PLSO The Oregon Surveyor March April 2020

Professional Land Surveyors of Oregon |  www.plso.org 9 Featured Article to college with greater financial means, having worked the summer for a higher wage, which means that the college will achieve higher student retention rates. Higher retention, better employment rates in field, and visible and tangible support by our professional community are es- sential towards ensuring that surveying programs are not dropped by colleges. So what exactly are some of the things you, as an employer, should be aware of when looking for an intern. First, keep in mind that a Freshman student does not have the same skills and talents as a Sophomore or Junior. If you are look- ing for a simple field crew member, then a Freshman will do a decent job. If you are looking for someone who is going to write a legal description, then you may want to consider an intern who is a junior. I realize that you may not be an expert in the curriculum of a given college, so it would be wise to contact someone like Jack Walker or Mason Marker at Or- egon Tech to match the internship’s job requirements with a students skill level. It isn’t going to do anyone any good to have an intern in over their head. Second, please keep in mind that a sum- mer internship is not just a way to grind through a limited supply of people want- ing to be surveyors. I would hope that all employers looking to hire an intern see this as equitable transaction in which both party’s needs are being considered and met. An internship should be an educa- tional opportunity for the intern. Please do not hire interns to catch up on the fil - ing or to endlessly pound four foot curb offset hubs in some massive subdivision in the hot sun. Pounding hubs is part of every surveyor’s experience so some construction staking is completely appro- priate as long as it balanced with other surveying tasks. A small surveying busi- ness which sends crews to a wide variety of jobs seems like an ideal educational experience. I would hope that every in- tern has an opportunity to do research, a little mapping, some simple construction calculations, field calculations in order to look for a monument, along with cutting brush and pounding hubs. If you want to help the future of our pro- fession by helping others to become a surveyor through mutually beneficial internships then all you need to do is to go to this link https://www.plso.org/ Job-&-Intern-Board, click on the green “SUBMIT CLASSIFIED” button and write your classified advertisement for the po - sition. Remember getting an intern is very competitive so I would suggest that you spend a little time making sure you have an appealing ad, but you will want to do this in a timely fashion. There is a much greater demand then there is a supply so please do not wait till the last month to get in on this opportunity. I have found that hiring interns has been a tremendously rewarding opportunity as well as making a lot of business sense. I hope you are able to share in this en- deavor, and who knows, maybe you can find a top-notched worker with a great moustache like I did.  x