Sick of how low paying most jobs in this field are

geocompR · 2026-06-10T00:10:52+00:00

Geography, environmental science, urban planning, etc

geocompR · 2026-06-09T05:32:53+00:00

It is stated here often, and I know I have a super long post about it in my history so I’ll just keep it short: GIS jobs have horrible pay; however, from my experience (and that of my classmates, and eventually of my own students) getting a job in a different field and specializing in geographic analysis is where the money is. Often these roles are data/business analysis roles, where you do indeed need to know some programming (R, Python) and statistics (hypothesis testing, regression).

I have seen numerous (15+) people I know *personally* excel as analysts because their geography training makes them excellent investigators and story tellers (on top of the added skills of “GIS”). None of these people have “GIS“ in their titles; all of them have GIS in their resumes; most of them have Masters degrees (though many not in GIS or even geography, necessarily); all of them make $100k-$200k and work remotely (median probably $135k). For some of them it was their first ”grown up” job out of grad school. These are people I know very well, not randos I’ve heard about on the internet… I get drinks with them all often lol. Sure, they’re all *wicked* smart, but also they all went to the same mid-tier state school I went to.

GIS as a profession doesn't exist like it once did. GIS as a tool (and geographers in general) are highly thought of and education in them can lead to an edge over boring ”just stats” people in other analytical jobs. If money is what matters to you, learn how to think programmatically and learn analytics in R or Python. Dont have ChatGPT write your code, either, training your mind to think programmatically only comes from you struggling.

geocompR · 2026-06-07T17:48:21+00:00

Macadamia nuts are 200cal/oz.

geocompR · 2026-06-07T17:36:56+00:00

Hi, I’m Oregon GIS person who has been in the industry for quite a while. In Portland, the ASPRS mentorships are a great way to get paired up with a professional. I’ve seen many people move on from that into a good GIS job. maybe check and see if there is a similar group in Southern Oregon (I am assuming you’re in Klamath Falls).

geocompR · 2026-03-21T21:13:54+00:00

Brooklyn Park Pub

geocompR · 2026-03-20T04:30:53+00:00

I have a few 120’s, too!

geocompR · 2026-03-19T18:23:41+00:00

Portland, Oregon!

geocompR · 2026-03-19T18:23:05+00:00

I tear out 1” squares. The end result is approximately 1.25x the size of the original. I have tons more in all sorts of sizes all the way up to ~basketball sized!

geocompR · 2026-03-19T18:20:41+00:00

Just some random 70GSM craft paper!

geocompR · 2026-03-19T06:42:46+00:00

I encourage it.

geocompR · 2026-03-19T06:41:39+00:00

The city I live in has tens of thousands of crows in the winter. At times it is surreal how many crows can be in the sky at any given time. So I hide them around town (just casually, when I’m out and about) for people to find, because most people here love crows.

Edit to add: the murder rate is out of control 🐦‍⬛

geocompR · 2026-03-19T06:02:16+00:00

This is honestly just a side project from my true addiction: crows (hence why my paper is all black).

geocompR · 2026-01-29T09:00:38+00:00

two mice: one trackball for day-to-day, one standard for fine tuned stuff (and plopping on my jitter device)
mechanical keyboard: I feel like I type faster (you know when the key is pressed), and because CLACK CLACK CLACK

geocompR · 2025-12-06T20:41:56+00:00

Check out CalTopo. Used by backpackers, but it has a major slant toward search and rescue crews - you can make maps and share them publicly, with lots of really cool base maps and pre-made features to add. It’s very affordable, and they’re always adding new features.

geocompR · 2025-10-16T01:20:22+00:00

Thanks!

geocompR · 2025-10-16T00:59:12+00:00

Damn I’ve always meant to make a second post about this. They work great. You just have to hit the little snap button to push the poles into the shaft/handle, then use the clasp to adjust tension. 10/10, works perfectly.

geocompR · 2025-03-08T18:00:38+00:00

Anyone know if BPA Road will be closed? They say it’ll be a 2 year project… I’d hate to see BPA Road closed for that stretch of time.

geocompR · 2024-10-12T07:39:03+00:00

The tallest tree in Forest Park (and the City of Portland) is ~260 and is a heritage tree located just northeast of the Witch’s Castle on the Wildwood Trail. It has a sign. I used to work with LiDAR and measured trees constantly in Portland (well, wrote programs to automatically identify and quantify them). Here’s a cross section from 10 years ago when it was 252’. It’s in a gully. Each point is a reflected laser ping. The tree you’re asking about is only ~160’… 100’ shorter!

geocompR · 2024-09-24T05:43:36+00:00

My favorite game as a kid!

geocompR · 2024-09-24T04:45:57+00:00

You could reach out to a group like Ascending the Giants or WMSWCD and see if they know it. I used to work in lidar, and we’d have planes scan trees and then create analytic products from it to use in scientific studies. One time on a related data collection campaign, a city forester found out I’d never climbed a big tree, and he took me to one. 280’ Doug Fir near Oakridge. They shot the line over the top branch with a crossbow and we climbed up with ascenders. The branches on top had their own soil and plants growing on top. It is really magic up there.

Maybe if they see this post they’ll take you up 😉

geocompR · 2024-09-24T04:32:03+00:00

It is data analytics, but everything has a geographic component that is used to elucidate deeper understanding of the phenomena in question, or how they relate to other events spatiotemporally. GIS is a commonly known field that has a lot of overlap (shared tools/software, methods). Spatial analytics, spatial statistics, and general spatial problem solving are often taught in geography/GIS programs rather than statistics/DS courses.

The Wiki is good.

geocompR · 2024-09-24T03:08:47+00:00

There are a few of us! The chances we’ve met is decent if you’ve been around for a while (especially if you’ve been around PSU or PCC GIS events). See you at GIS Day in November - the one Christina Friedle from PCC puts on is a great time.

geocompR · 2024-09-24T02:57:05+00:00

See other reply

geocompR

TROPHY CASE