OPT Civil Designer Jobs
Civil Designer jobs are a strong fit for F-1 OPT students with degrees in civil engineering, environmental engineering, or a related field. Most roles qualify as STEM OPT, giving you up to 36 months of work authorization. Employers in infrastructure, transportation, and land development regularly hire OPT candidates with CAD and design software proficiency.
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Get Access To All JobsINTRODUCTION
We are designing the grid of the future! The Civil / Structural Designer is responsible for developing detailed civil and structural drawings for substations, transmission lines, BESS facilities, and other energy infrastructure projects. This role supports engineering teams by converting conceptual layouts, engineering calculations, markups, vendor information, and technical inputs into accurate, construction-ready drawing packages. The ideal candidate has strong experience in Civil 3D, site grading, drainage, earthwork modeling, and structural detailing of concrete foundations and steel components. The candidate should also be able to coordinate effectively with civil, structural, electrical, and geotechnical disciplines.
Responsibilities
How you can make an impact:
- Prepare coordinated civil and structural construction drawings for substations, transmission lines, BESS, and other energy infrastructure projects.
- Develop Civil 3D surfaces, grading plans, profiles, drainage systems, access roads, and cut/fill calculations.
- Prepare detailed structural drawings for concrete foundations and steel components, including reinforcement, anchor bolts, base plates, equipment supports, and connections.
- Develop foundation layouts for electrical equipment, transformers, control buildings, BESS units, transmission poles, and containment structures.
- Prepare stormwater drainage and erosion-control plans, including ditches, culverts, detention facilities, and discharge points.
- Interpret and incorporate engineering markups, calculations, surveys, geotechnical reports, vendor drawings, specifications, and project standards.
- Coordinate civil and structural designs with electrical, geotechnical, and other project disciplines to identify and resolve conflicts.
- Review shop drawings, fabrication drawings, and vendor submittals for consistency with the design documents.
- Support permitting submissions and the preparation of 30%, 60%, 90%, IFC, and as-built drawing packages.
- Maintain drawing quality, CAD standards, organized project files, and accurate revision tracking.
BASIC QUALIFICATIONS
Bring your passion, here's what’s needed:
- Diploma or degree in Civil Engineering Technology, Structural Engineering Technology, or a related field.
- Two to five years of relevant civil and structural design/drafting experience, preferably within substation and distribution projects.
- Strong proficiency in Civil 3D and AutoCAD including:
+ Surface modeling and grading
+ Alignments, profiles, and corridors
+ Pipe networks and drainage design
+ Earthwork and cut/fill calculations
+ Survey-point and topographic-data management
- Experience in site grading, drainage, stormwater management, erosion control, and access-road design.
- Ability to develop civil drawings using survey and topographic data, including point files, LiDAR, and USGS datasets.
- Experience preparing detailed structural drawings for buildings, transmission poles, substation gantries, equipment-support structures, and reinforced-concrete foundations, including footings, mats, drilled shafts, pile caps, slabs, and containment structures.
- Ability to prepare structural plans, sections, reinforcement and anchorage details, base plates, splices, and bolted or welded steel connections in accordance with concrete and steel detailing practices.
- Ability to prepare permit and construction drawing packages in accordance with drafting and quality-control standards.
- Strong attention to detail and ability to coordinate effectively with multidisciplinary teams.
PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS
- Experience with substation, transmission-line, BESS, renewable-energy, or industrial infrastructure projects.
- Familiarity with structural design drawings governed by ACI, AISC, and applicable industry standards.
- Experience with Autodesk Revit, Navisworks, or other 3D/BIM coordination tools.
- Familiarity with hydrology and hydraulic tools such as HEC-HMS, HEC-RAS, HydroCAD, or similar software.
- Experience using Bluebeam for drawing review, markups, document comparison, and quantity takeoffs.
- Familiarity with structural analysis software such as RISA-3D, SAP2000, or similar programs is an asset.
- Familiarity with utility or owner-specific CAD standards and drawing-development procedures.
LEAD THE CHANGE!
Be a part of an innovative team shaping the grid of the future through advanced energy intelligence. For more than half a century, Electric Power Engineers (EPE) has partnered with power and energy clients across the globe, providing consulting expertise and energy intelligence software solutions for complex engineering and grid modeling challenges. As leaders in the renewables space, we are focused on building a modern, secure, and resilient grid. Join us in making an impact on the communities we serve and the environment in which we live. Together we can transform the future of energy.
HOW WE SUPPORT YOU:
- Comprehensive Health & Life Insurance: 100% premium coverage for employees, with partial coverage available for eligible dependents.
- Opportunity to work on cutting-edge automation solutions for the power industry.
- Collaborate with a team of experts in software engineering, renewable energy, and grid technologies.
- Flexible hybrid work environment with opportunities for professional growth and innovation.
