Career Overlap Transition record
RecordMove

Civil engineer to land surveyor

A civil engineer already meets 56% of what the land surveyor role asks for. The move turns on 10 required skills not yet in the profile.

Fig. 1 · Skill transfer ESCO v1.2.1 · directional
From civil engineer
56 % overlap
Partial match
To land surveyor
26 You already bring
10 Still to learn
53 Skills in the target role2
Learning distance Real move, short list to learn

53.2/ 100

1 How much of what a land surveyor is expected to do is already part of a civil engineer’s work. Directional: the figure for the reverse move differs, because moving into a speciality is not the same problem as moving out of one. 2 Every skill the land surveyor role is recorded as needing, required and optional together. What these numbers mean.

Why

Why this move works

A land surveyor role treats 17 of its required skills as things a civil engineer already does. You would walk in with these on day one.

  • adjust engineering designs
  • approve engineering design
  • cartography
  • civil engineering
  • engineering principles
  • engineering processes

What stands in the way is 10 required skills the profile does not yet cover. Table 3 groups them; Table 4 says which to take first.

Table 2

Table 2 · What you already bring

Of the 26 skills that carry over, these are the ones fewest other occupations ask for. A land surveyor role needs them, and most people applying for one will not have them already. This is the part of a civil engineer background worth leading with.

Skill the target role also needs Area
  • already held create cadastral maps working with computers
  • already held geomatics natural sciences, mathematics and statistics
  • already held photogrammetry engineering, manufacturing and construction
  • already held geodesy natural sciences, mathematics and statistics
  • already held perform surveying calculations information skills
  • already held urban planning law business, administration and law

All 26 carried skills, including the 17 the land surveyor role treats as required.

Table 3

Table 3 · What you may need to learn

The 27 missing skills fall into 5 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, numbered in the order worth working in. Areas carrying the most required skills come first, and inside each one the required skills sit above the optional ones. Nothing here is a verdict on you: it is a list of what this particular job asks for that your current one does not.

Skill to pick up Tier
01 information skills 7 required, 9 supplementary
  • still to learn compare survey computations required
  • still to learn conduct land surveys required
  • still to learn document survey operations required
  • still to learn record survey data required
  • still to learn determine property boundaries required
  • still to learn perform scientific research required
  • still to learn prepare surveying report required
  • optional, not held interpret geophysical data optional
  • optional, not held collect data using GPS optional
  • optional, not held collect mapping data optional
  • optional, not held compile GIS-data optional
  • optional, not held conduct research before survey optional
  • optional, not held create GIS reports optional
  • optional, not held process collected survey data optional
  • optional, not held study aerial photos optional
  • optional, not held value properties optional
02 working with machinery and specialised equipment 3 required
  • still to learn operate surveying instruments required
  • still to learn adjust surveying equipment required
  • still to learn calibrate electronic instruments required
03 communication, collaboration and creativity 3 supplementary
  • optional, not held advise on mining environmental issues optional
  • optional, not held prepare geological map sections optional
  • optional, not held design scientific equipment optional
04 working with computers 3 supplementary
  • optional, not held develop geological databases optional
  • optional, not held apply digital mapping optional
  • optional, not held create thematic maps optional
05 natural sciences, mathematics and statistics 2 supplementary
  • optional, not held geographic information systems optional
  • optional, not held geography optional
Table 4

Table 4 · Where to start

The 3 entries a land surveyor role is least likely to hire without. The ordering is computed from the skill data, not from what pays.

Each entry opens a course search for that skill. Career Overlap earns nothing from these links.

