For example, the Middle Atlantic Division of the Association of American Geographers recently sponsored a Career Day that featured speakers from local, state and federal government agencies and private firms. Students who attend events such as these can gain some perspective on career opportunities and meet practitioners and potential employers. Susan Jampoler of GeoKnowledge Inc., Leesburg, Va., identified many growing fields that offer roles for geographers who can apply their solid knowledge of spatial systems and geographic theory to areas such as banking, marketing, advertising, insurance, emergency management, health care, forestry, agribusiness, real estate, economic development, telecommunications, hazardous waste management and sales. Building a spatial database can be the most expensive and time-consuming part of any project. For this reason, GIS professionals can spend much of their time digitizing, manipulating and correcting a database, but this isn't always the case.
Some companies are information gatherers that build datasets for use by others.
As an information analyst with such a company, your job might consist of data collection, verification and documentation. You'd also spend time providing customers the geographic knowledge they need to best use the datasets. Private companies and government agencies at all levels play a major role in creating datasets. Suppose you're a computer-aided design manager with an environmental engineering firm. Some of your time would include customizing datasets obtained from county agencies.