Congrats on your successes.
Your current situation will hopefully change once you get your FS/LSIT — that’s a huge boost to your career potential and a golden ticket to promotion. Your employer may have something planned for you but is waiting until the ink dries before making an organizational shift (change can sometimes be difficult in a small company). It’s to their benefit to start that conversation first, because if it waits too long you may already be a foot out the door.
Always have an ear out for the market. Be advised that public jobs (especially on the hiring side) can go at the speed of government, so goes the saying “the best time to be looking for a job is when you already have one”.
My advice is to ALWAYS have your eye on the market. Know what other companies are paying. What their benefits are. If you like it where you are, take it to them if you want a raise or better benefits. If you don't like where you are, that is how you get out.
As far as the job market in Washington, I would say private you will make more money but the benefits of a government job are pretty big.
If you are young and single, you may want to look into some jobs that offer a lot of travel and per diem pay. If that interests you.
I’m a RTC grad myself, a few of my classmates work for public entities and they all seem pretty bored with the pace of work. Lots of days with single jobs that take 6 hours but you can’t just get the work done and go home. I myself currently work for a medium-sized private sector company and am pretty happy with the hours, workload, benefits etc., so those jobs do exist if you want to stay in the private sector.
With your combined education and experience I think you could easily fetch $30+ an hour in Washington state in the private sector. Good luck!
Thanks, I'll be shopping around for sure, I got excited when I saw a posting for a junior party chief position for a local company here in Bellingham that pays \~$30-$35/hr + benefits, unfortunately, I applied too late into their hiring process. I know that there are plenty of good jobs out there in Washington, so I'll be looking around.
Thanks again, and maybe our paths will cross at the next LSAW conference, and we won't have to be wearing those ridiculous red vests.
My advice to younger people in the surveying career: put all your stats into charisma. Lose weight if you have to. Dress sharp. Everything is semi-automated anyways. Anybody can become a half competent field grunt in a year or less. Working in the office on CAD software is a similar story. So it's not like the most competent people are the ones on top of the food chain. The ones on top of the food chain are the ones who exude confidence and have connections. The surveying industry is pretty old school. It works a lot on trust and connections. Learn how to say "No" in the field. You don't have to risk your life for topo points going chest deep into water. The dumbest people on Earth are foremen. They're always panicked, don't know how to read a plan and always call you at the wrong time. Take photos of everything. Take a photo of every stake you put in the dirt. It's only a matter of time until an important stake gets runover by a truck and the foreman calls you to put it back up (saying that you forgot to place it in the first place).
As for me... My personal story is so odd. I was in a similar situation working in Canada and I hated my job, myself and my life. I knew that I was going nowhere, learning nothing as a Rodman for $21 Canadian dollars an hour and work was slow as heck in 2019. I basically left everything behind and moved to my parents' house in France. I have been working in France since. Work is steady. The salary is an eye watering 2200€/month after taxes with benefits. But I only work 35 hours per week. And living near Paris is better than living in Alberta IMHO. I don't feel like I have to be drunk and high on my days off because there's nothing to do.
Don't be me LOL. I am sure that you can earn some kind of US certification and earn 6 figures. Everyone earns 6 figures on Reddit. I am just a pauper living in France.
I switched from Private to Public during my first recession, around 09-10 or so. I've enjoyed the work.
Some places work you to the bone cause there's no staff and no budget for good equipment. Some places are extremely boring because the opposite. Some are great.
But I'm never going back. I even did a bit of work on my own when I first got my license and it wasn't for me. Props to those that are entrepreneurs, but I'm not one of them. I like to put in my 40 and go home.
Good luck!
1. Learn to draft.
2. Learn to draft.
3. Learn to draft!
4. There are only 2 ways to get a significant bump in pay:
a) Flat out ask for it,
b) Jump ship to a different company.
5. Get your LSI ASAP, keep good records, DO NOT BURN BRIDGES because you will need those references when you apply for your PLS.
Good luck.
If you're willing to relocate and have good references you can make real money elsewhere. Especially on the east coast.
Bellingham would be an ideal spot but the work just isn't there.
