Started with: BSc in Surveying and Mapping, Newcastle University

Working as: Surveyor, Atlantic Geomatics

What does a Land Surveyor do?

A Land Surveyor measures and maps land to determine its size, boundaries and characteristics for projects within construction and property development. They use technology such as GPS, total stations, and scanning technology to collect and analyse data, creating detailed maps and site plans for architects, engineers, and other professionals. Their work involves both fieldwork to gather measurements, and office work to process and analyse data and then produce reports. 

What does your typical day look like?

A typical day in the week of my life usually involves 3 or 4 days on site or in the field, collecting monitoring data on a variety of structures around the North of England, followed by the remainder processing this data to form charts and spreadsheets that highlight any movement that may have taken place between surveys.

How did you get into surveying?

A combination of reasons and good fortune. I have always been interested in engineering, with both my dad and grandad being geotechnical engineers. I enjoyed geography at school and was hoping to study it at university, but I had second thoughts before enrolling when contemplating what kind employment in the future and direction in my life this may lead. A brief conversation with a university enrolment officer identified the possibility of a degree in Surveying and Mapping at Newcastle University and I jumped at it.

I enjoyed my studies at Newcastle (Surveying and Mapping BSc), made a great bunch of friends while studying who are still my best mates to date. I was lucky that on the small course of 19 of us, we all got along well and helped each other along and socialised regularly, which isn’t always the case, so I count myself fortunate.

We were all keen to use our achieved degrees immediately by taking on survey roles as a land surveyors at various businesses around the UK, which was great to follow each other’s examples, especially when friends who had studied other degrees often felt left behind or rather uninspired post-graduation.

It certainly helped me in my career as it was often complex and tough to learn as a new skill, problem solving skills I now seemingly get regularly on a weekly basis on projects. Contact hours were high with regular practical sessions, so I definitely got value for money.

How had your career developed?

I started working for Atlantic Geomatics in 2019 as a trainee surveyor. Straight away I found myself thrown onto sitework with a variety of projects and shadowing highly experienced surveyors. It was a small business who at the time only had 7 site staff including myself. I bonded well with everyone quickly after moving to a new area of the country where I didn’t know anyone. I enjoyed the responsibility I had been trusted with from an early stage and learned site methods quickly, so that after 8 months I was already capable of completing tasks on site by myself. I felt rewarded when I could see the results of my surveys in the end maps, traverse results and graphs, which is an aspect of surveying that I really value.

After two years as a trainee, in 2021 I became a Surveyor, after managing projects successfully for good periods of time. I was certainly helped by always having incredibly knowledgeable surveyors above me where any questions I could go to them with.

Work at Atlantic Geomatics is incredibly varied, with regular projects in topographic, cadastral, Bathymetric, Utility and Monitoring surveys. This variety has helped me learn a vast range of skills and I love that no day in my life is ever the same. Everyone works as a team to make sure we produce the best surveys for clients while remaining safe and looking out for each other.

In 2023 I briefly left Atlantic for another challenge. Living abroad is something I’ve always wanted to do, and I felt I wanted to prove myself in different landscapes and environments. So when a role of a land survey officer at Cayman Islands Government appeared I took it without hesitation.

This was an incredible time where I put into practice the skills I had learned at Atlantic in a very different landscape. Most of Grand Cayman is undeveloped swamp and low lying jungle with cacti and difficult wildlife (as well as unbelievable beaches and billionaire villas). Surveys were suddenly very difficult in extreme heat (often +40C). Equipment was considerably older, where the manual total station was my best friend in traversing through thick jungle.

Life was hard on the island, and the government survey department had a very limited budget. Myself and the survey team I was in charge of grew close while working in some extremely tricky environments. I certainly toughened up as a result of my year there and grew confidence in myself in tough circumstances and challenges I had faced.

The following year I returned to Atlantic with a new sense of determination. New team members had joined and by the end of 2025 we have over 13 site staff. I have worked closely with school leavers during this time and helped train them into capable site surveyors. I enjoy teaching people how to survey and basic techniques. I love learning new skills so hopefully they might teach me something new in return one day. I’m not sure what the future holds but it’s very exciting being at a growing business that has big ambitions. I’m only 28 so I would like to think I’ve got quite a lot of experiences to come.

