This week, March 19-25, 2023, is National Surveyors Week! The work of land surveyors is essential, and the goal of this week is to explain their contributions to the public, while promoting the profession to young people considering career paths.

Why Surveying?

Survey is a great industry to get into if you enjoy working in varied environments (both outdoors and indoors), enjoy dynamic problem solving, and the ability to work with technology such as 3D scanning, drones, and satellite imagery. There are many types of surveying (development, construction, precision measurement, aerial, hydro) but one factor is universal: surveying is a blend of art and science essential in the built environment.

Many opportunities await those considering a job change or are looking for a career path. The Bureau of Labor Statistics estimates an increased need for surveyors in the U.S. as a large percentage are in the late stages of their careers. Additionally, people are entering the profession at lower rates than they have in the past. While formal education is a route into the profession, it is not a requirement. Many surveyors learn on-the-job from experienced surveyors.

Westlake’s Surveyors

Westlake’s roots are in land surveying, and we do all we can to promote the profession. We spoke with a couple of our surveying staff to hear their guidance for young people considering the industry, and their favorite parts of the job.

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What would you say to young people considering a career in surveying?

Sam Hargrave, LSIT (Senior Survey Technician II) – You have multiple avenues of surveying depending on the aspects of surveying that you find interesting.

Doug Liles, PLS (Senior Land Surveyor) – Often in my career, I would take a question to my mentor and by the time I finished explaining the problem, I had already developed a solution. Verbalizing is golden. Seldom did my mentor have to restart my train of thought with a “Well, what about…”, or a “What if you did…”. As a Senior Surveyor (literally), I now experience almost the inverse paradigm as I explain a task to a technician and find myself developing more questions that I did not already have resolved.

What is your favorite part of the job?

Sam Hargrave, LSIT – Different types of work all the time, at different locations, and different outcomes with different people.

Doug Liles, PLS – I can’t decide if it’s:

• The “puzzle” factor.
• Some inner evil making me want to find mistakes (what’s wrong/what generated the error in this).
• The challenge of understanding what those construction plans really “want.”

What new trends and/or technologies do you see impacting the industry in the coming years?

Sam Hargrave, LSIT – In the future, drones and terrestrial scanning are going to push the development side of surveying to a more office heavy industry.

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The National Society of Professional Surveyors’ website has resources for National Surveyors Week–including flyers, general donation funds for youth outreach, and proclamations from state and regional governments on the importance of surveyors’ work. If you would like to read more, check out the link below.

National Surveyors Week – National Society of Professional Surveyors (nsps.us.com)