Environmental engineers who graduate from Lehigh University go on to tackle real-world problems around the globe. They find solutions to the planet's environmental challenges like air pollution, access to clean water, waste management, wastewater treatment and public health.
Lehigh's environmental engineering program provides a solid foundation in the causes, control and prevention of environmental problems while training students to address and ultimately solve them. Renowned faculty provide a broad base of learning and research opportunities that prepare students to become leaders in their field and to make a difference in the world around them. Students are provided with the tools to pursue focused projects that have real impact.
Why Environmental Engineering?
- Because you want to spend your days solving the planet's environmental challenges like air pollution, access to clean water, waste management, wastewater treatment and public health
- Because you are committed to a more sustainable world and you understand the importance of healthy water, air, and land to our planet's future
- Because you want to make a difference in the world around you
What sets us apart
At Lehigh, readiness for the real world starts with a rich undergraduate experience. The environmental engineering program delivers by bringing a multidisciplinary approach to the causes, control and prevention of environmental problems. Students receive rigorous training in the fundamentals of the natural sciences, mathematics and scientific methods while completing complementary coursework in the humanities and social sciences. They learn intangibles like innovation, teamwork, leadership and communication skills—all of which allow them to become better and more effective engineers.
The program offers a wide variety of environmental engineering courses, including chemistry, environmental science, chemical engineering, hydraulic engineering, pollution control and waste management, and geo-environmental engineering. These classes are enhanced by a dynamic, collegial environment where students are encouraged to connect and collaborate with one another—to have fun, explore their passions, and make lasting connections with peers, faculty and working engineers.
Students in the environmental engineering program learn, study and collaborate in Lehigh's state-of-the-art, LEED-certified STEPS building. Students take part in industry- or government-sponsored Research Experience for Undergraduates (REU) projects, make presentations at national conferences and work on design projects for industrial sponsors that solve real issues.
They help make devices to remove toxic metals from water, investigate the transport of bacteria in the presence of detergents, work on sludge treatment at wastewater plants, prepare nanoscale iron particles and treat arsenic-contaminated water from the Indian subcontinent. They interact with environmental engineering alumni and working engineers and build a solid professional network before even stepping foot off Lehigh's campus.
