Educational : A bachelor's degree in Engineering is the minimum requirement to become a qualified civil engineer. A post graduate degree is required for research or teaching posts and an additional degree in business administration is desirable for management positions.

Engineering courses are available at two levels. There are the degree and postgraduate degree courses offered by the engineering colleges and Institutes of Technology (IITs), and, the diploma courses available at polytechnics. There is also the Associate Membership Examination of the Institute of Engineers (AMIE), which enables working people in the private and public sector, or diploma holders to acquire a Bachelor's engineering degree through distance education. IIT Chennai and Institute Of Post Graduate Studies And Research, Hyderabad gives MS courses in civil Engineering, through distance education, the basic qualification of which is BE/ B tech in engineering.

The basic eligibility criteria for a BE /  B.Tech in Civil Engineering is 10+2 or equivalent examination, with high percentage of marks in Science subjects (Physics, Chemistry and Mathematics). 

Selection : Selection to the graduate courses ( BE / B.Tech ) is based on merit i.e the marks secured in the final exams of 10+2 and through entrance exams. Entrance to the IIT's is through 'JEE' (Joint Entrance Exam) and for other institutions through their own separate entrance exams and other state level and national level exams. Apart from the IIT's,  some other famous institutes also recognize JEE scores for selection. Selection to the postgraduate courses ( M.Sc / M.Tech) in different universities is through an 'All India Combined Entrance exam' conducted by JNU, New Delhi and to IIT's through 'GATE' in Two year/ 4 semester M.Tech courses and through JEE in five year integrated M.Tech courses. 

Duration : BE/B.Tech courses are of 4 year's duration. The diploma courses are of 2-3 year's duration

Fees : In private colleges fees range from approx Rs.1 lakh to Rs. 2 lakh annually for a bachelors degree. In IIT's it varies between Rs. 15,000/- to Rs. 20,000/- per year.

Personal Skills : A civil engineer needs to have a sharp, analytical and practical mind and give attention to details. Excellent communication skills is a necessity and he should have the ability to get along at all levels, as part of a team. He should be good at organizing and solving problems. He may need to work under pressure and have the ability to keep calm during crisis.

He needs to know about surveying methods, environmental issues like whether the area is susceptible to tremors or has sandy soil etc, properties of building materials like its load bearing strength, resistance to fire and corrosion etc. Besides having a good technical designing knowledge conceptualising structures, they should be computer literate in order to use design, drawing and word processing software. Civil engineers need to know building and safety regulations, local authority and government regulations, acceptable standards for construction and how to draw plans.