In Scandinavian countries, civil engineer (civilingenjör (Swedish), sivilingeniør (Norwegian), civilingeniør (Danish)) is a first professional degree, approximately equivalent to Master of Science in Engineering, and a protected title granted to students by selected institutes of technology. As in English the word has its origin in the distinction between civilian and military engineers, as in before the start of the 19th century only military engineers existed and the prefix "civil" was a way to separate those who had studied engineering in a regular University from their military counterparts. Today the degree spans over all fields within engineering, like civil engineering, mechanical engineering, computer science, electronics engineering, etc.