Cartographers and Photogrammetrists
Architecture and Engineering · SOC 17-1021
AI exposure from the Anthropic Economic Index (2025); salary from BLS; skills from O*NET. See /sources.
Decision card
Career Evidence Passport
SOC 17-1021 evidence across exposure, wages, projections, postings, certified LCAs, skills, and transitions.
- SOC exposure
- 8.0%
- Medium · Anthropic AEI
- Automation friction
- 49/100
- Moderate friction; broad SOC seed ORS job-requirements coverage.
- Wages
- $81,390
- H-1B offered wage $73,000; LCAs are filings.
- Projected openings
- 1,100
- BLS EP 2024–2034; employment change +6.4%.
- Observed/proxy demand
- 33
- FY2025 certified LCAs; 2,323 postings in 2025.
Skill evidence
- H-1B values are certified Labor Condition Applications, not visa approvals.
- Job postings are seed-static / seed-derived; treat as provider-ready proxy coverage until observed provider data is wired in.
- Transition matches are directional skill-overlap context, not placement guarantees.
- This release is a FutureGrid broad-SOC seed derived from public BLS ORS requirement concepts and categories, not direct occupation-level ORS survey estimates. It describes job requirements, not worker ability, AI capability, or displacement probability. Automation friction is a FutureGrid derived score and should be read alongside exposure, demand, wage, and projection signals.
Best transitions from here
Explore all pathways→Lower AI-exposure roles that reuse your skills, ranked by a transition score (skills that transfer, safety gain, pay and retraining effort).
AI Exposure Analysis
Across AI measures
Multiple exposure lenses for this occupation.
AI could do ~52% of this role but only ~8% is currently done with AI — a large capability-vs-adoption gap.
Top Skills
H-1B Visa Sponsorship Demand
View full H-1B trends →Certified H-1B Labor Condition Applications naming this occupation, FY2016–FY2025. A descriptive high-skill labor-demand signal — employer filings, not visa approvals or individual outcomes. Note: one LCA can cover multiple worker positions.
O*NET occupation profile
What this work involves
Research, study, and prepare maps and other spatial data in digital or graphic form for one or more purposes, such as legal, social, political, educational, and design purposes. May work with Geographic Information Systems (GIS). May design and evaluate algorithms, data structures, and user interfaces for GIS and mapping systems. May collect, analyze, and interpret geographic information provided by geodetic surveys, aerial photographs, and satellite data.
Common titles: Aerial Photogrammetrist, Cartographer, Cartographic Designer, Digital Cartographer, Mapper, Photogrammetric Technician
Representative Tasks
- •Compile data required for map preparation, including aerial photographs, survey notes, records, reports, and original maps.
- •Delineate aerial photographic detail, such as control points, hydrography, topography, and cultural features, using precision stereoplotting apparatus or drafting instruments.
- •Prepare and alter trace maps, charts, tables, detailed drawings, and three-dimensional optical models of terrain using stereoscopic plotting and computer graphics equipment.
- •Study legal records to establish boundaries of local, national, and international properties.
- •Inspect final compositions to ensure completeness and accuracy.
Detailed Work Activities
- •Gather physical survey data.
- •Create maps.
- •Inspect finished products to locate flaws.
- •Calculate geographic positions from survey data.
- •Survey land or bodies of water to measure or determine features.
Tools & Technologies
Employment Projections & AI Exposure
Employment & Wage Trend
BLS OEWS, 2019–2025
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS). See /sources.
Sector Comparison
| Metric | This Career | Sector Average |
|---|---|---|
| AI Exposure | 8.0% | 4.5% |
| Outlook | Bright ↗ | 15% Bright |
| Median Salary | $81,390 | N/A |
| AI Resiliency | 92/100 | N/A |