On the Job with Amanda Brustad

“I love my job,” Amanda says enthusiasticly. “I get to work outdoors in beautiful weather like this. I enjoy seeing the construction of things being built, and to see the progress.” 

“I am the local surveyor, and there are no other firms that do this between Bemidji and Crookston.” 

An admitted Tomboy, Amanda grew up with the expectation of not allowing any barriers to stop her from seeking and accomplishing her goals. 

On explaining how she came to be in her profession as a land surveyor, Amanda says, “I kind of tripped into it. I got a four-year BS degree in Mathematics at the University of Minnesota in Duluth, and thought, 'Now what does a person do with a math degree?'” 

“I went to work for Georgia Pacific in Bemidji, and just one year later they closed. But this turned out to be good for me, because they offered two years of books, tuition, and fees to the employees through the 'State Dislocated Workers Program' to get additional education.”

Amanda pursued a two year AS degree in Civil Engineering Technology at Northwest Technical College in Detroit Lakes, graduating in 2001. When she applied for jobs, she was encouraged to take the Land Surveyor In Training test which she was qualified to do because of her background in math. 

“I didn't need a Land Surveying degree when I took the professional exam. I was under the old state statutes that only required a BS degree in any field. It is required now.” 

Amanda was offered a position with McGhie & Betts Inc., an engineering firm in Rochester, and worked there for the next five years where she got land surveying experience. 

Next it was back home to Bagley where she began working for firms in Walker and Bemidji. Amanda was born and raised in Bagley, and graduated from Bagley High School. Her parents are Paul and Lorraine Brustad, and her well-known grandfather, Mel Brustad, was Clearwater County Sheriff.

Amanda got licensed as a land surveyor in January of 2010. She began doing a lot with Enbridge regarding the pipeline out in the Minot area. 

“Then I went to work in Bemidji where I did boundary surveys, which is what I prefer,” she says. “After a while I thought, 'This is kind of  silly. I can do this on my own.'”

“I was fortunate to get a one year opportunity at MnDot in Bemidji, and during that time I was able to line up some work, and get equipment. When I finished there in spring of 2013, the very next day I was on my own.” 

Almost every year since going out on her own, Amanda says she has become busier and busier. 

“Sometimes it's nerve racking, going from a pay check every week, versus being on my own. I keep close tabs on things.” 

“When I went out on my own it was in hopes of getting the remonumentation work, but that's ok that I didn't get the job,” she says. “KLD is doing the County Remonumentation project and are very accommodating to get information to me,” she says. She often contacts them for information about a job she may be doing. 

“There are several tasks to complete in doing a survey. First comes answering the phones and doing the estimates. A lot of research must be done,” Amanda says. “With today's technology, it allows me to do an estimate without going out to the property. I can look at aerial views of a property through the County web sites. Then there is job preparation in the office before going out to do the field work. Last is the drafting.”

“People don't realize the effort that goes into finding that corner. They think GPS is some magic tool. Whether doing a section, or a block lot, you have to find the outer boundary, like you do when building a jig saw puzzle. That's the analogy I use when I try to explain it to people. I try to put it in a way that they'll understand. You spend a lot of time explaining.” 

With the modern GPS equipment she says it can be easier to go from point A to point B, which makes a survey more proficient. But everything in the office is just as in the old days.

“We have specific manual instructions we all follow.”

She says she doesn't do too much in winter. She sometimes uses a snowmobile to reach her job sites. Other times of the year she uses a side by side 4-wheel Ranger. Amanda says this is a feature she emphasizes when promoting land surveying as a profession annually to the pre-calculus and trigonometry students to help it sound more appealing, hoping to spark interest in this field. 

Students can participate in the Trig-Star Contest put on by Minnesota Society of Professional Surveyors (MSPS), of which Amanda is currently President. The winners of that contest can go on to the contest sponsored by the National Society. The test qualifies them to apply for scholarships, as long as they are enrolled in surveying.  

“I work mostly in northwestern Minnesota, usually I travel 60 miles or less, but no more than 120 miles. Primarily Clearwater, Polk, Mahnomen, Hubbard, Becker, and occasionally Beltrami Counties. Most of my jobs are by word of mouth, or through acquaintances.” 

To advertise, Amanda has a booth at the Clearwater County Fair, which she will do again this year. She hands out “can coolies” which lists her contact information, so people can call her when they need these services, which she says is very effective. People seem to keep them around. Also this question:

“Do you know how many feet there are in a mile?” she asked me. “Yes, there are 5,280 feet in a mile. We learned that in school,” I replied. 

“Well, that's the last four digits of my phone number, 694-5280!” she beamed. She asked the phone company specifically for a number related to her profession such as this, which was available. 

Another activity Amanda participates in to promote land surveying is the “Night We Light Parade” which takes place in Bemidji in winter.

In 1870s to 1890s monuments were installed every mile in Clearwater County. A township is six miles, and a section is 6 miles by 6 miles, or 36 square miles to a section she explains, a pattern the founding fathers used for the United States. Nothing is “exactly a mile” but there are correction lines in place on the west and north sides as a means of correcting shortfalls. 

While there are highlights, as with any profession there are challenges too. The weather can be one of those, and encounters with unexpected wildlife such as Amanda had a couple of years ago. 

“I walked into a black bear north of Gully,” she recalls. “It was spring, and maybe he wasn't fully out of hibernation. I slowly backed up and walked away to my truck.” 

“Mosquitoes and wood ticks can be a challenge too.” 

Also, she says land survey work is very challenging physically, especially the field part of it. 

“As I get older, I want to bring someone along to help with things. I have retired helpers, Paul Hopke and Gary Halseth, and a young man Kole Ingersoll, all from Bagley. I'm very appreciative of these three. And my parents help with various tasks. Mom goes out in the field with me at times, and reads legal descriptions. Dad is my runner. He goes to pick up my supplies.” 

“I would like a young person to take over the field part at some time. There is a lot of accuracy involved, and I need to be able to trust they are doing it correctly. It's hard to find someone interested in doing this career from this area.” 

Besides her land surveying career, Amanda serves on the Bagley City Park Board, volunteer Fire Department (for nine years this July), is a First Responder and Certified EMT.  

“Putting the fires out is the easy part,” Amanda says as an active fire fighter. “It's dealing with the tragedies of people you know that's hard.” 

A special accomplishment Amanda did was the surveying and layout for the Clearwater Veterans Memorial. She is also a member of the Legion Auxiliary.