Like geographic coordinates, geocoding is a method to plot points on a map. However, instead of using latitude and longitude, geocoding uses street addresses, states/provinces, and zip codes to find locations. It is not as versatile as using geographic coordinates because every country has a different geocoding method, but it is widely used, especially in online applications like Google Maps.
For this brief assignment, I collected addresses of Massachusetts community colleges and geocoded their locations on a map. For the purposes of analysis, I also included population densities of Massachusetts towns and major highways. Based on the analysis it appears as though every community college is located in a town with a population density greater than that of surrounding towns. They are also located close to major highways making them very accessable. Considering that they all sit within towns that have high population densities, it appears that Massachusetts Community Colleges has done a good job planning locations that best serve the most people.
