So, you’ve got an interview for a civil engineer position at one of the top companies in your area. Congratulations are in order. Before you can truly celebrate, however, you need to perform well when under the gun. You want to earn a second interview, or better yet, a job offer.

With that in mind, here are a few lines of questioning all civil engineer candidates need to feel comfortable with during their interview.

Expect to Detail the Tangible Engineering Achievements in your Career

Before the interview, spend some time reviewing previous projects from your work history while focusing on the innovative engineering solutions you either derived or helped to implement. If your resume is filled with these career examples – as it should be – the interview offers you the opportunity to go into more detail. You can illustrate how you’ll make a positive difference for their company when on the job.

Hiring Managers Want to Know How You’ll Work within a Team

Teamwork is very important in civil engineering, as is the ability to deal with clients or the public at large. Expect some questions aimed at finding out how well you work as part of a team, as well as your general communication skills as it applies to handling clients. Additionally, you can expect to be asked about the organizational structures you’ve been a part of throughout your career.

An Affinity for Technology Remains Important

Interviewers will want to understand your grasp of the state of the art when it comes to technology. This includes your comfort level with engineering software, as well as the mobile apps many engineers use while in the field. Civil engineering is a rapidly changing world, and companies want to ensure you will always strive to learn new things.

If you need any additional insight into interview preparation for a civil engineering position, talk to the experts at The Talley Group. As one of the top engineering staffing agencies in Washington, we are also a great source of Seattle engineering jobs. Schedule some time with us at your earliest convenience.

When searching for a civil engineer to add to your team, his full range of technical abilities can’t begin to describe how they’ll perform when on the job. Of course, engineering skills remain vital for any candidate, but work ethic and communication abilities also play an important role in the success of any engineer. Hiring managers need to determine and analyze a candidate’s soft skills – weighing those nearly equally with their technical acumen.

So what soft skills are important for a civil engineer? Let’s take a closer look.

Excellent Communication Ability is a must for Civil Engineers

One aspect of civil engineering that is highly important, compared to other engineering disciplines, involves public interaction. The practice is called civil engineering, after all. As such, excellent communication skills — both verbal and written — are a must for top-notch civil engineers.

Pay close attention to a candidate’s verbal communication skills during an interview. Try to picture them meeting with local government personnel during an important project. Additionally, note the writing quality in their cover letter and any thank you notes you receive during the hiring process.

Look for Clues about their Work Ethic

A robust work ethic is another soft skill that separates the top civil engineers from the pack. Notice the tangible work achievements detailed on their résumé, and ask them to further explain their efforts on these projects during the interview. The ability to do whatever it takes for the completion of a successful project denotes a special candidate.

Leadership and Teamwork are Vital

Even if you aren’t hiring for an engineering manager role, make it a point to explore a candidate’s potential leadership capabilities as well as their comfort level with collaborative project work. Grooming a top-notch civil engineer hire as a future manager remains a great opportunity for your organization.

If your company needs any additional advice on hiring and developing top notch civil engineers, talk to the experts at The Talley Group. As a leading Seattle engineering staffing agency, we can help your company to grow and achieve success. Schedule a meeting with us today!

With the beginning of 2015 only a few weeks away, it is time to take stock of the world of civil engineering. This important scientific and technical discipline touches nearly all aspects of the human experience, from how we get the water needed for life to the roads where we commute to work everyday.

2015 is poised to be a big year for civil engineers. Let’s take a closer look at some expected trends for the practice over the next year.

Sustainable Development a Big Civil Engineering Trend

One of most promising civil engineering trends involves the increased emphasis on sustainable development practices. Considering the growing infrastructure problems in the United States and all over the world, engineers need to leverage sustainable techniques to improve the subsequent construction quality in building, road, and bridge design. It is also vital to improve energy efficiency when constructing buildings, considering the challenges of environmentally safe energy production in the 21st Century.