What do you enjoy and value most in your job?

In my current role I undertake a variety of surveys, but mostly topographic and monitoring based projects. I often work with one or two junior members in conducting these surveys and make sure all work is completed safely. I love that no day is ever the same and there is always a new challenge to solve.

What is the most challenging aspect of your job?

Challenges vary from project to project. Whether its high risk confined space projects where I am the designated rescuer (obviously I hope I am never needed to be called into action but this requires total concentration and preparation at the time), or being the senior member of a team where a tricky operation may be taking place such as lifting a heavy manhole cover. I certainly think High-Risk confined space operations within surveys are the most challenging jobs we take on due to the level of preparation and checks that must take place before any work can commence.

How do you encourage younger people to consider surveying as a career?

I took the university route. Having seen younger surveyors at Atlantic take the apprentice route, I’m a little jealous as I’m paying off my student loans – maybe this route is more appealing for today’s generation. Certainly, I’d suggest to anyone who loves the outdoors to give it a go. You only really know if you can hack working outside regularly until you do it and there’s no shame in not enjoying it. Best bet is contact your local survey company for a weeks trial.

If you could give your younger self career advice now, what would it be?

I’d like to think I’m still young, so I’m comfortable making mistakes and owning them as long as I try and learn from them. I’d probably tell myself to watch the weather forecast every night before a day on site, but I still often forget and rue not packing extra layers. I don’t have any big regrets so I guess I’m happy with how things have gone.

What skills does someone need to do your job?

A good work ethic is probably the best trait, like any career, but certainly in surveying as that extra time and care can go an awfully long way. The ability to step back and consider one’s surroundings is certainly important to keep everyone safe. Being a good team player is very important. If you get along with everyone it starts to feel less like a job and more like a hobby when things are going well.

Obviously to go on to being a surveyor, having the experience to identify important features on each site that should be analyzed or mapped, understanding what a client wants, potential hazards – are all things that are required.

What has been your most memorable project to work on?

The most memorable project I have worked on was a monitoring project where I had to collect data from 150+ reservoirs in the north west of England. Lots of travelling and amazing scenery. Worked with some great younger surveyors who assisted. All the results were what we all wanted which helped!

What has been your proudest career moment?

My proudest moment was completing a survey I undertook of a small plot of land deep within the jungle in Grand Cayman. I had a survey team with very little knowledge so I had my reservations prior, but we produced an excellent traverse and then topographic survey at the end. Days of cutting sight lines through the jungle and avoiding the massive land crabs. 46 Celcius heat. Humidity at nearly 100%. UV at level 13. When we finished after three weeks, we all went for some well-deserved drinks. I’ve never felt relief like it.

Started with: Degree in Automotive Engineering

Working as: Hydrographic Surveyor, Storm Geomatics

How did you get to your current role?

I did an automotive engineering degree at uni. After graduating, I had a few different jobs to earn some money – some delivery and warehouse jobs whilst applying for graduate engineering roles. I stumbled across the job advert for Storm Geomatics on an online careers search engine. I grew up on a farm, so I’m used to being outside. So the appeal of that and the half and half working – outside and office work – really appealed to me.

At uni, I did a lot of CAD work and problem solving, so that meant I was able to pick up the CAD tasks in this job quite quickly and learned to enjoy overcoming the job’s challenges.

While working I have gone through my membership application for CICES – that’s the Chartered Institution of Civil Engineering Surveyors – and I’m now a Technical Member. This demonstrates where I’m at in my professional development. I’ve done nearly four years in this job, and I’ve still got so much to learn.

What do you do in your job role?

My work is usually related to flood modelling – measuring rivers and determining how well they can carry water without flooding, and where the water is likely to go in flood events.

A lot of the work is on foot but we also use drones and boats to help with the surveying.

