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Water/Wastewater Engineers

$89.94K Median Salary 25K Job Openings (Annual Projection) 8.2% Job Growth

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About This Career

Design or oversee projects involving provision of potable water, disposal of wastewater and sewage, or prevention of flood-related damage. Prepare environmental documentation for water resources, regulatory program compliance, data management and analysis, and field work. Perform hydraulic modeling and pipeline design.

Reported Job Titles

Consulting Engineer, County Engineer, Engineer, Project Development Engineer

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Skills You'll Need

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Abilities

Deductive Reasoning

Inductive Reasoning

Information Ordering

Oral Comprehension

Oral Expression

Written Comprehension

Written Expression

Fluency of Ideas

Mathematical Reasoning

Problem Sensitivity

Category Flexibility

Near Vision

Number Facility

Visualization

Originality

Speech Clarity

Flexibility of Closure

Speech Recognition

Far Vision

Selective Attention

Knowledge

Engineering and Technology

Design

English Language

Mathematics

Building and Construction

Administration and Management

Mechanical

Physics

Chemistry

Customer and Personal Service

Law and Government

Biology

Sales and Marketing

Computers and Electronics

Economics and Accounting

Skills

Critical Thinking

Judgment and Decision Making

Reading Comprehension

Writing

Active Listening

Complex Problem Solving

Mathematics

Systems Analysis

Systems Evaluation

Speaking

Time Management

Monitoring

Science

Active Learning

Management of Personnel Resources

Operations Analysis

Coordination

Instructing

Learning Strategies

Negotiation

Persuasion

Service Orientation

Social Perceptiveness

Technology Skills

Computer aided design CAD software

Presentation software

Analytical or scientific software

Geographic information system

Internet browser software

Object or component oriented development software

Data base user interface and query software

Spreadsheet software

Electronic mail software

Enterprise resource planning ERP software

Office suite software

Operating system software

Word processing software

Map creation software

Project management software

Industrial control software

Tools

Scanners

Notebook computers

Laser printers

Plotter printers

Desktop computers

Personal computers

Abilities

Deductive Reasoning: The ability to apply general rules to specific problems to produce answers that make sense.
Inductive Reasoning: The ability to combine pieces of information to form general rules or conclusions (includes finding a relationship among seemingly unrelated events).
Information Ordering: The ability to arrange things or actions in a certain order or pattern according to a specific rule or set of rules (e.g., patterns of numbers, letters, words, pictures, mathematical operations).
Oral Comprehension: The ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.
Oral Expression: The ability to communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand.
Written Comprehension: The ability to read and understand information and ideas presented in writing.
Written Expression: The ability to communicate information and ideas in writing so others will understand.
Fluency of Ideas: The ability to come up with a number of ideas about a topic (the number of ideas is important, not their quality, correctness, or creativity).
Mathematical Reasoning: The ability to choose the right mathematical methods or formulas to solve a problem.
Problem Sensitivity: The ability to tell when something is wrong or is likely to go wrong. It does not involve solving the problem, only recognizing that there is a problem.
Category Flexibility: The ability to generate or use different sets of rules for combining or grouping things in different ways.
Near Vision: The ability to see details at close range (within a few feet of the observer).
Number Facility: The ability to add, subtract, multiply, or divide quickly and correctly.
Visualization: The ability to imagine how something will look after it is moved around or when its parts are moved or rearranged.
Originality: The ability to come up with unusual or clever ideas about a given topic or situation, or to develop creative ways to solve a problem.
Speech Clarity: The ability to speak clearly so others can understand you.
Flexibility of Closure: The ability to identify or detect a known pattern (a figure, object, word, or sound) that is hidden in other distracting material.
Speech Recognition: The ability to identify and understand the speech of another person.
Far Vision: The ability to see details at a distance.
Selective Attention: The ability to concentrate on a task over a period of time without being distracted.

