Inspiring Future Surveyors at ITE College East

LLC

8 minutes ago

2 min read

Group photo of eight people at ITE College East: four speakers and hosts standing in the back row, four interns in the front row. — From rear left: Mr Wang Yachang (ITE College East), RS Nicholas Teo, RS Jansen Loi (SISV) and RS Clifford Lee. From front left: Rance, Kai Han, Dean and Matthaeus.

Behind every new MRT line, HDB estate and reclamation project in Singapore is precise land surveying. On the afternoon of 4 November 2026, our team visited ITE College East to give a Career Talk to Engineering students about careers in surveying and geospatial work.

A 50-Year Story, Told to the Next Generation

Registered Surveying sharing his professional experiences

Lee Boon Haw Surveyors has been surveying Singapore since 1975. It began with five people and now has a team of more than 50, led by the third generation of the family.

The session opened with RS Jansen Loi of the Singapore Institute of Surveyors and Valuers (SISV). He gave an overview of the surveying profession, the range of roles in the industry, and the pathway to becoming a Registered Surveyor. Registered Surveyors are licensed professionals, and only they may carry out cadastral (title and boundary) surveys under the Land Surveyors Act.

ITE Students listening to the career presentation from SISV

Our Director and Registered Surveyor, Clifford Lee, then showed what a surveying career looks like day to day. Nicholas Teo, also a Registered Surveyor, joined him. Surveying today goes well beyond traditional boundary pegging. It now includes 3D laser scanning, mobile mapping and Building Information Modelling (BIM), alongside the core skills of measuring and setting out on site. Clifford also covered a practical worry for many students: as AI changes the profession, surveyors are still needed on real ground, and Registered Surveyors still have to sign off their work.

Real Voices from the Ground: Our Interns

Students presenting their internship experience

A highlight of the session was hearing from our four interns: Kai Han, Rance, Matthaeus and Dean. They have only just moved from the classroom into the industry, and they talked about their day-to-day work supporting field teams on cadastral, topographical and engineering surveys, and helping to process survey data.

Because they are close in age to the audience, they spoke as peers. They covered:

Linking classroom theory to real field instruments such as total stations, digital levels and GNSS receivers
Handling challenges on live sites and following strict workplace safety practices
Building problem-solving skills while processing survey data for clients

The interns then demonstrated the equipment they use on site, including our 3D laser scanners and other instruments shown, e.g. GNSS receiver, robotic total station, so students could see the technology at work.

Student demostrating the Navvis VLX2 Scanner — Matthaeus demonstrating the Navvis VLX2 scanner at ITE College East.

Thank You

We are grateful to our hosts at ITE College East:

Mr Wang Yachang, Assistant Director, Engineering – Built Environment, for supporting industry–academia collaboration and inviting our team to speak to his students
Ms Grace Chua and Ms Ertikka Ardid, for coordinating the event and arranging refreshments, and for their warm hospitality

Join Us

Developing local technical talent keeps Singapore's built environment in good hands. We look forward to working further with ITE College East on internships, mentorship and full-time careers.

ITE students interested in an internship or a career in surveying can reach us at hr@leeboonhaw.com.sg