Back in the office I’ll put together a survey report where I’ll comment on anything unusual we’ve come across and use specialist river processing software to create deliverables such as data files and CAD drawings which flood modellers can use to calculate how rivers will react to specific rainfall events.

What is it about your role that you enjoy and value most?

The travel and variety – I’ve been to places I never would have normally gone to.  I also I find the organising and planning side of the job really satisfying as well. We need permission to work, say, in someone’s garden or a farmer’s field. So they might give you certain dates to try and fit that work into. Logistically, it’s a puzzle you have to solve to try to get the most possible work out of every day.

What’s the hardest thing about your job?

The cold winter mornings when you have to go out and just wrap up warm and get on with it.

What advice do you have for young people who want to do what you do?

The first bit of advice I’d give would be to research this profession to find out what jobs are like day to day. Surveying as a college course or degree would be really helpful, but for a lot of companies, you can start at entry level and train while you work.

A good way to know if surveying might be for you is to try a hobby that’s outdoors, even if that’s just going for walks in nature. It might help you feel less doubtful about being in all the different weather conditions if you’ve already experienced it, and you know it doesn’t bother you.

One thing you need is good attention to detail – it helps to pick up on the little details and make sure your work is accurate – this is really important when producing the models.

Started with: Degree in Geoenvironmental Hazards

Working as: Land Surveyor, Tri-Tech

What does a typical day and week look like for you?

Usually, my time is split between three or four days on-site, and one in the office. We start on-site at 8am and we finish at about 4:30 or 5pm, but because we work across the country, like most surveying companies in the UK, we might be leaving the house as early as 6am to get to a site on time.

I spend most of my days working my way across the site, taking measurements. Then, when I’m back in the office, I gather all my data together and draw it up into the final product. I then send that to the client, who could be someone like a homeowner who wants planning permission for an extension, or a construction company working on a road upgrade.

What’s the best thing about your job?

I just love being able to go to different sites and work in different environments. Although sometimes you might be doing the same process and using the same equipment, it’s a new puzzle to solve every single time!

Flood defence projects are very cool, getting the harnesses out and life jackets on! But I think working on an airport runway is the project I’m most proud of. It was a tough two weeks; we were working night shifts, with only an hour in between planes landing to get the jobs done! We were doing a survey of the whole runway, as the resurfacers needed to know the exact position of the landing lights, lines, and levels, so they could replicate it all once they resurfaced it. Seeing the drawing at the end was an amazing feeling!

How did you get to where you are now?

At A level, I had no clue what I wanted to do! All I knew was that I’m an outdoorsy person – I’ve been in the scouts since I was six, and I’m still a scout leader now. So I knew I needed to be outdoors and adventurous in my future job. I applied for a degree in geo-environmental hazards, as I thought maybe I’d go down the environmental route.

Before I started uni, I decided to defer my place and take a year out to work a ski season in the Alps. I wanted to get some experience and earn some money, because I knew going to uni was going to cost a lot, and I needed to be sure.

After going to uni, I was researching jobs on LinkedIn and I came across surveying. I sent a message to the director of a company called Tri Tech, asking about jobs, and it turned out they were looking for a surveyor. So I sent him my CV and he invited me for an interview. I guess he took a chance on me, because I had no relevant work experience; I’ve learned everything on the job! I’ve been here for three years now.

What does a land surveyor do?

Land surveyors make very detailed maps of specific areas of land. It could be for a building development, flood defences, a house extension, or any other form of building or site.

We use equipment like total stations and GPS trackers to measure the features of an area, including fence lines, manholes, and overhead wires. Then, we make a drawing, or map, of those features at a scale of 1:200.

What advice do you have for young people who want to do what you do?

It can be helpful to study subjects where you solve problems, like geography and maths. But they’re not essential to get a surveying job.

So many people at my company have been offered jobs here after they’ve done work experience here. When I did work experience at school, I just worked in a primary school, even though I didn’t actually want to be a teacher! I really regret not reaching out to a business that was more interesting to me. I might have ended up doing an apprenticeship or a degree apprenticeship, instead of a traditional degree.