Hello - I am considering attending graduate school in the fields of geography and cartography and I have joined your listserv to gain some inside scoop into this career path. I am hoping to receive some opinions from professional cartographers about the future employment outlook.

According to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, http://www.bls.gov/oco/ocos040.htm#outlook, employment is expected to decline for Surveyors and Mapping Scientists since "the widespread availability and use of advanced technologies, such as the Global Positioning System, Geographic Information Systems, and remote sensing, are increasing both the accuracy and productivity of survey and mapping work."

What are your perspectives on this?

Dear All

I, personally, would suggest a career path in GIS and/or remote sensing - because -
   a.  There is probably more money in it
   b.  Who wants a cartographer these days?

I look forward to an interesting discussion!

Brace yourselves,

This could prove to be a very interesting thread!

For my own opinion, it seems a pity that world trends appear to suggest that cartography is a contracting career on the downhill slope to extinction. It has always been a very rewarding career for me (excepting the money issue). There is so much more to consider in a career than the financial reward.

I remember being stunned by a comment from a very well paid friend who envied my job satisfaction levels and he said he would trade $10,000 per year to increase his job satisfaction to half that of mine.

I don't think some of us can think of anything more appropriate for our interests and talents than drawing/compiling maps. I can think back to my early when I started, I could not believe that people actually got paid for drawing and designing maps it was truly that much fun for me!

If you are looking for a financially rewarding career then I don't think cartography is the place to be right now, if it was ever.

I heard a respected colleague describe GIS as "spatial word processing" the other day, but there is money in it alright.

I suppose one could look at many careers and ask what you asking out of life, may I wish you luck in finding a path that you can enjoy as much as I do.

To close, an old Zen master once wrote: "Those who work for riches and advancement, miss the reward of happiness."

> I, personally, would suggest a career path in GIS and/or remote sensing - because -
>   a.  There is probably more money in it
>   b.  Who wants a cartographer these days?

You obviously aren't a cartographer, my friend! I don't think the number of cartographers are decreasing, it's the number of unskilled mapmakers that is increasing! I can no longer count the number of amazingly accurate and thoroughly efficient pieces of garbage I have seen being produced by Joe Q. Public with his seven pieces of GIS software.

Cartography is an art, plain and simple. GIS programs are excellent at communicating graphical data and displaying it in a variety of different ways. But there is no substitution for a cartographer's skill and desire when it comes to making an effective and attractive map using the limited design tools in most GIS packages. We have rules and guidelines when it comes to making maps that make technicians shudder. For example, if you have two roads running parallel and they are so close that they overlap, a cartographer would be inclined to move the roads apart so they both can be seen, a totally acceptable solution, one that communicates the data more effectively and makes the map look better. How many of you are shuddering at the thought of introducing errors into your data on purpose?

And I love my work! I have the satisfaction that the maps I make are better than most, I can show any of my work to any of my clients and they will be impressed by it. When I was an employee for another company it was often my responsibility to make maps that would be shown at PR meetings and conferences because they knew that not only would I care about getting the data together, I would care about how the map looked. Cartographers do things to maps that only other cartographers appreciate which makes our products look better, even if you can't say specifically why.

So, cheer up, fellow cartographers! The proliferation of lower quality maps being produced by Joe Q. Public may be a blessing in disguise! The high quality products that we create will stand head and shoulders above the rest and people may yet realize how valuable we actually are. From the rates that I am able to charge with only 2.5 years of working experience, I know that cartographers are highly sought after by smart companies - you just have to find them.

I fully agree with you!

I've also noticed that many "SIG" and "Interactive Mapping" softwares often provide false functions (not proportional symbols, horrific colors and graduations...). They are in fact oriented to geo-marketing purposes...

In my own job as an university cartographer, I often see people who imagine that, "with those new magnificent mapping software" (and the money to buy them), everything is possible with only one button push! In fact, 98% of our work is still drawing; digitally assisted drawing, but drawing!

White I can't speak for the situation in North America, as someone who has been involved in teaching Cartography and other mapping sciences for some years, the job prospects in the UK in recent years have been excellent. Most of our undergraduates have several job offers prior to graduation. Last year most of our cartography post grads had jobs before completing their master's degree and several asked for advice on which job to opt for! The situation is similar this year with students already having jobs lined up.

Certainly starting salaries are not always great and, as Nick says, you are unlikely to make a fortune in mapping (although a few have done rather well). but there certainly are jobs.

As for cartography, I believe there was a doldrums period in the early 90s when GIS seemed to be taking over the world, but cartography has re-emerged as a distinct discipline in recent years, with close links to GIS, but separate. There is a clear distinction between using GIS for analysis and making making for yourself or technical reports compared to producing high quality cartography for publication, promoting tourism, or whatever.

Yes with GPS it has become easier to capture data in the field and digital photogrammetry has less mystique than its analogue forerunner, but there still is a large demand for people who really understand what is going on - not just the basic technical operators with minimal training. And, GIS courses are often weak in these fundamental aspects.

For those who are interested, we in Glasgow offer an undergraduate degree in Topographic Science (i.e. a broad course in all aspects of surveying and mapping ) and postgraduate diploma and master's degrees in either Surveying or Cartography & Geoinformation Technology.

...snip...

I have been a cartographer for over 35 years (now you can work out my age!!). I am trying to be realistic and point that although cartography is a very enjoyable profession, at this time I do not think that I could recommend it as a career path for someone starting out - given the past trends where will we be in 30 years? - I know where I will be!

The problem with cartographers and GIS protagonists are both so hung up in definitions and not quality of work available using both sets of skills. There is a defensive split between "cartographers" and "GIS specialists" that in reality should not be there.

Cartography is an enjoyable profession and should be more so by acquiring and using the tools available using modern geographical systems and new data sources such as satellite imagery. There is a lot of work being done increasing new dynamic forms of cartography and also new techniques that can make map design interesting. There is a great need for cartographers to lead the field in handling geographic data to help "users" understand it. That is part of what cartographic design is about. But cartography and cartographic design is not cast in stone otherwise we would all still be drawing maps in sand or with sticks!

Conversely GIS users should acquire cartographic design skills as well as knowledge about geographic analysis. Just because a machine produces a map automatically doesn't mean that it is good for all purposes. BUT a "bad" map for printed design may have merit for an analyst trying to understand the data. It is important to acknowledge the purpose as long as this is NOT used as an excuse for using the wrong map in the wrong situation. This is part of cartographic design and there is a lot of scope for cartographers to try to influence GIS map output - both printed and digital.

I don see the future for cartographers as being able to handle GIS and geographic data in a variety of forms for a variety of customers.

Look for a good degree in GIS or Remote Sensing or Cartography that covers all issues well. Don't worry about the name just look at the content and the quality of the course and the results.

I couldn't say it better than (third response). I would encourage this prospective student to "talk" to as many people in the field as possible Attend NACIS in October if possible (www.nacis.org). I would add that I cannot comprehend a better field for me than cartography. It is a lifetime pursuit (strong enough for ya?).

Hear! Hear!

It is probably true that it is a little difficult to make real money doing cartography, but with creativity and hard work you can make a living. I make mine perched on a bluff over a gorgeous whitewater river in western North Carolina. I have a life long fascination with this planet, and mapping it is a way of understanding it more deeply. I then try to express what I have learned to others in my maps. It is very satisfying.

Like Webmaster says, quality of life counts for a lot.