Clarifying the confusion between the rational assessment of cultivating objectives and the achievement assessment of cultivating objectives in civil engineering specialty under the background of engineering education certification is of great significance to promote the engineering education certification and construction of civil engineering specialty. Firstly, this paper briefly reviews the development history of civil engineering specialty certification, and points out the significance of specialty development guided by outcome based education (OBE) philosophy. Then, the connotation and elements of cultivating objectives at the scope of engineering education certification are analyzed, the difference between rational assessment and achievement assessment of cultivating objectives is interpreted, and the operation process and case study are proposed. The relevant research results could provide a certain reference value for promoting the development of civil engineering specialty.