Majors and minors while at UNL:
My undergraduate major while at UNL was in Geography. When I got into my upper classman years, I gravitated toward the technological sciences of GIS (geographic information systems), GPS (global positioning systems), and remote sensing. I graduated May of 2010.
What were some of you favorite memories of being at UNL and majoring in Geography.
I had many great memories being at UNL and being in the Geography major. As part of the Geography Student Club we got to paint the United States in cement at an elementary school playground where I got to hang out with other people in the club. It was satisfying to watch kids take interest in what we were doing and play on it after it had dried.
A lot of my favorite classes were taught by graduate students who made learning about Geography exciting and fun. I also enjoyed learning about other cultures and taking classes with students who were from another culture from my own.
Probably my favorite memory was winning the UNL Geography Bee with my boyfriend, who happens to be my husband now. We cleaned house!
On and off campus involvement:
While attending UNL, I wanted a good balance of academics and social life. I joined the Tae Kwon Do Club at the rec center, was involved with the Greek system, and also the Navigators. When I declared Geography as my major after my freshman year, I also joined the Geography Student Organization (GSO). I had served as a secretary for one year in the GSO club and found it enjoyable to be involved with others who shared my same major and interests.
When I became and junior, I was a NASA space grant recipient and had a great internship experience at UNL working for the Center of Advanced Land Management Information Technologies (CALMIT). Under this grant I had the ability to pick a research project, use geographic technology in my research, and then present my findings. After that grant ended, a professor, Dr. Rundquist, asked me to stay on at CALMIT and help with his research as an intern. It was a valuable to use GIS and remote sensing to gain real life experience. Through my connections at CALMIT, I had the opportunity to observe and help other graduate students’ research and get inspired. My senior year as an undergraduate I even jointly helped TA a lab for a semester. All of these things prepared me well for life after college.
What have you been up to since graduation?
Since graduating from UNL I stayed in Nebraska as I am a Nebraska native. As you might imagine, the job market is pretty competitive for people in my field being from a small state. It took a little bit of time to get to where I am now, building upon knowledge after each job experience. Here are these experiences:
>> I worked briefly for an engineering company using GIS and GPS.
>> I then worked for the Legislative Research Office with a former UNL Cartography classmate at the state capitol working on the redistricting process after the 2010 census. I helped legislative staff with GIS program questions as they planned the appropriations of population for the legislative, congressional, and judicial districts. I assisted with the review process, and helped with the development of maps that would be used in legislation.
>> After this I worked for the Nebraska Game and Parks Commission, where I continued my focus in GIS, assisting with the Open Fields and Waters Program. This program offered private landowners incentives to open their private land up for public fishing and hunting access since Nebraska is 97% privately owned. I assisted the program coordinator with the annual atlas where digitizing these private lands offered was a big part of the job.
>> I shifted from this specialized program at Game and Parks and was hired full-time to assist the Senior GIS IT Applications Developer to support the entire Nebraska Game and Parks Agency with mapping needs. Through this job I was able to attend many ESRI User Conferences in San Diego. Attending these conferences really helped me expand my knowledge to greater depths. The GIS team I was a part of were recognized by ESRI as recipients of the Special Achievement in GIS (SAG) award. One of my applications even took first place in an ESRI story mapping contest. I was involved in a lot of very cool projects that centered around recreation, planning, and conservation. I worked for Nebraska Game and Parks Commission for 8 years before moving over to my current role the Office of the Chief Information Officer (OCIO).
>> In my current role at the OCIO I help assist all Nebraska state government agencies with their GIS and database needs. We run an Enterprise system where I continue to learn and grow. It is really exciting to work in the technology field where things always evolving and improving. I have been at the OCIO for a little over a year now, and am a part of a great team of GIS folks, that continue to push me to learn more!
What is your advice for current geography majors:
My advice is to get as involved as you can while you are still in college. It is through geography class, clubs and fellow peers that you can hear about what is available for jobs after graduation. If you can squeeze in an internship, it may help make you more marketable after graduation. Talking from past experience, I knew I wanted to work in the GIS industry, but didn’t know the path I would have to take to get there. So, my advice would be to be willing to accept an entry level position if that is what is available and really learn all that you can. Through experience and patience, new opportunities will emerge. Some of my best experiences have been working in teams, as I learned so much working with others and growing my GIS knowledge. The thing I love about GIS is that it can be used in a wide variety of fields. For example, if you have an additional interest in natural resources, there is likely a GIS job for that!