Much of the undergraduate coursework required to obtain a degree in structural engineering centers around a civil engineering or mechanical engineering core curriculum. This would typically entail training through advanced mathematics including differential and integral calculus, numerical methods, vector and spatial analysis, and solving system equations of arrays and tensors. The importance of this training stems from the required understanding of how stresses and strains are distributed in non-trivial structural geometries, which can require analysis of simultaneous systems of modeling equations. Study of material properties would also be typical including stress and strain analysis, strength, elasticity and viscosity, ductility, brittle and plastic behaviors, crack propagation, fatigue, and other modes of material failures. Coursework in technical report writing and data interpretation is also beneficial, as even the best analysis becomes meaningless if the work cannot be communicated effectively. Laboratory materials testing, fluid and solid mechanics, physics, thermodynamics, statics, and dynamics would round out a typical structural engineering curriculum for most undergraduate engineering programs.
Some institutions offer specific undergraduate degrees in structural engineering. These programs generally will have greater emphasis on structural design and load response, numerical simulation, and advanced laboratory testing and design of structural systems. Construction engineering management, sustainable design techniques, and environmental design awareness may also apply toward these degrees.
