Land Surveying as a career?

[USAFpj]

Pay? It can be pretty fair to poor...

Thanks for the input- I don't care about the money aspect. I do alright now, but would gladly accept a 2/3rds cut to work in my area. School isn't an issue, as thanks to you taxpayers, I'm set up with the GI Bill. My maths skills are a limiting factor, but I married a math teacher, so tutoring with benefits! There are (2) local Craigslist ads looking for field techs with zero experience. I sent a resume and graveled that I would almost work for free, just to have the chance to gain some experience. No calls back, though.

Dodge, call your colleagues down here in SC, and tell them to give me a job! :thumbsup:

 

[dodge man]

With the degree I obtained, I only had to have a semester of Trig and two Calculus classes. With the pure engineering degree it would be a total of 3 calculus classes and a class in differential equations. When I was in college (I graduated in 1984) Calc 1 was a weed out class. There was a lot of majors that required Calc 1 and more than half the people that signed up either flunked the class or dropped it. About a 1/3 of the people that signed up for the class got a C grade or better. I'm not trying to scare you away from the program, I'm just giving you a heads up. Also each state is different on the college requirements so check on SC's requirements. I'm lucky, I've always been good at math, but never really liked it.

Sorry to say I don't know a single surveyor in your state so I'm not a lot of help there.

 

[joefromga]

It seems like surveying should be an apprentice/master type job.

 

[RedNeckRacin]

With the degree I obtained, I only had to have a semester of Trig and two Calculus classes. With the pure engineering degree it would be a total of 3 calculus classes and a class in differential equations. When I was in college (I graduated in 1984) Calc 1 was a weed out class. There was a lot of majors that required Calc 1 and more than half the people that signed up either flunked the class or dropped it. About a 1/3 of the people that signed up for the class got a C grade or better. I'm not trying to scare you away from the program, I'm just giving you a heads up. Also each state is different on the college requirements so check on SC's requirements. I'm lucky, I've always been good at math, but never really liked it.

Sorry to say I don't know a single surveyor in your state so I'm not a lot of help there.

I graduated in 2008 and I had approximately the same classes. Calc 1-4 but calc 4 was differential equations and matrix theory.

Recommended Academic Plan: B.S. in Surveying Engineering (SUR E) at Wilkes-Barre | rap.psu.edu

Might want to look at the courses Penn State recommends for their BS in Surveying.

 

[dodge man]

It seems like surveying should be an apprentice/master type job.

It used to be, and I think a few states may still be that way but times have changed. I work with a couple of people that don't have the necessary degree and I think they would make good land surveyors. I also know of a couple of people that got their licenses before the college degree requirement and they aren't the greatest surveyors in the world. The way I look at it, it keeps out the wanna bees.

 

[dodge man]

I graduated in 2008 and I had approximately the same classes. Calc 1-4 but calc 4 was differential equations and matrix theory.

Recommended Academic Plan: B.S. in Surveying Engineering (SUR E) at Wilkes-Barre | rap.psu.edu

Might want to look at the courses Penn State recommends for their BS in Surveying.

That looks like a solid program. Times have really changed. I saw they had a entire semester class dedicated to Geodetic Models. That was something that was pretty much meaningless when I was in college but the advent of GPS has made it an important subject.

 

[Streetcar]

I am an engineer who has surveyed but is not licensed. In Ohio, I know more surveyors who have left the field than I know still working. Technology has increased cost of entry into the field, but the pay has not kept pace. as dodge man said they use hard math to weed out the class.
Most people flunked out freshman year. After that they decided the field was not for them and left

 

[RedNeckRacin]

I'll echo you guys, the first two years were basically an introduction/weed out period. I work in a civil engineering firm and I can't tell you if I have used calculus more than a handful of times since I left school. I was really disappointed in the professors that I had in school at the main campus. Foreign teachers were prevalent and trying to learn complex subjects from someone who didn't have a fluent grasp of English made things all the more difficult. Also, Civil Engineering is a broad subject, almost a general engineering. Trying to figure out what I wanted to study while trying to dodge the worst professors was not a good way to go through my classes. I wish I had been required to take a concrete and foundations class but it conflicted with the optional required class, steel design. I also could greatly benefit from the geotechnical classes that were offered but the prof for them as absolutely terrible. Most of my profs were Dr.'s and not professionals. I had two or three prof's in 4 years that had their PE's and had worked in an industry besides teaching. I would love to get rid of a handful of classes that had very little use to me.

(Anyone tell I'm a little bitter about the exorbitant amount of money I paid for my piece of paper? )

 

[USAFpj]

Well, I guess McDonald's is always hiring. They're starting out at $15/hr and you don't have to take Calculus or Trig

 

[dodge man]

You have used Calculus since you graduated? I haven't. I must have had a better college experience than you. Two of my main teachers had been working professionals. Most of my teachers were either American or I could understand them. College was a lot of work but overall a good experience.

To the OP. Check into the programs in your state and the requirements. Some have an easier path than through an engineering program. I know people in Illinois that got their degree in Industrial Engineering plus taking the surveying classes since that was the easiest path to get the required classes to get your license.