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Civil Engineering at North Carolina State University at Raleigh

Raleigh, NC · Public · Bachelor's Degree
72 /100
DegreeWorth Score (Base Case)
74
Optimistic
72
Base Case
67
Pessimistic
Earnings $70,346/yr (2% vs median)
AI Risk High (49% exposed)
Job Market Large (56,100 openings/yr)

How AI Changes the Outlook

Three scenarios based on how aggressively AI disrupts the career paths available to Civil Engineering graduates.

Optimistic
No Disruption		 Base Case
Gradual AI		 Pessimistic
Aggressive AI
10-Year Earnings $878K $701K $520K
Earnings Multiple (In-State) 24.7x 19.7x 14.6x
Earnings Multiple (Out-of-State) 6.9x 5.5x 4.1x
Viable Career Paths 7 of 7 7 of 7 7 of 7
DegreeWorth Score 74 72 67

10-Year Earnings Projection

*Year 1 uses actual reported earnings. Scenarios diverge as AI impact compounds over time.

4-Year Tuition (In-State)
$35,580
Out-of-state: $127,068
Median Debt at Graduation
$23,972
4.1 months of Year 1 earnings
Reported Earnings (5 Year)
$84,995
21% growth from Year 1

Career Paths

Where Civil Engineering graduates typically work. Raw data — no blending. The scenarios above model how these factors interact. This field has roughly 56,100 combined openings per year.

Career Path Wage Openings/yr Growth AI Risk
Architectural and engineering managers $167,740 14,500 +3.8% 41%
Petroleum engineers $141,280 1,200 +1.3% 53%
Engineers, all other $117,750 9,300 +2.1% 46%
Engineering teachers, postsecondary $106,120 4,100 +8.1% 50%
Environmental engineers $104,170 3,000 +3.9% 56%
Mining and geological engineers, including mining safety engineers $101,020 400 +0.7% 48%
Civil engineers $99,590 23,600 +5.0% 50%

Compare & Explore

Civil Engineering at Other Schools

Loyola Marymount University ($87,790) University of Southern California ($85,262) Santa Clara University ($84,883) California Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo ($80,673) Montana Technological University ($80,327) Cornell University ($80,261) Bucknell University ($80,231) University of California-Berkeley ($78,142)

Other Majors at North Carolina State University at Raleigh

Computer Science ($85,809) Computer Engineering ($82,997) Chemical Engineering ($81,492) Industrial Engineering ($81,055) Electrical, Electronics and Communications Engineering ($77,687) Construction Engineering ($76,574) Nuclear Engineering ($74,540) Materials Engineering ($74,058)

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the DegreeWorth Score for Civil Engineering at North Carolina State University at Raleigh?
This program scores 72/100 in the Base Case scenario, factoring in earnings, AI disruption risk, job market size, and earnings multiple. The score ranges from 74 (optimistic) to 67 (pessimistic) depending on AI's impact.
How does AI affect Civil Engineering career prospects?
We model three scenarios: Optimistic (no disruption), Base Case (gradual AI adoption), and Pessimistic (aggressive AI displacement). In the base case, Civil Engineering graduates retain 7 of 7 viable career paths. 10-year earnings range from $519,802 (pessimistic) to $878,339 (optimistic).
How many job openings are there for Civil Engineering graduates?
The career paths mapped to Civil Engineering have roughly 56,100 combined job openings per year nationally, making this a large job market.
Is Civil Engineering at North Carolina State University at Raleigh worth it?
In the Base Case, this degree earns 19.7x its in-state tuition over 10 years. Even in the Pessimistic scenario, the multiple is 14.6x. The spread between scenarios tells you how sensitive this degree is to AI disruption.
Data: U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard (earnings, debt), Bureau of Labor Statistics 2024-2034 (employment projections), OpenAI GPTs-are-GPTs research (AI task exposure), Felten et al. AIOE. Scenarios use a continuous weighting function combining AI exposure and BLS job growth projections. "Earnings Multiple" is total 10-year projected earnings divided by tuition — not a discounted financial ROI. Last updated 2025.