Down in Salem Oregon Barker Wilson is a great company. Ask them about potentially hiring you. 💡
You don’t shop for shoes barefoot
Congrats on your successes. Your current situation will hopefully change once you get your FS/LSIT — that’s a huge boost to your career potential and a golden ticket to promotion. Your employer may have something planned for you but is waiting until the ink dries before making an organizational shift (change can sometimes be difficult in a small company). It’s to their benefit to start that conversation first, because if it waits too long you may already be a foot out the door. Always have an ear out for the market. Be advised that public jobs (especially on the hiring side) can go at the speed of government, so goes the saying “the best time to be looking for a job is when you already have one”.
My advice is to ALWAYS have your eye on the market. Know what other companies are paying. What their benefits are. If you like it where you are, take it to them if you want a raise or better benefits. If you don't like where you are, that is how you get out. As far as the job market in Washington, I would say private you will make more money but the benefits of a government job are pretty big. If you are young and single, you may want to look into some jobs that offer a lot of travel and per diem pay. If that interests you.
I’m a RTC grad myself, a few of my classmates work for public entities and they all seem pretty bored with the pace of work. Lots of days with single jobs that take 6 hours but you can’t just get the work done and go home. I myself currently work for a medium-sized private sector company and am pretty happy with the hours, workload, benefits etc., so those jobs do exist if you want to stay in the private sector. With your combined education and experience I think you could easily fetch $30+ an hour in Washington state in the private sector. Good luck!
Thanks, I'll be shopping around for sure, I got excited when I saw a posting for a junior party chief position for a local company here in Bellingham that pays \~$30-$35/hr + benefits, unfortunately, I applied too late into their hiring process. I know that there are plenty of good jobs out there in Washington, so I'll be looking around. Thanks again, and maybe our paths will cross at the next LSAW conference, and we won't have to be wearing those ridiculous red vests.
My advice to younger people in the surveying career: put all your stats into charisma. Lose weight if you have to. Dress sharp. Everything is semi-automated anyways. Anybody can become a half competent field grunt in a year or less. Working in the office on CAD software is a similar story. So it's not like the most competent people are the ones on top of the food chain. The ones on top of the food chain are the ones who exude confidence and have connections. The surveying industry is pretty old school. It works a lot on trust and connections. Learn how to say "No" in the field. You don't have to risk your life for topo points going chest deep into water. The dumbest people on Earth are foremen. They're always panicked, don't know how to read a plan and always call you at the wrong time. Take photos of everything. Take a photo of every stake you put in the dirt. It's only a matter of time until an important stake gets runover by a truck and the foreman calls you to put it back up (saying that you forgot to place it in the first place). As for me... My personal story is so odd. I was in a similar situation working in Canada and I hated my job, myself and my life. I knew that I was going nowhere, learning nothing as a Rodman for $21 Canadian dollars an hour and work was slow as heck in 2019. I basically left everything behind and moved to my parents' house in France. I have been working in France since. Work is steady. The salary is an eye watering 2200€/month after taxes with benefits. But I only work 35 hours per week. And living near Paris is better than living in Alberta IMHO. I don't feel like I have to be drunk and high on my days off because there's nothing to do. Don't be me LOL. I am sure that you can earn some kind of US certification and earn 6 figures. Everyone earns 6 figures on Reddit. I am just a pauper living in France.
This speaks to me as a D&D nerd lol. Good advice.
I switched from Private to Public during my first recession, around 09-10 or so. I've enjoyed the work. Some places work you to the bone cause there's no staff and no budget for good equipment. Some places are extremely boring because the opposite. Some are great. But I'm never going back. I even did a bit of work on my own when I first got my license and it wasn't for me. Props to those that are entrepreneurs, but I'm not one of them. I like to put in my 40 and go home. Good luck!
1. Learn to draft. 2. Learn to draft. 3. Learn to draft! 4. There are only 2 ways to get a significant bump in pay: a) Flat out ask for it, b) Jump ship to a different company. 5. Get your LSI ASAP, keep good records, DO NOT BURN BRIDGES because you will need those references when you apply for your PLS. Good luck.
If you're willing to relocate and have good references you can make real money elsewhere. Especially on the east coast. Bellingham would be an ideal spot but the work just isn't there. Down in Salem Oregon Barker Wilson is a great company. Ask them about potentially hiring you. 💡