Construction Management Undergraduate Course Descriptions

Student Learning Outcomes (SLO) designated by the American Council for Construction Education (ACCE) are measured throughout the curriculum.

Upon graduation from an accredited ACCE bachelor’s degree program, graduates shall be able to:

1. Create written communications appropriate to the construction discipline.
2. Create oral presentations appropriate to the construction discipline.
3. Create a construction project safety plan.
4. Create construction project cost estimates.
5. Create construction project schedules.
6. Analyze professional decisions based on ethical principles.
7. Analyze methods, materials, and equipment used to construct projects.
8. Apply electronic-based technology to manage the construction process.
9. Apply basic surveying techniques for construction layout and control.
10. Understand different methods of project delivery and the roles and responsibilities of all constituencies involved in the design and construction process.
11. Understand construction accounting and cost control.
12. Understand construction quality assurance and control.
13. Understand construction project control processes.
14. Understand the legal implications of contract, common, and regulatory law to manage a construction project.
15. Understand the basic principles of sustainable construction.
16. Understand the basic principles of structural behavior.
17. Understand the basic principles of HVAC, electrical, and plumbing systems.

DESCRIPTION: Introduction to the construction industry; including methods, practices, trends, careers, and constituencies involved in the design and construction process.

OBJECTIVES:

Students will

• Describe the various segments of the construction industry and the roles and responsibilities of all constituencies involved in the design and construction process.
• Describe the different methods of project delivery and project selection.
• Explain the project management functions of estimating, scheduling, quality management, and safety management.
• Describe current trends in construction technology.
• Explain concepts of sustainable construction practice. (ACCE SLO 15)

DESCRIPTION: Reading technical drawings, 2D/3D visualization, manual drafting techniques, introduction to design software applications.

OBJECTIVES:

Students will

• Demonstrate ability to visualize objects in two-dimensional as well as three-dimensional representations.
• Understand basic plan reading techniques and begin to effectively communicate by graphic means.
• Demonstrate a working knowledge of manual drawing instruments.
• Demonstrate beginning-level competence in design software (ACCE SLO 8).

DESCRIPTION: The information covered in this course will include principle materials and methods utilized in the construction of the built environment.

OBJECTIVES:

Students will

• Review and describe the history of materials.
• Identify and describe materials, methods, and systems used in design and construction.
• Identify and describe the physical properties and specifications of construction materials.
• Review and analyze common material failures.

DESCRIPTION: Introduction to the construction management major, career paths, industry sectors, campus resources, and tools for academic success. Information and skills necessary to succeed in the construction management major.

OBJECTIVES:

Students will

• Describe the construction management major and its curriculum.
• Summarize college and department-level student resources and support services.
• Utilize construction technologies and demonstrate entry-level skill in spreadsheet management.
• Identify and describe the common sectors and career opportunities of the construction industry.

DESCRIPTION: Testing of construction materials for standards and quality. Conduct material tests, document, and interpret results.

OBJECTIVES:

Students will

• Explore and describe mechanical properties, physical properties, and methods of
  processing selected materials.
• Conduct specific test standards on selected materials and interpret data. (ACCE SLO 7)
• Analyze and select appropriate material for given applications.

DESCRIPTION: Surveying fundamentals related to construction: building layout, measurement procedures, vertical controls, line and grade, surveying instrument operation.

OBJECTIVES:

Students will

• Explain the concepts of land and construction surveying as they apply to construction.
• Apply the essential elements of surveying practices, layout, and control. (ACCE SLO 9)
• Demonstrate use of various surveying instruments and equipment.

DESCRIPTION: Practice in construction document reading, interpretation, and analysis for quantity surveying and material quantity organizing using industry-recognized methods including, but not limited to, a project manual-based work breakdown structure.

OBJECTIVES:

Students will

• Demonstrate the ability to interpret construction documents for planning and management of construction processes.
• Demonstrate knowledge and comprehension of construction documents through quantity survey techniques.

