Career Options Available to Geography Major

Categories: Career

Introduction

One of the reasons for attending a school is to get a career that will help the learner to make a living in the future. Therefore, many students are concerned about their career options while they are still in school. A major geography student has similar thoughts. However, geography has been found to be the most dynamic discipline among the other human subjects. Students have numerous career paths that they can pursue. After a student graduates with the degree in geography, he or she is likely to get employment faster than most of the other paths.

By studying geography, the students gain skills that are needed in the everyday activities in operations. They are able to make critical decisions that can allow an organization to achieve its objectives. The fieldwork in geography also helps students to develop endurance through working in different environments. These are skills that various employers are looking for while they are trying to get an employee.

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This essay will answer the above question as to the career opportunities that a geography graduate will have.

Geography

Geography is a branch of science that deals with the study of features of land, other physical features, and all the other world phenomenon. Geography is a discipline that seeks the art perfection and understanding of all the human activities. As a study, geography has two branches. The two main branches of geography are; physical geography and human geography. Human geography deals with the study of people while physical geography deals with the study of the atmosphere and the environment.

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As a discipline, a geographer has a variety of areas that they can work. After graduating from college with a geography degree, people often struggle to get opportunities with various degrees. There is a massive variation in geography.

Geography is open to numerous opportunities. Some of the modules that a geographer goes through include sustainability of the environment, political climate, and issues such as modernity and environmental conservation. Through studying geography, a student undergoes field trips, fieldwork, and immense environmental learning. These trips help the major geography students to develop the skills of independence and detailed observation skills. As a result, the student can conduct research work and develop several potential learning activities. By honoring observation skill, a geographer can think critically and understand the context of the broader knowledge.

Geography graduates can decide to work in education, transport, tourism sector, or other commercial industries. Apart from this, there are the advantages that a geography graduates have over the different disciplines. For instance, the skills that are transferable can attract employers from business sectors, law enforcement sectors and financial sectors. If a geography major has direct employment, they can decide to join armed forces, organizations, service organizations, mental agencies or private organizations. A certificate or a degree in geography from a college open the door for a student in the following careers:

Environmental geographer

Geography opens a career path to the graduates in the field as an environmental geographer. This career is concerned with the description of human interactions with the world. It is a job which requires an understanding of all the past experiences and human activities. It is also concerned with the ways in which the societies understand and conceptualize the environment. Environmental geographer provides the link from the physical environment and the human one. Environmental geography also helps the human to understand the reason why there are physical and natural occurrences such as earthquakes and landslides. With the increase in globalization and use of technology, there is a need for environmental geographers to understand the dynamics of the environment and interpret it. Other areas that require environmental geography include emergency management and sustainable political ecology.

Geometrics

This is one of the career opportunities that geography can pursue after completing the course that they are doing. Geometrics is concerned with the practical application of computer technologies to solve traditional geographical problems. Geometrics come from quantitative analysis of topography from the 1960s. Today there are many career opportunities for geometric analysts such as geographical information system specialist, remote sensor, and global positioning system manager and information system sensor. The invention of geometrics has led to the revolution of numerous geographical departments especially those that had been declining in the 1950s. As part of the many careers that a geographer is exposed to, geometrics is one that requires technical skills and computer literacy.

Regional Geography

Original geographer is someone who is concerned with the describing the unique characteristics of natural and physical elements of different regions. This is one of the carriers that someone perusing geography major can pursue. The original geographer is to understand and redefine different characteristics of physical or currencies and how they relate to the human element. With different regions having different physical features, technology is crucial for applying proper techniques in defining the occurrences within the region.

Urban planner and regional developer

After graduating with a degree in geography, a student can pursue a career in urban planning and regional development. This is the application of science in collaboration with geography to develop land that meets certain types of criteria. In many cases, the people that were planning urban cities have to understand the physical nature of the land. There are different types of lands that are exposed to physical hazards such as storms and landslides. Here, geographer and an urban planner come together to identify the different types of buildings to match their criteria suitable for building the structures. As someone who understands the weather and other land forming activities, a geographer is very important in every part of development. Therefore, when the government is planning to develop a town, it is important that they incorporate a geographer. In addition to this, it is historically important in the preservation of natural heritage as they understand the geography of the land before and after the construction of different structures. The planning of towns and cities is one of the broadest career opportunities that are mainly allocated for a pure geographer.

Weather forecast

One of the most open career opportunities for people who understand geography is weather forecasting. This is a skill that applies geography knowledge to understand the weather phenomenon and climate features to predict the future climate. Such a person is responsible for many lives as he or she can tell the hazards such as hurricane before they take place. The weather forecast does involve the use of weather forecasting tools and types of equipment to predict the weather before it takes place. Some of the weather forecasting tools include a rain gauge which is used to measure the amount of rain that a place receives. This information can be used to plan for activities such as farming. The other is a thermometer that is used to show the temperature of a place. This information can be used to gain the knowledge of a place and the types of crops that can be grown in such a place. Weather forecasters are very crucial in planning for the future.

