Soil surveying technician to land surveyor
A soil surveying technician already meets 43% of what the land surveyor role asks for. The move turns on 12 required skills not yet in the profile.
63.4/ 100
1 How much of what a land surveyor is expected to do is already part of a soil surveying technician’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 this move works
A land surveyor role treats 15 of its required skills as things a soil surveying technician already does. You would walk in with these on day one.
- adjust surveying equipment
- cartography
- civil engineering
- conduct land surveys
- engineering principles
- engineering processes
What stands in the way is 12 required skills the profile does not yet cover. Table 3 groups them; Table 4 says which to take first.
Table 2 · What you already bring
Of the 17 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 soil surveying technician background worth leading with.
- already held adjust surveying equipment working with machinery and specialised equipment
- already held prepare surveying report information skills
- already held surveying methods engineering, manufacturing and construction
- already held operate surveying instruments working with machinery and specialised equipment
- already held record survey data information skills
- already held surveying engineering, manufacturing and construction
All 17 carried skills, including the 15 the land surveyor role treats as required.
Table 3 · What you may need to learn
The 36 missing skills fall into 7 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.
- still to learn compare survey computations required
- still to learn document survey operations required
- still to learn determine property boundaries required
- still to learn perform surveying calculations required
- optional, not held collect geological data optional
- 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
- still to learn adjust engineering designs required
- still to learn approve engineering design required
- optional, not held advise on mining environmental issues optional
- optional, not held prepare geological map sections optional
- optional, not held advise architects optional
- optional, not held design scientific equipment optional
- still to learn mining, construction and civil engineering machinery products required
- still to learn technical drawings required
- optional, not held quantity surveying optional
- optional, not held photogrammetry optional
- still to learn geodesy required
- still to learn geomatics required
- optional, not held geographic information systems optional
- still to learn use technical drawing software required
- optional, not held develop geological databases optional
- optional, not held use geographic information systems optional
- optional, not held apply digital mapping optional
- optional, not held create cadastral maps optional
- optional, not held create thematic maps optional
- optional, not held use CAD software optional
- still to learn calibrate electronic instruments required
1 further area in the appendix
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.
- 01 compare survey computations practise this
- 02 document survey operations practise this
- 03 mining, construction and civil engineering machinery products study this
Each entry opens a course search for that skill. Career Overlap earns nothing from these links.
Appendix · The rest of the record
All 17 skills that carry over
- already held adjust surveying equipment skill
- already held cartography knowledge
- already held civil engineering knowledge
- already held conduct land surveys skill
- already held engineering principles knowledge
- already held engineering processes knowledge
- already held ensure compliance with safety legislation skill
- already held mathematics knowledge
- already held operate surveying instruments skill
- already held perform scientific research skill
- already held prepare surveying report skill
- already held record survey data skill
- already held surveying knowledge
- already held surveying methods knowledge
- already held topography knowledge
- already held geography knowledge
- already held geology knowledge
The 1 learning area not shown above
- optional, not held urban planning law optional
24 supplementary skills, helpful but not required
- optional, not held advise on mining environmental issues optional
- optional, not held collect geological data 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 quantity surveying optional
- optional, not held use geographic information systems optional
- optional, not held advise architects 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 cadastral maps optional
- optional, not held create thematic maps optional
- optional, not held design scientific equipment optional
- optional, not held photogrammetry optional
- optional, not held process collected survey data optional
- optional, not held study aerial photos optional
- optional, not held urban planning law optional
- optional, not held use CAD software optional
- optional, not held value properties optional
20 held skills the land surveyor role does not ask for
- not needed by the target role advise on nature conservation skill
- not needed by the target role agroforestry knowledge
- not needed by the target role agronomy knowledge
- not needed by the target role apply safety procedures in laboratory skill
- not needed by the target role biology knowledge
- not needed by the target role collect samples skill
- not needed by the target role collect samples for analysis skill
- not needed by the target role conduct field work skill
- not needed by the target role conduct soil sample tests skill
- not needed by the target role ecology knowledge
- not needed by the target role environmental legislation knowledge
- not needed by the target role gather experimental data skill
- not needed by the target role laboratory techniques knowledge
- not needed by the target role monitor geotechnical structures skill
- not needed by the target role perform laboratory tests skill
- not needed by the target role pollution prevention knowledge
- not needed by the target role soil mechanics knowledge
- not needed by the target role soil science knowledge
- not needed by the target role soil structure knowledge
- not needed by the target role write work-related reports skill
8 gaps that are knowledge rather than practice
Knowledge gaps usually close through study. Practical skill gaps usually need something you can point at.
- still to learn mining, construction and civil engineering machinery products required
- still to learn geodesy required
- still to learn geomatics required
- still to learn technical drawings required
- optional, not held geographic information systems optional
- optional, not held quantity surveying optional
- optional, not held photogrammetry optional
- optional, not held urban planning law optional
Common questions about this move
Can a soil surveying technician become a land surveyor?
Yes, and it is a substantial move. A soil surveying technician already covers 43% of what a land surveyor is expected to do: 17 skills carry over, 15 of which the land surveyor role treats as required.
What skills does a soil surveying technician need to become a land surveyor?
12 required skills are missing, plus 24 optional ones. They fall into 7 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, led by information skills. The single most important is compare survey computations.
How hard is the move from soil surveying technician to land surveyor?
Its learning distance is 63.4 out of 100, which is the substantial band. That accounts for both how much is missing and how specialised those skills are.
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.