Nanotechnology and Smart Construction Materials gain Acceptance

Part of the move towards sustainable development in civil engineering involves the use of state of the art nanotechnology and smart construction materials to improve construction techniques. If you are currently working as a civil engineer with minimal exposure to these innovations, make the effort to research these new concepts as these skills are vital for your career development.

The Hot Civil Engineering Skills for the New Year

If you hope to become a civil engineer, or even look to improve your career prospects in the field, understanding nanotechnology and new construction techniques is paramount. Additionally, make sure you familiarize yourself with the latest versions of the engineering and design software and mobile apps used by engineers in their day-to-day work. No matter your engineering discipline, keeping abreast of new technologies and tools is an important part of your lifelong career.

If you need any additional advice on engineering career development, talk to the experts at The Talley Group. As one of the top engineering staffing agencies in Washington State, they are also a great source of Seattle engineering jobs. Schedule some time with The Talley Group today!

The broad world of engineering contains many different disciplines, including civil engineering. Even within the practice of civil engineering, there are a host of specializations that might be worth focusing on in your career. They run the gamut from roadway design to water supply management to construction engineering.

The one thing that ties these subcategories together is “civil” — the products of this engineering work are usually for the common good of all. Having said that, which of these civil engineering subsets is right for your career? Let’s take a look at a few to see if any provide inspiration.

Highway Engineering puts you On the Road Again

If you love the open road, consider specializing in road and highway engineering. Performing site surveys gives you a chance to get out of the office and travel to different locations. You would be able to leverage your knowledge in mathematics and physics to ensure a superior road design especially in geographically challenging locales.

Overseeing road construction allows you to display management capabilities which remain relevant for any engineering discipline. There is also a lot of variety in road engineering, especially considering the bridges, road cuts, and other infrastructure improvements that are part of highway construction.

Supplying Water an Important Aspect of Civil Engineering

Getting water from its sources to where it is needed is another important subset of civil engineering. The design and building of dams, reservoirs, aqueducts, and more are the typical deliverables from these kinds of civil engineers.

Construction Engineering involves more than just Buildings

Considering the infrastructure crisis in this country, the need for construction engineers continues to grow. Everything from buildings to the bridges needed by highway engineers is on their docket. The maintenance of current structures is also a vital part of this engineering discipline.

Civil engineers are an important part of society with a wide range of disciplines under its banner. If you are interested in entering this needed profession, talk to The Talley Group. As one of the top engineering staffing companies in Washington State, they are also a great source of Seattle civil engineering jobs. Make it a point to talk with them today!

While engineering ability and technical acumen are still vital attributes for anyone working as an engineer, it is important not to forget “soft” skills like verbal and written communication. Technical writing is especially relevant for an engineer, given the need for quality documentation in most projects.

Also, authoring an industry article or two helps to position yourself as a thought leader in the engineering field. In short, quality writing skills are good for your career. Given that fact, let’s take a look at three tips to improve your technical writing.

Find the Simple in the Complex

Considering the complex nature of most engineering disciplines, it is important for engineers to express these ideas simply in writing, especially when the audience is the general public. Even when producing technical documentation to be used in a project, take the steps to simplify the material by leveraging graphics, bullet points, and formatting. This helps make any documentation an easier read no matter the ultimate audience.

Leverage Templates and Modular Writing

For documentation that follows a standard format, leverage word processing templates to make the overall writing process easier. Some engineering firms also use modular writing techniques that allow each team on a project to contribute their own content to a larger, system-wide document. These templates and modular style usage also give the reader a familiar format that helps with understanding the underlying material.

Consider taking Formalized Technical Writing Classes

Since written communication skills definitely help your career prospects, it makes sense to consider taking a formal technical writing course. In addition to improving your writing, the best courses also help focus your mind on clearly defining the modular aspects of any engineering project. This clearer thinking also can ultimately sharpen your engineering skills in addition to your writing capabilities, so the benefits to improving your communication skills are many!

