Nick Mackechnie Something big is headed for the California coast.
The 2025 ASCE Civil Engineering Student Championships comes to the California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo, June 27-29.
“I just wanted to do something big,” said Nick Mackechnie, S.M.ASCE, a graduating senior at Cal Poly SLO and the host committee chair.
How about three Society-wide competitions, plus a first-of-its-kind showcase competition, civil engineering students heading to the Big Sur from all over the world, and about 500 total guests on campus for the championship weekend? Does that count as big?
“The opportunity to bring everyone onto our campus was really unique,” Mackechnie said, who started planning the event two years ago with his committee of 14 Cal Poly SLO students.
“This is kind of a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. We want to seize the moment. This is the biggest event our civil and environmental engineering department has ever put on, so it’s really a chance to be a part of something bigger than ourselves.”
The ASCE Civil Engineering Student Championships features finals of the ASCE Concrete Canoe Competition, the Utility Engineering and Surveying Institute Surveying Competition, and Sustainable Solutions Competition. Student teams earned their bids to the championships with strong performances during the ASCE student symposia this past spring.
This year’s ASCE Student Championships also include the Timber-Strong Design Build showcase, in partnership with the American Wood Council, APA-Engineered Wood Association, and Simpson Strong-Tie. The showcase will gather seven student teams, but it’s more of an exhibition than a true competition – no judges or scoring rubric.
It’s a particular point of pride for Mackechnie, who served last year as the Cal Poly SLO timber-strong design build team captain. Mackechnie also said student teams can expect plenty of opportunities to mesh with students from other schools and competitions. In other words, a big weekend full of nice weather, fun, and bright, young, up-and-coming civil engineering minds.
“That’s the big thing we wanted to drive as much as possible: connection,” Mackechnie said. “We’ve got a lot of fun and unique – well, I don’t want to spoil any surprises [laughs], but we’ve got a lot of things planned. We've been working really hard to make sure that everyone coming in will be able to connect with the other students and have a great time.”
Here are this year’s qualifying teams for each competition:
Concrete Canoe Competition
Brigham Young University
California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo
Colorado School of Mines
Kansas State University
Lipscomb University
Louisiana Tech University
Michigan Technological University
Rochester Institute of Technology
Rowan University
Texas A&M University
Tongji University
Université Laval
University of California, Berkeley
University of Florida
University of North Carolina at Charlotte
University of Washington
University of Wisconsin, Madison
Virginia Tech
Western Kentucky University
Sustainable Solutions Competition
Auburn University
Boise State University
California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo
Chongqing University
Colorado School of Mines
George Mason University
Georgia Institute of Technology
Montana State University
Mukesh Patel School of Technology Management & Engineering
North Carolina State University
Northeastern University
Swarthmore College
Syracuse University
University of California, Berkeley
ASCE Notre Dame
University of Louisville
University of Missouri-Columbia
University of Texas at Austin
University of Wisconsin, Madison
Vanderbilt University
Virginia Tech
Youngstown State University
Zhejiang University
ASCE UESI Surveying Competition
Angelo State University
Brigham Young University
California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo
California State Polytechnic University, Pomona
Christian Brothers University
Clemson University
Colorado School of Mines
Florida Institute of Technology
Oregon State University
Pennsylvania State University
Purdue University Northwest
Saintgits College of Engineering
Southern Illinois University Carbondale
Stony Brook University
University of Alabama in Huntsville
University of Illinois at Chicago
University of Toledo
Virginia Tech
Western New England University
Timber-Strong Showcase
Boise State University
California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo
Clemson University
Colorado School of Mines
Michigan Technological University
Purdue University West Lafayette
University of Texas at Arlington
Learn more about the 2025 ASCE Civil Engineering Student Championships.
Nick Mackechnie