DESCRIPTION: Skills and concepts related to successful internships within the construction management industry.

OBJECTIVES:

Students will

• Identify career opportunities in the construction industry.
• Demonstrate effective oral and written communication integral to the job search process.
• Apply project administration processes to perform the responsibilities of intern and entry level positions.

DESCRIPTION: Introduces the steps necessary to construct a paved roadway from conception, land acquisition, finance through paving operations, and trafficking.

OBJECTIVES:

Students will

• Understand the process for planning a new roadway pavement.
• Recognize the complexities associated with financing new roadways.
• Appreciate the interdisciplinary skills needed to construct a roadway.
• Identify the differences between un-surfaced, Portland cement concrete
  and asphalt concrete roadways.
• Understand the processes needed to maintain a paved roadway.

DESCRIPTION: Construction safety management, accident prevention, and hazard control. Federal, state, and local regulation compliance.

OBJECTIVES:

Students will

• Recognize and interpret Occupation Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) standards.
• Identify and document safety hazards and unsafe work practices.
• Apply Occupation Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) standards to job-specific Activity Hazard Analyses (AHA).
• Perform Job Hazard Analysis (JHA) to create a construction project-specific safety plan. (ACCE SLO 3)

DESCRIPTION: Shaping, cutting, and joining of structural and nonstructural metal. Emphasis on job site safety, economics, and efficiency.

OBJECTIVES: Upon completion of this course the student will have the knowledge and understand the theory and applications of the following construction processes.

Students will

• Interpret architectural structural drawings and shop drawings used for structural steel fabrication.
• Quantify and estimate all direct and indirect costs associated with fabrication of a steel structure.
• Demonstrate a level of proficiency in joining metals with the following processes:  Oxyacetylene, Shielded Metal Arc Welding, Gas Metal Arc Welding, and Tungsten Inert Gas welding.
• Design and construct a fabricated metal project.

DESCRIPTION: Applications of materials and methods in construction; administrative and organizational planning for construction field practice.

OBJECTIVES:

Students will

• Understand and analyze construction sequences.
• Apply surveying techniques to construction project layout and control.
• Apply knowledge of plan reading concepts to construct details from a plan set.
• Understand and analyze means and methods for construction.
• Recognize and describe permitting and inspection processes.
• Interpret and analyze models, drawings, and blueprints to visualize construction components and elements.

DESCRIPTION: Behavior of structural components and systems, overview of structural engineering analysis, and the design process for construction.

OBJECTIVES:

Students will

• Demonstrate knowledge of the structural behavior of components and systems. (ACCE SLO 16)
• Calculate forces and stresses in structural components and systems. (ACCE SLO 16)
• Design structural steel beams, columns, and connections. (ACCE SLO 16)

DESCRIPTION: Electrical terminology, theory, components, systems, and applications within the construction industry.

OBJECTIVES:

Students will

• Recognize and apply terminology, theory, and components of electrical systems in commercial and residential buildings and construction applications. (ACCE SLO 17)
• Perform plan reading and quantity survey of electrical systems for commercial and residential construction.
• Create an electrical estimate for a construction project.

DESCRIPTION: Industry-recognized methods for work item analysis, quantity surveying, resource estimating, and bid development using a work breakdown structure.

OBJECTIVES:

Students will

• Describe various estimate types and demonstrate the ability to apply estimating concepts to construction projects.
• Quantify, document, price, and adjust pricing for construction components using manual techniques.
• Implement technology to quantify, document, price, and calculate the cost of construction components.
• Create cost estimates for construction assemblies and projects using a work breakdown structure. (ACCE SLO 4)
• Explain the integration of construction estimating within planning, organizing, directing, and controlling of construction projects.

DESCRIPTION: Equipment and methods used in heavy-highway, heavy-civil, and utility construction. Equipment and crew productivity. Equipment ownership and operating costs. Estimating, planning, and directing heavy construction operations.

