Honestly I'm not concerned about a 4 year program as I feel like that is too much for a survey program simply because if someone is going to attend 4 years of intensive study they will likely enter the engineering field and make more money for far less work.
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I am a testament to the fact that some of us cannot handle the engineering curriculum.
Actually NMSU still has the program.?ÿ ?ÿIt's been a difficult road and still many hurdles to continue through but it is still alive.?ÿ?ÿ https://et.nmsu.edu/academics/surveying-engineering/
I graduated from GBC with the BAS degree in Land Surveying/Geomatics.?ÿ ?ÿIt helped me obtain my NM license.?ÿ ?ÿGreat program and highly recommend it to anyone wanting to further their education.?ÿ?ÿ
I was a MSCD graduate from 2006. It was a good program.?ÿThe best thing about it?ÿwas all of the classes were in the evenings or weekend. I was able to work full time and go to school to finish my degree.?ÿhere in Alaska the UAA program, while very good in my opinion with to regards to the curriculum, provides no flexibility for working surveyors.
I have to say that I am shocked at the costs of tuition quoted. up until 2006 I was paying about $120/ credit hour at MSCD, an ABET accredited 4-year program. That translates to a 4-year degree for under $15k; an easy amount to pay out of pocket as you go if your working at the same time.
I was a MSCD graduate from 2006. It was a good program.?ÿThe best thing about it?ÿwas all of the classes were in the evenings or weekend. I was able to work full time and go to school to finish my degree.?ÿhere in Alaska the UAA program, while very good in my opinion with to regards to the curriculum, provides no flexibility for working surveyors.
I have to say that I am shocked at the costs of tuition quoted. up until 2006 I was paying about $120/ credit hour at MSCD, an ABET accredited 4-year program. That translates to a 4-year degree for under $15k; an easy amount to pay out of pocket as you go if your working at the same time.
For residents:
The UAA program is $212-256$/credit.
Great Basin is $104.25-$167.25/credit
NMSU is 184.50/credit if you only take 16 credits a semester (it goes down if you take more).
I think the above quoted cost includes room and board, books and transportation.?ÿ
For those that say a four year degree is not worth it, you are probably mid to late career and/or in a state with no 4 year degree requirement.?ÿ For those just starting?ÿ there are a lot more options for someone with the degree, and most of those options pay more. I know there are many surveyors here that have little to no education and have learned to be great surveyors, but that is becoming a less viable path for those that want to survey?ÿand make a good living. ?ÿ
I was a MSCD graduate from 2006. It was a good program.?ÿThe best thing about it?ÿwas all of the classes were in the evenings or weekend. I was able to work full time and go to school to finish my degree.?ÿhere in Alaska the UAA program, while very good in my opinion with to regards to the curriculum, provides no flexibility for working surveyors.
I have to say that I am shocked at the costs of tuition quoted. up until 2006 I was paying about $120/ credit hour at MSCD, an ABET accredited 4-year program. That translates to a 4-year degree for under $15k; an easy amount to pay out of pocket as you go if your working at the same time.
For residents:
The UAA program is $212-256$/credit.
Great Basin is $104.25-$167.25/credit
NMSU is 184.50/credit if you only take 16 credits a semester (it goes down if you take more).
I think the above quoted cost includes room and board, books and transportation.?ÿ
For those that say a four year degree is not worth it, you are probably mid to late career and/or in a state with no 4 year degree requirement.?ÿ For those just starting?ÿ there are a lot more options for someone with the degree, and most of those options pay more. I know there are many surveyors here that have little to no education and have learned to be great surveyors, but that is becoming a less viable path for those that want to survey?ÿand make a good living. ?ÿ
Those prices are not bad. There are ways to go through school on a low budget.?ÿ
I will say that we are fortunate here in AK for having the UAA geomatics program. Every student I have hired from there has started with a good base knowledge of the profession.
I wonder how others find qualified help in areas that have no program to draw from. Of course there are qualified surveyors without an education, but not having a pool of young, eager greenhorns to choose from limits your options.?ÿ
...and I??ll add that every single UAA 2018 grad was hired before they got a chance to walk down the aisle.?ÿ
As an Alfred State grad and proponent of the Surveying program I think that the 4 year program is well worth the money for anyone who intends to become a licensed land surveyor. Total on-campus costs from the college website are $21,140 per year for NY residents and $30,920 per year out of state. Employment rates are well over 100% and most student are spoken for after their freshman year.?ÿ
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Sorry, I do apologize and made a mistake.?ÿ I accidentally went to the Alfred University website and grabbed there rates.?ÿ I thought that was alot of money for the degree.?ÿ I do agree that Alfred is a good college and have worked with many Alfred graduates.?ÿ Not quite on board with the thinking a 4 year degree is necessary though.
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I do have a question though, how can there employment rates be well over 100%?
I agree that a 4 year degree is not necessary for everyone, but I do think a 2 year degree is, mostly because proper mentoring disappeared with the advent of robotic total stations and the 1 man crew.
What I meant by employment rates being over 100% is that there are more job openings and offers available to the Alfred students than there are students to fill them.?ÿ
The students that are graduating from these surveying programs are getting multiple job offers, its just a matter of where they want to live and how good the salary is. I spoke with a couple of the Alfred professors and they told me you have to get one of their students when they are a sophomore. We hired an Alfred student and he said he had about 8 or 10 interviews and they all were offering him jobs, he just picked the one that he felt was best fit for him.
All of these students come out of school either with a two year degree or a four year degree with a very good foundation to build on. When we are hiring we are looking for the college graduates with the surveying degree.
As for Bellingham Technical College, I have found that the graduates from their program tend to be top-notch. My outstanding co-worker being one of them; I think I have it better than any other party chief on this planet thanks to him.
On another BTC note- I heard that the BORELS is looking into the possibility of crediting the BTC students with experience time toward licensure or something to that effect, which would certainly be an incentive for new blood here in the profession IMO.
The only superior evidence is that which you haven't yet found.
Just want to put in a word for my Alma Mater, the British Columbia Institute of Technology (BCIT). It was a 2 year technical school back in my day, its a four year degree granting institution now.?ÿ
Just want to put in a word for my Alma Mater, the British Columbia Institute of Technology (BCIT). It was a 2 year technical school back in my day, its a four year degree granting institution now.?ÿ
I think they still offer a two year degree. The two year degree is for technicians, and the four year degree is for those interested in becoming professional land surveyors. In my experience being a survey technician is much more viable choice of careers in Canada then it is in the US, so it makes sense to cater to both tracks.?ÿ ?ÿI briefly took a job as a technician in Canada, because the pay was much higher then my position at the time as a licensed surveyor in the US.?ÿ
Technically it's a two year diploma, not a degree. But, yes. They do still have that as well.
There is the two year Associate in Applied Surveying degree and the 34hour two year Surveying Certificate.
The amount of jobs looking for people with 4 year degrees makes spending the money worth it.?ÿ
I went a slightly cheaper route and got a 2 year associates degree in Civil Engineering Technology from the local community college before transferring to the University of Maine and finishing their 4 year surveying program. We had a lot of recruitment efforts from companies across the country including scholarship incentives for internships. I plan on finishing getting my PLS license in Maine and then start looking for an interesting job on the other side of the country.