Set an antenna over a mark
Center the antenna over the survey mark, then note its height and model before logging satellite signals.
Career profile
Geodetic Surveyor
Geodetic surveyors fix survey marks across large regions in one frame fitted to Earth's curve.
Readings miles apart have to fit together as one set. Geodetic surveyors help by setting dependable anchor points that maps and engineering work rely on.
A day in the life
Solve coordinates for a network
Work out coordinates for a linked network of marks so every project reading rests on one steady base.
Chase down a reading that disagrees
Compare repeat readings, and if they do not meet project precision, review the setup and schedule a remeasure.
Log each mark in the database
Enter coordinates, mark descriptions and quality-check results in the survey database for others to understand and use later.
Quick facts
Bachelor's degree
United States · 2026
$75,440 median
United States · May 2025
5.8% growth
United States · 2025–2035
Quick orientation
Preparation, pay & outlook
Preparation
Bachelor's degreeTypical preparation; substantial practical learning also matters.
Pay
$75,440 median$36.27 an hour for all surveyors. Pay is not reported separately for geodetic surveyors.
Outlook
5.8% growthProjected for all surveyors, 2025–2035; no separate geodetic projection is reported.
Fit, tradeoffs & changing tools
You might like this if…
- You enjoy finding why two calculations disagree.
- You like connecting measurements outdoors with work at a computer.
- You are willing to check a result before calling it finished.
Things to weigh
- Field assignments can mean bad weather, carrying instruments, travel and longer days.
- A completed observation may need repeating. Careful checking can take longer than collecting the first measurement.
Where AI may help
The Online Positioning User Service (OPUS) can turn survey-grade satellite observations into coordinates tied to the national reference system.
What people still lead
You check the antenna information and whether the results are usable. Software cannot detect every incorrect input.
What we can’t predict yet
How much checking future tools can take over remains uncertain, especially when poor observations and setup mistakes produce plausible results.
Pay in context
Earnings
Geodetic-surveyor pay is not reported separately. The national figures below cover all surveyors.
Median and national spread
In May 2025, the median was $75,440 a year, or $36.27 an hour. The 10th-percentile wage was $46,880 and the 90th-percentile wage was $125,590. Those are positions in the wage distribution, not starting and senior salaries.
Openings across surveying
Employment is projected to grow 5.8% from 2025 to 2035, with about 3,100 openings annually across all surveyors. Openings include replacement needs as well as growth.
Getting started
Study surveying or a surveying-focused engineering degree
- What the route involves
- Study surveying, including geodetic measurements and survey calculations. A civil engineering degree with a surveying emphasis is another option.
- What it can lead to
- A qualifying degree can meet the basic education requirement for federal land-surveying positions that include this work.
- What to check
- Federal civil engineering applicants need specified surveying, land-law and related coursework. Check the vacancy's full requirements before choosing courses.
Build experience as a surveying technician
- What the route involves
- Join a survey crew and learn measurement and recordkeeping under an experienced surveyor.
- What it can lead to
- Practical experience can support a later move into surveyor work; seek projects involving reference points and coordinate networks to develop toward geodetic work.
- What to check
- This is not an automatic substitute for a degree. Further education, experience and state requirements depend on the position and intended practice.
Build both the mathematics and the measurement skills. Look for study or work that includes geodetic control and coordinate calculations.
After entry
Career paths
This starts where the entry routes leave off: early work, growing capability, and advancement or specialization. This path also has a credential or licensing boundary; see the requirements and limits.
Make your measurements repeatable
Get consistent with antenna records, repeat observations and reviewing processing reports.
Resolve coordinate mismatches
Develop the judgment to reconcile measurements and work between coordinate systems.
Lead geodetic projects
Plan crew work, advise on measurement methods and train others to check results.
Where you can work
Geodetic field teams
Federal field projects can support airport charts and coastal mapping. You work where observations are needed, with equipment logistics, weather and travel shaping the day.
- Field work
- Outdoors
- Travel
- Physical demands
Reference-system offices
At the National Geodetic Survey, office teams maintain the network of continuously operating reference stations and guide field projects. The emphasis is keeping shared positioning data usable across many projects.
- Office
- Indoors
Try it
See whether the job clicks before you commit to the path.
On graph paper, mark three points. Give their coordinates from the lower-left corner, then move the origin two squares right and recalculate. Explain why the numbers changed although the points did not. See whether sorting out reference systems interests you.
Sources
- O*NET OnLine. Geodetic Surveyors — 17-1022.01. Accessed 2026-10-11.
- NOAA National Geodetic Survey. Datums and Reference Frames. Accessed 2026-10-11.
- NOAA National Geodetic Survey. OPUS: About the Online Positioning User Service. Accessed 2026-10-11.
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Occupational Outlook Handbook: Surveyors. Accessed 2026-10-11.
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. May 2025 Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics: National Surveyors estimates, SOC 17-1022. Accessed 2026-09-29.
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Employment Projections Table 1.2: Surveyors, 2025–2035. Accessed 2026-09-29.
- U.S. Office of Personnel Management. Land Surveying Series 1373: Qualification Requirements. Accessed 2026-10-11.
- National Council of Examiners for Engineering and Surveying. Licensure: Surveying. Accessed 2026-10-11.
- NOAA National Geodetic Survey. NGS Divisions. Accessed 2026-10-11.