An Internet Guide for Environmental System Engineer Undergraduates

Jill Morris

Contents
Preface.................................................................................................................................................. 3 Research .............................................................................................................................................. 5 Catalog of U.S. Government Publications .............................................................................. 6 The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) ........................... 7 Statistical Abstract of the United States ................................................................................ 8 E-Resources from Penn State Library: Pollution Abstracts ............................................ 9 American Society of Civil Engineering: Online Journal Data Base............................. 10 Career Guide ................................................................................................................................... 11 Yales List of Environmental Job Sites ................................................................................. 12 Penn State E-Career .................................................................................................................. 13 Penn State Nittany Lion Career Network ........................................................................... 14

Preface

Whats in the Guide (contents/scope) This guide is to be used for research in the field of Environmental System Engineering (ENVSE) and career guides for getting into ENVSE. Throughout this guide you will find different websites containing valuable journals and governmental publications useful in for any undergraduate in ENVSE. In addition, I have included websites that have helped me find internships, co-ops, and full-time jobs. Who the Guide is for (audience/purpose) This guide is for any undergraduate Environmental Systems engineering looking for background material for their class work, research, and pathways into their career. Each website, database or governmental publication mentioned in the following pages have been used at one point in my own research or class work. In addition, I have added a few links on helpful career advise and job sites that I have used in the past. What the Guide assumes users know It is assumed that everyone using this guide has a background in environmental engineering and knows about pollution control. In multiple abstracts, there are references to documents used daily in environmental engineering. It is helpful to understand what these links pertain to and how they fit into the overall environmental engineering picture. In addition, there is a guide to the environmental engineering career field. In this guide, it is assumed that the reader has no prior knowledge of the career field. Many of the links are directed towards undergrads that have no knowledge of what industry they want to pursue. In addition, the career websites offer help to anyone in ENVSE. It does not matter what career path they are going into, all the websites will be helpful. How the Guide is organized for use The first section of the guide holds all the information on scholarly journals, governmental publications and other important resources that are useful for research and useful tools for class projects and homework. The final section is devoted to the different career pathways and websites that can help you for each career pathway. On each abstract page, you can find the homepage address, reasons to use the website, a description, and helpful hints. Tips for using the Guide

Each abstract contains an associated link to an important page that is useful for any environmental systems engineer. I highly recommend using these links and saving them in your favorites. 3

Skip to the back section if you only want career advice. Read the reasons to use this site before using the website.

Research

Catalog of U.S. Government Publications

Homepage: http://catalog.gpo.gov/F?RN=231569122 Direct Link to: AP-42 Emission Factors http://catalog.gpo.gov/F/2PL4R8LCEA5YEMBUTYP2A5G19PI8J6KX44EQDC5VD4QNQ L7RDF-08282?func=full-set-set&set_number=208980&set_entry=000003&format=999 Reasons to use database: Links to many different governmental publications regarding the environmental industry. Important regulations are posted through governmental publications. Easy to use and search. Description: This database contains different publications from the government. Form regulations, journals, and scholarly papers. There are even options for a more specific search within the database. This an important catalog when researching any topic. Once you select a document you would like to read, the catalog brings you to a page with a direct link and more information on the publication. Basically giving you an overall summary of the publication. With searching Emission Factors, you can find the AP-42 Emission Factors document here and even more important environmental publications. The AP-42 publication is important when calculating the emissions produced by any industrial practice. Through the AP-42, you can distinguish the type of industry or pollutant from either a combustion source or mining source in the table of contents. Once you reach the appropriate chapter, the AP-42 lists all the factors for the different pollutant in that particular industry. Tips for Database: Be specific in your keyword search. Narrow down your topic with a background research first. Look for key words in the search result section.

The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)

Homepage: http://www.cdc.gov/niosh/ Direct Link to: Pocket Guide of Chemical Hazards http://www.cdc.gov/niosh/npg/npgsyn-a.html Reasons to use database: Contains MSDS sheets for every Chemical Hazard. Contains information on chemical, physical, and biological hazards. Needed for any pollution or safety class. Description: The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health contains important information on health and safety standards. From the homepage you can find workplace hazards and exposures. There are many different quick links and safety prevention topics all important for health and safety classes. The website is organized by an A-Z index link, however there is a search bar. You can find information on earthquakes to hearing aids. With regards to environmental engineering, this website contains vital information on chemical, physical, and biological hazards. Most importantly, NIOSH contains MSDS sheets for calculating the maximum exposure level of any chemical hazard in the Pocket Guide of Chemical Hazards. Tips: The main homepage is very busy with a lot of different links and subtopics. Spend time to get to know all that there is to get from NIOSH. Use the keyword search bar or the A-Z index.

