partners corporate engagement program and the CEE Job Fair.

The department's core technology base is research-led and lab-anchored. Research facilities include the Kavita and Lalit Bahl Smart Bridge, the Rock Mechanics Lab (high-pressure/high-temperature testing for CO2 sequestration, hydrogen storage, and nuclear waste disposal), the Multiphase Flow Lab, the Microstructural Analysis Lab, and the Smart Structures Technology Laboratory directed by the Nathan M. and Anne M. Newmark Endowed Chair. AI/ML work is embedded across multiple research groups: physics-informed AI for urban heat and climate data, computer vision and human-in-the-loop frameworks for structural health monitoring and UAS-based bridge inspection, and ML for geoenergy and microporous fluid flow modeling. The department also runs K-12 outreach programs (STEMbassadors, IMAGINE Saturdays, WYSE summer camps, GIANT AI-in-schools project) that function as a recruitment pipeline rather than a commercial channel.

As a public state university department, CEE at Illinois does not generate revenue in the commercial sense. Tuition and fees are set by the University of Illinois and the Grainger College of Engineering, with a separately published CEE Online tuition schedule. The department is governed by the UI Board of Trustees, led by a Department Head reporting to the Dean of the Grainger College of Engineering, and was ranked #1 in Civil Engineering Graduate Programs by U.S. News & World Report for over a decade. The firmographic dataset records 27 employees, which likely reflects tracked leadership/admin staff rather than the full faculty, staff, and student complement that a department of this scale typically supports.

Name

Civil and Environmental Engineering at Illinois

Legal name

Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign

Website

https://cee.illinois.edu

Company type

Public

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Academic department within the Grainger College of Engineering at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign offering BS, MS, and PhD programs in civil and environmental engineering, plus online degrees, AI+CEE graduate tracks, and research labs. Serves prospective students, current students, and industry partners.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Engineering Higher Education

NAICS

Colleges, Universities, and Professional Schools (6113), Engineering Services (541330)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200), Services-Engineering Services (8711)

akta.pro primary industry

Engineering & Technology Institutes (Comprehensive) (EDAHAEAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

Technical Universities with Architecture, Built Environment & Design Engineering (EDAHAEAJ), Science Camps & Field Programs (Nature, Space, Marine, Geology) (EDAMABAB)

Keywords

• Civil engineering education
• Environmental engineering research
• Graduate engineering programs
• Structural engineering courses
• Engineering research services

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales

Pricing tiers

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Civil and Environmental Engineering at Illinois delivers undergraduate (BS) and graduate (MS, PhD) degree programs in civil engineering, environmental engineering, and related sub-disciplines, alongside sponsored research, K-12 STEM outreach, and industry-sponsored student design competitions. The department operates as an academic unit within the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, serving individual students seeking engineering degrees and external sponsors funding engineering research.

Product overview

CEE at Illinois is an academic department offering a comprehensive portfolio of educational programs and research services. The core offerings include undergraduate degrees (BS in Civil Engineering and BS in Environmental Engineering), graduate degree programs (MS, PhD, Professional MS), and specialized AI+CEE programs. The department provides online learning through CEE Online (ranked #2 nationally), professional short courses for continuing education, and research labs and facilities. Student engagement extends beyond academics through ASCE competition teams (Concrete Canoe, Steel Bridge, Sustainable Solutions) and outreach programs including STEMbassadors, Tutoring and Mentoring, IMAGINE Saturdays, and Summer Camps targeting K-12 students.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering
• Bachelor of Science in Environmental Engineering
• Master of Science and PhD in Civil and Environmental Engineering
• Sponsored Engineering Research Projects Project-based sponsored research services conducted by CEE faculty for federal agencies (NSF, USGS), state agencies (Iowa DOT), and industry partners, covering topics such as rock mechanics, bridge deck evaluation, storm surge modeling, water-energy nexus systems, and structural health monitoring. Delivered under grants and contracts to government and industry research sponsors.
• CEE Summer Camp (K-12 Outreach) Summer enrichment program introducing K-12 students to civil and environmental engineering concepts and career paths. Intended for pre-college students as a STEM pipeline and outreach activity.
• IMAGINE Saturdays Outreach Program Saturday enrichment program designed to engage K-12 students in engineering learning experiences as part of the department's broader K-12 outreach pipeline. Intended for pre-college students.
• Steel Bridge Competition Team Industry-sponsored student design competition team that designs, fabricates, and tests a steel bridge for the ASCE/AISC Student Steel Bridge Competition, sponsored in part by Nucor. Intended for civil engineering students as a hands-on design-build experience.

Quantifiable outcome

• USNWR #1 ranking for Civil Engineering Graduate Program
• +3 more outcomes

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability11 records

Feature4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• MIT Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering: MIT's CEE department is the most direct peer: a top-ranked R1 CEE department offering BS, MS, and PhD programs with parallel research strengths in structures, geotechnics, environment, and transportation, and a similar industry-recruiting model via career fairs and corporate partnerships.
• Cornell Civil and Environmental Engineering: Cornell CEE is a direct peer offering parallel BS, MS, and PhD programs with comparable research breadth across structures, geotechnics, environmental, and water resources engineering at a top-tier research university.
• UC Berkeley Civil and Environmental Engineering: UC Berkeley CEE is a top-ranked peer department offering parallel BS, MS, and PhD tracks in civil and environmental engineering with comparable research intensity in structures, geotechnics, and environmental engineering.
• Stanford Civil and Environmental Engineering: Stanford CEE is a direct peer with comparable top-ranked graduate and undergraduate programs, parallel AI/ML research integration in CEE disciplines, and similar large-scale industry partnerships and alumni networks.
• Georgia Tech Civil and Environmental Engineering: Georgia Tech CEE is a direct peer with one of the largest CEE enrollments nationally, parallel BS/MS/PhD programs, and overlapping research strengths in structures, transportation, and environmental engineering at a major public research university.
• Purdue Civil Engineering: Purdue's Lyles School of Civil Engineering is a direct peer department at a Big Ten public R1 university with parallel BS, MS, and PhD offerings, overlapping structural and environmental research strengths, and a comparable industry partnership model.
• University of Texas at Austin Civil, Architectural, and Environmental Engineering: UT Austin CAEE is a direct peer with parallel top-ranked CEE programs at a large public R1 university, comparable research expenditures, and similar industry engagement and alumni network strength.
• University of Michigan Civil and Environmental Engineering: University of Michigan CEE is a direct peer with parallel top-ranked graduate programs in civil and environmental engineering, comparable research breadth, and similar public R1 university structure with strong industry recruiting.
• Virginia Tech Civil and Environmental Engineering: Virginia Tech CEE is a direct peer with one of the largest CEE enrollments nationally, parallel BS/MS/PhD programs, and overlapping structural and environmental research strengths at a major public R1 university.
• Carnegie Mellon Civil and Environmental Engineering: Carnegie Mellon CEE is a direct peer with a parallel top-ranked CEE department offering BS, MS, and PhD programs with notable overlap in AI/data-driven civil engineering research, comparable to CEE at Illinois's AI+CEE focus.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/ceeatillinois
• YouTubeyoutube.com/user/ceeatillinois
• Facebookfacebook.com/ceeatillinois
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/school/ceeatillinois
• Instagraminstagram.com/ceeatillinois

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles7 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Civil and Environmental Engineering at Illinois