Surveying & Mapping Technicians

What They Do

Perform surveying and mapping duties, usually under the direction of an engineer, surveyor, cartographer, or photogrammetrist, to obtain data used for construction, mapmaking, boundary location, mining, or other purposes. May calculate mapmaking information and create maps from source data, such as surveying notes, aerial photography, satellite data, or other maps to show topographical features, political boundaries, and other features. May verify accuracy and completeness of maps.

Typical Tasks

• Set out and recover stakes, marks, or other monumentation.
• Search for section corners, property irons, or survey points.
• Calculate latitudes, longitudes, angles, areas, or other information for mapmaking, using survey field notes or reference tables.
• Enter Global Positioning System (GPS) data, legal deeds, field notes, or land survey reports into geographic information system (GIS) workstations so that information can be transformed into graphic land descriptions, such as maps and drawings.
• Adjust and operate surveying instruments such as prisms, theodolites, electronic distance measuring equipment, or electronic data collectors.

Key Skills

Work Activities

• Working with Computers
• Getting Information
• Documenting/Recording Information
• Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates
• Processing Information