Greetings from Redlands, CA

[DawnWright]

Greetings everyone, from Dawn Wright, Esri Chief Scientist. YPN asked me to write a blog for the mentoring series which you can find at https://community.esri.com/t5/esri-young-professionals-network-mentorship/mentorship-matters-respons.... There is also more fun info about me and blog posts at https://www.esri.com/about/newsroom/author/dawn-wright . So glad all of you in this fabulous network!!!

[efeaizesogie · Accepted solution]

Thank you for sharing, Dr. Wright. Your journey and insights are truly inspiring for young GIS professionals entering the field!

[KrishnaDaravath]

Looking back at the start of your GIS career, what is one piece of advice you wish someone had given you as a recent graduate entering the workforce?"

Sincerely,

Krishna Daravath

[DawnWright · Accepted solution]

Greetings Krishna,

Although my experience is different, in that I went from graduate school into academia in 1990s, I still think that it would have been nice to have been encouraged more strongly to get more coding/programming skills. Back then it was C++, today it is Python for automation and spatial data science, JavaScript for web mapping, and SQL for database management.

[KrishnaDaravath]

Dear Dr. Wright,

Thank you so much for your kind advice and encouragement. I truly appreciate your suggestions about building skills in Python, JavaScript, SQL, and spatial data science.

I recently graduated on May 9, 2025, and I hold an MBA with a GIS focus along with an MS in Technology. I have been developing these technical skills and am currently looking for opportunities in GIS, spatial data science, and related fields. If you happen to come across any opportunities, I would be very grateful if you could share them with me.

Thank you again for your support and guidance.

Sincerely,
Krishna

[DawnWright]

You are in good hands with YPN which will continually post opportunities here and on LinkedIN!