As an unemployed individual with a Masters degree and 4.5 years of daily work experience using ArcGIS (as well as numerous other types of experience both in the field and office including state and federal jobs), I am still having an extraordinarily difficult time finding a job. Is there any advice other than ArcGIS that sets someone apart? It seems like it really comes down to who you know and networking your way into a job. However, I have tried the whole getting contacts for help to no avail too so I'm clueless on what else to do. I know there are tons of other people like myself having difficulty so I know I would appreciate getting back on subject as well for ideas on how we can get jobs. Thanks for input.
Amberly Moon On Feb 18, 2013, at 8:58 PM, Silvia Secchi <[email protected]> wrote: > Exactly! We are now all feeding the troll. Let's talk about best > strategies to be successful. I taught myself GIS after getting my PhD > (which is in economics btw) and was very willing to collaborate, rip > my writing to shreds and re-submit to end up with grant proposals that > would be funded (note that English is not my native language). I did > have a great boss who let me be a co-PI while I was a staff scientist > at a research center, and that sense of responsibilities and rewards > being aligned did help. It also helped that my boss was a woman who > had children so when I had children myself I did not feel shunned. But > the point is that those GIS and grant writing skills got me my tenure > track job, because they gave me an edge over the next candidate. For > people working in ecology, it is true that R has some terrific > advantages, but if you work with people in geography (as I do), many > of them use ArgGIS, so that is also a consideration... > > Silvia > > On Mon, Feb 18, 2013 at 8:54 PM, Miguel Cañedo <[email protected]> wrote: >> Seems to me that you completely misunderstood Dr. Olden's e-mail, who (to >> my understanding) just tried to help everyone to reject sexist comments >> like the one originally posted. >> >> I am not saying that this kind of comments should not >> be publicly disapproved, and probably just moving them into the spam folder >> is not the best solution, but I really don't see why Dr. Olden should take >> the blame for it when he was just trying to help. >> >> Best, Miguel. >> >> 2013/2/18 Leslie M. Adams <[email protected]> >> >>> Now, I am the one who must speak up and voice my support for Yvette (and >>> Chandreyee). While no slight may have been intended, as a female scientist >>> I >>> too experienced the responses Yvette cites - and especially the one >>> recently >>> posted by Dr. Olden - as belittling and dismissive. There is considerable >>> gender bias in the fields of ecology and biology and it is important to >>> object to it whenever it arises; whether intentional or not. Perhaps it is >>> easy to counsel "moving on" when you are unaffected by this handicap >>> personally, but to say that it is somehow unsuitable or inappropriate to >>> address on this listserv is ridiculous and dismisses the tremendously >>> damaging effect this bias has on many, many lives. It is also not lost on >>> me >>> that the issue of gender has somehow arisen in a discussion of the skills >>> necessary for landing a job in ecology. I would suggest that this is no >>> coincidence. >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> Leslie M. Adams, Ph.D. >>> >>> Adjunct Professor of Plant Systematics >>> >>> Professional Training and Development >>> >>> University of New Hampshire >>> >>> <http://home.comcast.net/~leslie.adams/> >>> http://home.comcast.net/~leslie.adams/ >>> >>> Home Office: 603 / 659-6177 >>> >>> >>> >>> Adjunct Associate Professor of Environmental Sustainability >>> >>> School of Undergraduate Studies (online) >>> >>> University of Maryland University College >>> >>> >>> >>> Adjunct Professor of Life Sciences >>> >>> Department of Liberal Arts >>> >>> New Hampshire Institute of Art >>> >>> >>> >>> "We can't solve problems by using the same kind of thinking we used when we >>> created them." - Albert Einstein >>> >>> >>> >>> -----Original Message----- >>> From: Ecological Society