Jennifer Laws
Environmental Science, 2015
Immediately after my graduation in 2015, I began my second summer internship at Esri where I was an Industry Solutions intern on the Natural Resources Team. The main focus of my internship was to become more proficient in ArcGIS Online, and develop web applications and Story Maps tailored to GIS users in the agricultural community. My favorite web application which I created was one that monitored center-pivot irrigations sites, groundwater conservation, and crop health. In the summer of 2016, I returned to Esri again as a Project Management intern where I supported Esri Consulting Services and the Natural Resources Team on proposals, projects, and Esri Enterprise Advantage Programs (EEAP) by researching and developing maps, applications, and data products. Now, I am finishing up my master’s degree at the University of California, Santa Barbara’s Bren School of Environmental Science & Management where I am specializing in Water Resources Management. As part of this master’s program, I worked on a group project thesis which assessed the effects of current and future land use conversion activities on water quality, carbon emissions, and wildlife habitat at Kohala Institute on the Big Island of Hawaii. In addition, I worked as a Groundwater Master’s Research Assistant where I used my GIS skills to assist on a research project that aimed to assess governance institutions in California’s 445 groundwater basins.
ESS prepared me well for graduate school and applying for internships/jobs in two major ways. First, ESS’s interdisciplinary curriculum gave me the well-rounded education, quantitative, and qualitative skills that allowed me to be a strong and successful candidate for graduate school and internship/job applications in Environmental Science and Water Resources. Second, having taken the Introduction to GIS course and working as both a GIS research and teaching assistant in the ESS department gave me a technical skill which has helped me stand out and reach my education and career goals. After I graduate from the Bren School with my Master’s degree in Environmental Science and Management, I hope I will have my first full-time job as a consultant and/or GIS analyst at an environmental consulting firm.”