Regional competition winners advance to compete in the ASCE Civil Engineering Student Championships in June at University of Wisconsin-Platteville

Reston, Va. — The American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) 2023 Mid-Pacific Student Symposium was hosted by California State University, Chico, April 20–22, 2023 in Chico, CA. At the event, over 500 civil engineering students from 10 universities in California and China put their academic and project management knowledge to the test, participating in annual Society-wide competitions including the ASCE Concrete Canoe, and the AISC (American Institute of Steel Construction)/ASCE Student Steel Bridge Competition. The University of California, Berkeley team won the Concrete Canoe competition, ASCE’s flagship student event, where students compete to construct a canoe made entirely out of concrete that is capable of floating and racing.

University of California, Berkeley also won the AISC/ASCE Steel Bridge Competition, which requires students to develop a concept for a scale-model steel bridge spanning 20 feet and carrying at least 2,500 pounds.

The University of California, Berkeley has qualified to compete at the Society-wide finals as part of the ASCE Civil Engineering Student Championships June 10–12 at University of Wisconsin-Platteville in Platteville, WI.

"The Mid-Pacific ASCE Student Symposia competitions have produced exceptional winners, and we are proud of their achievements," said Maria Lehman, P.E., President of ASCE. "As they prepare to enter the workforce, their skills in teamwork and critical thinking will be valuable assets. We wish them the best of luck in the Society-wide competitions in June."

The first ASCE Concrete Canoe Competition was held in 1988, but the history of Concrete Canoe goes back to the 1960s, when a small number of ASCE Student Chapters began holding intramural concrete canoe races. The competition requires students to construct a seaworthy canoe made entirely of concrete. The competition challenges civil engineering students to apply the engineering principles learned in the classroom to a real-world task, while utilizing project management and team building skills. The Concrete Canoe program consists of both athletic and academic events, designed to test the knowledge, creativity and stamina of each team. The competition evaluates teams on design and construction, a technical proposal, an enhanced focus area, a formal business presentation, and five different races—men’s and women’s slalom races, men’s and women’s sprint races, and a co-ed sprint race.

The ASCE Civil Engineering Student Championships is organized by ASCE and hosted annually by a university student chapter, thanks in part to funds provided by the ASCE Foundation.

The following schools were represented at the ASCE Mid-Pacific Student Symposium:

  • Cal Poly Humboldt
  • California State University – Chico
  • California State University – Fresno
  • California State University – Sacramento
  • Southwest Jiaotong University (China)
  • Tongji University (China)
  • University of California – Berkeley
  • University of California – Davis
  • University of the Pacific
  • Zhejiang University

About the American Society of Civil Engineers

Founded in 1852, the American Society of Civil Engineers represents more than 150,000 civil engineers worldwide and is America's oldest national engineering society. ASCE works to raise awareness of the need to maintain and modernize the nation's infrastructure using sustainable and resilient practices, advocates for increasing and optimizing investment in infrastructure, and improve engineering knowledge and competency. For more information, visit www.asce.org or www.infrastructurereportcard.org and follow us on Twitter, @ASCETweets and @ASCEGovRel.