Geographers
Also called: Earth Observations Scientist, Geographer, GIS Coordinator (Geographic Information Systems Coordinator), GIS Geographer (Geographic Information Systems Geographer)Study the nature and use of areas of the Earth's surface, relating and interpreting interactions of physical and cultural phenomena. Conduct research on physical aspects of a region, including land forms, climates, soils, plants, and animals, and conduct research on the spatial implications of human activities within a given area, including social characteristics, economic activities, and political organization, as well as researching interdependence between regions at scales ranging from local to global.
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What the data says: AI could halve the time on 8 of its 12 tasks, and jobs are projected to shrink 2.1% by 2035. In the most exposed occupations, the squeeze shows up first among early-career workers. How to think about this →
About this projection
BLS builds AI into its projections where the research supports it: “BLS generally applies adjustments based on this research conservatively, where there is convincing evidence for a change.”
It also notes a limit: “BLS projection methods are not designed to capture extremely rapid technological change.”
On its AI exposure groups, BLS says exposure “does not imply job loss.”
Recent conditions
- In 2024, 3.2% of people in this work were unemployed, against 3.8% across all occupations Census ACS 2024, all workers in the Census group “Miscellaneous social scientists and related workers”
- From Sep 2025 to Aug 2026, 4.3 hires for every 10 job openings in government, which employs about 82% of people in this work, against 7.3 across all industries BLS JOLTS
One box per opening, filled for each hire; hires beyond the openings are added in a lighter shade. Higher can mean openings get filled, or that people leave often; lower, that jobs go unfilled, or hiring is slow.4.3 this industry7.3 all industries
Median pay by state BLS OEWS May 2025, state estimates
Tap a state for its figures.
Median pay in every state
| State | Median | Middle half earn | Jobs |
|---|---|---|---|
| California | $114,460 | $97,680 to $130,850 | 80 |
| Colorado | not published | not published | 90 |
| Illinois | $92,640 | $64,150 to $105,370 | 40 |
| Maryland | $114,920 | $84,590 to $128,610 | 210 |
| Missouri | $102,040 | $83,390 to $115,920 | 40 |
| Texas | $79,170 | $69,580 to $96,640 | 180 |
| Virginia | $108,020 | $81,230 to $132,620 | 130 |
| Washington | $112,260 | $89,270 to $124,130 | 40 |
Nationally: $102,040. Shades run from the lowest state median to the highest; a territory below that range takes the lightest. How to read this
How AI touches the work
What AI could speed up, task by task, and where people already use it.
AI could halve the time on 8 of its 12 tasks
| AI rating | Its main tasks | Share of Claude conversations May 2026 |
|---|---|---|
| AI + software | Create and modify maps, graphs, or diagrams, using geographical information software and related equipment, and principles of cartography, such as coordinate systems, longitude, latitude, elevation, topography, and map scales. | under 0.01% |
| Not much | Teach geography. | Not published |
| Not much | Gather and compile geographic data from sources such as censuses, field observations, satellite imagery, aerial photographs, and existing maps. | Not published |
| AI alone | Write and present reports of research findings. | Not published |
| AI + software | Study the economic, political, and cultural characteristics of a specific region's population. | Not published |
| AI + software | Analyze geographic distributions of physical and cultural phenomena on local, regional, continental, or global scales. | Not published |
See all 12 tasks
| AI + software | Locate and obtain existing geographic information databases. | Not published |
| Not much | Conduct field work at outdoor sites. | Not published |
| AI + software | Develop, operate, and maintain geographical information computer systems, including hardware, software, plotters, digitizers, printers, and video cameras. | Not published |
| Not much | Collect data on physical characteristics of specified areas, such as geological formations, climates, and vegetation, using surveying or meteorological equipment. | Not published |
| AI + software | Provide geographical information systems support to the private and public sectors. | Not published |
| AI + software | Provide consulting services in fields such as resource development and management, business location and market area analysis, environmental hazards, regional cultural history, and urban social planning. | 0.03% |
Ordered by how important O*NET's respondents rate each task (1 to 5) times the share who say it is part of their job. The ordering is ours. 2 of the 12 have a published share of Claude conversations; “not published” means too few conversations for Anthropic to publish a figure.
Where people already use AI
The tasks above say what AI could speed up. This shows what people are using it for. Its 12 tasks fall under 9 work activities that many occupations share, and Microsoft counted how often each one came up in 200,000 conversations with its Copilot assistant in 2024.
