A day in the life of a Land Surveyor
Jenny Berrill joined our Geomatics team back in 2018 as a land Surveyor. At the time, she was the only female surveyor in our team, we spoke to her to find out what it’s been like working in a male dominated industry, the challenges of her role and her career progression opportunities with RPS.
Can you let us know a little bit about yourself and your background, please?
I am a Land Surveyor working for RPS within the Geomatics department in Stafford. I began looking for a new career opportunity after finishing my degree up at Keele University. I saw this opportunity pop up and thought why not see what it’s all about. Turns out I love the job. The people I work with from day one, made it very easy for me to fit into the team and helped me progress massively.
What does your work entail?
It’s hard to put that into a sentence as every day is different with the type of work we do. We can get jobs from working on the side of the motorway to being in a field on your own with nothing but the sheep for company. Once site work is done, we then have office time to process all our data to pass that onto the client.
Can you talk us through the training you have received?
Since being at RPS I have been given several different training opportunities, the more recent one being my TSA Surveying Course. This course was completed over a 2-year period, which was completed in January of this year. This has enabled me to gain new skills and develop existing ones, in all areas of our work here in the Geomatics department. As well as the completion of the TSA Course I have also been able to gain my Level 3 ProQual in Engineering Surveying.
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What do you like most about working at RPS?
Some may not agree but I like the unpredictability of the job, every site is different and poses a new challenge, meaning you always need to be using and adapting your skills for the job you are given. The job at times can be quite physical which I do also like. I suppose the boss is alright too.
Can you tell us what it’s been like working in a male dominated industry?
For a while, I was the only female surveyor in our geomatics team and since day one everyone was very welcoming and didn’t make me feel like the ‘odd one out’ which really helped when joining a completely male office. It was a very daunting idea at the time to join such a male industry, and I feel 5 years ago when I joined RPS, the industry was still very new to the idea of females, for example working on construction sites. PPE always seemed hard to get hold of too just because they were ‘female boots’ or ‘female trousers’ but again, I think 5 years down the line the industry is a lot better. It’s exciting seeing more women joining the industry because there is nothing about this job and industry that means a female couldn’t thrive the same as a male employee.
Women in STEMDo you have any tips or recommendations for new employees?
Some people in the office may say make sure you can make a brew, but no in all honesty just be prepared for the warm but also the cold. Yes, this job can be for anyone but sometimes out in bad weather for days on end is a real character builder. Just be ready to work hard and work as a team. That’s something this office is great for; we work together to get every job done and done right.
Interested in joining our Surveying teams?
Are you interested in a new career as a surveyor? RPS are looking for Surveyors to support our highly experienced Geomatics team. Providing an opportunity for you to grow your career with RPS, utilising the latest measurement technology in an exciting and rapidly evolving industry.