LOCATION
This position will be remote based in Canada or United States.
TRAVEL
Occasional travel may be needed (10% or less).
EPE is an equal opportunity/AA/Disability/Veteran employer. The EEO is the Law poster, and its supplement are available using the following links: EEOC is the Law Poster.
THIRD-PARTY RECRUITING NOTIFICATION
EPE does not accept unsolicited resumes from third-party recruiters. Any unsolicited third-party resumes forwarded by recruiters to EPE via our career page or to any of our managers or employees will be considered public information, may be treated as a direct application from the person identified in the resume, and will not be eligible for placement fee payment to the agency. EPE will not pay a fee to a third-party recruiter or agency without a previously signed third-party agreement and has not coordinated their recruiting activity with the appropriate member of the Talent Acquisition team.
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INTRODUCTION
We are designing the grid of the future! The Civil / Structural Designer is responsible for developing detailed civil and structural drawings for substations, transmission lines, BESS facilities, and other energy infrastructure projects. This role supports engineering teams by converting conceptual layouts, engineering calculations, markups, vendor information, and technical inputs into accurate, construction-ready drawing packages. The ideal candidate has strong experience in Civil 3D, site grading, drainage, earthwork modeling, and structural detailing of concrete foundations and steel components. The candidate should also be able to coordinate effectively with civil, structural, electrical, and geotechnical disciplines.
Responsibilities
How you can make an impact:
- Prepare coordinated civil and structural construction drawings for substations, transmission lines, BESS, and other energy infrastructure projects.
- Develop Civil 3D surfaces, grading plans, profiles, drainage systems, access roads, and cut/fill calculations.
- Prepare detailed structural drawings for concrete foundations and steel components, including reinforcement, anchor bolts, base plates, equipment supports, and connections.
- Develop foundation layouts for electrical equipment, transformers, control buildings, BESS units, transmission poles, and containment structures.
- Prepare stormwater drainage and erosion-control plans, including ditches, culverts, detention facilities, and discharge points.
- Interpret and incorporate engineering markups, calculations, surveys, geotechnical reports, vendor drawings, specifications, and project standards.
- Coordinate civil and structural designs with electrical, geotechnical, and other project disciplines to identify and resolve conflicts.
- Review shop drawings, fabrication drawings, and vendor submittals for consistency with the design documents.
- Support permitting submissions and the preparation of 30%, 60%, 90%, IFC, and as-built drawing packages.
- Maintain drawing quality, CAD standards, organized project files, and accurate revision tracking.
BASIC QUALIFICATIONS
Bring your passion, here's what’s needed:
- Diploma or degree in Civil Engineering Technology, Structural Engineering Technology, or a related field.
- Two to five years of relevant civil and structural design/drafting experience, preferably within substation and distribution projects.
- Strong proficiency in Civil 3D and AutoCAD including:
+ Surface modeling and grading
+ Alignments, profiles, and corridors
+ Pipe networks and drainage design
+ Earthwork and cut/fill calculations
+ Survey-point and topographic-data management
- Experience in site grading, drainage, stormwater management, erosion control, and access-road design.
- Ability to develop civil drawings using survey and topographic data, including point files, LiDAR, and USGS datasets.
- Experience preparing detailed structural drawings for buildings, transmission poles, substation gantries, equipment-support structures, and reinforced-concrete foundations, including footings, mats, drilled shafts, pile caps, slabs, and containment structures.
- Ability to prepare structural plans, sections, reinforcement and anchorage details, base plates, splices, and bolted or welded steel connections in accordance with concrete and steel detailing practices.
- Ability to prepare permit and construction drawing packages in accordance with drafting and quality-control standards.
- Strong attention to detail and ability to coordinate effectively with multidisciplinary teams.
PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS
- Experience with substation, transmission-line, BESS, renewable-energy, or industrial infrastructure projects.
- Familiarity with structural design drawings governed by ACI, AISC, and applicable industry standards.
- Experience with Autodesk Revit, Navisworks, or other 3D/BIM coordination tools.
- Familiarity with hydrology and hydraulic tools such as HEC-HMS, HEC-RAS, HydroCAD, or similar software.
- Experience using Bluebeam for drawing review, markups, document comparison, and quantity takeoffs.
- Familiarity with structural analysis software such as RISA-3D, SAP2000, or similar programs is an asset.
- Familiarity with utility or owner-specific CAD standards and drawing-development procedures.
LEAD THE CHANGE!
Be a part of an innovative team shaping the grid of the future through advanced energy intelligence. For more than half a century, Electric Power Engineers (EPE) has partnered with power and energy clients across the globe, providing consulting expertise and energy intelligence software solutions for complex engineering and grid modeling challenges. As leaders in the renewables space, we are focused on building a modern, secure, and resilient grid. Join us in making an impact on the communities we serve and the environment in which we live. Together we can transform the future of energy.