If you need any additional advice on engineering career development, including improving your written communication abilities, talk to the experts at The Talley Group. As one of the top engineering staffing agencies in the Seattle area, they can help ensure your career stays on the right path. Schedule some time with them today to find out about the great civil engineering jobs in Seattle!

Civil Engineer Jobs in Seattle: Salary Breakdown

Like most other engineering disciplines, civil engineers enjoy robust career benefits, including the rewards that come from performing a job needed by the public as a whole. Of course, civil engineering is also a well-paying profession with many opportunities for career development. The Seattle, Washington area is a solid place for the engineering profession in general, and civil engineering is no exception.

Average Civil Engineer Salary in Seattle

Civil engineers in the Seattle metropolitan area can expect to earn an average salary of $81,000 per year according to data from March of this year. This salary is about four percent higher than the average civil engineering salary for the entire United States. Once again, the Seattle region of the Northwest U.S. is a great place to be for engineers!

The national salary trend for civil engineers has held steady over the past two years. There have been some hills and valleys, but the salary index has remained close to 1.0, according to Indeed.com. As the economy continues to recover from the Great Recession, expect civil engineering salaries to trend upwards.

It pays to be an Experienced Civil Engineer

Becoming a “lifer” as a civil engineer can pay off in the long run, like most technical professions. Seattle’s average salary for a senior-level civil engineer comes in close to six figures at $98,000, but you can expect to find many senior positions in Seattle above the $100,000 level. Senior civil engineers specializing in highways average a little less salary at $81,000.

Structural engineering is another offshoot of civil engineering that can be lucrative with an average salary of $93,000. Engineers that want to move into project management will find a slightly higher pay rate. The average salary for civil engineer project managers in Seattle is $83,000.

If you are interested in many of the lucrative civil engineering jobs in Seattle, talk to engineering staffing experts at The Talley Group. As one of the leading engineering recruiters in the Seattle area, they are poised to help you and your career. Be sure to schedule some time with them today with a quick phone call or email.

The United States needs to upgrade its infrastructure and fast. That’s the opinion of the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE). The ASCE feels this country’s infrastructure is actually close to an overall failure.

This infrastructure, according to ASCE, includes roads, bridges, rail, drinking water, waste water, solid waste, and other facilities. Its importance to the quality of life in the United States cannot be overstated.

ASCE Provides an Infrastructure Grade every Four Years

ASCE releases its grades of U.S. infrastructure once every four years. While the 2013 grade of D+ is a slight improvement over the D received in 2009, this isn’t really a reason to celebrate or take an early summer vacation. The country’s infrastructure has averaged around a D grade since the mid 90s, primarily due to a lack of investment and delayed maintenance work.

Eight categories make up the ASCE infrastructure grade. These include capacity, condition, funding, future need, operation, maintenance, public safety, resilience and innovation. Solid waste earned the best grade in the current report card: a B-, while inland waterways and levees brought up the rear with a D-.

A Backlog of Maintenance Needs Funding

The ASCE study noted that new recurring methods of funding the nation’s infrastructure needs are vital for improving the grade. With proper funding, the pressing maintenance backlog can be lessened while also implementing long overdue modernization projects.

City and State level funding helped to improve the nation’s bridges grade, and private investment, enhancing overall efficiency and connectivity, improved the railway infrastructure across the nation.

The ASCE report concluded: “Infrastructure is also critical for long-term economic growth, increasing GDP, employment, household income, and exports. The reverse is also true – without prioritizing our nation’s infrastructure needs, deteriorating conditions can become a drag on the economy.

“For the U.S. economy to be the most competitive in the world, we need a first class infrastructure system.”

If working on the nation’s infrastructure needs inspired you to become a civil engineer, talk to engineering staffing experts at The Talley Group. As one of the leading leading recruiters for civil engineering jobs in Seattle, they can help you, your career, and possibly the country’s roads and bridges. Schedule some time with them today.