Interview with Vikitsa Kazasova, a participant in “Spring Internship Program 2022″ of Esri Bulgaria.

Maybe it was her desire to live in an arranged environment in which everyone feels comfortable that prompted Vikitsa Kazasova to choose her first higher education – before coming to Bulgaria, she graduated in law in Skopje. But instead of legalizing her diploma in Bulgaria, she decided to pursue what she had dreamed of as a child when she wanted to be given atlases of cards for every birthday. In Sofia, she graduated in landscape architecture and focused on what she most wanted professionally.

What it is and why the internship in Esri Bulgaria is a logical step in its path – see what Vikitsa told us about herself and her plans while learning new professional skills as a participant in our spring internship program.

Law, landscape architecture, and now GIS… Why?

When fate brought me to Bulgaria, I had to choose whether to legalize my law degree or to realize my long-held dream, which was more natural science. And when I found out about landscape architecture, I was very excited, I fell in love a lot because urban and spatial planning has been exciting for me for a long time. I think this is the way I can contribute to the world. So planning, organizing, and using space is my main idea and it seemed to me that GIS could give me a solid foundation on which to work on my ideas.

How did you choose Esri for an internship?

I learned about Esri about 2 years ago and since then I have become interested because this is one of the leading companies in the world in this field. Most of all, I was attracted by the wealth of technology that Esri offers: all these platforms and additional applications developed over the years… seem like endless possibilities with them.

I didn’t expect to enter Esri, I was just excited and interested. I downloaded the programs themselves, the free trial that is on Esri, and already seeing what opportunities it offers, I decided to apply at least for the internship program, mostly to study in more detail everything that ArcGIS offers. And he offers a lot.

Do you like the internship?

Yes and I’m really glad I took that step. At first, I was worried about how the whole thing would work online – given that I’m still a beginner in this field. But I am pleasantly surprised at how well our communication is going and how correct everything is. I am pleased with the amount of exchange of experience and knowledge, so I would recommend it to future interns who are wondering whether to apply to our company for an internship.

Do you acquire new skills and knowledge during the internship?

First, I realized that GIS is a vast field for connecting the unrelated information we receive on a daily basis. Ever since the internship began, I have realized how important all the data that is collected is. Before, to be honest, the data seemed to be very annoying, voluminous and boring, but now I understand that this is the basis of everything and is the most important part of our work. I have acquired skills for analysis and visualization, also for various analytical functions, for a suitable geographical layout, which I think is very important. There are also many skills that are learned in working with data – observation and endurance are developed.

What would you say to those who are now starting to deal with GIS?

I would wholeheartedly recommend that they give boldly forward because GIS is one of the fastest-growing technologies in recent times and this trend, in my opinion, will continue and they will become an increasingly important part of our lives because everything is already based on certain geographical visualizations – from a single trip to the largest projects – they are at the core.

GIS is a very comprehensive platform for learning many new things and for creating many new skills that would be useful to everyone – both those who would deal with GIS in the future and those who would not – there would be benefits for everyone!

What else would you tell us about yourself?

I love to travel, I love mountains, rivers, lakes, seas, I love music, I love to sing. I like rock, jazz, alternative styles, folk music – when we gather friends with an orchestra we sing Macedonian music… I love gardening, I have a garden with various spices, herbs, and flowers.

The other thing I like to do is handmade, which I have left in the background lately. But for many years I have been making jewelry and candlesticks from polymer clay. During my studies, this was my extra income and extra pleasure.

My dream is to stay in the Balkans but to live like in Western Europe. I dream of being able to go by train from Sofia to Struga, I dream of a park here somewhere around us, I dream instead of all these cranes to see more people planting trees and creating green spaces for children and adults and for good welfare for people living in cities. Indeed, lately, I feel somewhat damaged – that we live in such beautiful countries, with so much potential, and somehow act without vision.

And I believe that GIS has the potential to make the world a better place to live!

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