of America: grants, jobs, news >>> [mailto:[email protected]] On Behalf Of Julian Olden >>> Sent: Monday, February 18, 2013 1:04 PM >>> To: [email protected] >>> Subject: Re: [ECOLOG-L] A Graduate Student’s Guide to Neces sary >>> Skills for Landing a Job >>> >>> >>> >>> Hi Yvette, >>> >>> >>> >>> Apologies, but your interpretation of my suggestion is extremely misguided >>> >>> and flat-out wrong. My response was a cleaver way of saying that you can >>> >>> ignore the silly responses of particular ECO-LOGGERS (some of which have a >>> >>> track record of this behavior) by filtering your emails. Unfortunately >>> >>> your email has added fuel to a series of ECOLOG posts that have very >>> >>> little to do with the original premise of the Blickley et al. (2012). >>> >>> Let's all move on now. >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> Cheers, >>> >>> Julian >>> >>> --- >>> >>> Julian D. Olden >>> >>> Freshwater Ecology & Conservation Lab >>> >>> School of Aquatic and Fishery Sciences >>> >>> University of Washington, Seattle WA 98195 >>> >>> e: <mailto:[email protected]> [email protected], t: (206) 616-3112 < >>> <tel:%28206%29%20616-3112> tel:%28206%29%20616-3112> >>> >>> w: <http://www.fish.washington.edu/research/oldenlab/> >>> http://www.fish.washington.edu/research/oldenlab/ >>> >>> skype: goldenolden >>> >>> >>> >>> "The face of the river . . . was not a book to be read once and thrown >>> >>> aside, for it had a new story to tell every day." < Mark Twain >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> On 2/18/13 7:37 AM, "Yvette Dickinson" < <mailto: >>> [email protected]> >>> [email protected]> wrote: >>> >>> >>> >>>> Like Chandreyee Mitra I was surprised by the comment included in Clara's >>> >>>> list: >>> >>>> "7. ...i am somewhat exercised by your post because, IMO, too many young, >>> >>>> especially, female, >>> >>>> applicants don't bring much to the table that others don't already know >>> >>>> or that cannot be readily >>> >>>> duplicated or that is mostly generalist-oriented..." >>> >>> >>>> This is a sentiment that I have heard before in other venues and find >>> >>>> abhorrent. I initially chose not >>> >>>> to comment on it here, but I do support Chandreyee's in her comment. >>> >>> >>>> However, I am disgusted by the response Chandreyee recieved. To be told >>> >>>> to simply use your email >>> >>>> filter and not worry your silly little head over such matters is >>> >>>> offensive. The concerns Chandreyee >>> >>>> raised are legitimate, and should be addressed with the gravity and >>> >>>> respect they deserve. >>> >>> >>>> I would like to remind all readers of ESA's code of ethics, particularly >>> >>>> principle g. >>> >>>> "Ecologists will not discriminate against others, in the course of their >>> >>>> work on the basis of gender, >>> >>>> sexual orientation, marital status, creed, religion, race, color, >>> >>>> national origin, age, economic status, >>> >>>> disability, or organizational affiliation." >>> >>> >>>> Yvette Dickinson >> >> >> >> -- >> *Miguel Cañedo-Argüelles* >> >> https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Miguel_Canedo-Argueelles/ >> >> *Lytle Lab* >> Cordley Hall >> Oregon State University >> Corvallis, Oregon (USA) 97331 >> http://www.science.oregonstate.edu/lytlelab/?q=home >> >> *Freshwater Ecology and Management (F.E.M.) research group* >> Departament d'Ecologia, Universitat Barcelona >> Diagonal, 643 >> 08028 BARCELONA >> Catalonia, Spain >> http://www.ub.edu/fem/ > > > > -- > Silvia Secchi > Assistant Professor, Energy and Environmental Policy, Department of > Agribusiness Economics > Co-Director, Environmental Resources & Policy Ph.D. Program > Agriculture Building - Mailcode 4410 > Southern Illinois University > 1205 Lincoln Drive > Carbondale, Illinois 62901 > Phone:(618)453-1714 > Fax: (618)453-1708 > > Vous avez beau ne pas vous occuper de politique, la politique s'occupe > de vous tout de même. > Charles Forbes de Montalembert > > The way we organize the modern American university fragments our > knowledge badly. Not only are we divided by discipline, but we are > divided by the methods that scholars use. > Elinor Ostrom
