Hello fellow surveyors!
(I'm not sure i'm posting this in the right place, if not then id be happy if mod could move it)
I'm real happy to be Ā part of this community! I'm a swedish surveyor and my plan is to relocate to Australia or New Zealand in the near future. I'm hoping to get some advice on how to increase my chances. I've started following a lot of companies on LinkedIn to get an idea of what they're after. When I arrive in Australia I will have (a part from aĀ bachelor's degree in technical surveying) at least one year of experience from a large, nationally recognized, Swedish surveying company.Ā
I'd be happy to have any of the following questions answered:Ā
What are my chances of getting a surveying job in Australia, considering I won't be a licensed surveyor?Ā
Would you recommend that i stay here and get some more experience before heading over? In that case, how much experience would be sufficient?
My plan is to arrive on a working holiday visa (which permits me to work for one year, 6 months for the same company) but there is a skilled occupations list where basically land surveyors can get a permanent work permit(?). Should i invest time and money in this bureaucratic workpermit-process to start with or postpone it till i've gotten a surveyingjob on the working holiday-visa?
Many companies are looking for experience in a program called 12D, do you know if it'sĀ equivalent to Topocad, or maybe GEO?Ā
I'm guessing the standards differ from the Swedish SIS, how can i get a hold of Australian/New Zealand standards?
Im also planning to take a course that addresses project-leadership before heading over, do you think this is in demand? and is there any otherĀ courses that would increase my chances?
Do you have any other recommendations or tips that I could use to make this happen?
Best regards!!
Sabi
Replies
Hello Sabi,
In Australia, surveyors with local training are heavily favoured by surveying companies due to local laws and regulations. We have several foreign surveyors at our firm but they have local training in Australia. Foreign surveyors without local training tend to be involved only in construction roles.
Surveying is on the skilled visa list but it is flagged for removal. This is because the supply of civil engineers has outstripped demand and civil engineers are starting to be retrained as surveyors. There have been changes in requirements and degree programs to make this switch easier.
If you enter on a working holiday visa and want to move to a skilled visa this will not be possible if surveying is taken off the skilled worker visa list. Surveying firms may not take you seriously if you are on a working holiday visa. You probably should consider going through the bureaucratic process to get a skilled worker visa.
Shane
I am a surveyor in California in the USA. I don't have any solid plans to move, but I have wondered about he possibility of working in Sweden as a surveyor. It would be the exact opposite of what you're doing...that is, I would be leaving a place with a very pleasant climate (I often work by the beaches in San Diego...it's wonderful!) to work up near the Arctic circle (what am I thinking?) Most of my experience is in route surveying for the Dept. of Transportation ( Caltrans) . I am Mexican-American and I am nearly fluent in Swedish (en konstig blandning, vad?) what can you tell me about working in Sweden and the availability of jobs/ and requirements for surveyors there? Good look in Australia or NZ. Tack!
-Martin
Hey Martin!Ā
There is a big demand for surveyors in sweden and there are plenty of jobs. I don't really know how work permits in sweden Ā are distributed but if you have a one i don't think it would be too hard getting a job. Different rolls require different education ranging from 5-year bachelor + masters to 2 year YH (yrkeshƶgskola).
Check out jobs here;
- surveyors.se
- arbetsfƶrmedlingen.se
Or just google title + jobb
Surveyor jobs would be listed as; Ā MƤtningsingenjƶr, lantmƤtare (NOT fƶrrƤttningslantmƤtare), MBK-ingenjƶr, mƤt- och kartingenjƶr, mƤtingenjƶr
To find out how your experience and education is regarded id recommend you to contact the recruiter in the job advert.Ā
Good luck!Ā
Ran across this today for a job in NZĀ thought it might be of interest
Cheers! i've been wondering how far a swedish surveying license would get me overseas actually, i'll email them straight away.Ā
A couple of quick things you might consider:
Get to know the other surveyors in these two groups
Off the top of my head, Darren Noble may be of great assistance in Australia
Keep an eye onĀ this page for Surveying jobs in Australia
and this page forĀ Surveying jobs in New Zealand
If you have photosĀ or videos of your surveying experience, upload them to the community and tell us what is going on in the photos... remember that experience is king and you are more likely to be hired if you can demonstrate your skils
feel free to also upload your resume to this post and ill see if I can help get some eyes on it for you.
good luck!
Thank you for the fast response, much appreciated! I'm getting way ahead of myself but i'll be sure to upload resume, photos etc in time.Ā
Sabi
No problem Sabi... also here is another quick tip..
Change your Member Status in your profile to "Seeking Employment" so that you show up here for recruiters....
Specify also in your profile that you are looking for work in Australia and NZ...