Do you have Important questions?

According to the WV State Code, the West Virginia Board of Professional Surveyors administers the state specific test that is required of all aspiring individuals to become licensed in our state. The production, administration, and grading of that exam is a complex process and requires a very exacting procedure. In order to ensure the high quality and professionalism associated with licensure, that exam question bank is regularly inspected for accuracy and relevance during this era of changing standards.

In an effort to enlarge the inventory of questions, several individual members of the WVBPS asked if our Society membership might consider developing/contributing questions to place on the exam. This will enable the WVBPS to consistently vary the questions from test-to-test and may even help in the eventual possibility/creation of online testing. Below is a very simple example. Please follow the format and note that it is critical to provide a reference. This assures any disgruntled test-taker that the question came from the listed study guides shown on the State Board’s website and not from some obscure outdated 17th Century treatise!

Question: For roads established before 1933 with no specified Right-of-way width, the width of Class A and Class B roads are what respectively?

A: three poles and two poles

B: 30 feet and 40 feet

C: 20 feet and 15 feet

D: 40 feet and 30 feet

Answer: D

Reference: Compass Land Surveying by H. Sipe, page 25

Also, don’t feel restricted to retracement questions. The test does have many retracement related issues, but as the Candidate Handbook shows, there are several other sections as well. Laws pertaining to boundary issues, recording procedures, Board disciplinary action, current subdivision statutes in the WV Code, tree identification, boundary marking, and technical aspects of geographic/topographic surveying in mountainous terrain are all areas of concern for surveyors inexperienced in dealing with “Almost Heaven, West Virginia!”

So, for those of you who have been quoted as saying “By God, there’s a good question for the State Test,” here is your chance to pass on what you think is important to new WV surveyors. Remember, the National Exam tests a person’s ability to do the math and know the general laws/procedures of the surveying profession. Our State Exam deals with specific things you may not see in Florida, Texas or Montana. I mean, do they even have Red Oaks out there? This may become a good project for our chapter meetings. Each meeting could try to come up with a question for submittal.

The bottom line is that it’s all about making our well-respected profession even better. You possess a vast amount of valuable experience and information, so help pass it on. Please send your material to Kristi Justice (Kristi.A.Justice@wv.gov) and if that doesn’t work, send it to Julnet (wvsps@wvsps.com) or to me personally at jackbooda@westlake-wv.com.

Once again, thank you for your participation, be safe, and keep up the great work.

Jack Booda

Vice President, WVSPS