Career Opportunities

Graduates of the BCT program have risen to the highest professional levels in the building construction industry. Specific occupations cover a broad range of professional categories including: construction management, sustainable building planning, engineered wood design, building energy performance evaluation, and building products distribution. Salaries compare favorably with other scientific and business professions. Opportunities for advancement are excellent. The employment demand for women and men in this broad field far exceeds the number of graduates.

Standardized Sample Career Titles for BCT

Construction Managers
Plan, direct, or coordinate, usually through subordinate supervisory personnel, activities concerned with the construction and maintenance of structures, facilities, and systems. Participate in the conceptual development of a construction project and oversee its organization, scheduling, budgeting, and implementation. Includes managers in specialized construction fields, such as carpentry or plumbing.

Architectural and Engineering Managers
Plan, direct, or coordinate activities in such fields as architecture and engineering or research and development in these fields.

Cost Estimators
Prepare cost estimates for product manufacturing, construction projects, or services to aid management in bidding on or determining price of product or service. May specialize according to particular service performed or type of product manufactured.

Construction and Building Inspectors
Inspect structures using engineering skills to determine structural soundness and compliance with specifications, building codes, and other regulations. Inspections may be general in nature or may be limited to a specific area, such as electrical systems or plumbing.

Civil Engineering Technicians
Apply theory and principles of civil engineering in planning, designing, and overseeing construction and maintenance of structures and facilities under the direction of engineering staff or physical scientists.

Energy Auditors
Conduct energy audits of buildings, building systems, or process systems. May also conduct investment grade audits of buildings or systems.

Energy Engineers
Design, develop, or evaluate energy-related projects or programs to reduce energy costs or improve energy efficiency during the designing, building, or remodeling stages of construction. May specialize in electrical systems; heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning (HVAC) systems; green buildings; lighting; air quality; or energy procurement.

Sales Engineers
Sell business goods or services, the selling of which requires a technical background equivalent to a baccalaureate degree in engineering.

Sales Managers
Plan, direct, or coordinate the actual distribution or movement of a product or service to the customer. Coordinate sales distribution by establishing sales territories, quotas, and goals and establish training programs for sales representatives. Analyze sales statistics gathered by staff to determine sales potential and inventory requirements and monitor the preferences of customers.

Industrial Production Managers
Plan, direct, or coordinate the work activities and resources necessary for manufacturing products in accordance with cost, quality, and quantity specifications.

Quality Control Systems Managers
Plan, direct, or coordinate quality assurance programs. Formulate quality control policies and control quality of laboratory and production efforts.

Material Scientists
Research and study the structures and chemical properties of various natural and synthetic or composite materials, including metals, alloys, rubber, ceramics, semiconductors, polymers, and glass. Determine ways to strengthen or combine materials or develop new materials with new or specific properties for use in a variety of products and applications. Includes glass scientists, ceramic scientists, metallurgical scientists, and polymer scientists.

Business Intelligence Analysts
Produce financial and market intelligence by querying data repositories and generating periodic reports. Devise methods for identifying data patterns and trends in available information sources.

Environmental Compliance Inspectors
Inspect and investigate sources of pollution to protect the public and environment and ensure conformance with Federal, State, and local regulations and ordinances.

Environmental Engineers
Research, design, plan, or perform engineering duties in the prevention, control, and remediation of environmental hazards using various engineering disciplines. Work may include waste treatment, site remediation, or pollution control technology.

Environmental Restoration Planners
Collaborate with field and biology staff to oversee the implementation of restoration projects and to develop new products. Process and synthesize complex scientific data into practical strategies for restoration, monitoring or management.

Managers, All Other
All managers not listed separately.

Life, Physical, and Social Science Technicians, All Other
All life, physical, and social science technicians not listed separately.

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