OBJECTIVES:

Students will

• Recognize the processes involved in roadway paving including materials and manufacturing operations.
• Recognize the interrelated components of infrastructure and site construction.
• Recognize and evaluate heavy equipment capabilities and productivity for overall cost and time estimates.
• Analyze the various aspects of earth-moving operations, including soil type, volume quantification, and haul distances.
• Evaluate construction equipment ownership and operating costs and their relationship to the time value of money.
• Explain safety measures related to construction equipment utilization and operations.

DESCRIPTION: Construction contracts and clauses, stakeholder responsibilities, disputes, resolution methods, and risk. Utilization of construction administration documents, systems, and procedures to meet project requirements.

OBJECTIVES:

Students will

• Differentiate between construction project delivery systems, procurement methods, and contracting formats.
• Analyze the risks in construction projects.
• Analyze project issues and generate appropriate documentation required for construction project administration.
• Interpret construction contracts to determine roles and responsibilities of parties and recognize the contract law and regulatory environment for construction. (ACCE SLO 10 and ACCE SLO 14)
• Apply procedures to minimize project related conflicts and disputes; evaluate and select an appropriate alternative dispute resolution procedure.
• Utilize computer applications for effective and efficient contract and project administration.
• Recognize the importance of business ethics in the construction industry and utilize various codes of ethics to resolve ethical dilemmas. (ACCE SLO 6)

DESCRIPTION: Constituents of asphalt pavements; manufacture of asphalt cement, emulsions, and cutbacks; material properties and behavior.

OBJECTIVES:

Students will

• Relate the complex processes involved in the manufacture of asphalt binders used for paving construction.
• Optimize performance of asphalt paving mixtures.
• Optimize economy of asphalt paving mixtures.
• Analyze the construction processes for asphalt pavements.
• Analyze the maintenance processes for asphalt pavements.
• Describe the failure mechanisms of asphalt pavements.

DESCRIPTION: Heating, ventilation, air conditioning, plumbing, and fire suppression in the built environment.

OBJECTIVES:

Students will

• Identify and recognize terminology, theory, and components of plumbing, heating, ventilation, air conditioning, and fire protection systems. (ACCE SLO 17)
• Interpret mechanical and plumbing information from construction drawings and specifications.
• Apply project document reading skills to perform quantity take-off of mechanical and plumbing systems.
• Summarize quality control requirements for mechanical and/or plumbing systems.

DESCRIPTION: Concrete material properties and behavior, analysis of concrete mixtures, advanced concrete applications for construction, forensic analysis of concrete reports, concrete construction quality assurance and quality control.

OBJECTIVES:

Students will

• Perform concrete tests and analyze the results for each component of concrete mixtures.
• Interpret field inspection reports and analyze concrete placement and protection strategies.
• Compute the proportion of concrete mixture components based on current standards and project requirements.
• Apply concrete inspection reports and test results to construction project decision making.
• Apply concrete test results to construction quality assurance and quality control processes.

DESCRIPTION: Review and analysis of shop drawings and details for structural systems. Overview of cast-in-place and prestressed concrete systems. Design of structural wood systems, connections, and formwork for cast-in-place concrete.

OBJECTIVES:

Students will

• Demonstrate knowledge of shop drawings and details for structural components and systems.
• Demonstrate knowledge of the behavior of reinforced and prestressed concrete.
• Design structural wood components and connections.
• Design wood formwork for cast-in-place concrete.

DESCRIPTION: Strategies and techniques for efficient project control, scheduling of project activities, and projects with an emphasis on Critical Path Method.

OBJECTIVES:

Students will

• Generate project activities based on the work breakdown structure. (ACCE SLO 5)
• Generate a project network with precedence relationships. (ACCE SLO 5)
• Determine schedule parameters based on Critical Path Methodology (CPM). (ACCE SLO 5)
• Assess and critique project schedule constraints. (ACCE SLO 5)
• Evaluate the impact of production deviations and delays on the project schedule.
• Assess the benefits and limitations of existing scheduling methodologies and software.
• Analyze and communicate the effect of schedule changes on original project plan and goals.

