What is a Land Survey? Updated document now available on the BOSSI website!

Mentoring Surveyor discussion paper

Thank you to everyone who took the time to review the discussion paper. Your feedback provided the Board with valuable insights into the industry's perception of the mentoring surveyor policy, highlighting areas of success and opportunities for improvement. 

Key takeaways include:

• The need to provide a clearer distinction between the roles and responsibilities or a supervising surveyor and a mentoring surveyor.
• Providing guidance to mentoring surveyors on the minimum amount of time they should be investing in a candidate surveyor to prepare them to undertake a board examination.
• Working with the professional associations to develop training and support material for mentoring surveyors.

BOSSI will make amendments in the next edition of the Examination Determination to incorporate these items and will continue to work with industry and professional associations to find ways to support and guide mentoring surveyors to undertake their role effectively.

CPD Compliance Summary

Across the registration renewal period BOSSI received:

Discipline Summary 

Failure to demonstrate ethical and professional responsibilities under BOSSI's Ethics and Code of Professional Conduct

Following the March 2024 BOSSI examinations, a candidate surveyor was found to have fabricated information shown on both the plan and in the accompanying report submitted as part of their examination.

As outlined in the BOSSI Board Examinations Determination an individual may be refused enrolment as a land surveying candidate if the Board is not satisfied that the applicant is a fit and proper person to be a candidate.

The Board determined that the candidate’s actions do not demonstrate the character, honesty or integrity expected by the Board or the public. As a result of their actions the Board made the following decisions:

1.    The candidate is prohibited from sitting any Board exams for a period of two (2) years.

2.    Should the candidate wish to retake the exam following this exclusion period it must be a new project at a different location.

3.    Prior to sitting any future Board exams, to demonstrate and establish good character, honesty and integrity the candidate is required to undertake an ethics course approved by BOSSI.

4.     Following the completion of the approved ethics course the candidate will be required to prepare and submit to BOSSI a written report reflecting on their actions and outlining the importance of ethics in surveying.

Prosecution for undertaking a land survey for fee or reward without adequate supervision

Last week BOSSI successfully prosecuted a company who had carried out two (2) land surveys for fee or reward without the adequate supervision of a Registered Land Surveyor.

BOSSI was represented in Parramatta Local Court by a Solicitor from the DCS Legal team and the Surveyor-General. The matter was dealt with under section 190 of the Criminal Procedure Act with the magistrate finding in favour of BOSSI, fining the company a total of $4000 plus awarding professional costs to BOSSI.

Further details will be added to the BOSSI website shortly.

Save the Date - BOSSI Presentation Ceremony 2024  

New Board Appointment

We welcome Ray Ramage, representing the Minister for Natural Resources, to the Board. Ray is the Principal Inspector - Subsidence Engineering in the Mine Safety Inspectorate of the NSW Resources Regulator. His role oversees regulatory activities related to mine subsidence at operating underground mines under Work Health and Safety (WHS) legislation.

Meritorious certificates for mining surveyors