Appendix

Appendix · The rest of the record

All 26 skills that carry over
Skill Type
  • already held adjust engineering designs skill
  • already held approve engineering design skill
  • already held cartography knowledge
  • already held civil engineering knowledge
  • already held engineering principles knowledge
  • already held engineering processes knowledge
  • already held ensure compliance with safety legislation skill
  • already held geodesy knowledge
  • already held geomatics knowledge
  • already held mathematics knowledge
  • already held mining, construction and civil engineering machinery products knowledge
  • already held perform surveying calculations skill
  • already held surveying knowledge
  • already held surveying methods knowledge
  • already held technical drawings knowledge
  • already held topography knowledge
  • already held use technical drawing software skill
  • already held advise architects skill
  • already held collect geological data skill
  • already held create cadastral maps skill
  • already held geology knowledge
  • already held photogrammetry knowledge
  • already held quantity surveying knowledge
  • already held urban planning law knowledge
  • already held use CAD software skill
  • already held use geographic information systems skill
17 supplementary skills, helpful but not required
Skill to pick up Tier
  • optional, not held advise on mining environmental issues optional
  • optional, not held develop geological databases optional
  • optional, not held geographic information systems optional
  • optional, not held interpret geophysical data optional
  • optional, not held prepare geological map sections optional
  • optional, not held apply digital mapping optional
  • optional, not held collect data using GPS optional
  • optional, not held collect mapping data optional
  • optional, not held compile GIS-data optional
  • optional, not held conduct research before survey optional
  • optional, not held create GIS reports optional
  • optional, not held create thematic maps optional
  • optional, not held design scientific equipment optional
  • optional, not held geography optional
  • optional, not held process collected survey data optional
  • optional, not held study aerial photos optional
  • optional, not held value properties optional
70 held skills the land surveyor role does not ask for
Skill Type
  • not needed by the target role advise on building matters skill
  • not needed by the target role assess environmental impact skill
  • not needed by the target role assess project resource needs skill
  • not needed by the target role automation technology knowledge
  • not needed by the target role bridge engineering knowledge
  • not needed by the target role business management principles knowledge
  • not needed by the target role check quality of raw materials skill
  • not needed by the target role chemistry knowledge
  • not needed by the target role conduct field work skill
  • not needed by the target role conduct quality control analysis skill
  • not needed by the target role construction methods knowledge
  • not needed by the target role construction products knowledge
  • not needed by the target role cost management knowledge
  • not needed by the target role create CAD drawings skill
  • not needed by the target role demonstrate disciplinary expertise skill
  • not needed by the target role design building envelope systems skill
  • not needed by the target role design principles knowledge
  • not needed by the target role design wind turbines skill
  • not needed by the target role draft design specifications skill
  • not needed by the target role draw blueprints skill
  • not needed by the target role electric generators knowledge
  • not needed by the target role electrical engineering knowledge
  • not needed by the target role electricity consumption knowledge
  • not needed by the target role energy efficiency knowledge
  • not needed by the target role energy performance of buildings knowledge
  • not needed by the target role ensure compliance with environmental legislation skill
  • not needed by the target role environmental engineering knowledge
  • not needed by the target role environmental policy knowledge
  • not needed by the target role examine engineering principles skill
  • not needed by the target role execute analytical mathematical calculations skill
  • not needed by the target role execute feasibility study skill
  • not needed by the target role geochemistry knowledge
  • not needed by the target role geophysics knowledge
  • not needed by the target role identify energy needs skill
  • not needed by the target role inspect construction supplies skill
  • not needed by the target role inspect industrial equipment skill
  • not needed by the target role integrated design knowledge
  • not needed by the target role interact professionally in research and professional environments skill
  • not needed by the target role liaise with architects skill
  • not needed by the target role logistics knowledge

30 further entries not listed here

2 gaps that are knowledge rather than practice

Knowledge gaps usually close through study. Practical skill gaps usually need something you can point at.

Skill to pick up Tier
  • optional, not held geographic information systems optional
  • optional, not held geography optional
Index

Other moves recorded from civil engineer

Full index of moves from civil engineer

FAQ

Common questions about this move

Can a civil engineer become a land surveyor?

Yes, and it is a moderate move. A civil engineer already covers 56% of what a land surveyor is expected to do: 26 skills carry over, 17 of which the land surveyor role treats as required.

What skills does a civil engineer need to become a land surveyor?

10 required skills are missing, plus 17 optional ones. They fall into 5 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, led by information skills. The single most important is compare survey computations.

How hard is the move from civil engineer to land surveyor?

Its learning distance is 53.2 out of 100, which is the moderate band. That accounts for both how much is missing and how specialised those skills are.

Note

How this record was compiled

Both occupations are taken from ESCO, which lists the skills and knowledge each occupation is expected to have and marks every one required or optional. Nothing here is a prediction about hiring, and nothing here knows that a particular employer wants a particular certificate. Treat Table 3 as a starting point for your own research rather than a syllabus. The full method states what these figures can and cannot tell you.