Quantity Surveyor (QS) Training Programme

About this course

Money on a construction project follows the quantities: whoever controls quantities and contracts controls the cost. That is the Quantity Surveyor's job — building the BOQ, managing unit rates, certifying variations and closing out payment files — whether working for a contractor or an employer, in the office or on site.

This 13-session classroom course at the RDSIC training centre of the Institute of Information Technology in Civil Engineering — Hanoi University of Civil Engineering (HUCE) is organised as eight modules that mirror a project's life cycle: as-built records, take-off, contracts, estimating, tendering, quality files and settlement. Exercises follow every module and are corrected in class.

What you will learn

• Prepare compliant as-built drawings and avoid the classic cut-and-fill comparison mistakes.
• Carry out disciplined quantity take-off using current measurement conventions.
• Read and draft construction contracts and understand each pricing mechanism.
• Build an item estimate: norms, material, labour and machine rates, and the total figure.
• Assemble a complete bid dossier and work through online tendering step by step.
• Finalise quality records plus interim payment and final settlement files for a package.

Who should enrol

• Site engineers and staff handling quantities and cost at construction companies.
• Project management, tendering and planning personnel who want the full QS toolkit.
• Students and fresh graduates in construction economics, civil, bridge and road, irrigation or urban infrastructure.
• Learners who already read drawings and plan to move into quantities, contracts and payment.

Detailed syllabus

Module 1: The QS career and groundwork

• The big picture of the course and a QS engineer's daily work
• Base concepts to have in place before the advanced modules

Module 2: Producing as-built drawings

• Defining the as-built drawing and why the design set cannot simply stand in for it
• A step-by-step routine for completing the as-built package
• Cut and fill on site: which quantity is larger, and the classic mix-ups
• Hands-on as-built exercise corrected individually in class

Module 3: Quantity take-off practice

• Where take-off sits in the QS workflow
• The rule of ignoring formwork voids below one square metre, plus a series of practical notes
• Take-off assignment with an in-class correction session

Module 4: Contracts in construction

• The legal basis of construction contracts and documents to verify when drafting
• Contract families grouped by scope of work
• Contract families grouped by price mechanism
• Deep dive: price adjustment and scope reduction under lump-sum contracts

Module 5: Estimating skills

• A correct understanding of norms and estimates
• Estimate layout and the standard preparation sequence
• Memorising norms quickly and avoiding wrong work codes
• Techniques for pricing materials, labour and machinery
• Computing the total investment inside the estimate package
• The estimate seen through a contractor's eyes
• Full practice run: a septic tank estimate with detailed correction

Module 6: Tendering know-how

• How a tender unfolds; concepts and contractor selection formats
• Dissecting the structure of an invitation-to-bid dossier
• Dissecting the structure of a bid dossier
• Practising submission on the national e-procurement system

Module 7: Managing quality records

• Why quality records matter and where they usually get challenged
• Building the register and template set for a package
• Speeding up quality documentation with software
• Assignment plus in-class correction

Module 8: Payment and project settlement

• The mandatory document list of a settlement dossier
• Techniques for the quantity schedule and the payment value schedule
• A wrap-up settlement exercise and the final correction session

Learning format

Thirteen evening sessions held in person in Hanoi, with Ho Chi Minh City intakes opening periodically. Students work on real project files at their computers; the instructor moves desk to desk, corrects work immediately and discusses situations students face at work.

Class photos and videos

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Certificate of completion

Graduates who pass the final exam receive a certificate of the Institute of Information Technology in Civil Engineering — Hanoi University of Civil Engineering (HUCE). Ring 0989 427 809 to reserve a seat in the next class.

Promotions and discounts

Group tuition discount — applied to every group member and the group leader:

Note: this discount cannot be combined with any other promotion.

Discounts for taking multiple courses at RDSIC

• Take two courses in parallel and get 10% off the tuition of each course.
• Your second course at RDSIC is 10% off.

Deferral policy

• In-person courses: deferral of up to one year from the date the centre confirms it.
• Online courses: no deferral; as an exception, students who have attended less than 50% of the course may be granted a deferral of up to one year.

Related courses

• Quantity Take-off & Construction Cost Estimating
• Reading Construction Drawings
• Construction Final Accounts & Settlement

Browse the full list at Construction Courses.