Over the last several days we have reviewed the best environmental engineering programs in U.S. universities at both the graduate and the undergraduate level by going inside the U.S. News and World Report best college picks and looking at the actual university websites. (See the reports on our site, EnvironmentalJobCenter.com.)

There are a number of general observations that we did not cover at the time, but would like to address now. Quite simply, there is no one specific best fit for environmental engineering among the sub-specialties of a university because environmental engineering relates to all of the applied sciences as well as the life sciences. We anticipate that as environmental engineering grows in popularity—and the evidence is strong that this will be one of the fastest growing technical degree programs available at most universities in the U.S. and Canada over the next 20 or 30 years—environmental engineering will find its own place as a separate, multi-disciplinary program at most large universities.

The most common alliance today in the largest and most renown programs is still between environmental and civil engineering, but we see a trend away from that combination in many universities to more multi-disciplinary departments with strong connections to the biological sciences through water conservation and hydrology programs, and alliances with entrepreneurial business centers that are looking to train tomorrow’s inventors and engineering innovators. It is small business that has kick-started the economy out of the last several recessions, and the Obama Administration is banking on renewable energy innovators and hybrid and electric vehicle designers to help do the same with this recession.

There is still a strong connection between civil environmental engineering because the built structures that civil engineers design produce a larger percentage of carbon emissions than other areas and energy reduction starts with the design and construction of the world’s roadways, bridges and buildings. Civil engineers are often the ones in charge of city, county and state public works departments and university facilities departments; their influence plays a huge role in the carbon emission standards set by policy and law.

In some environmental engineering programs electrical engineering is seen as one of the multidisciplinary links, particularly in programs that are strong in solar and other energy-related programs. Schools that emphasize invention and new technology design sometimes allign environmental and mechanical engineering, particularly in programs that are supportive of the automotive industry and renewable energy fields.

In universities where the emphasis is on the life sciences then a combined degree in environmental science and engineering is often offered. This may encompass water technologies, including hydrology, or may emphasize ecology, renewable energy resources, weather and the environment and the applied engineering technology that generates and harnesses these resources.

In every case, no matter how the top university engineering programs choose to organize their environmental engineering programs, there is recognition that the field requires extensive lab and field work in the life sciences and chemistry, as well as applied training in several fields of engineering. The particular combination of multidisciplinary fields will depend on the type of environmental work that is emphasized at the university and the needs of the student. The mix, and the choice of schools, may be different for someone wishing to go into hydrology to work after university in drinking and waste water management, than for someone who wants to build new lithium ion battery technologies for the auto industry.

As the demand for environmental engineering as a discipline grows, more separate degree programs will be offered in this highly multi-disciplinary and varied specialty field.