Civil and Environmental Engineering

With its browser-friendly layout and specialized search options, the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering's (CEE) web site is just the place for visitors to discover the many research opportunities available to current and prospective students.

Interdisciplinary research endeavors frequently move beyond group and departmental boundaries, and at this site include such diverse engineering disciplines as coastal and ocean, environmental and water resources, railway, geotechnical, structural and transportation and construction.

Beth Chajes, civil and environmental engineering, said that the CEE web site is a useful means of making high school and graduate students aware of the many specializations that exist within the department.

"We consider our primary audience to be prospective undergraduate students and, to a lesser extent, graduate students," Chajes said. "Some high school students may not be aware of the many things offered here at CEE. We want them to visit us online and see what the department is all about."?

The newest item showing up on the CEE menu, an alumni link, has been generating a lot of interest among visitors to the department's home page.

This feature incorporates a list of bulleted items, giving visitors the option of choosing a password that permits them to access their own CEE listing or search for those of friends. It is also a place for recent graduates to search for information on other alumni who may be able to furnish tips on possible career opportunities.

According to Chajes, this feature, which was added in June, has generated a lot of positive feedback, with about 100 of the department's 2,000 alumni choosing to log on to the site.

"It allows alumni to keep in touch with each other," Chajes said. "It also helps the department keep in touch with its alumni and serves as a networking system for recently graduated CEE students."

The CEE web site, which Chajes describes as a group effort–including input from faculty, staff from the admissions office and technical contributions from department staff members–took its lead from UD's home page, a site that provides convenient and up-to-date access about the campus to current and prospective students.

Joy Lynam, Management and Information Services, said that the CEE web pages are convenient to web users, especially the majority of online visitors who rely on searching and browsing to access information.

"Visitors to the site may use the search option provided on every page, including the choice of limiting their search within CEE pages," Lynam said. "The result is that people are able to quickly browse the CEE pages to locate what they need."

–Jerry Rhodes

Visit this week's site [www.ce.udel.edu].