From Remote Student to Conference Networker: My GIS Journey
Attending the Esri User Conference (UC) allowed me to network and expand my scope of GIS capabilities as a remote graduate student. My name is Jose Rodriguez and I am a graduate student at the University of Redlands (UofR) pursuing a Master’s in GIS and based in Palm Springs, CA.
Join me as I walk through my path in GIS and how I was able to connect with other professionals and peers as a remote graduate student.
Finding Opportunities to Network
As a remote student, I had doubts about how much of the program I would absorb. However, this proved to be an asset for me because I could continue to work full-time and pursue my master’s from Palm Springs.
Being a remote student meant I did not have to pause my current role, and it gave me the opportunity to balance my coursework. I found that having control over my time helped me develop strong time-management skills, which were valuable both academically and personally.
In 2023, I had the fortunate opportunity to be a Student Assistant at the Esri User Conference. This opportunity kickstarted my network and shed light that I am still able to meet and network with people while being a remote student. The Esri UC was an opportunity to come together and meet people face to face who are on a similar journey as myself. I met many people who followed the philosophy of Jack Dangermond, founder of Esri, to be ‘interested not interesting’. I didn’t feel like my graduate experience was less than anyone’s, but rather we’re all in a different sector within geospatial science.
University of Redlands' strong GIS Network
The University of Redlands hosts a friends and alumni reception during each UC as an opportunity for the legacy and future of UofR to meet. During the UC that year I met an alumnus, Edmond Chan. He works for Visual Knowledge, a company that helps nonprofits tell their stories with GIS. UofR encourages alumni and current students to connect with job or internship opportunities, and from this, I started a remote internship at Visual Knowledge.
With mentorship from Scotty Westgaard, the founder of Visual Knowledge, I worked on the Hippo Roller team. The Hippo Roller is a water transport device that helps communities with difficult access to drinking water by allowing them to roll water instead of carrying it over long distances, and improve their livelihood from improvement in access. Hippo Roller has partnered with many philanthropic organizations to fulfill their mission. One collaboration was with Wells of Life, Inc. a nonprofit dedicated to building wells for communities in need based in Temecula, CA. We collaborated to map out 31 wells in Uganda. Through our work, I was able to see each village’s story and the people whose lives were changed by this effort. Our work, as a collection of StoryMaps was submitted to this year’s Esri UC for the map gallery.
The StoryMap Collection can be accessed here.
It All Comes Together at Esri UC
After much coursework and Zoom meetings, I finally arrived at this year’s Esri UC with a submission to the map gallery and looking for my next job opportunity. UC, this year, was a milestone for me because I had set out to make connections and look for my next opportunity just as I was completing my degree. I was glad to once again connect with the UofR Alumni network and I even reconnected with the Student Assistant leadership team.
My graduate experience taught me how remote work creates opportunities to collaborate with anyone in the world. From my classmates in Redlands, Wells of Life, Inc. in Temecula, to my internship coworker in South Africa. I was concerned with the lack of face-to-face connections from my master’s program and internship, but attending Esri UC brought it all together and I was able to personally meet people I work with every day and even build new connections from around the world.
I take home my experience from Esri UC and Esri YPN to always be interested, not interesting with each person one meets. I also learned that being a remote student still offers opportunities to collaborate if you make the effort. For example, go to a conference to make those in-person connections just as I did with Esri UC. Attend face-to-face meetups through professional networks and associations such as Esri YPN. Attending these events will connect you to GIS professionals and start new conversions.