Land Surveyor

Job Summary:

The incumbent serves as a Land Surveyor in the Surveys and Maps Section of the Division of Realty, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Region 3. The duty location is the Fergus Falls Wetland Acquisition Office in Fergus Falls, Minnesota.

Duties:

• Serves as a party chief to plan and perform cadastral surveys to establish and maintain boundaries of Service-owned lands and proposed acquisitions and performs topographic and engineering surveys required for planning and development.
• Researches public and private records to gather information concerning former surveys, patent records, status records, recorded deeds and easements, highway right-of-ways, court judgments, and any other applicable records, statutes, and regulations.
• Records detailed, neat, and accurate field notes as a permanent record of each survey.
• Recovers, evaluates, and analyzes existing survey monuments and reference objects and correlates and reconciles all gathered information to determine and calculate the proper methods to establish or reestablish boundary lines and corner positions as specified by applicable laws, regulations, and court decisions.
• Contracts for surveys from private firms or individuals.

Qualifications:

Required

• Completion of a full 4-year course of study in an accredited college or university leading to a bachelor’s or higher degree in land surveying; or civil engineering with a surveying option/emphasis. Civil engineering major courses include at least 6 semester hours of surveying, 3 semester hours of land law, and 21 additional semester hours in any combination of the following: surveying, photogrammetry, geodetic surveying, geodesy, route surveying, remote sensing, cartography, survey astronomy, land information systems, computer-aided mapping, aerial photo interpretation, and survey analysis and adjustments. OR
• Combination of education from an accredited college or university and experience – – Courses equivalent to a major, as shown in A above, plus appropriate experience or additional education. OR
• Current registration as a Professional Land Surveyor, in a State, territory or, the District of Columbia obtained by written examination. Registration must have obtained under conditions outlined in the National Council of Engineering Examiners (NCEE) Unified Model Law for Registration of Surveyors. Applicants wishing to be considered under this provision must show evidence of registration based on successful completion of the written examinations. Registrations granted prior to adoption of a registration law with qualification requirements equivalent to the NCEE Model Law by the State, territory, or District of Columbia are not acceptable under this option. To be considered equivalent to the NCEE Model law, registration laws must include the four options listed within the NCEE Unified Model Law in the section specifying “General Requirements for Registration” as a Professional Land Surveyor.

Preferred

• At least one year of professional Land Surveying experience that is comparable in difficulty and responsibility to GS-5 level work in the Federal service. Specialized experience is experience which is in or directly related to the line of work of the position and has equipped the applicant with the specific knowledge, skills, and abilities needed in order to successfully perform the duties of a Land Surveyor. Examples of professional specialized experience may have included: Assisting in researching and compiling control data, existing map data and field notes, and other pertinent data to present to various parties; assisting in coordinating and conducting field reconnaissance surveys to recover and establish basic horizontal and vertical control nets of large or small scope; assisting in the development of technical scopes of work and independent cost estimates; assisting in the collection of all available evidence concerning properties to be surveyed and performs duties in connection with boundary delineation; or assist in providing technical interface between field surveying, mapping, and current or planned new technologies. OR
• Have a bachelor’s degree in land surveying or civil engineering with a surveying option/emphasis as described above AND I have documented Superior Academic Achievement. I graduated in the upper third of my graduating class; OR earned a grade point average of 2.95 or higher on a 4.0 scale based on 4 years of education, or as computer based on courses completed during the final 2 years of my curriculum; OR earned a grade point average of 3.45 or higher on a 4.0 scale based on the average of the required courses completed in your major field or the required courses in your major field completed during the final 2 years of my curriculum; OR have been elected to or be a member of a National Scholastic Honor Society. I will submit copies of my college transcripts. OR
• At least one full academic year of graduate education in a related field. One year is defined as 18 semester hours or 27 quarter hours. OR
• A combination of education and experience as described in (a) and (b) above, which when combined, equals 100% of the qualification requirements described above.

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