PS Surveying study plan
PS Surveying · Give each week a clear focus.
8 weeks · About 7 hours per week
Legal principles and professional practice
Define in writing the five boundary-location doctrines (senior rights, intent, acquiescence, estoppel, practical location) and state when each controls
Rank 12 given types of boundary evidence from strongest to weakest and justify the top four rankings in one sentence each
Differentiate in a written paragraph the conveyance of title from the physical location of a boundary
Compile a 30-term glossary of recorded-document and property-law vocabulary with a correct usage example for each
Your checkpoint
Two-page personal reference sheet on the evidence hierarchy and boundary doctrines, plus 30 self-made flashcards scored at 90% or better on a closed-book self-quiz
Legal principles and professional practice & Boundary and land surveying
Apply the standard-of-care and ethics rules to eight short professional-practice scenarios and identify the correct course of action in each
Outline the required elements of a surveying services contract and a record-of-survey certification
Trace a chain of title through three given deed descriptions and flag every ambiguity or gap
Describe monumentation and perpetuation requirements and how lost versus obliterated corners are treated
Your checkpoint
A 300-word written ethics and standard-of-care case analysis plus a scored 25-question timed set on legal and professional practice (target 80% or better)
Boundary and land surveying
Resolve 15 boundary retracement scenarios by selecting the controlling evidence and stating the reasoning
Compute the area of a metes-and-bounds parcel from a deed description by coordinate method and by double-meridian distances
Restore lost corners using single-proportion and grant-boundary methods and compare the two results
Draft a boundary resolution narrative that cites the evidence relied on and the doctrine applied
Your checkpoint
A worked portfolio of 15 boundary scenarios with a written resolution narrative for each, self-graded against an answer key with 85% or better accuracy
Analysis and computations & Boundary and land surveying
Adjust a closed traverse by compass rule and by transit rule and compute the resulting precision ratio
Compute areas by the coordinate method and verify each result with an independent method
Solve horizontal, vertical, and compound curve elements from given geometry
Convert between bearings, azimuths, and coordinates without arithmetic errors on a 20-item set
Your checkpoint
A completed 10-problem traverse and curve computation packet with every closure ratio computed and cross-checked, submitted with a one-page error log
Measurement and data acquisition
Classify the error sources for total station, digital level, and GNSS observations into instrumental, personal, and natural categories
Compute misclosure and acceptable tolerance for a differential level loop and a total-station traverse
Explain the procedures for instrument calibration, collimation checks, and prism-constant verification
Evaluate GNSS accuracy statements and determine whether a given RTK session meets project tolerance
Your checkpoint
A one-page error-source matrix covering five instruments and a scored 30-question measurement quiz at 85% or better
Measurement and data acquisition & Analysis and computations
Reduce a set of field observations into adjusted coordinates and compare results against known control
Perform a coordinate transformation between two grid systems and verify residuals
Compute state plane coordinates from geodetic positions and identify the scale and convergence corrections applied
Solve combined measurement-and-computation problems that require selecting the correct field method first
Your checkpoint
A reduced-and-adjusted coordinate dataset for a simulated 12-station project, with residuals tabulated and every result within stated tolerance
Mapping, platting, and land development
Assemble the required elements of a record plat and a boundary survey drawing against a supplied checklist
Lay out a hypothetical subdivision that satisfies given zoning setbacks, minimum lot area, and right-of-way requirements
Compute lot areas, frontages, and curve data for the layout and verify all minimums are met
Identify the mapping and platting review steps a jurisdiction requires before recording
Your checkpoint
A complete draft subdivision plat package (drawing checklist, lot schedule, curve table, compliance table) with every stated minimum satisfied and documented
Legal principles and professional practice & Measurement and data acquisition & Analysis and computations & Boundary and land surveying & Mapping, platting, and land development
Complete a full-length timed practice exam under test conditions without references
Diagnose the three weakest domains from the practice exam and re-drill 20 targeted items in each
Reconstruct from memory the evidence hierarchy, closure-adjustment formulas, and plat checklist
Build a one-page exam-day strategy sheet covering time allocation and question triage
Your checkpoint
A scored full-length practice exam (target 75% or better overall and 70% or better in every domain) plus a written remediation list of remaining weak areas
Milestones
Week 2: Score 80% or better on the legal and professional-practice question set and submit the ethics case analysis
Week 4: Complete all 10 traverse and curve problems with correct closure ratios and no unresolved computational errors
Week 6: Submit the adjusted coordinate dataset with all residuals within tolerance and pass the measurement quiz at 85% or better
Week 8: Achieve 75% or better overall and 70% or better in each of the five domains on the full-length timed practice exam