DESCRIPTION: Financial statements, financial ratios, time value of money, cash flow analysis, construction financing, and financial reporting.

OBJECTIVES:

Students will

• Recognize and apply the content and uses of financial statements within the construction industry. (ACCE SLO 11)
• Analyze a construction company’s financial data to assess its financial status. (ACCE SLO 11)
• Apply the time value of money principles to the evaluation of capital investments.
• Forecast the cash flow and cost controls at the project level. (ACCE SLO 11, ACCE SLO 13)
• Differentiate accounting and revenue recognition methods for applicable organizational structures of construction firms.
• Recognize the financing options available to construction companies.

DESCRIPTION: Leading projects and people in a construction business and application of skills in a construction-based community service learning project.

OBJECTIVES:

Students will

• Develop a leadership style, principles, and habits which will be used during their lifelong careers.
• Identify responsibilities and tasks that a project team will encounter and are necessary to lead volunteer-based projects.
• Evaluate volunteer project issues and generate appropriate documentation required for construction project administration.
• Apply administrative procedures to minimize project-related conflicts and communication issues.
• Apply contract administration and project administration techniques throughout the life cycle of a volunteer construction project.

DESCRIPTION: Professional practice using an understanding of the contractual and working relationships among all participants in the design/construction process.

OBJECTIVES:

Students will

• Apply the roles and responsibilities of a professional constructor.
• Collaborate in a construction team environment.
• Evaluate project issues and generate appropriate documentation required for construction project administration. (ACCE SLO 2)
• Apply appropriate construction management and contractual documents.
• Analyze the legal relationships and apply methods of communication among the responsible parties in a construction project. (ACCE SLO 2)
• Examine and assess dispute resolution methods.
• Create and deliver a presentation as part of a multidisciplinary construction team.

DESCRIPTION: Analysis of the physical characteristics and properties of soil for construction project decision making. Interpretation of soils reports, conducting of testing procedures, and evaluation of soils for use as a construction material. Assessment of the impact of soil characteristics on construction activities and project risk.

OBJECTIVES:

Students will

• Analyze the physical characteristics and properties of soil. (ACCE SLO 1)
• Classify soil types and analyze soil behavior for use as a construction material.
• Compute analysis for soils and recognize how soil properties relate to construction projects. (ACCE SLO 12)
• Interpret and use the information presented in a soils report for construction project decision making and risk management.
• Practice construction industry quality assurance tests and evaluate soil samples based on control standards.

DESCRIPTION: Fundamental principles of mechanical systems. Presentation and practice of management principles relevant to mechanical projects.

OBJECTIVES:

Students will

• Identify the specific needs of specialty contractors in order to avoid common pitfalls within the project management phases.
• Avoid unnecessary cost expenses due to scheduling conflicts.
• Streamline the process of coordinating all stakeholders, material, and time-essential tasks within the overall scope of the project.

DESCRIPTION: Major components of sustainable design/construction: energy, healthy buildings, cultural, natural resources, use, other environment/economic issues.

OBJECTIVES: 

Students will

• Examine the breadth of sustainable design and construction as the field evolves.
• Recognize the scope and complexity of sustainable principles (systems thinking, life-cycle assessment, waste = food, etc.) as applied in professional practice.
• Demonstrate the use of sustainable principles and practices in:
  • Land-use planning, site, and landscape development
  • Building design and construction
  • Healthy building systems
• Explain the decision-making processes when incorporating sustainable principles.
• Explore real-world sustainable practice through project examples and professional guest speakers.
• Identify current sustainable technologies, highlighting the challenges and opportunities of emerging practices.
• Practice the collaboration skills that are essential to sustainable design and construction projects.

