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How to Expand Your Network Through Meaningful Conversations
Feeling nervous about approaching a company booth at a career fair? Thinking “I’m not good enough to make an impression”? Not sure how to create that connection with the person across the table? If these feelings are a familiar sound to you, then we are on the same boat. From my experience, I find that when I let the…
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Hi I'm Serena, I'm interested in product development and research!
Hi friends in YPN! I'm Serena, a student studying Computer Science and GIS at the University of Southern California ✌️❤️💛. I'm interested in how software products are designed to address user needs and analyze critical problems using geospatial thinking and algorithmic skills. I would love to learn about people's career…
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Networking Without Making It Awkward
Okay so real talk - I didn't really dread the word "networking." I just had a completely wrong understanding of what it meant. Seriously, when I joined this industry, I quite literally set up a reminder to text all the employees about job opportunities. Look. That was me. Clueless, eager, and absolutely unhinged about it.…
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Building Your GIS Network: 5 Tips for International Students
Building a strong network in the GIS space is crucial for international students studying in the United States, especially if you utilize GIS tools in your career as a geographer, GIS analyst, urban planner, statistician, etc. It not only allows for professional growth and development, but it also builds relationships that…
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From ‘Funemployed’ to Esri UC Panelist: A Year of Advice for GIS Job-Seekers
Fresh out of grad school last summer, I was entirely uncertain about what I wanted the next chapter of my life to look like. I was dragging my feet on applying to jobs, and to be honest, I was very much in denial that I needed to actually face the real world. At the same time, I was determined that my next chapter be…
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The Power of Networking at Conferences: For Students and Emerging GIS Professionals
As a young geographer or emerging GIS professional, there is almost no limit to the number of opportunities that await you in this beautiful and ever-growing field of GIS. Some of these opportunities just require a deliberate act of putting yourself out there, engaging and networking with people in gatherings that unite…
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Introduction
Hi everyone! 👋🏽 I’m David Ene from Cameroon, a Geography student specializing in GIS and Remote Sensing at the University of Buea. I’m passionate about GIS, climate action, and using geospatial technology to solve real-world problems. I’m excited to be part of the YPN community and hope to connect, learn, and collaborate…
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"Young specialist" is not an age.
Today I was thinking about what I would like to share, especially with those who are just starting their journey in GIS, geoinformatics or STEM education. I took my first Esri GIS Fundamentals certification course yesterday. It lasted only 2 hours and 35 minutes. To be honest, it seemed too small to mention. I even…
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Requesting a reference for a job search
Following up on Dawn Wright's recent post, "Mentorship Matters: Responsiveness Leads to Reputation", and Lisa Berry's earlier one, "Mentorship Matters: 5 Tips for Approaching Mentors", at the end of this post, I offer a few tips regarding mentorship. But most of the post is about requesting a letter of reference for a job…
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GIS Career Pathways: Software Engineer
Hello Esri YPN community! My name is Tyler Moon, and I am a Senior Software Engineer at Esri. Specifically, I work on developing and supporting the ArcGIS Velocity product. With enough GIS knowledge to understand the customer use cases, combined with a passion for creating reliable and powerful software, my skills and…
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GIS Career Pathways: Esri Intern
If you’re interested in pursuing a career in GIS, you might be wondering: What skills do I already have that would be valuable? What skills do I need to develop? Do I enjoy the technical side of GIS, or the storytelling and communication side? As an Esri intern, I asked many of the same questions before starting my summer…
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Sustaining a nationwide K-12 GIS network: What tangible recognition can we offer to long-term volunteer educators?
Hi everyone. This September, I am launching a nationwide practical experiment for my PhD dissertation focused on developing STEM competencies through GIT across all regions of Ukraine. The evaluation criteria are fully ready and documented in my upcoming research paper. The core of this project relies on a deeply dedicated…
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Fulfilling Event Ambassador milestones through independent local training sessions
Hi community. As a new member, I recently received the official Esri YPN promotional materials and virtual backgrounds, which I am starting to use for my educational sessions. My question is about the tracking metrics: if we host our own independent, grassroots GIS/STEM workshops or webinars for local educators using these…
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Can live media coverage of regional Esri User Events count toward Event Ambassador credits?
Hi everyone. I have been in the YPN Ambassador program for about 1.5 months now, and I have just registered for an official regional Esri User Event in Ukraine this October (October 13-14 in Chernivtsi). As an official Esri Education Blog author, I plan to cover this event to highlight our local GIS resilience for the…
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Mentorship Matters: The Power of Saying Yes
At this year's Esri User Conference, I had the opportunity to participate in an Esri Young Professionals Network (YPN) panel discussion titled The Power of Saying Yes to the Right Opportunities. Alongside an incredible group of panelists, we explored how career growth is often shaped by the opportunities we choose to…
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Building a strong GIS career as a beginner
Hello everyone, As someone who is just starting my journey in GIS, what skills or areas of GIS should I focus on developing first to build a strong career?”
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Greetings from Peru: Environmental GIS, Remote Sensing, and GeoAI
Hello, Esri YPN community! My name is Hendy Huayana, and I am an environmental engineer and GIS analyst from Lima, Peru. I work with GIS applied to environmental monitoring, spatial analysis, Web GIS, and environmental risk assessment. I am interested in remote sensing, spatial data science, GeoAI, environmental research,…
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Introduction
Hi everyone I am happy to join the community from Nigeria. Looking forward to making meaningful connections
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GIS Connects Urban Planning and Data Visualization
It is nice to meet you all! I am new to the Esri YPN group. I had heard about this group for years, but decided to join after attending the Esri UC this month. My name is Brittain Corbett. I am currently a graduate student studing urban planning at the University of Utah with key interests in urban informatics, smart…
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Coffee, Conversations, and Careers: My Esri User Conference Story
This year I had the incredible opportunity of attending the 2026 user conference as a student assistant. This experience was more than I could’ve imagined and introduced me to so many incredible pathways to which I could use GIS. From hands-on learning to professional networking, it was truly an amazing experience I am so…
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From University Classrooms to Geospatial Innovations: My Journey in GIS
My journey into the world of Geographic Information Systems (GIS) began during my university days, where I first discovered the power and potential of spatial data. As a GIS student, I developed a passion for understanding and visualizing complex spatial relationships, which laid the foundation for my future career. Upon…
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How Curiosity About GIS Shaped My Urban Planning Journey
My name is Ludwig Spove, and I am an urban planning master student at Roskilde University in Denmark, and in this blog post I will talk about my experiences learning GIS in relation to urban planning and personal development. The unexpected beginning During the introduction week of my bachelor's in urban planning, one…
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GIS and Pracel Fabric Data
Hello Everyone! I wanted to take a moment to introduce myself to the community I'm new to the YPN Community, but I have been enjoying reading the posts and comments a lot. I work with Parcel Fabric Data. For my fellow mappers out there, greetings! I'm excited to learn and collaborate with others and to continue learning,…
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A Day in the Life of a Water Account Manager
Young Professional Network Edition: What's it like to live a Day in the Life of a Water Account Manager If you’ve ever wondered what it’s like to work at the intersection of technology, environmental stewardship, and community impact, then step into the shoes of a Water Account Manager for a day. Water touches every aspect…
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Establishing a Foundation as a GIS Professional: Develop Your Own Independent Study
Hi everyone, my name is Nico Mora. For the past 11 months, I have been working toward my master’s degree in GIS at the University of Redlands. The university offers two graduate tracks: a Master of GIS, which culminates in an internship, and a Master of Science in GIS, which culminates in a major individual project…