Senior studying GIS & Meteorology.

Where do I look for highest paying GIS jobs or with the best career trajectory?

I'm open to technical roles, geospatial insights roles, consulting or hybrid roles, maybe intelligence roles, maybe acct management or business development.

I see job postings for $20-25/hr. Is this typical? Appreciate guidance on where to focus my efforts

I’m clipping an orthomosaic using a polygon boundary. When I do it, I see that it looses color. I’m confused if it’s just a contrast/brightness thing or if the mosaic is actually losing pixel values. I’m using the clip raster tool and just have all parameters as default.

I graduated from college in May with a BS in geography, BS in planning and a GIS certificate. I've accepted a role with a local transit system that is something between an internship and an actual job. It's a DOT funded position that's only offered to recent graduates, but it only lasts for one year. Every July, they hire a new recent graduate(usually from my school) to replace the previous one.

My issue is that I have virtually no oversight and nowhere near enough work to fill 40 hours per week. Like I'm actually working 5 hours out of the week before I finish everything I've been given. It's a mildly dysfunctional workplace as well and my boss isn't the most approachable so I don't really feel comfortable or feel the need to bring this up to him. I kind of just feel forgotten about, but honestly I'm fine with it as long as I'm getting paid.

It just feels like a complete waste to sit in this office all day, and I know I want to be a GIS analyst or something adjacent after this is over. I think I'm going to enroll in every MOOC ESRI has coming up, and I've found a ton of different tutorials to build my GIS portfolio into something reasonable for someone of my work experience. For those who have been in the field for awhile, what would you do in my position?

We're remapping the cadastre for our county. Our long-time vendor who maintains it and publishes the taxlot maps doesn't have the bandwidth to do both (1 person shop).

So we created an in-house position to do the remapping (only) and low-level survey stuff (putting him in the Surveyor's department. The guy has an engineering background with some surveying knowledge). Remapper does the work on one index map at a time (using Pro, Parcel Fabric, yada yada) and sends it to the vendor to be integrated into the master. Vendor has been complaining to me for a few months that the remapping work has errors (which he's been fixing) and that it's getting worse. I used to run the project (doing grant writing etc. to do the pre-remapping prep) before handing it off to the Surveyor's department.

So I figured I'd pop back in to the project briefly to see what was up. I set up a meeting with all involved (just 4 of us including the County Surveyor) to discuss it. Turns out our remapper was submitting data to the vendor that he *knew* had errors but figured they were probably irrelevant or the vendor would find and fix them. After digesting that (and trying not to scream into the monitor (Zoom meeting...)) I said annotation errors were also cropping up, to which he replied "I can't spend a bunch of time lining up little arrows and nudging text around." I may have said IT'S F***ING CARTOGRAPHY, IT'S WHAT YOU DO!! out loud, but I'm not sure. I then asked the County Surveyor how many plats he signs off on that he knows have errors. He decided that maybe this is a problem. Said he'd follow up with the vendor and remapper, thanks for bringing this up. Meeting ended, I walked outside and screamed into the Void.

/rant

Hey everyone, I don’t have much experience in utilities so I apologize if I sound unclear.

Does anyone here choose not to use the utility network to map utilities and has that caused any functionality issues? Is it suitable to just use basic GIS to map these out (lines and points) if the area is small enough?

I’m working on a project where I want to build a map-based resource guide that pins agencies offering a specific service. The idea is to make it easier for people to find agencies and access their contact info, websites, and other details.

Here’s what I need the platform to do: • I’d like the contact information to update automatically (I don’t have time to manually review and update each agency’s info on the map). • I want the map and a spreadsheet of resources to stay in sync (so if the spreadsheet updates, the map updates, and vice versa). • Ideally, the end result would be easy for people to use and share.

I’ve been looking at Google My Maps and ArcGIS Online, but I’m not sure which one is better for what I need. • Google My Maps is free and seems to provide better updates for an agency’s contact information, but I’m not sure if it supports automatic updates from a spreadsheet. • ArcGIS Online seems more powerful and might have more automation options, but I’m not sure if I’ll have to manually update an agency’s contact information.

Has anyone here done something similar? Which platform would you recommend for automatically syncing resource lists with maps, especially if I want minimal manual updating?

They just contacted me for an interview the rate is 25$ and it’s a contract for a year. Anyone works with them in nyc also it’s from 3pm to 11pm. Monday to Friday 40 hours a week.

A client to my company gave me an excel spreadsheet that has road replacement to and from intersections (From: x road To: y road). I am searching for a way to generate lines between two points that follow an existing network, but not finding anything with google searches. Any recommendations would be great, trying to avoid doing it all by hand. One person GIS team here so just looking for some outside assistance! Already have all of the intersections mapped out with geocoding services, so just looking on advice on how to connect them without the new line ignoring the way the roads actually flow.

This was after a particularly tricky sidewalk defect duplicate search.

Hi all, looking for some advice.

