List of engineering branches


is the discipline and profession that applies scientific theories, mathematical methods, and empirical evidence to design, create, and analyze technological solutions cognizant of safety, human factors, physical laws, regulations, practicality, and cost. In the contemporary era, engineering is generally considered to consist of the major primary branches of chemical engineering, civil engineering, electrical engineering, and mechanical engineering. There are numerous other engineering subdisciplines and interdisciplinary subjects that may or may not be part of these major engineering branches.

Chemical engineering

is the application of chemical, physical and biological sciences to the process of converting raw materials or chemicals into more useful or valuable forms.
SubdisciplineScopeMajor specialties
Biomolecular engineeringFocuses on the manufacturing of biomolecules.
  • Genetic engineering
  • Immunology and biomolecular/biochemical engineering
  • Engineering of DNA and RNA
Materials engineeringInvolves properties of matter and its applications to engineering.
  • Metallurgical engineering, works with metals
  • Ceramic engineering works with raw oxide materials and advanced materials that are polymorphic, polycrystalline, oxide and non-oxide ceramics
  • Polymer engineering works with polymer materials
  • Crystal engineering works with the design and synthesis of molecular solid-state structures
  • Biomaterials engineering works with natural and living systems
    • Molecular engineeringFocuses on the manufacturing of molecules.
    Process engineeringFocuses on the design, operation, control and optimization of chemical processes. These include natural and man-made materials, interaction of materials with machines, safety and health, energy conservation and waste and pollution control. This extends to plant design and layout, machine and wet process design and improvement and designing and creating products.
  • Petroleum refinery engineering works on the manufacture of refined products
  • Plastics engineering works on the plastics products
  • Paper engineering works on paper products
  • Textile engineering works on fiber, textile and apparel products.
    • Corrosion engineeringApplies scientific knowledge, natural laws and physical resources in order to design and implement materials, structures, devices, systems and procedures to manage corrosion. Generally related to metallurgy, corrosion engineering also encompasses non-metallics including ceramics. Corrosion engineers often manage other not-strictly-corrosion processes including cracking, brittle fracture, crazing, fretting, erosion and more.

    Civil engineering

    comprises the design, construction and maintenance of the physical and natural built environments.
    SubdisciplineScopeMajor specialties-
    Environmental engineeringThe application of engineering to the improvement and protection of the environment.
    • Ecological engineering, the design, monitoring, and construction of ecosystems
    • Fire protection engineering, the application of engineering to protect people and environments from fire and smoke
    • Sanitary engineering, the application of engineering methods to improve sanitation of human communities
    • Wastewater engineering, Wastewater engineering is a type of engineering that comes from civil engineering and environmental engineering. A wastewater engineer determines the best way to transport or collect rainwater for human populations. Wastewater engineering also deals with the transportation and cleaning of blackwater, greywater and irrigation water. Wastewater treatment and water reclamation are areas of concern in this field. Wastewater engineers map out topographical and geographical features of Earth to determine the best means of collection. They use sonar scanning in wells to determine volumes of water that can be used for human consumption. Using these types of data they are able to provide a means of collecting water. After collecting the water, it is their job to transport it to where it can be made available for use.
    • Municipal or urban engineering, civil engineering applied to municipal issues such as water and waste management, transportation networks, subdivisions, communications, hydrology, hydraulics, etc.
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    Geotechnical engineeringConcerned with the behavior of earth materials at the site of a civil engineering project.
  • Mining engineering, the exploration, extraction and processing of raw materials from the Earth
  • Foundation, the engineering of below-ground foundations that support superstructures
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    Structural engineeringThe engineering of structures that support or resist structural loads.
  • Earthquake engineering, the behavior of structures subject to seismic loading
  • Wind engineering, the analysis of wind and its effects on the built environment
  • Architectural engineering, application of engineering principles to building design and construction
  • Ocean engineering, the design of offshore structures
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    Mining engineeringAn engineering discipline that involves the science, technology, and practice of extracting and processing minerals from a naturally occurring environment. Mining engineering is closely related to many other disciplines like mineral processing and metallurgy, geotechnical engineering and surveying. A mining engineer manages all phases of mining operations – from exploration and discovery of the mineral resource, through feasibility studies, mine design, development of plans, production, and operations, to mine closure.With the process of mineral extraction, some amount of waste material and other byproducts are generated which are the primary source of pollution in the vicinity of mines. Mining activities by their nature cause a disturbance of the natural environment in and around which the minerals are located. Mining engineers must, therefore, be concerned not only with the production and processing of mineral commodities but also with the mitigation of damage to the environment both during and after mining as a result of the change in the mining area.-
    Transport engineeringThe use of engineering to ensure the safe and efficient transportation of people and goods.
    • Traffic engineering, a branch of transportation engineering focusing on the infrastructure necessary for transportation
    • Highway engineering, a branch of engineering that deals with major roadways and transportation systems involving automobiles. Highway engineering usually involves the construction and design of highways.
    • Railway systems engineering
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    Utility engineeringA branch of Civil Engineering that focuses on the planning, design, construction, operation, maintenance, and asset management of any and all utility systems, as well as the interaction between utility infrastructure and other civil infrastructure
  • Subsurface utility engineering, a branch of utility engineering that involves managing certain risks associated with utility mapping at appropriate quality levels and communication of utility data to concerned parties.
    • Water resources engineeringPrediction, planning, development, and management of water resources.
  • Hydraulic engineering, concerned with the flow and conveyance of fluids, principally water; intimately related to the design of pipelines, water supply network, drainage facilities and canals.
  • River engineering, is the process of planned human intervention in the course, characteristics, or flow of a river with the intention of producing some defined benefit—to manage the water resources, to protect against flooding, or to make passage along or across rivers easier.
  • Coastal engineering, the study of the processes ongoing at the shoreline and construction within the coastal zone, often directed at combating erosion of coasts or providing navigational access.
  • Groundwater engineering, involves the analysis, monitoring and often modeling of groundwater source to better understand how much remains and if the water can be used for e.g. recharging reservoirs and irrigation.

