Undergraduate Frequently Asked Questions

Transfer Arts/Letters/Social Science courses
Q:  What course(s) will qualify for my Arts and Letters / Social Science lower-division requirements?
 A:  There numerous distribution areas that will qualify for this degree requirement.  See the 2009-2010 of the PSU Bulletin, page 43 for a complete list.  If you still have questions, please consult with your faculty advisor.

Conditional admittance
Q:  I was admitted conditionally into the Bachelor of Science program.  How long do I have to complete my lower-division course requirements?
 A:  It is indicated in your admission letter that you have 3 terms (from the point of admission) to complete these courses.  If you are having difficulty meeting this deadline (especially with the AL/SS requirement) please consult with your faculty advisor and inform the CEE office so that we can update our internal records.

Double major
Q:  I would like to pursue a double major in Civil and Environmental Engineering, is this acceptable?
 A:  Yes, but you must submit an application to each program (and receive formal admission).  Consult with your faculty advisor to ensure you are completing all degree requirements for each program. 
 
Elective courses
Q:  What elective courses do you recommend I take? [These are A or B for CE students and A electives for Environmental Engineering students.]
 A:  Review the course offerings (listed on the CEE website under courses: (http://cee.pdx.edu/courses/index.php) and receive approval from your faculty advisor.  If you would like to take non-CEE upper-division courses, you must receive approval from your faculty advisor first.

Graduation
Q:  How do I prepare for graduation?
 A:  You must submit your application to the PSU Degree Requirements office, NH 104 by the deadline for the term you wish you graduate.  You must also schedule a grad check with Dr. Wells 1 to 2 terms before you plan on graduating.

Graduate coursework while an undergraduate
Q:  I would like to take graduate level coursework and apply this to my undergraduate degree, is this acceptable?
 A:  Yes, upon approval from your faculty advisor.  You will also need to submit a Degree Change Request with the degree requirements office.  This form confirms that you will NOT be allowed to apply those courses to a graduate degree at a later date (the University considers this 'double dipping').

Upper Division Cluster courses
Q:  What upper-division cluster should I take?
 A:  There are 3 clusters that include your EC314U degree requirement:  1- Knowledge, Rationality and Understanding 2-Community Studies and 3- Professions and Power.  You may select any upper-division cluster that PSU offers; however, if you choose 1 of these clusters options, you will need to complete EC314U and two other courses from the list.  If you were required to complete courses in the Sophomore inquiry series, you must link your Sophomore series with one of these 3 Junior cluster options.  Additional information can be made available in an advising session.

Coursework equivalence
Q:  I want to request a transfer equivalence of upper-division engineering courses that were completed prior to my admission into this program. 
 A:  If these courses do not show as having met our PSU equivalent, you must submit a request to the department.  The course will be assessed and upon approval, we will update your DARS (Degree Audit Report System) with the PSU degree requirements office.  You may still have difficulty registering for the next consecutive course (as the DARS system is NOT connected to the registration system) so please let us know if you are having difficulty and we will manually register you for your course.

International student coursework equivalence
Q:  I am an international transfer student, how do I request a complete equivalence review of my previous coursework?
 A:  Please schedule an advising session with Dr. Wells.  Bring copies of your transcripts and course descriptions as necessary for this review.  Your DARS will be updated upon approval.  You may still have registration difficulties.  Please bring your course review (signed by Dr. Wells) to the front desk and we will manually register you for your courses.

Take graduate classes while an undergraduate
Q:  I would like to attend your graduate program, are there courses that I can take prior to completing my Bachelor of Science degree?
 A:  PSU will accept previous graduate level coursework - up to 1/3 of the total credits in the graduate program you will enter.  Discuss this further with a faculty advisor or the department Chair to ensure that the credits you want to take (prior to admission) will be accepted as pre-admission transfer credits.

Repeating a class for a higher grade 
Q:  I received a grade (C-) in a lower-division course requirement.  I have since repeated this course and received a B.  Is there anything that I am required to do to have my records updated?
 A:  Yes, the PSU system will not automatically re-calculate your GPA.  You must submit a request with the Degree Requirements office NH room 104.  They will allow you to repeat a course up to 3 times.  They will always calculate the highest grade you received during these 3 attempts.

Credit for work experience
Q: Can I get credit for my work experience? I know how to do this stuff!
A: As an ABET accredited program, we must have a record of course credit for our program requirements. Hence, we will not accept a priori credit based on experience.

“B” electives for Civil Engineering (CE) program
Q: What classes can I pick for my B electives?
A: You can choose any CE class between CE 401-CE 599. Be aware though that there are restrictions on the # of credit hours: 4 credit maximum: CE 410, 403, 404, 405, 406; 3 credit maximum: CE 407, 507. Also there can be other courses outside CE that can be chosen as a “B” elective. These must be approved by the Department Chair. If you have a question on whether it is acceptable or not, make sure your undergraduate advisor approves, then your advisor can email the Chair.

“A” elective for Civil Engineering (CE) program
Q: What classes can I pick for my A elective?
A: You can pick either the CE 432 Steel design or CE 434 Concrete design. You can also take both of them; use one for an “A” elective, and one for a “B” elective.

“A” electives for Environmental Engineering program
Q: What classes can I pick for my A electives?
A:  We have listed in the PSU Bulletin approved tracks in Environmental for your “A” electives: geoenvironmental (CE341, 444, 440, 445), subsurface hydrology and contaminant transport (CE 341, 569, 570), surface water hydrology (CE 464, 467, 565), surface water hydrodynamics and water quality (CE 410 – Columbia River, CE 410 – Estuary Circulation, CE 410 – Sediment transport, 572, 576, 578). For the 20 credit hours of A electives, you must pick one “track” and then you can chose other Environmental/Water courses in the CE 401-599. Please contact your advisor and then the Chair for approval of A electives outside of the Environmental Engineering.

Probation and Suspension
Q: When is a student be placed on probation or suspended?
A: A student is placed on probation when his quarter GPA falls below 2.0. One can also be put on probation if they take less than 12 credits per year applicable to their degree. If the student is placed on probation for 2 consecutive quarters or for a total of 3 quarters, students will be suspended. A student is also suspended if for 3 consecutive quarters, he/she is not enrolled in engineering classes.

Taking the FE examination
Q: How do I go about preparing for and taking the Fundamentals of Engineering (FE) examination?
A: We encourage our students to take the FE review class that we organize every January. You must obtain the application from the Oregon State Board of Examiners for Engineering and Land Surveying: http://www.oregon.gov/OSBEELS/ . If you have not graduated yet, you will need to drop off the application so that the Chair can sign it to verify that you are within 4 months of graduation at the time of taking the examination.

Internship program
Q: Does PSU have an internship program?
A:  Yes, the CEE Department participates in the CECOP program (http://mecop.ous.edu/) and encourages students to follow-up on job postings on our web page under ‘employment’.  For many years the number of our students working is about 50-70% - with almost half of these working already in an engineering position part-time while going to school. Many of our students work full-time in the summer and part-time during the academic year. This is a different model than the CECOP model that requires 2 6 month internships.