Cartographer

This is the use of mapping techniques to show the surface of the earth. A cartographer can represent the whole earth surface through markings. This technique relies on maps in analyzing and separating different earth activities. A cartographer has the skills to locate directions and locations where different structures are supposed to be located. As an analyst, a cartographer can be employed in an airport so that they read the maps for the planes that are supposed to land in different locations. The skill of cartography can be applied in a game reserve so that the affected animals are reallocated at the best environment where they can be fed and survive. As someone who understands the map, cartographer understands the behavior of different animals and whether they will survive in different environments. A geographer also reads the information from a map and integrates it so that the people who do not understand it can get the information in the best way possible.

Geographic information system analyst

This is a technical aspect of geography that has to be pursued. This is someone who can store the data that concerns the earth in a computer in the form of an accurate information system software. The information that is stored by this software can be used to understand the operations of science and database systems. This is a field that has also revolutionized cartography and other mapping activities.

GIS specialist

A GIS specialist is someone who understands all the subcategories of geography and all the information system databases. A GIS specialist can perform actions such as remote censoring and map analysis. There is GIS software that any GIS specialist can use to perform his or her analysis. Jaya specialist is also important while doing urban planning and development. In government institutions, GIS specialist is called upon to interpret different forms of weather and the reasons why some structures cannot be located in different places. Apart from the other sub-disciplines of geography, the GIS software is used today to allocate all the mappings. This makes the work of those that are dealing with the earth information easier. The use of the GIS software also requires the skills that have been gained in geography.

Remote sensing

Remote sensing refers to the scientific method of gathering useful information about the physical features of the earth through the use of second distance. Most of the data that are used in remote censoring comes from satellite images and photographs that are taken from aerial view. These images are used to show different types of features and any danger that the people can be exposed to.

Currently, many geographers are using the information obtained from remote sensors so that they can understand more details about the earth's surface commissioned the atmosphere full stop this is because data obtained from remote sensing devices gives the information that is objective and gives a local scale. This is also a wealth of information that shows the area of interest. As a result, information from remote sensing allows access to sites that are distant and most listened to be inaccessible. Remote sensing also provides partial information from the electromagnetic spectrum. This provides details that facilitate the study of futures and how they have changed over time. In essence, the data that is from remote sensing can be analyzed in a way that is independent, or it can be used together with the other digital data from the information technology.

Geographical researcher

Apart from being employed by the institutions and government organizations, geography can contribute more to both qualitative and quantitative research. By this, the field of geography is expanded. Through more research, several fields such as geostatic an ethnography are developed. Geostatistics deals with the application of quantitative data to analyze and explore different types of geographical phenomena. They also use extensive practical explorations such as hydrology geology and weather analysis to implement the research findings.

Geography researcher

Logical and mathematical studies deal with cluster and variable analysis. Linear regression analysis and non-parametric statistical tests are all important in geography. Other parts of geographical research represent qualitative analysis or research through ethnography. Ethnography is the use of human-friendly techniques to understand the human geography and cultural traditions of the daily activities of the people. This area gives an in-depth analysis of people’s daily lives. The study ensures that the people live a better life. Therefore, by understanding the traditional aspects of human geography, the lives of the people can be changed through geography.

Conclusion

In conclusion, there are several issues that a student deals with while they are undertaking their courses. One of the main issues is the lingering question as to whether they will get employment after graduation. However, there are numerous options that geography gives the learners. Those who study geography are likely to be employed in fields that are categorical and technical. As such, the competition in the career market is limited for the geography graduates. Geography provides the learner with a mixture of social sciences and the planet's physical properties. Those who study physical geography develop skills on earth's climate, atmosphere, and all the other natural land processes.

On the other hand, those who study human geography are specialists in population’s globalization and other human activities such as tourism and transportation. Such activities provide a geographer with many career opportunities. Studies have shown that geography graduates are among the least likely to be unemployed. This is because of the skills that they have developed through a combination of activities such as problem-solving and critical thinking. A geographer can decide to get into finance, human resource, marketing, and urban planning and development. Additionally, they can choose to be a cartographer, surveyor, environmental consultants and travel agents in different tourist hotels.

Bibliography:

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  4. Monk, Janice J., and Kenneth E. Foote. "Directions and Challenges of Master's Programs in Geography in the United States." The Professional Geographer 67, no. 3 (2015): 472-481.
  5. Moolman, Tiani, and Ronnie Donaldson. "Career paths of geography graduates." South African Geographical Journal99, no. 3 (2017): 252-266.
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Updated: Feb 02, 2024
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Career Options Available to Geography Major. (2024, Feb 11). Retrieved from https://studymoose.com/career-options-available-to-geography-major-essay

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