Alumni Spotlight

Graduates of our program secure jobs in public, private and nonprofit sectors both in the US and abroad. This page highlights some of the exciting and innovative work our graduates undertake!

Read more about our graduates' job placement.

Dr. Bryan Runck appointed as the new Associate Director of GeoCommons

Welcoming an innovative spatial data scientist to the geography department’s geospatial group

Luke Zaruba named the 2023 Esri Innovation Program International Student of the Year

Learn how Luke earned recognition and enhanced his professional experience while earning his MGIS degree

A person with fair skin, glasses, and a beard and mustache sitting at a table with a rolled-up map

Alumnus Ryan Mattke Named to National Geospatial Advisory Committee

Alumnus Ryan Mattke (BA, '04, English; MGIS '15), the map and geospatial information librarian at the University of Minnesota Libraries, will be one of the newest members of…

Steven Manson contributes to innovative geospatial research and teaching at the Spatial University

Learn about his passion for geospatial science including his most recent book exploring data science for human-environment systems

Di Zhu receives 2022-2023 CURA Faculty Interactive Research Program Grant

Sensing Geospatial Communities in Mobility Networks: How Human Movements Drive Dynamic Community Structures within the Twin Cities Metro Area

MGIS Student 2022 Awards and Recognition

Congratulations to our MGIS students for their accomplishments in 2022

As the World's First Spatial University, the University of Minnesota is Advancing Spatial Sciences and the Workforce of Tomorrow

By embracing the title of Spatial University, the University is committed to the transformative potential of thinking spatially

Cole Anderson Uses the Power of Geospatial Technology to Improve Campus Accessibility

With his EnergyMobile project, Cole hopes to fill a gap in GIS applications that support the disabled community

Experience Michelle LaRue’s Captivating 15th Annual Borchert Lecture

Dr. LaRue’s presentation, "From cougars to penguins: Pushing boundaries in spatial ecology", is now available for viewing

MGIS Student 2021 Awards and Recognition

Congratulations to our MGIS students for their accomplishments in 2021

Ying Song receives 2021-23 McKnight Land-Grant Professorship Award

Dr. Song receives recognition for her contributions to the department and scholarly field including research that uses the power of geospatial analysis and modeling to…

Carl Steinitz gave the 14th Annual Borchert Lecture as part of the 2020 Virtual UMN Spatial Forum

Distinguished professor of landscape architecture and planning discusses an interactive multi-stakeholder perspective approach to geodesign and negotiation

MGIS Student 2020 Awards and Recognition

Congratulations to our MGIS students for their accomplishments during a challenging year in 2020

Photo of David Haynes Source: Clinical and Translational Science Institute

Mapping COVID-19: Applying spatial database and web mapping concepts to a real-world problem

David Haynes creates an excellent opportunity for students to apply course concepts to the COVID-19 pandemic

A close-up photo of a hand-written card that says "How could this happen in our city?" The card is clipped to a rope by a clothespin.

A City Divided

Through donor and volunteer support, the U of M’s Mapping Prejudice Project exposed housing as a force behind Minneapolis' racial disparities—and led to change.

Jessica Campbell Shares Her Work-Life Balance Story

Managing two geospatial jobs and her personal life is both challenging and rewarding

An Interview with Eric Shook: The Edge of Impossibility

Learn how Eric Shook uses geospatial computing to explore big data for research, policymaking, and uses yet to be discovered

Alysha Alloway standing on light rail platform

Alysha Alloway Recognized for her Award-Winning Project

Learn how Alysha engaged in a variety of activities while earning her MGIS degree

Shaowen Wang to Deliver the 2019 Borchert Lecture

Renowed cyberGIS scholar, Dr. Shaowen Wang, to discuss the challenges and opportunities for artificial intelligence and cyberGIS to transform geospatial discovery and…

Fall 2018 and Spring 2019 MGIS graduates

MGIS Student 2019 Awards and Recognition

Congratulations to our MGIS students who received various awards and recognition in 2019!