The Future of Urban Planning at UTA Libraries: Kukhyoung Kim

When Kukhyoung Kim applied for her graduate research associate (GRA) position at the University of Texas at Arlington Libraries, she was looking for a new experience.

“I wanted to work with others having different backgrounds,” Kim said. “[Research Data Services (RDS)] was the best place to experience it.”

Two years later, Kim has been accepted to the competitive Office of Graduate Studies dissertation fellowship for the summer of 2020. This will culminate in her graduation with a PhD in Urban Planning in August. Kim says she has learned a lot in her time working in RDS—and not just about data.

“Being a team member of RDS team always inspires and motivates me to develop and learn skills,” Kim said. “I believe that this valuable experience will be a good guideline for my future.”

Kim’s supervisor and Director of RDS, Peace Ossom Williamson, credits Kim as a major contributor to much of what RDS has accomplished in the last two years.

“Kukhyoung has brought so much expertise and passion to her work, and we are so grateful to have had her as an employee,” Ossom Williamson said. “I wish her all the best as she moves on to bigger and better!”

In her time at UTA Libraries, Kim helped with the development of the DataCave, as well as the annual Hackathon event. Kim also teaches one of the most popular DAVis workshops about geographic information system (GIS) mapping, which she says is her greatest accomplishment.

“Teaching is a totally new area from just knowing it,” Kim said. “I used to use the GIS program for around seven years, but only in my major area [urban planning]. Meeting with diverse-majored students, I’ve learned how other majors are using the GIS software.”

Kim also said that working in RDS helped her to see data in a new way.

“I could understand and know various ways of using the data and data visualization with different purposes and methods,” she said. “RDS is not just a working place. You can learn about data and tools from other team members and have opportunities for applying them in projects.”

Data visualizations were Kim’s favorite projects. Some examples of Kim’s data visualization work include a video describing one woman’s experience of bed rest and a poster used to explain how to get started with data management.

Kim recommends working at UTA Libraries to her fellow graduate students because of the learning environment that was fostered by her team.

“Through every team meeting, I have learned different views, visions, and approaches on tasks from others,” Kim said. “Their feedback on my data visualization works has helped me to develop it in more creative and innovative ways.”

Kim also suggests giving the DataCave and RDS a chance, even if the services might not seem like what the student needs.

“Just enjoy it with an open mind!” she said. “The supervisor [Ossom Williamson] and RDS team will encourage you to learn various data analysis tools and help you.”

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UTA Libraries is proud to support student workers like Kukhyoung as they work toward their futures beyond graduate school. To see what GRA positions are available, look for UTA Libraries on Handshake.