Articling (Step 2)

Step 2 - Articling

Once you have received your academic evaluation and have three or less courses remaining to complete, you can apply to article under an Ontario Land Surveyor.

The Surveyors Act requires that all candidates for membership must have obtained a minimum of 1-1/2 years of training and experience in professional land surveying to the satisfaction of the Academic and Experience Requirements Committee. This is done by means of an Articling Contract with an Ontario Land Surveyor/Ontario Land Information Professional. Surveyors will normally only enter into Articling Contracts with their employees.

The standard term of articles may be reduced by a maximum of six months if the candidate can demonstrate that they have obtained suitable equivalent experience prior to applying for articles. Applications for such a reduction are made with the submission of your application to article.

“Articles” is an agreement respecting training and service between a member of the Association of Ontario Land Surveyors (Articling Surveyor) and a student.  The Articling Contract requires that the student become competent in fourteen (14) Essential Areas of Knowledge (EAKs). A description of the EAKs can be found here. The Articling Surveyor must certify that the student has achieved an acceptable level of competency in each EAK. This may be achieved through practical experience, or by the completion of assignments that are available on the AOLS Learning Management System (LMS). Additionally students will be required to take a professional lecture course administered by the AOLS, which will help the students prepare for the professional exam.  This session lasts three days and is held every fall. 

The Regulations state that a term of articles shall be under the direction of:

• a member of the Association who became a licensed member at least three years before the beginning of the term of articles (This provision pertains to a students who is articling in order to apply for a licence as a cadastral surveyor.); or,
• a member who has held a Certificate of Registration for at least three years before the beginning of the term of articles or a person who, in the opinion of the AERC is competent to provide and direct the approved professional experience. (This provision pertains to students who are articling in order to apply for a Certificate of Registration.)

For an articling application to be assessed, we require:

• Student Information Sheet
• Undertaking Form (If required, for corporate employees)
• Names and Contact information of two character references for the student (not a family member) More information is on the current website; should it be here
• Payment (please contact the AOLS offices) Need explicit information
• Referring to the Essential Areas of Knowledge Master List, complete the Candidate Assessment Form
• Learning Plan
• Articling Contract with Schedule “A” attached

If you are applying for a reduction in the term of articles, please also submit the following:

• Application for Reduction of Articles
• Candidate Assessment Form
• Any supporting information evidencing your prior work experience

During the articles, students are required to successfully complete an exam based on statutory provisions pertaining to surveying in Ontario. For a repository of questions compiling these exams, see the Exam Archives under Step 3 Professional Exams. 

Please note that applications for articles are only considered at each quarterly meeting of the Academic and Experience Requirements Committee. It generally takes approximately three and a half months from receipt of an articling request to get approval.  Please submit your documents to the Registrar at the Association of Ontario Land Surveyors at the following address:

The Registrar
Association of Ontario Land Surveyors
1043 McNicoll Ave.
Toronto, ON M1W 3W6

Articling Application Notices

Candidates wishing to article must submit the completed forms to the Association of Ontario Land Surveyors. If you have any questions or concerns about the articling process, please send an email to applications@aols.org and someone will respond.

Application Documents

The following documents are related to the evaluation and articling processes and include an explanatory PowerPoint presentation, Academic Evaluation Application, Articling Contract and other explanatory documents and forms.

Academic Evaluation Flow Chart
A graphical representation of the Academic Evaluation process including anticipated timelines.

Articling Information Presentation
A PowerPoint slide show that explains the articling process.

Articling Flowchart
A graphical representation of the articling process, including submission dates and timelines.

Articling Timelines
A graphical representation of the timelines required for articling applications to be approved at the January, April, July and October Academic and Experience Requirements Committee meetings.

Articling Contract

Individual Requirements Form (Schedule A to Articling Contract)
Must be completed and submitted with the Articling Contract to state the specific requirements for the student, including outstanding academic requirements, EAKs and experience requirements.

Essential Areas of Knowledge (Cadastral) Master List
A detailed explanation of the competencies required for each of the 14 cadastral EAKs.

Candidate Assessment Form
A detailed breakdown of the competencies contained within each of the EAKs. Used by the student and surveyor to facilitate the design of the Learning Plan, and required to be submitted if applying for a reduction in the term of articles.

Articling Student EAK Learning Plan (Cadastral)
Developed and agreed to by the student and articling surveyor to identify student needs and provide an estimated time line and resources required to achieve the required competencies.

Application for Reduction in Articling Time Student Guide
For a previous reduction application sample click here.

Reduction of Articles Form
Must be completed and submitted with the Application to Article if the student is requesting a reduction in the term of articles based on prior experience.

Articling Student Handbook (Cadastral)
Required reference document for all cadastral articling students. Provides a detailed explanation of the articling process and includes relevant forms.

Certificate Of Completion Of Articles

Assignment of Articles Form
This form must be completed, signed by all parties, and submitted to the Registrar, along with the payment of $141.25 (HST included), when a student wishes to transfer articles to another surveyor.

Cancellation of Articles Form
Must be completed and submitted to the Registrar if the parties are requesting the cancellation of articles prior to completion

Schedule of AERC Related Fees
A list of current fees related to becoming an OLS.