Land Surveyor
Map the earth's surface to establish property boundaries, guide construction, and support land development with precision measurement
About the profession
Land Surveyors measure and map land to establish property boundaries, prepare sites for construction, create topographic maps, and provide legal descriptions of land. They use GPS, total stations, drones, and LiDAR technology. Surveying is required for virtually all real estate transactions, construction projects, and infrastructure development.
Why choose it
How to Get Started
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Career Match Test →Explore the Career Path section to see progression from junior to senior
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Jump to Learning Path →Personality Fit
Based on the Land Surveyor role, here are the RIASEC personality types that tend to thrive in this career. While these alignments are common, individual success depends on motivation, skill development, and finding the right work environment.
Realistic
Hands-on, practical, technical work
Artistic
Creative, expressive, original thinking
Enterprising
Leading, persuading, business
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Career Path
Your career progression roadmap with salary growth at each level
Career Ladder
Survey Technician → Licensed Surveyor → Senior Surveyor → Survey Firm Owner
Where are you on this career path?
Click a level below to set your current position
Salary Growth
4
Levels
$140K
Top Salary
15+
Years
Learning Path
Skills you need to develop and courses to get there
🚀
Set your current level first
Go to the Career Path tab and select your current level to see your personalized learning plan.
Go to Career PathCareer levels
Timeline: 0-3 years | Entry Level Assist with field surveys operating instruments and measuring points Record data, maintain equipment, and set control points Process field data…
Skills used in this career
Click any skill to see how to learn it and what salary boost it gives
Day in Life
Junior vs Senior, daily schedule breakdown
7:00am, Load equipment and drive to project site 8:00am, Set up GPS base station and begin boundary survey 10:00am, Locate property corners and set survey monuments 12:00pm, Lunch…
Income Dynamics
Conservative and aggressive scenarios for 10–15 years
Year 1-3: Survey Technician $32,000 - $45,000 Year 3-8: Licensed Surveyor $50,000 - $70,000 Year 8-15: Senior Surveyor $65,000 - $82,000 Year 15+: Firm Owner $80,000 - $140,000+
Is this for me?
15 questions, answer honestly
Ideal if: you enjoy precision measurement, outdoor work, legal analysis, and technology. NOT for you if: you dislike outdoor work in all weather, prefer creative/unstructured tasks, or want rapid salary growth early.
Myths vs Reality
Honest about what the internet doesn't say
Myth: "Surveying is outdated, GPS does it all now" Reality: While GPS is essential, surveying requires boundary law expertise, field judgment, and professional liability that no…
Work-Life Balance
Stress, flexibility, burnout risk
Surveyors work regular hours with some fieldwork in challenging weather. Seasonal demand varies with construction activity. Business owners control their schedules.
💰 Salary Range
BLS OEWS, May 2023Half of U.S. workers in this occupation earn more than this, half earn less.
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Create Free AccountPersonality types that fit this career
Based on career-match data from our Result Library:
The % is JobCannon’s editorial fit rating (0-100) for how well a result suits this career — not a statistical prediction. How we rate each test’s validity →
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Related Reading
Related Holland / RIASEC Types