Been doing GIS for two years, mapping invasive species treatments for my area. Recent changes to life means I need to leave this job, but can’t leave the area I’m in (husbands job, sick family) I live in a very small town with not a lot of opportunities, and I have loved working in conservation/natural resource management, would like to continue in that vein.

With my small level of experience, I’m looking to get some official training, but can’t afford to get a whole new degree for it. Because of my situation, remote work is about the only option other than the town diner.

A friend of mine in GIS suggested an internship and experience over a certificate. What advice would you give? Where should I start looking/learning to continue this natural resource vein I’m in? Any advice??

Hello,

I'm a university student with a dilemma of choosing between the two classes listed below. Unfortunately, I only have time for one. If you have an opinion on which would be beneficial to learn for an entry position, please share.

For background, I'm a Wildlife student with a GIS minor looking to get into a GIS conservation/natural resource position.

Option A: Machine learning with environmental data. Class involves learning elements of calculus, fundamental python, and apply fundamental machine learning to large datasets.

Option B: Geospatial programming with Python. Teaching about GeoPandas, Xarray, and similar libraries in Jupyter notebook. Syllabus mentions software development.

Thanks for helping!

Hi all,

I’m a few years into a GIS Developer role and love the technical side of the work. The challenge is that (at least in the public sector) the ladder often seems to top out at either “GIS Developer” or “GIS Manager,” and I’m not sure what to aim for next.

A few questions for those further along:

• Do “Senior GIS Developer” or “GIS fullstack developer” roles exist, or do dev-focused GIS folks usually end up moving into general web/software development to progress their careers?
• Which industries (if any) actually offer senior-level GIS development career paths?
• What skills are worth doubling down on if I want to keep progressing while staying hands-on? (I’ve been working with React/React Native in side projects, for example.)

Would love to hear how others have navigated this.

Thanks,

On many occassions, sometimes for weeks, I cant even change the names of my data - which is absolute necessary to keep up large, complex structures with much hierachy.

Im not saying the bugs are serious it self - but this example above lead to serious issues on regular basis for me at least. Structure is key and this software wont let me work with it seemlessly. In an environment that demands this - more than most other softwares and areas of digital work.

Just curious. How can a software cost so much when it have these consistently and also often randoomly appearing bugs all the time?

TLDR - Is one offer obviously better than the other?

I have been fortunate to receive two offers for senior-level GIS positions (think non-managerial DBA/Developer type roles). They are both with local government. One is in the Phoenix, AZ area and the other is in the Seattle, WA area. The WA offer is about 140k while the AZ offer is about 95k. I feel underwhelmed by the AZ offer since they deduct 12% for retirement, almost 8% for social security/medicare, have a 2.5% state income tax, etc. WA has no state income tax and they pull a reasonable 6% for retirement (in addition to social security). Sure the cost of living in Seattle is much higher than Phoenix, but I'm coming from the northeast so I'm already acclimated to that. I love mountains, so both locations check that box. Both are hybrid roles, another checked box. My politics better align with WA, but my spirit animal would definitely be a cactus. Given the offers, is my assumption correct that the WA offer is much better than the AZ offer? Anything else I should factor into this assessment? Thanks!

(uni student)

Coming from a computer science background, I was asked a very good question: How did you hear about GIS?

My story is that I signed up for courses too late and one of the ones that I could take is an introductory GIS course for a science credit. Very much a “fate” thing for me.

Ever since taking that course, GIS analysis had only been required in other, non-CS courses. It explains why the GIS advisor asked me if there were any GIS related courses in the CS department- they all have been simple GIS lookups through API calls or using analysis from a layer’s table. Missing the geoprocessing and cartography from the process.

If it weren’t for me being late for course registration in my first year, I wouldn’t have ever found the analysis side or cartographic side of GIS.

What it seems to me is that the majority of the GIS space comes from a background in environmental sciences or civil engineering. Only in the past few months I’ve decided that I’d like a career in GIS in the future (tell me if this is a bad idea). There’s a solitude in feeling like I might be the only one in my CS department that’s interested in the “full stack” of GIS. I don’t know what to expect, but that curiosity drives me.

Just curious to hear how often people in this community actually post on LinkedIn. Is it something you do daily, weekly, monthly, ever?

Throwaway account from my personal Reddit account, just for GIS.

I’ve been in my role for a few months now. I’m the only GIS analyst on my team, but I have a few users who use ArcGIS Pro for some of their work/on their side projects they’ve previously set up.

The most painful one for me is our parcel fabric. Frankly I think the team I’m on was in way over their heads years ago when deploying the parcel fabric. There has been nobody to consistently map our owned lands, much less all of the historic data. We don’t have all of our currently owned property mapped as a result.

And when I push back against some of these users at all (I’d prefer taking baby steps to map assets before deploying solutions with loads of topological rules, for example) they get upset quite easily declaring we need a specific functionality that I doubt will be used. I don’t want to pay and work hard for something someone will look at and go, “neat!”.

