VU Surveying Technology program wins $25,000 grand prize

August 03, 2026

VINCENNES, Ind. – The Vincennes University Surveying Technology program has been awarded the $25,000 grand prize National Council of Examiners for Engineering and Surveying Education Award for two-year programs.

The annual award recognizes surveying programs that have a broad, robust curriculum and best reflect NCEES’ mission to advance licensure for surveyors to safeguard the health, safety, and welfare of the public.

Surveying Technology Program Coordinator Jessica Hess said, “We accept this national recognition with immense gratitude and pride. Our focus has always been on maintaining a standard of excellence that honors the profession. Surveying technology is an incredibly vital, high-demand field, and this award confirms that we are successfully opening doors for both current VU students and alumni to achieve lasting professional success and licensure. We look forward to using these resources to expand opportunities even further."

The award jury praised VU’s Surveying Technology program for “transforming from a narrow, traditional pathway to a comprehensive hub serving a wider student population.”

For VU student Iris Saldana '27 the coursework connects well with the work surveyors are doing today. She also says VU Surveying students all want each other to succeed. She has become good friends with two other students and is building her career and professional network through active involvement in local surveying chapter meetings with those peers and mentorship opportunities. Saldana is also benefiting from engaging in immersive hands-on learning, which extends well beyond the classroom.

She said, “I really enjoyed the field lab day with my classmates. It gave us a chance to get to know one another, work as a team, and use what we had learned in a real-world setting. Seeing our classroom assignments come to life in the field helped everything click for me. I’ve carried that experience into my job, where I’ve had the chance to train new employees in CAD (computer-aided design) and teach them some of the same skills I learned at VU.”

The NCEES grand prize winner in the four-year category was Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi. Read the NCEES press release

VU is the only institution in Indiana that offers an associate degree in Surveying Technology. VU also offers a Surveying Management bachelor's degree and a Surveying Technology certificate. Learn more at Land Resources and Planning Technology

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