As an environmental engineer major, you will study the principles of engineering, soil science, biology and chemistry to develop solutions to environmental problems.

What courses will you take?

Environmental engineering students from UMass Lowell work with solar panels at a construction site

The B.S.E. in Environmental Engineering begins with fundamental courses in college writing, mathematics and science. You will also take an introduction to civil and environmental engineering course that covers computer-aided engineering and design.

During the second year, you will learn additional engineering mathematics, basic engineering mechanics and biology for engineers. Other courses introduce environmental engineering, including an associated laboratory class and environmental engineering chemistry. 

Junior year coursework addresses energy and sustainability, groundwater hydrogeology and remediation, and biological processes in environmental engineering. In the senior year, you will focus on chemical fate and transport in the environment, air quality and solid waste engineering. You can also take two professional electives, which will count toward a master’s degree if you are accepted into the combined B.S.E./M.S.E. program. 

In the final semester, you will complete a capstone design project for the solution of an environmental problem.

UMass Lowell is the only public research university in Massachusetts to offer an undergraduate major in Environmental Engineering.

Visit the Academic Catalog for a complete course listing and to learn more about the minor in Business Administration for Civil and Environmental Engineering.

Degree Pathways are a semester-by-semester sequence of courses recommended for successful completion of a degree, diploma, credential or certificate from the university. The most current degree pathway is:

Visit the Academic Catalog for all degree pathways, including those from prior enrollment years.

Within this context, the program goal of the Civil and Environmental Engineering (CEE) Department is to provide its students with a well-balanced, high-quality education that will:

  • permit them to practice environmental engineering at a professional level
  • prepare them for graduate study
  • promote life-long learning and continuing professional development
  • provide them with the skills and knowledge necessary to develop into active contributors to the economic and social vitality of the region

To accomplish this Program Goal, the CEE Department’s and ABET Program Educational Objectives (PEOs) are as follows:

  • Graduates, who wish to pursue professional employment, will obtain a position in Environmental Engineering or related engineering field, and will be successful in that position.
  • Graduates will pursue lifelong learning, professional development, and registration as appropriate for their employers.
  • Graduates will engage in service activities related to their profession.

The student outcomes for the BSE degree in environmental engineering at UMass Lowell are as follows:

At graduation students should possess:

  1. an ability to identify, formulate and solve complex engineering problems by applying principles of engineering, science and mathematics.
  2. an ability to apply engineering design to produce solutions that meet specified needs with consideration of public health, safety and welfare, as well as global, cultural, social, environmental and economic factors.
  3. an ability to communicate effectively with a range of audiences.
  4. an ability to recognize ethical and professional responsibilities in engineering situations and make informed judgments, which must consider the impact of engineering solutions in global, economic, environmental and societal contexts.
  5. an ability to function effectively on a team whose members together provide leadership, create a collaborative and inclusive environment, establish goals, plan tasks and meet objectives.
  6. an ability to develop and conduct appropriate experimentation, analyze and interpret data and use engineering judgment to draw conclusions.
  7. an ability to acquire and apply new knowledge as needed, using appropriate learning strategies.

Why study environmental engineering at UMass Lowell?

Two UMass Lowell environmental engineering students wear hazmat suits inside a lab

Experiential Learning

Build career-ready skills through experiences outside the classroom, including:

  • Research in a faculty laboratory 
  • Co-ops and internships 
  • Paid work on campus 
  • Service learning 
  • Study abroad
UMass Lowell environmental engineering student in lab

Research Opportunities

The environmental engineering program has a dedicated graduate research lab and an undergraduate teaching lab.

Our research includes:

  • Physicochemical water treatment systems using nanotechnology
  • Strategic drought management
  • Biogas production from wastewater sludge
  • Hazardous waste site remediation
A UMass Lowell environmental student holds a white pole with a cup over a small stream to take a water sample.

Fun Outside the Classroom

Solving problems is fun, and at UML you can put your learning into practice. Check out some ways that students connect outside of the classroom.

UMass Lowell environmental engineering student in hazmat suit at a work site

Bachelor’s-to-Master's Program

Get on the fast track to an advanced degree with our combined Bachelor's-to-Master's program.
  • Available to juniors and seniors with a grade point average of 3.000 or better
  • Offers a continuous, coordinated sequence of courses
  • Reduced credit-hour requirements can save you time and money

What can you do with a degree in environmental engineering?

UMass Lowell's environmental engineering program prepares graduates for a wide variety of career paths, including design and operation of water and wastewater treatment facilities, management of hazardous waste site remediation projects, operation of solid waste disposal sites, director of recycling  programs, high school teacher and professor.

People in hard hats and safety vests looking out a dam.

Alumni of our program have worked at:

  • AECOM
  • CDM Smith
  • GZA GeoEnvironmental Inc.
  • Kleinfelder
  • MassDEP
  • Nobis Engineering Inc.
  • Stantec
  • Tighe & Bond
  • TRC
  • U.S. Army Corps of Engineers New England District
  • U.S. EPA Region 1 New England Headquarters
  • U.S. EPA Region 1 New England Regional Laboratory
  • Weston & Sampson
  • Woodard & Curran

Meet Our Students & Alumni

Maureen Kelly
Maureen Kelly '15, '17
Civil & Environmental Engineering, Structural Engineering

A service-learning capstone in Lowell and Haiti transformed Maureen Kelly’s civil engineering education — and her life. She now works for a firm that supports her ongoing volunteer work in Haiti and her mentoring of current students.

Students should be sharing what they learn and what they know with the community, and we do that at UMass Lowell.
Read More About Maureen Kelly 
Zach McDonough, facilities project coordinator at UMass Lowell
Zach McDonough '16
Civil and Environmental Engineering

As senior project manager with Facilities Management, Zach McDonough ’16 is building a successful career path at his alma mater.

(Facilities) was a wonderful team to intern with, because they treated me like an adult.
Read More About Zach McDonough 
Sofia Savoca with her mom outside O'Leary Library on South Campus
Sofia Savoca '21
Civil Engineering

Sofia Savoca chose UMass Lowell for the opportunity to be in the Honors College and to study civil engineering. She’s found a dozen new opportunities since arriving on campus.

Opportunities, opportunities – it’s raining opportunities. They’re here if you work hard and know where to look.
Read More About Sofia Savoca 
Tiana Robinson works with another student to conduct ultrasonic testing of sidewalk concrete slabs to check their thickness and condition
Tiana Robinson ’23
Civil Engineering

Tiana Robinson is working on a research collaboration with the city of Lowell to help inspect and monitor the city’s aging infrastructure.

The concept of building something from beginning to end and making your design a reality has always intrigued me.
Read More About Tiana Robinson