HOW WE SUPPORT YOU:
- Comprehensive Health & Life Insurance: 100% premium coverage for employees, with partial coverage available for eligible dependents.
- Opportunity to work on cutting-edge automation solutions for the power industry.
- Collaborate with a team of experts in software engineering, renewable energy, and grid technologies.
- Flexible hybrid work environment with opportunities for professional growth and innovation.
LOCATION
This position will be remote based in Canada or United States.
TRAVEL
Occasional travel may be needed (10% or less).
EPE is an equal opportunity/AA/Disability/Veteran employer. The EEO is the Law poster, and its supplement are available using the following links: EEOC is the Law Poster.
THIRD-PARTY RECRUITING NOTIFICATION
EPE does not accept unsolicited resumes from third-party recruiters. Any unsolicited third-party resumes forwarded by recruiters to EPE via our career page or to any of our managers or employees will be considered public information, may be treated as a direct application from the person identified in the resume, and will not be eligible for placement fee payment to the agency. EPE will not pay a fee to a third-party recruiter or agency without a previously signed third-party agreement and has not coordinated their recruiting activity with the appropriate member of the Talent Acquisition team.
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See all 57+ OPT Civil Designer Jobs
Sign up for free to unlock all listings, filter by visa type, and get alerts for new OPT Civil Designer Jobs.
Get Access To All JobsTips for Finding OPT Sponsorship as a Civil Designer
Lead with your design software skills
Civil designers live in AutoCAD Civil 3D, MicroStation, and similar tools. List every platform you're proficient in prominently on your resume. Employers scanning for OPT candidates want to know you're productive from day one, not a training investment.
Target firms with active infrastructure contracts
Engineering and consulting firms with active DOT, municipal, or federal contracts hire designers consistently and have established OPT sponsorship workflows. These firms need production capacity on project teams, which creates recurring entry-level demand that fits your timeline well.
Clarify your STEM OPT timeline upfront
If your degree qualifies for STEM OPT extension, confirm it with your DSO before applying. Communicating a 36-month authorization window rather than 12 months meaningfully reduces employer hesitation and makes you a more viable candidate for longer project cycles.
Highlight project experience with real deliverables
Employers want evidence you can produce construction documents, grading plans, or utility layouts. Reference specific deliverables from coursework, internships, or co-ops. Describing the output, not just the project, signals that you understand professional design production workflows.
Pursue EIT certification before or during your job search
The Engineer-in-Training exam is not required for designer roles, but passing it signals commitment to licensure and long-term career investment. Many firms prefer candidates working toward PE licensure, and it strengthens your case for H-1B visa sponsorship down the road.
Connect with project engineers, not just HR
Civil design teams are small and project-driven. Reaching out directly to project engineers or team leads at target firms, referencing specific project types they work on, is far more effective than submitting through general application portals and waiting for a response.
Civil Designer OPT: Frequently Asked Questions
Do Civil Designer roles qualify for STEM OPT extension?
Most Civil Designer positions qualify for the 24-month STEM OPT extension if your degree is in civil engineering, environmental engineering, or another field on the STEM Designated Degree Program List. That gives you up to 36 months total. Confirm your degree's eligibility with your DSO before applying, since some adjacent majors like construction management may not qualify.
How often do civil engineering firms sponsor OPT students?
Mid-size and large civil engineering and consulting firms sponsor OPT students regularly, particularly for production-heavy designer roles where they need consistent output on active projects. Smaller firms with fewer than 20 employees are less likely to have established OPT workflows. Browsing Civil Designer listings on Migrate Mate lets you filter to employers who are actively hiring OPT candidates in this field.
What does a Civil Designer do day-to-day on OPT?
Civil Designers spend most of their time producing design drawings and plans in software like AutoCAD Civil 3D or MicroStation, supporting licensed engineers on grading, drainage, roadway, or utility projects. On OPT, your role must align with your degree field, so positions involving structural, transportation, or site design are all appropriate placements for civil or environmental engineering graduates.
Can I work as a Civil Designer on OPT without a PE license?
Yes. Civil Designer roles are specifically structured for unlicensed engineers working under the supervision of a licensed Professional Engineer. Your stamped deliverables go out under their seal. This is the standard entry-level model in the industry and is fully compatible with OPT work authorization, as long as your job duties align with your degree program.
What should I know about transitioning from OPT to H-1B as a Civil Designer?
Civil Designer roles at established engineering firms are well-suited for H-1B sponsorship because the specialty occupation requirement is clearly satisfied by a civil engineering degree. The H-1B lottery runs annually with an April 1 registration window, so timing matters if your OPT expires before selection. Larger firms and those with federal contracts tend to have more experience managing this transition for design staff.