    • Electrical engineering

    comprises the study and application of electricity, electronics and electromagnetism.
    SubdisciplineScopeMajor specialties
    Electronic engineeringThe creation of physical devices and abstract methods that make it possible to conduct electricity, magnetism and light, through low power electrical circuits deemed electronic circuits as well as through communication channels, in such a manner so as to make it possible to control, that is to actuate, on other external entities that can be mechanical, electrical, chemical and even biological in nature, even to the point of automation and thus achieving a manipulation over those natural phenomena so as to concede to them a specific form so that they abstractly represent something, in a processing action that is called program and therefore they become abstract signals of information, which can be subject of further processing and even end-user presentation in what is known as computing.
    Computer engineeringThe design and control of computing devices with the application of electrical systems.
  • Software engineering, the application of a systematic, disciplined, quantifiable approach to the development, operation and maintenance of software and the study of these approaches; that is, the application of engineering and computer science to software.
  • Hardware engineering, designing, developing and testing various computer equipment. Can range from circuit boards and microprocessors to routers.
  • Network engineering, designing, deploying and maintaining computer networks, such as corporate networks or the Internet.
    • Power engineeringThe generation, transmission and distribution of electricity and the design of devices such as transformers, switchgear, electric generators, electric motors, high-voltage engineering and power electronics.
  • Power System Planning, involves the modelling of power systems to analyse the management of current and future electricity demand
  • Power System Design, the development of a specific solution to address a power need, such as a new substation, a new power line, power system protection and so on
  • Power System Operations and Control, involves plant and system operation, where protocols for the safe and continuous operation of individual equipment, subsystems, power plants or the whole power system are developed and applied
  • Protection and Control, involves the design of power system protection, measurements, metering, telecommunications, and so on
  • High Voltage Engineering, involves the understanding of electromagnetic phenomena of large voltages and currents, as applied to the holistic power system design and its components, such as transformers, electric motors, electric generators, switchgear, to create coordination and harmony
    • Optical engineeringThe design of instruments and systems that utilize the properties of electromagnetic radiation.

    Mechanical engineering

    comprises the design and analysis of heat and mechanical power for the operation of machines and mechanical systems.
    SubdisciplineScopeMajor specialties
    Acoustical engineeringConcerns the manipulation and control of vibration, especially vibration isolation and the reduction of unwanted sounds.
    Manufacturing engineeringConcerns dealing with different manufacturing practices and the research and development of systems, processes, machines, tools and equipment.
    Optomechanical engineeringField specific to the mechanical aspects of optical systems. Includes design, packaging, mounting and alignment mechanisms specific to optical systems.
    • Fiber optics
    • Laser systems
    • Telescopes
    • Cameras
    • Optical instrumentation
    Thermal engineeringConcerns heating or cooling of processes, equipment, or enclosed environments.
  • Air conditioning
  • Refrigeration
  • Heating, ventilating
    • Sports engineeringIs a field of engineering that involves the design, development and testing of sport equipment. The equipment used by athletes has always gone through technological design and development based on current knowledge and understanding.
    Vehicle engineeringThe design, manufacture and operation of the systems and equipment that propel and control vehicles.
  • Automotive engineering, bicycles, motorcycles, automobiles, buses and trucks and new telecommunication vehicles
  • Naval architecture, marine vehicles and structures
  • Aerospace engineering, airplanes, helicopters, drones and spacecraft
  • Marine engineering, boats, ships, oil rigs and other marine vessels or structures, oceanographic engineering
    • Power plant engineeringField of engineering that designs, construct and maintains different types of power plants. Serves as the prime mover to produce electricity.
    • Geothermal power plants
    • Coal-fired power plants
    • Hydroelectric power plants
    • Diesel engine power plants
    • Tidal power plants
    • Wind turbine power plants
    • Solar power plants
    Energy engineeringEnergy efficiency, energy services, facility management, plant engineering, environmental compliance and energy production. Energy efficiency of buildings and manufacturing processes, employing advances in lighting, insulation and heating/cooling properties.

    Interdisciplinary