DESCRIPTION: Aging-in-place and green building aspects of the residential construction market.

OBJECTIVES:

Students will

• Assess a project from a whole house approach and design solutions for their client based on national green building standards.
• Evaluate the rapidly expanding aging-in-place market segment and appraise the special needs of this population.
• Incorporate health care professionals in the decision-making process for aging-in-place projects.
• Propose appropriate contractual requirements for both green building and aging-in-place projects.
• Assess project-specific needs

DESCRIPTION: Emerging technologies in construction management practice. Applications of current and cutting-edge software, hardware, processes, tools, and equipment in the industry.

OBJECTIVES:

Students will:

• Describe emerging construction technologies.
• Evaluate new technologies and explain their application to construction management practice.
• Apply technologies to complete construction management tasks and present best practices and/or lessons learned.

DESCRIPTION: Issues and trends impacting construction project management and field operations. The impact of current trends on project management practice, risk mitigation, and project controls.

OBJECTIVES:

Students will

• Describe current issues and trends impacting the construction industry.
• Explain the impact of current issues and trends on various construction project stakeholders.
• Explain the impact of current issues and trends on construction management practice.

DESCRIPTION: Applications of project management practice for heavy civil construction projects. Exploration of heavy civil construction project management principles and concepts through industry-specific case studies, processes, and tutorials.

OBJECTIVES:

Students will

• Explain project management principles in heavy civil construction.
• Apply construction project management practices to heavy civil construction project examples.
• Explain the impact of heavy civil construction industry lessons learned and best practices on project outcomes.

DESCRIPTION: Applications of project management practice for commercial construction projects. Exploration of commercial construction project management principles and concepts through industry-specific case studies, processes, and tutorials.

OBJECTIVES:

Students will

• Explain project management principles in commercial construction.
• Apply construction project management practices to commercial construction project examples.
• Explain the impact of commercial construction industry lessons learned and best practices on project outcomes.

DESCRIPTION: Applications of project management practice for residential construction projects. Exploration of residential construction project management principles and concepts through industry-specific case studies, processes, and tutorials.

OBJECTIVES:

Students will

• Explain project management principles in residential construction.
• Apply construction project management practices to residential construction project examples.
• Explain the impact of residential construction industry lessons learned and best practices on project outcomes.

DESCRIPTION: Research, discuss, and present current issues and trends in the construction industry related to business, management, engineering, and technology.

OBJECTIVES:

Students will

• Recognize the components of a thesis/professional paper and the process of writing a thesis/professional paper.
• Develop research questions relevant to areas of interest.
• Perform thorough literature reviews focused on current issues and trends in construction using published books, journals, and electronic media.

DESCRIPTION: Models and methods of disciplined inquiry used in diverse application-based organizations. Preparation to use disciplined inquiry methods to solve applied problems in construction management or related fields. Topics include problem/topic selection, writing research questions and objectives, literature reviews, selection of research methods, data collection and analysis, and conclusions and implications.

OBJECTIVES:

Students will

• Develop research topics and research questions meaningful to themselves and to society.
• Design appropriate inquiry methods to solve contextual problems.
• Critically analyze selected pieces of applied research.
• Formulate research interests and begin to develop a basic research proposal.
• Develop and support research questions, goals, and objectives.
• Critique, compare, and synthesize foundational knowledge to facilitate the completion of an individual research study.
• Select research designs tailored to their specific research needs.
• Prepare written and oral approaches to communicating their research.

DESCRIPTION: Advanced project procurement procedures with a focus on early design phase planning applications and preconstruction management techniques.

OBJECTIVES:

Students will

• Summarize the advanced preconstruction processes and interpret project stakeholder interests.
• Identify advanced preconstruction practices and the integration of techniques to assess and mitigate risk.
• Evaluate the project procurement and preconstruction process using appropriate software applications.
• Analyze and develop advanced project procurement and bidding strategies.
• Analyze and assess construction project feasibility using advanced techniques, such as: life-cycle cost assessment, cost benefit analysis, resource loaded schedules, probabilistic estimation and scheduling, and similar advanced tools.

