You need a GIS portfolio

 

What is a GIS portfolio

 

A GIS portfolio is basically a compilation of materials that documents your work, skill and experience. A personal website that documents your professional journey

 

You are probably familiar with platforms like LinkedIN, Facebook, Instagram and a host of other social media platforms and job portals. Each one of them is a form of portfolio-- it might be your social portfolio or your professional portfolio. That point here is that someone can find out more about you on the internet.

 

If you think about your profile on these platforms you will notice that they are designed to give a brief overview of who you are and what you do. The things that are important to you.

 

The problem with all of these platforms is, you don’t own them

 

While you can customise them, you have very little control over what and how information is presented and you are just another profile amongst a billion other profiles. 

 

There is also an algorithm deciding who gets seen and who gets ignored. 

 

I am not suggesting that you do not participate on these platforms but I am suggesting that having your own website, something that you control, that makes you stand out, is worth considering.

Where should I build a portfolio of my GIS work?

 

Your GIS portfolio should be your own website! With a domain that is either your own name or one that makes it clear what the website is all about.

 

The look and feel is completely up to you but here are a few things to think about

 

Make it easy to navigate

 

Make it easy for people to reach out to you, email, links to social media …

 

Make it immediately obvious what you want people to learn but visiting your site

What should I post on my portfolio 

You want your portfolio to document your experience, what you have learned. Don’t be overwhelmed by trying to do everything perfectly, you are not a professional website designer, or a journalist you're a geospatial professional … document your journey, the things you are learning and the tools you are using.

 

All that stuff you have on your LinkedIN profile, that should be on your website.

 

Those GIS projects you have been tinkering with, write about them, embed videos from youtube about them.

 

Perhaps you can repurpose assignments from university? You have done the hard work, why not publish them as an example of the things you have learnt on your own site?

 

Are you learning new tools or a programming language? This is all great material to write about, document the journey!

How to use your portfolio?

 

Most people simply have a website, perhaps they link to it from social media from time to time but they never actively use it in terms of getting their name out there.

 

I completely understand this, it's difficult to put yourself out there and open yourself up to critique. 

 

To start with maybe you can just post snippets of what you have learned or what you are working on to social media. Document it on your website, take a snippet from that and post it. This will get you used to the idea of sharing your work without opening yourself up to much.

 

Once you feel more comfortable with the idea of working and learning in public, your website should become the “hub”, document of your work and share it from your website to your different social media channels. 

Creating your own GIS portfolio is a great idea! It will set you apart in a way that no other platform can.