- #1 Gather information from physical or electronic sources
- #14 Create visual designs or displays
- #18 Research historical or social issues
- and 2 more, in the table below
| Work activity | This occupation's tasks under it | People asked AI for help in 10,000 conversations |
AI did it for them in 10,000 conversations |
|---|---|---|---|
| Collect environmental or biological samples | |||
| Research historical or social issues | |||
| Design computer or information systems or applications | |||
| Gather information from physical or electronic sources | |||
| Create visual designs or displays | |||
| Present research or technical information | |||
| Compile records, documentation, or other data | |||
| Teach academic or vocational subjects |
Show all 9 activities
| Advise others on business or operational matters |
How people in this work use Claude
What people in this work made with Claude % of conversations
- A plan or strategy21%
- Advice or a recommendation19%
- A document or report12%
- An explanation or answer11%
- Ideas or a brainstorm8%
How they worked with Claude
50% of these conversations were about work. Anthropic Economic Index, May 2026.
How to read this
Work activities come from O*NET, which links every task to the broader activities it involves. Microsoft's figures are for the activity across everyone who used Copilot, not for geographers specifically. Copilot is a general chat assistant; dedicated coding tools are not included, so programming help is under-counted here. Activities are listed by how many of this occupation's tasks fall under them.
The task ratings say whether AI could halve the time a task takes: on its own (“AI alone”), or with software built on it (“AI + software”). They were made by people in 2023 (Eloundou et al.). Claude's share is the task's share of all Claude.ai conversations in May 2026; Anthropic doesn't publish a task with too few conversations. None of these add up to the BLS exposure group, which combines five research measures.
More in the Guide: task ratings · task order · work activities · Copilot figures · Claude
High exposure doesn't mean fewer jobs
BLS projects most occupations in its two most exposed groups to grow: 141 of 206 rated Very high and 165 of 206 rated High. Each dot is one of the 831 occupations BLS rates.
Career moves into and out of this occupation
From moves between occupations found in online resumes, 2002–2016. Career changes only: a first job after school isn't a move.
Where people moved next
of 1,209 moves out
- 1 General and Operations Managers High +5.0% 8%
- 2 Managers, All Other (2010 group) an older group BLS has since split; no exposure group today 7%
- 3 Computer Occupations, All Other (2010 group) an older group BLS has since split; no exposure group today 6%
- 4 Management Analysts Very high +10.1% 6%
- 5 Medical and Health Services Managers High +24.2% 4%
Where people moved in from
of 1,249 moves in
- 1 First-Line Supervisors of Office and Administrative Support Workers Very high +0.1% 10%
- 2 Managers, All Other (2010 group) an older group BLS has since split; no exposure group today 6%
- 3 Computer Occupations, All Other (2010 group) an older group BLS has since split; no exposure group today 5%
- 4 Management Analysts Very high +10.1% 3%
- 5 General and Operations Managers High +5.0% 3%
Resumes over-represent younger, white-collar job-seekers and moves into management. Schubert, Stansbury and Taska (resume data).
Education and training for the occupation
O*NET survey of workers in this occupation
- 5% associate's
- 45% bachelor's
- 20% master's
- 25% research doctorate
- 5% post-doctoral training
O*NET 31.0 survey of workers in this occupation · 20 people answered.
Census survey (American Community Survey)
- 4% high school
- 5% some college
- 1% associate's
- 40% bachelor's
- 33% master's
- 2% professional degree
- 14% doctorate
Census ACS 2024, all workers in the Census group “Miscellaneous social scientists and related workers” · 628 people surveyed.
Why the two can differ
O*NET asks about 20 people in each occupation, which makes its shares uncertain, but it reports the exact occupation and counts certificates. The Census survey reaches thousands, but it groups some occupations together and counts degrees only. More in the Guide
Median pay by highest degree full-time, year-round · Census ACS 2024, all workers in the Census group “Miscellaneous social scientists and related workers”
10 programs, such as Climate Science, Earth Systems Science and Environmental Geosciences.
See all
- Climate Science
- Earth Systems Science
- Environmental Geosciences
- Geography and Environmental Studies
- Geospatial Intelligence
- Geography
- Geographic Information Science and Cartography
- Geography, Other
- Geography and Anthropology
- Medical/Health Humanities
Jobs that require a credential BLS Occupational Requirements Survey 2023
BLS publishes no credential figures for this occupation.
Look up certifications, training and licenses U.S. Department of Labor
- Certification Finder ↗ certifications CareerOneStop lists for this occupation
- Training Finder ↗ schools and programs, nationwide; narrow the place there
- License Finder ↗ licenses by state
- Apprenticeships: DOL's list of apprenticeable occupations doesn't include this one.
These open in a new tab and send only the occupation's public code. More in the Guide
BLS AI exposure categories (Aug 2026) · BLS Employment Projections 2025–35 · O*NET 31.0 · Task ratings: Eloundou et al., Science (2024) · Microsoft "Working with AI" v1.1 · Anthropic Economic Index (2026-06-26) · Schubert, Stansbury and Taska · NCES CIP–SOC · Census ACS 2024 · BLS JOLTS · Brynjolfsson, Chandar and Chen, Stanford (Aug 2026)
See it online, and explore any career: https://www.pathmosaic.com/card/19-3092.00