Civil Engineering choices for 2025

[bestfit]

DC is in year 12, with high grade predictions, and wants to do civil engineering. We live in London and he is planning to apply to Imperial and UCL. He also plays a relatively niche sport, so if he leaves London he wants to choose a uni where they offer it at the right level. He is looking at:
Nottingham
Manchester
Durham
Edinburgh
Cardiff
Bath
Birmingham

Does anyone know the civil engineering departments at these universities? We have their various rankings, but it would be good to have some opinions.

@bestfit I would check the length of the course for MEng at Edinburgh otherwise I think no issues with any but Durham is smallish for engineering. Sheffield, not on your list, should be. However if sport is the selection criteria, are there no outside sports clubs offering what he wants?

The Complete University Guide, which uses a pretty good mix of considerations, ranks Bath, Durham, Edinburgh, Birmingham in that order amongst its top selections for CE. (@TizerorFizz I was also surprised to see Durham so highly ranked). That is a reasonable guide to use. Is that what you used? Different league tables have different criteria

However I agree with@TizerorFizz that Sheffield is always worth a look for Engineering. It really is that good, with great links to industry. Having said all of that, I think very highly of Bath for STEM overall, though I have no specific expertise in CE. (I am a former Russell Gp STEM admissions tutor)

My Ds is at Bath. Has had a very good experience there. His insurance choice was Sheffield. Bath is very good for sport, obviously you would need to check for your Ds’ particular sport.

You can specialise in a huge number of areas after graduation. If your Ds has an inkling of which area appeals most, many unis have a slight slant to their courses so worth researching.

In terms of reputation for civil engineering, Manchester is the standout from the list in your OP.

Manchester
(I'm a civil engineer)

And I agree re: Sheffield

What's the sport?

DD graduated from Bath with MEng in 2022. She was an ICE Quest scholar - look it up if you have not heard of it as its worth a lot of money, including summer job placements and a guaranteed role upon graduation. DD loved Bath and joined her sponsor company in Sept 22 and last week she was promoted from graduate engineer to site engineer. She works flat out including weekends and Bank Holidays when needed (rail projects) but loves it.

He's mentioned offshore structures as a potential area of interest.

@bestfit Southampton might be of interest then.

The optimum uni for his sport is Nottingham. Anyone know its CE department? Its UK ranking ranges from 10th in the Times list to 16th in the Complete University Guide so lower than some others mentioned, but still high enough to be on our list as a potential option.

DS is there @bestfit and is really liking the course so far. He's in the first year.

@bestfit Nothing wrong with Nottingham. I might be wrong but I think he might need a very strong structural engineering department if he wants that career. DH is FIStructE and FICE and has never worked in that field so I cannot speculate on where’s best. It’s also going to be dependent on who he works for after graduating. He’s going to have to research those companies and think about design and construction.

Just so you are clear: DH did site supervision as a graduate engineer. Unless an engineer is Incorporated or Chartered, they are still a graduate engineer. This is because graduate engineers should be working towards Chartered status - CEng.

Civil and Structural engineers have two main Institutions: For MICE, graduate engineers have to keep a log against the requirements of chartered status. The employer should be registered as a suitable trainer. Therefore all experience is valuable and if you look at web sites of the two Institutions I’ve mentioned, the requirements for becoming Chartered are listed. MIStructE is still a 7 hour exam. Therefore broad design experience is vital and the pass rate has never been high!

I am not sure any MEng course will specialise in under water structures. However the general principles will be useful for getting the job he wants. He just needs to research where the jobs are and what he needs to demonstrate to get one. However getting Chartered is a must. Or, he’s not a fully qualified engineer. A degree confers no professional status.