Geographic Information System as a Career: What I Wish I Knew

Sometimes I have problems explaining to myself what I do, let alone anyone else! I've just accepted "You're a wizard" as the truth 😂

Hey Katie, I just found your channel and I couldn’t be happier. I just got out of University doing a CS degree, but I’ve been super interested in GIS for years, I’m thinking about the switch now and I’m happy to have found your channel! :)

When I went through my GIS Bachelors program it was right when ArcGIS Online was released and the school I went to viewed and taught it as "This will not go anywhere and it will fail so don't worry about learning it"... 7 years later and after working for Esri for 3 of those years... Look where GIS is... so my advice is pay attention to and learn how to utilize the emerging trends!

I'm coming to the end of my Geography degree and kind of realizing that my passion for cartography will lead me into GIS work. I am so excited to find your channel!

I wish there was a vid like this when I was in school. I definitely agree having another expertise alongside GIS (utilities, urban planing, engineering, etc) or having a buttload of computer science skill really would have helped.

The closing point is just spot on. And if I may say, that applies generally to the field of Geography. Sometimes, you just sit and wonder how to explain how relevant Geography and by extension GIS are to people. It could be a big deal, you know... Thanks for sharing your thoughts.

Thanks for having such an approachable spin on this. I'm hooked! I hope that the GIS space is as small as you say it is - cause I sure would love to meet you at a conference! I'm getting into the space after being a Software Engineer for quite awhile. I became a ESRI fan after attended a couple ESRI Moocs, and attended a conference at the start of this year. Now I'm soaking up all I can in the GIS space to prepare for starting a job with NGA!

I worked at my University's IT Help Desk as a student worker while I was in the process of obtaining my degree. The IT experience I got has come in handy countless times in the GIS job field. It is true that you will be the go to IT person in the office.

Excellent video!!

You may not know everything, but knowing all that you can gives you an edge.

Thank you Katie

Wonderful story. Thanks

Couldn't agree more about the importance of Computer Science/Programming fundamentals (along with Web Development)!

Thank you for the information! I am relatively new to gis ( 6 months in my current role) but absolutely love it and want to make sure I navigate the career field in a way that benefits me the best. Keep up the great work :)

My elevator pitch: Geography isn’t about what you do but how you do it. As a GIScientist I specialize in how to turn anything into something analysable

I found his really interesting, but I quickly found out it's not as easy as j thought it would be. Maps have to meet certain criteria and how layers work.

GIS is a total mistery for most people even though every part of their lives is in contact with it in some way or another

Hi Katie. Nice video there. In my case it is the reverse, I am a former IT engineer (specialised in hardware and networking) and now I want to do something related to Geography. Since school, History and Geography were my favourite subjects and I am still inclined towards those areas. I would say my interest at the core might be in Historical Geography. So when you talked about the "pavement" example for data collection, I instantly got it. Anyway, I am looking at career options in GIS and your videos do give very useful tips. I have subscribed to your channel and signed up for your newsletter. Thank you.

I like your hot take on the data issue.. biggest issue with GIS (locating, processing, and building the data).

Thank you!