Statistical Abstract of the United States

Homepage: http://www.census.gov/compendia/statab/ Reasons to use database: Complete volume of statistical information. Contains publications from 1878 on social, economic and political publications. Can get excel or PDF files of the census information. Description: This database contains a plethora of statistical information regarding any subject. From the homepage you can easily search the database with a search bar on the top right. Or, you can select your subject from the table to search in. There is a large section named Geography & Environment: Water, Water Use and Quality that could help with water usage data from households to wastewater treatment plants. It can even give information on the drainage areas of different rivers and river basins. This is extremely useful in calculating water budgets, drainage basins, or water usage per capita. For class work, you would be given this data. But for research, you would need to find the data on your own. This site has a lot of records and data that could be useful for that research. Tips: Know what you want to specifically search before entering the site. Take your time to go through all the different categories. Use the excel files if you want to run calculations or sort thorough the data.

E-Resources from Penn State Library: Pollution Abstracts

Homepage: http://search.proquest.com/pollution?accountid=13158 Link to other E-resources: http://www.libraries.psu.edu/psul/researchguides.html Reasons to use database: Articles based on different pollutants Can search easily by pollutant to get articles. Other subjects include compliance, government policies, and scientific research. Free for all Penn State Students. Description: In this database, you can access all articles ranging from different types of pollution, to waste management and environmental action. These are imperative articles for any research paper. With the database you can perform a basic search or a more advanced search more a more specific subject. For example, if you searched Cadmium, you can find a wide range of papers focused on cadmium pollution, remediation of cadmium and case studies. This database is free through your Penn State Library. Tips: Try the basic search first, and then once you find a more specific topic use the advanced search. Do not use unless you know a specific topic.

American Society of Civil Engineering: Online Journal Data Base

Homepage: http://ascelibrary.org/ Reasons to use database: Over 690,000 papers and journals online. Includes design standards for pipeline, pavements, and more. Journals article subjects range from infrastructure to water resources. Description: Through the American Society of Civil Engineering (ASCE), you can access scholarly journals, E-Books, standards and proceedings. This database is not just for Civil Engineering, they also contain articles relating to the field of water resource, waste water treatment, and environmental engineering. This source can give you a wide range of articles. However, the best for the Environmental Systems Engineering field is the Standards section. In this section you can find design standards for pipelines, pavements, environmental engineering, and disasters. No other database has as many standards available to the public. Tips: Have a specific subject in mind you want to research. There is no easy search bar, so you want to know what section you would like to brose before entering the website.

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Career Guide

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Yales List of Environmental Job Sites

Homepage: https://environment.yale.edu/careers/resources/jobs-sites/ Reasons to use database: Gives websites for different companies in the environmental field depending on what field you are looking for. Divided different companies into industry, consulting, or non-governmental organization. Description: This is a very useful website when trying to determine what companies look for environmental engineers. It contains a list of companies along with their websites that are in the field of Environmental Engineering. The companies are divided under different sections based on whom the company hires or the type of company. You can find forestry jobs, consulting firms, and non-governmental companies all in different sections. This site is good if you are not sure of how to begin your job search or what companies hire environmental engineering students. There is even a list of all the national career search databases available like Career Builder or Monster. You can put your resume up on these databases and search for any job. Overall, this is a very basic site that will point you to the firms and jobs in any environmental field. Once you get to a companys website, you can easily upload your resume there or research more about the company. Tips: Use only for basic research If you know what type of company you are looking for, consulting or NGO, go directly to that section.

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Penn State E-Career

Homepage: https://eng-psu-csm.symplicity.com/students/ Reasons to use database: Open position job searches Can easily apply and request interviews Can easily search by major Description: This is a very useful site to search specifically for Environmental Engineering positions. You can narrow down the search by position type (full-time or internship), location (US or International), and by major. In addition, you can upload your cover letter, transcript, and resume online and submit it to any company. A lot of engineering companies submit their position openings to E-Career. This site is where you will see the openings first. Once you search by your major, position type, and location, you can pick on a position that interest you. You will then be brought to a page that will tell you more about the job and requirements the company is looking for. If you are interested in applying to the company, you will see a Apply button located to the right on the webpage. Once you click apply, you can choose which resume to submit and then you are done. Make sure you have multiple resumes for different types of positions. You can easily tailor your objective statement to fit the requirements of the job. Also, do not hesitate to apply, even if you do not meet all the requirements. It is important to get your resume out and looked at. Tips: If there are not many openings for Environmental System Engineering, switch your major to Environmental Engineering. Many companies do not understand, they are the same major. Go back to the site once a month for new openings Keep your resume up to date on the website.

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Penn State Nittany Lion Career Network

Homepage: http://studentaffairs.psu.edu/career/students/NLCN.shtml Reasons to use database: More expansive list of positions compared to E-Career Can search by major or career field (consulting or industry) Use for full-time only Description: This is a more expansive list of open positions than E-Career. You can easily see any company looking for a new hire here. You can upload your resume, cover letter, and transcripts easily like E-Career. In addition, this website helps you schedule and request interviews with any company with open positions. This site, however, costs $15 if you get an interview through the website. However, with the amount of positions and openings that are available to you, the price is worth it. Tips: Be careful how you search, you may want to try different phrasings and searches to find all positions. Check back to this website monthly to see new available positions.

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