This semester (SP19) I am taking my first Geographic Information Systems (GIS) class. Though my focus within geography is in the human geography/global studies realm, I am required to take two GIS methods classes for the major. I was dreading this as I usually don’t enjoy working with numbers or computers, but I decided to go into it with an open mind and have really enjoyed the class so far. I just finished creating the above map using the program QGIS for one of the labs in my class, and though it was a lot of work I actually had fun using trial and error and making sure all the elements were correctly placed. This rewarding experience has made me excited to take more GIS classes and maybe even add a minor in GIS, as it is a skill that is very useful to employers and applicable to my interests.