Just venting is all. I think alot of my users want to put the cart before the horse and they really don’t like being brought down to earth when I start asking questions.

I am one month into my GIS analyst job at a DOE contractor, I genuinely only make maps, which I personally love. However, I’m not sure I’ll be very challenged by this role and I know I want to advance my skill set to make myself more of a valuable asset to my current or any future employer. I have a bachelors in geoscience with a concentration in GIS. What’s next for me. What masters programs could anyone recommend? Any certifications? Ways to push myself and learn new skills? Thanks!

Currently work for a land management agency and was always interested in GIS/Geography and map making. Looking for a career switcheroo.

Please advise what would be more beneficial. A GIS degree or a geography degree with a GIS minor?

I’m an ME with about 7 years work experience and I want to be someone that works with spatial data to help the environment.

Thinking about the best way to transition, I’m wondering if I would be competitive enough with just an ESRI cert to break into a role more in the area I want (and I would continue education from there). Or if I would really need to get a full collegiate cert or degree to get a job in the field at all.

I’m in a GIS program thru a university and my Esri/ArcGIS Online account was created by them. Well I just received an email that they will no longer offer this degree track as of now, but will offer the classes until 2027 for current students (with a thing for me to sign saying I promise to be done by then or else I’m outta luck) to finish what they started.

The email seems to imply we will lose access to this account (they aren’t sure) and suggested making a new one. I was hoping there might be a way to easily move everything I’ve created, especially my portfolio story maps, to the new account

Basically as the title says. I have some data at the ADA level, as well as a shapefile with ADA information. I want to add census data, but most of the data tables I can find do not provide ADA results, only dissemination areas (DAs). I do have access to the PCCF+ through my organization, but this also does not include ADAs (or at least not the table available to me).

Does anyone know of a site / way to convert ADAs to DAs? Thanks in advance!

Looking for advice about potentially transitioning into a GIS career. I have a bachelor's in geography, but I focused mainly on human geography and only took one GIS class (using qGIS, not arc). Since then I've gotten a master's in library science and have been working in public libraries. I want to leave library work and I'm considering GIS as a potential path. My ideal would be to work as an analyst for disaster management. I live in the southeastern US and have seen more and more loved ones have their lives upended by hurricanes (most recently Helene, as I have a lot of friends in Appalachia). Working for a county or municipality would also be cool, ideally in something adjacent to environmental planning (stormwater management, maybe?) or social/environmental justice. I definitely want some kind of public service aspect in my work, no matter the field. I've applied to a few GIS analyst positions recently, but have been told I don't meet the experience qualifications.

What would be the best way to get a foothold in the industry? I'm considering getting a certificate from Michigan State or NC State - would that be helpful in landing an entry-level job? Is there volunteer work I could do to get experience (especially working around a full time job)?

Additionally, assuming I am able to get in, what are people's experiences of workplace culture and work-life balance in the field? One reason I'm trying to leave my current job is due to a really toxic work culture and disempowerment of frontline staff. I know with any government job you're going to have some level of bureaucratic bullshit, but in this field do folks find it interrupting their ability to actually do their work?

TIA!

Hi all,

With HIFLD Open being discontinued on August 26th, there are 300+ datasets that will either be made inaccessible to the general public or discontinued, you can get a full breakdown here: https://www.dhs.gov/gmo/hifld

Recently, the data has no longer been able to be downloaded. Worried about archival, I spent the past 2 days crawling 340+ available data layers to make it accessible to anyone who needs it. https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1e1ChVODCODzh5wNeXRnUaZkiUHexTUOw?usp=sharing

I originally stored it in s3 but was worried about the technical barrier, so I threw it into a Google Drive. The data is stored as gzipped GeoJSON files, with large datasets split into manageable chunks.

Let me know if there are any questions or issues. A few notes:

1. I haven't had the opportunity to QA the data - it's just me, and I didn't have the time to do it :)
2. The data won't be receiving updates, since HIFLD Open will no longer be updating their public data

Thanks all - enjoy!!

Small shameless plug (I got permission from the mods 🙂)
For the past year, I've been working on a nationwide parcel dataset with frequent updates. It covers owner information, zoning, CDL, etc.. If you work with parcel data, let me know and I'd love to get some data in your hands to get feedback + some case studies. Drop a comment or just send me a DM and I'll get my contact info over.

At the moment I am using QGIS to convert my save data to use in GPSMapEdit which I use to correct and edit data I have recorded, then I use MapWel to create a routable image file and then sendmap20 to create an image my current GPS uses to read.

My issue is I share this data with a few of my friends but sometimes have an issue where it works fine on some but not all. The issue isn't a reoccurring one every single month but when I does happen I feel like I'm chasing my tail. I have tried reimporting my original save data for roads I can narrow down as the issue. I have literally zoomed in to my master image to check all nodes to be sure they are connected with the correct node depending on attached polyline. But still have the same problems and it is literally making me a little stir crazy.

Any help would be monumentally appreciated. Thanks in advance.