Knowledge

Engineering and Technology: Knowledge of the practical application of engineering science and technology. This includes applying principles, techniques, procedures, and equipment to the design and production of various goods and services.
Design: Knowledge of design techniques, tools, and principles involved in production of precision technical plans, blueprints, drawings, and models.
English Language: Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.
Mathematics: Knowledge of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, statistics, and their applications.
Building and Construction: Knowledge of materials, methods, and the tools involved in the construction or repair of houses, buildings, or other structures such as highways and roads.
Administration and Management: Knowledge of business and management principles involved in strategic planning, resource allocation, human resources modeling, leadership technique, production methods, and coordination of people and resources.
Mechanical: Knowledge of machines and tools, including their designs, uses, repair, and maintenance.
Physics: Knowledge and prediction of physical principles, laws, their interrelationships, and applications to understanding fluid, material, and atmospheric dynamics, and mechanical, electrical, atomic and sub-atomic structures and processes.
Chemistry: Knowledge of the chemical composition, structure, and properties of substances and of the chemical processes and transformations that they undergo. This includes uses of chemicals and their interactions, danger signs, production techniques, and disposal methods.
Customer and Personal Service: Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.
Law and Government: Knowledge of laws, legal codes, court procedures, precedents, government regulations, executive orders, agency rules, and the democratic political process.
Biology: Knowledge of plant and animal organisms, their tissues, cells, functions, interdependencies, and interactions with each other and the environment.
Sales and Marketing: Knowledge of principles and methods for showing, promoting, and selling products or services. This includes marketing strategy and tactics, product demonstration, sales techniques, and sales control systems.
Computers and Electronics: Knowledge of circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.
Economics and Accounting: Knowledge of economic and accounting principles and practices, the financial markets, banking, and the analysis and reporting of financial data.

Skills

Critical Thinking: Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions, or approaches to problems.
Judgment and Decision Making: Considering the relative costs and benefits of potential actions to choose the most appropriate one.
Reading Comprehension: Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work-related documents.
Writing: Communicating effectively in writing as appropriate for the needs of the audience.
Active Listening: Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.
Complex Problem Solving: Identifying complex problems and reviewing related information to develop and evaluate options and implement solutions.
Mathematics: Using mathematics to solve problems.
Systems Analysis: Determining how a system should work and how changes in conditions, operations, and the environment will affect outcomes.
Systems Evaluation: Identifying measures or indicators of system performance and the actions needed to improve or correct performance, relative to the goals of the system.
Speaking: Talking to others to convey information effectively.
Time Management: Managing one's own time and the time of others.
Monitoring: Monitoring/Assessing performance of yourself, other individuals, or organizations to make improvements or take corrective action.
Science: Using scientific rules and methods to solve problems.
Active Learning: Understanding the implications of new information for both current and future problem-solving and decision-making.
Management of Personnel Resources: Motivating, developing, and directing people as they work, identifying the best people for the job.
Operations Analysis: Analyzing needs and product requirements to create a design.
Coordination: Adjusting actions in relation to others' actions.
Instructing: Teaching others how to do something.
Learning Strategies: Selecting and using training/instructional methods and procedures appropriate for the situation when learning or teaching new things.
Negotiation: Bringing others together and trying to reconcile differences.
Persuasion: Persuading others to change their minds or behavior.
Service Orientation: Actively looking for ways to help people.
Social Perceptiveness: Being aware of others' reactions and understanding why they react as they do.

Technology Skills

Computer aided design CAD software: Autodesk AutoCAD; Autodesk Revit
Presentation software: Microsoft PowerPoint
Analytical or scientific software: Statistical analysis software; TapRooT
Geographic information system: ESRI ArcView; Geographic information system GIS systems
Internet browser software: Web browser software
Object or component oriented development software: Oracle Java
Data base user interface and query software: Blackboard software; Database software; Microsoft Access; Yardi software
Spreadsheet software: Microsoft Excel
Electronic mail software: IBM Notes; Microsoft Exchange; Microsoft Outlook
Enterprise resource planning ERP software: Oracle JD Edwards EnterpriseOne; Oracle PeopleSoft; Oracle PeopleSoft Financials; SAP software
Office suite software: Microsoft Office software
Operating system software: Microsoft Windows
Word processing software: 3M Post-it App; Evernote; Google Docs; Microsoft Word
Map creation software: ESRI Site Scan for ArcGIS; OpenDroneMap
Project management software: Mavenlink; Microsoft Project
Industrial control software: Industrial Scientific iNET; QuestSuite Professional