Geographer Job Description

Geographer Job Profile and Description

The Geographer or Geographic Information Specialist conducts research work in establishing the nature and use of various earth surfaces, relating interactions between geographies and cultural, demographic or historic phenomena. Geographers generally use any number of new technologies including global positioning systems (GPS), geographic information systems (GIS), and remote sensing in conducting their researches

Geographer Duties and Responsibilities

• Conduct research on a region, land forms, climates, soils, indigenous flora and fauna , and their socio-political implication to  human activities within a given area.
• Use GIS and GPS to track population growth and movements, traffic patterns, environmental hazards, natural resources, and weather patterns, all in digital format.
• Analyze land formation distributions in physical and cultural phenomena on local, regional, or global scales.
• Provide accurate input to cartographers in modifying maps, terrain charts, or diagrams, using GIS, GPS software and related equipment.
• Provide consulting services in resource management and development, market analysis and business location studies, environmental trends, and urban social planning.
• Conduct lectures and speaking engagements in seminars and conferences.

Geographer Skills and Specifications

• Must have the unique analytical and deductive reasoning abilities
• Must have excellent organizational skills for sorting through geographic research findings
• Must have strong computer literacy in using advance software and hardware technologies
• Must have excellent verbal and written communication skills

Geographer Education and Qualifications

• A master’s degree in the social sciences, with a basic BS degree in statistics, mathematics, and political science is basic for a position in research or the academe.
• A PhD is an advantage in research but is a basis requirement  for a teaching profession
• 6-9 years of experience in the research or teaching faculty is an advantage

Geographer Salary

In 2009, the Federal Government’s average annual salary for Geographers stood at $79,223. Beginning salaries were higher in some states than others, considering that some generally and statistically have higher local pay levels.