Water / Wastewater Engineer
What Does a Professional in this Career Do?
Specializes in the treatment and management of contaminated water. Designs sewage systems and water treatment plants.
Job Outlook
There were 283 Water / Wastewater Engineer job postings in North Carolina in the past year and 6410 in the United States.
In combination with other careers in the Water / Wastewater Engineer industry, which includes the Water / Wastewater Engineer career, the following graph shows the number of people employed for each year since 2012:
Salary
Many new Water / Wastewater Engineer jobs have salaries estimated to be in the following ranges, based on the requirements and responsibilities listed in job postings from the past year.
National
The average estimated salary in the United States for this career, based on job postings in the past year, is $81,027.
State
The average estimated salary in North Carolina for this career, based on job postings in the past year, is $79,115.
Percentiles represent the percentage that is lower than the value. For example, 25% of estimated salaries for Water / Wastewater Engineer postings in the United States in the past year were lower than $70,154.
Education and Experience
Posted Water / Wastewater Engineer jobs typically require the following level of education. The numbers below are based on job postings in the United States from the past year. Not all job postings list education requirements.
| Education Level | Percentage |
|---|---|
| Associate's Degree | 0% |
| Bachelor's Degree | 57% |
| Master's Degree | 42% |
| Doctoral Degree | 0% |
| Other | 0% |
Posted Water / Wastewater Engineer jobs typically require the following number of years of experience. The numbers below are based on job postings in the United States from the past year. Not all job postings list experience requirements.
| Years of Experience | Percentage |
|---|---|
| 0 to 2 years | 21% |
| 3 to 5 years | 35% |
| 6 to 8 years | 18% |
| 9+ years | 26% |
Skills
Below are listings of the most common general and specialized skills Water / Wastewater Engineer positions expect applicants to have as well as the most common skills that distinguish individuals from their peers. The percentage of job postings that specifically mention each skill is also listed.
Baseline Skills
A skill that is required across a broad range of occupations, including this one.
- Communication Skills (45%)
- Planning (42%)
- Teamwork / Collaboration (20%)
- Writing (20%)
- Microsoft Excel (18%)
Defining Skills
A core skill for this occupation, it occurs frequently in job postings.
- Project Management (43%)
- Civil Engineering (34%)
- Budgeting (33%)
- Professional Engineer (27%)
- Environmental Engineering (25%)
Necessary Skills
A skill that is requested frequently in this occupation but isn’t specific to it.
- Scheduling (20%)
- Hydraulics (19%)
- ArcGIS (18%)
- Civil 3D (17%)
- Quality Assurance and Control (17%)
Distinguishing Skills
A skill that may distinguish a subset of the occupation.
- Water Distribution (7%)
- Stream Restoration (7%)
- Wastewater Engineering (6%)
- Sedimentation Control (5%)
- Drainage Design (5%)
Salary Boosting Skills
A professional who wishes to excel in this career path may consider developing the following highly valued skills. The percentage of job postings that specifically mention each skill is listed along with the marginal value: the average salary difference between postings that request that skill and those that do not.
- Sedimentation Control (5%) – marginal value $8,546
- Environmental Consulting (4%) – marginal value $7,553
Alternative Job Titles
Sometimes employers post jobs with Water / Wastewater Engineer skills but a different job title. Some common alternative job titles include:
- Water Resources Engineer
- Senior Water Resources Engineer
- Water/Wastewater Project Manager
- Project Manager - Water/Wastewater
- Publications Distribution
Similar Occupations
If you are interested in exploring occupations with similar skills, you may want to research the following job titles. Note that we only list occupations that have at least one corresponding NC State Online and Distance Education program.
- Environmental Engineer
- Civil Engineer
- Transportation Engineer
- Civil Engineering Manager
- Environmental Engineering Technician
- Environmental Planner / Scientist
- Environmental Compliance Specialist
Common Employers
Here are the employers that have posted the most Water / Wastewater Engineer jobs in the past year along with how many they have posted.
United States
- AECOM Technology Corporation (304)
- CDM Smith (279)
- HDR Incorporated (181)
- Stantec, Inc. (181)
- Jacobs Engineering Group Incorporated (135)
North Carolina
- Mcgill Associates (18)
- Wsp Usa (13)
- Wsp Canada Inc (12)
- AECOM Technology Corporation (8)
- Wsp Global Inc (8)
NC State Programs Relevant to this Career
If you are interested in preparing for a career in this field, the following NC State Online and Distance Education programs offer a great place to start!
- Biological and Agricultural Engineering Master's Degrees
- Civil Engineering Master's Degrees
- Engineering – 2+2 Undergraduate Degrees
- Environmental Engineering Master's Degrees
- Watershed Assessment and Restoration Graduate Certificates
All wages, job posting statistics, employment trend projections, and information about skill desirability on this page represents historical data and does not guarantee future conditions. Data is provided by and downloaded regularly from Lightcast. For more information about how Lightcast gathers data and what it represents, see Lightcast Data: Basic Overview on Lightcast's Knowledge Base website.