It’s the Start of My 17th Semester as a Student at USC

Back to School — Another Fall Semester Begins

Yes, it’s true, I am starting my 9th year as a USC Student. The first 9 semesters were as an undergraduate where I earned my B.A. in International Relations with a Minor in what was called Cinema-Television at the time (now Cinematic Arts). I started in August 1992 and graduated in 1996. Then I went off to work and continued to work — until we had a pandemic.

I don’t believe I was the only one who felt that the changes COVID-19 facilitated resulted in a certain amount of trauma. Those transitions led me back to university, and as it would turn out, back to the same school I graduated from 25 years earlier. This time I would be able to attend classes as an online student, but still have the full resources and experience of the university and its faculty behind me.

My Graduate School Journey

I started an M.A. in Urban Planning program in May 2021 and completed it in August 2021. At that time, I fell in love with data visualization and saw the potential of big data. We were introduced to coding in R, and I could see that I lit up about data science where many of my other classmates groaned. This led me to apply for the GIST Certificate which is a one-year program for Geographic Information Sciences and Technology.

I began that program this time last year. Transitioning from a background in the arts, into a sciences program was a shift in mindset and what was expected from me. Getting started with the ArcGIS software which allows us to tell stories with data and maps was a steep learning curve. It took me many hours, some of them with me feeling like I was in well over my head, to get my bearings.

Early in the Fall semester last year, I applied and was accepted into two opportunities that helped me ground my identity in this new direction. One was becoming a USC IC CAE (Intelligence Community — Center for Academic Excellence) Scholar and the other a Women Techmakers (WTM) Ambassador. WTM is a Google initiative to help support women in tech and give them a forum to network and collaborate as leaders and voices to help others start and succeed in tech.

At the time I also realized that one year would not be enough to set this new direction. I decided to pursue a full second Master's degree as an M.S. in Human Security and Geospatial Intelligence. This plan was confirmed after spending a week on Catalina Island for a course field trip with my professor, other USC Spatial Sciences Institute faculty, and guests, along with my classmates. This particular degree program aligned with my interest in climate impact, disaster resilience, and recovery.

The Start of 2023–2024

This summer I finished my GIST Certificate and now I am continuing on with my M.S. program. I have another 18 months to develop and improve the technical skills I desire. I received a scholarship for the Coursera Google Certificates, which also runs through December 2024. There are 8 Certificates I am now working through that align with my tech and design interests. This first week of classes I was happy to learn I’d received a micro-grant to become a Cesium Certified Developer that I am eligible to receive upon completion of a 3D project with their software by the end of October.

Throughout all of my new learnings about GIS, spatial data science, and geospatial project management I have been motivated to blog, podcast, and create YouTube videos. I just launched a GEOINT AI and Maps Data Design channel with the general theme to come learn with me. I am ready to see what I can do to improve my ability to produce and edit videos.

I am pleased to announce the launch of Season 5 of “Muse and Metrics” which airs on 360 Talk Radio for Women. This season I am featuring interviews with fellow WTM Ambassadors. You can download the app for Android at: https://lnkd.in/gCz4Sjfh and for iOS at: https://lnkd.in/eDM8228D. In addition to the weekly episodes there are two 5-hours audio summits, one Google I/O Extended and produced earlier in the year for International Women’s Day on the WTM theme “Dare to Be.”

Happy Back-to-School

I wish everyone a happy back-to-school whether you are sending your children back to school, an undergraduate or graduate student, educational facility or staff, or pursuing life long learning in any form. I am looking forward to a successful semester and the next round of learning transformations that await. As we say at USC, Fight On!

Photo Credit: Adobe Firefly