Ireland is not producing enough surveyors to deliver on its ambitious infrastructure plans, a report for the Society of Chartered Surveyors Ireland (SCSI) says.
The report, entitled Employment Outlook for the Surveying Profession 2026-2029, projects a shortage of more than 2,200 surveyors over those four years if the economy grows in line with Budget 2026. It comes as the Government is looking to ramp up infrastructure expenditure under the National Development Plan and accelerate residential construction to ease a persistent housing crisis.
“The delivery of housing, critical infrastructure and the transition to a low-carbon economy are no longer abstract ambitions, they are national imperatives. The surveying profession has a critical role to play in delivering on these ambitions,” writes outgoing SCSI president Gerard O’Toole in a foreword to the report before warning: “Even under moderate economic growth assumptions, supply is projected to fall short of demand, with shortages particularly acute at mid-career and senior levels.”
He described the “over 2,200″ figure as a conservative estimate “given the research does not include opportunities that arise for qualified surveyors outside of the built environment sector, student attrition or people who choose to work overseas upon graduation”.
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A survey of SCSI members for the report, researched by Róisín Murphy, a senior lecturer in the Faculty of Engineering, Built Environment and Apprenticeship at Technological University Dublin, found that 60 per cent feel the industry is not attracting a sufficient number of graduates.
While the number of students enrolled in surveyor courses has increased in recent years, incoming SCSI president Tomás Kelly said the figures show an urgent need to ramp up the enrolment in third-level colleges and to expand additional pathways to the profession, including through apprenticeships.
“The findings demonstrate persistent and, in some cases, widening shortages,” he said. “Addressing the shortfall of surveyors identified by the report – as well as additional skills shortages in other professions and trades – must be a priority for Government and the industry to ensure the delivery of key infrastructural projects and the National Development Plan.”
In addition to increasing the flow of graduates, the SCSI and the wider industry need to attract experienced professionals from other sectors with strong transferable skills, such as technology, legal and finance, who are looking to pivot their career, Kelly said.
The report finds that the problem with numbers is not confined to entry level professionals. “Legacy gaps arising from the post-2008 downturn continue to affect the availability of experienced surveyors,” O’Toole said.
His comments are backed up by members surveyed, of whom 76 per cent said there were not enough experienced surveyors available.
Kelly says the profession needs to adapt to the new technologies that will, increasingly, shape their work in years to come.
“Digital competence, data-driven decision-making and emerging tools, such as AI, drones and sensor-based measurement, are no longer optional; they are integral to any future-ready practice. With the right training, these tools will enhance professional judgment, not displace it,” he said.
The report also argues that, especially for recent graduates, work in the office is critical to development, not least in developing the soft skills required in the job.
“The foremost skill requirements across all surveying pathways are transversal skills – also known as soft skills; such as communication, collaboration, interpersonal relations, leadership and critical thinking,” says Murphy, the report’s author.
She said SCSI respondents to her survey had identified the “need to prioritise the development of transversal skills, particularly for students whose learning experience through Covid may have had limited or reduced ‘in-person’ interaction”.
“They also believe that increased time spent in an office-based setting for peer-to-peer interaction and knowledge absorption is considered crucial for young surveyors.”
