The Utah Department of Transportation’s mission, vision, and goals are centered around innovation as our growing community requires a dynamic transportation system with an eye on the future. Education, training, and internal promotion are key components of innovation. The Roadway Design Engineer Career Path Guide (RDECPG) provides guidance for state employees who choose to follow the Roadway Design Engineer Career Path to obtain promotion through education and on-the-job training. The Roadway Design Engineer Career Path program trains Roadway Design Engineers to work on Pre-Construction projects. The program objective is to improve the knowledge, skills, and abilities of UDOT roadway design engineers, which will enable them to meet the Department’s needs and further their advancement at UDOT. 

The following material provides information on how to advance through the career path by meeting the requirements at each level. 

Please note: Engineers in the program are required to maintain advancement by staying current with their level requirements on a continuous basis. 

Request for Changes

The RDECPG was written under the oversight of the Roadway Design Engineer Career Path Committee (RDECPC). The Committee was assembled by the Project Development Director consisting of representatives from Central Divisions (up to 4), Region Representatives (4), Employee Development (1), and UDOT Human Resources (1) to maintain the RDECPG. Requests for changes to the guide should be submitted for the Committee’s approval. The submitted changes will require unanimous approval to be adopted.

Approval for Advancement

Requests for advancement through the RDECP are submitted to the Advancement Review Board. All forms needed for the advancement review process are available in the UDOT Learning portal. These forms should not be completed without a supervisor’s recommendation for advancement. Once the appropriate paperwork is submitted, the Advancement Review Board will determine if the employee meets the level requirements and grant approval accordingly. Should the employee not meet the requirements, the employee and their supervisor will be notified of areas that need improvement. The employee and their supervisor are responsible for developing a plan to aid the employee in obtaining the qualifications for that level. 

Dispute Resolution Process

The Project Development Director will make the final decision regarding advancement if the Advancement Review Board determination and the recommending supervisors are not in agreement.

Advancement Review Board

Members (Not to exceed seven total members)

• • • One member from Project Development

    • Additional members in the roadway design functional area, appointed by the Statewide Design Engineer

    • Other members as determined by the Statewide Design Engineer

Roles and Responsibilities

• Review the candidate’s advancement request documents. 

• Set a date for the candidate’s advancement interview before the Advancement Review Board.

• Evaluate the candidate based on the advancement requirements and the interview. 

• Recommend the candidate for advancement or deny the request. 

Roadway Design Engineer Career Path Levels Overview

The titles for the Roadway Design Engineer levels used for this guide are listed as working titles. The actual DHRM job titles will follow the standard naming convention of Engineer III and Engineer IV (see Table A below). Each level has minimum requirements for advancement. Employees entering the Roadway Design Engineer Career Path will be assigned a working title in accordance with UDOT Policy 05-55. These employees will not be eligible to progress to the next level until they have completed all requirements for the previous levels in addition to the next level. The employee is required to compile a portfolio of completed projects, trainings, and other applicable information to demonstrate competency and compliance with minimum requirements.