/School of Marine, Atmospheric, and Sustainability Sciences
Geospatial Center

Internship and Employment Opportunities

The use of geospatial technologies is increasingly being used in a variety of fields. GIS is being employed in many different industries and the skills required to be a successful GIS professional have evolved over the years. Below are recommendations on building a strong background in preparation for a career in GIS based on what the majority of employers are looking for. However, keep in mind you will find a wide variety of work and educational backgrounds among those working in GIS jobs.

The starting point in building a successful career in GIS is a solid education. This involves taking a combination of classes in cartography, GIS, spatial analysis, database management, web technologies, and remote sensing. At Stony Brook, we offer not only a minor in Geospatial Science, but also a Graduate Certificate. Depending on the industry of the job listing, that degree would preferably be in Geography, Computer Science, Engineering, or Urban Planning. Job seekers that have a bachelor’s degree in another major should supplement their college education with a certificate program.

Those striving for managerial positions in GIS may want to pursue a master’s degree.The current trend in GIS is customization and application. More and more companies are looking for GIS skills geared toward specific GIS purposes. This could range from an Emergency Response System to an application customized to allow a user to generate mailing lists based on a spatially selected area. As with all fields, nothing beats real-world experience.

Internships are extremely popular in GIS as they allow the employer an opportunity for entry level GIS tasks and, in turn, provide a valuable training experience for the intern.

The only way to truly become proficient in GIS is to simply use it. The coursework will serve to provide a base knowledge of the field which can and should, be supplemented with hands on experience. Once you’ve completed your coursework and have achieved some hands on work experience, where do you look for a job? There are many job sites on the internet specializing exclusively in GIS employment opportunities. 

Employment Opportunities

The local and national job markets for Geospatial professionals are very strong and are expected to grow substantially in the foreseeable future. Geospatial professionals work in a variety of settings, including the private sector (for example, logistics and market analysis), public sector at the local, state, and national levels, in academics and research, and in GIS software firms.

Employers are seeking individuals with the skills and knowledge required to solve the increasingly complex problems faced by today’s businesses and government agencies.

Several years ago, "planning your life's career" meant just that. People tended to learn a relatively narrow set of skills and "settle in" to a professional life with a simple career path and one or two employers. Today, this traditional employment model is fading, and a current professional career may now involve multiple employment relationships, participation in a "virtual" organization, self-employment, or pursuit of many types of jobs during one's lifetime.

The bottom line in today's world is that it pays to be educated broadly, yet skilled technically, to meet the challenges and reap the tremendous opportunities of an information-based global economy. More and more, this information-based global economy is becoming a geospatial information-based economy. Such tools as aerial and satellite remote sensing imagery, the Global Positioning System (GPS), and computerized geographic information systems (GIS) are revolutionizing the conduct of business, science, and government alike.

Geospatial information is increasingly becoming the driving force for decision making across the local to global continuum. Tasks as varied as planning urban growth, managing a forest, implementing "precision farming," assessing insurance claims, siting an automatic teller machine, routing 911 vehicles, drilling a well, assessing groundwater contamination, designing a cellular phone network, guiding "intelligent" vehicles, assessing the market for manufactured goods, managing a city, operating a utility, improving wildlife habitat, monitoring air quality, assessing environmental impact, designing a road, studying human health statistics, minimizing water pollution, undertaking real estate transactions, preserving wetlands, mapping natural hazards and disasters, providing famine relief, or studying the causes and consequences of global climate change, can be greatly enhanced by the use of some form of geospatial technology. The pioneers, builders, and specialists in geospatial information collection and management are trained in such fields as photogrammetry, remote sensing, and GIS.

For more information on careers in GIS, visit the following sites:

Some of the positions you will be searching for have the following titles:

  • GIS Analyst
  • GIS Technician
  • GIS Data Specialist
  • GIS Specialist
  • GIS Mapping Technician
  • Engineering Technician
  • GIS Mapping Assistant
  • GIS Application Specialist
  • Engineering Aide

Here are some of the skills that companies hiring GIS employees will be looking for:

  • Formal training (eg. Degree) or high level of experience with GIS.
  • Strong GIS skills with two or more GIS packages
  • Strong SQL or RDBMS skills including development skills
  • Understanding of and/or willing to learn data and statistical analysis
  • "Hands-on" GIS experience
  • Good analytical / problem solving skills
  • Excellent verbal / written communication skills
  • Good writing skills - for documentation, training, processes
  • Genuinely excited and enthusiastic about learning and pushing technical limits / finding new solutions
  • Good IT technical skills