DESCRIPTION: Advanced topics related to post-award construction management issues with a focus on multiple project controls and project risk management.

OBJECTIVES:

Students will

• Explain the terminology used in advanced construction project management.
• Describe the advanced organizational steps required in setting-up construction projects.
• Recommend the tools and techniques used for planning the execution of construction projects.
• Compare and contrast the advanced tools and techniques used for construction project controls.
• Discuss the features of newer techniques in construction project management.
• Evaluate the construction project management process using appropriate software applications.
• Apply risk management techniques for proper construction project management.
• Create written and oral reports to analyze the current status and possible performance improvements of a particular construction project.

DESCRIPTION: Issues and state-of-the-art resources needed to construct, remodel/retrofit, operate, and maintain the built environment (buildings and infrastructure). Specifically, resources will include major materials, components, and technologies, as well as energy and water resources that are needed in the different life-cycle phases of the building or infrastructure project.

OBJECTIVES:

Students will

• Explain sustainable resources (materials, components, and technologies) and strategies used during building design, construction, operation and maintenance, remodeling/retrofitting, and deconstruction phases and develop a working vision of how sustainable resources and strategies can be applied to various building types across a variety of climates to address stakeholder needs.
• Formulate sustainable building strategies, practices, and resources surrounding:
  • Design alternatives and analysis
  • Healthy building materials, systems, and technologies
  • Construction and finish material technologies
• Categorize various infrastructure systems and explain how they relate to sustainability in terms of their relative performance according to criteria such as first- and life cycle cost, constructability, maintainability, Life Cycle Assessment (LCA), among others.
• Analyze sustainable strategies and technologies in group and team settings and teach peers sustainable best practices as emerging or proven technologies.
• Recommend characteristics for building or infrastructure systems to meet specific contextual requirements, and support those recommendations with convincing evidence and well-organized analysis considering the three concepts of sustainability (environmental, economic, and social). Deliver the recommendations and analysis in a professional fashion.

DESCRIPTION: Existing and emerging tools for productivity enhancement in project and production environment.

OBJECTIVES:

Students will

DESCRIPTION: Common points of dispute; methods of avoiding disputes among owner, architect, engineer, and contractor.

OBJECTIVES:

Students will

DESCRIPTION: Senior executives from the Construction Industry Institute (CII) present best practices developed by CII over the last 25 years.

OBJECTIVES:

Students will

• Perform thorough literature reviews focused on current issues and trends in construction management using published books, journals, and electronic media.
• Assess the quality of the literature reviewed.
• Synthesize, compare, and contrast the literature into coherent written and oral presentations about issues and trends in construction management.
• Identify and evaluate issues and trends that will challenge and/or create opportunities for the construction industry.
• Discover and/or explore personal areas of interest for further research.

DESCRIPTION: Role government plays in the design and construction of the built environment.

OBJECTIVES:

Students will

• Understand the function and role of local, state, and national government in the US federal system.
• Become familiar with specific policy mechanisms.
• Become aware of specific policy trends and controversies.
• Understand the role of extra-regulatory policy mechanisms, including financial incentives and disincentives.
• Understand how to research laws, regulations, and other regulatory requirements as appropriate in industry.

DESCRIPTION: Planning, organizing, and managing large educational and/or commercial facilities.

OBJECTIVES:

Students will

• Be exposed to the components of a facility management system such as: space and equipment planning, life safety and security management, and building systems planning and management.
• Understand the major components required to develop a facility management plan.
• Be required to work on a project team to develop a comprehensive facility plan. The project will include space utilization plans, building layout, equipment and furniture plans, and building systems and materials schematics.
• Develop an understanding of the tools and techniques of planning and managing facilities, including working knowledge of a facilities management software program.