Department of Geography

Post-Baccalaureate Certificate in Geographic Information Science

This certificate program is designed for post-baccalaureate students in social and physical sciences, public administration, information technology, engineering, business, and other disciplines. Many professionals in these areas need skills in handling and analyzing geographically distributed data.

The overall objective is to provide a strong framework for developing competencies in geographic information systems, remote sensing, and spatial analysis. Specifically students completing the program will be able to:

a) Collect, assemble, organize, manipulate spatial data using Geographic Information Ssystem (GIS) software
b) Analyze and interpret patterns and trends in spatial data to aid decision-making
c) Use GIS and image analysis software to model, design, and analyze geographic problems and produce professional cartographic products such as maps and charts to aid solutions of those problems

Students will complete a total of 19-20 credit hours, including a core of 16 credit hours and an elective.

Graduate Certificate in Geographic Information Science (19 -20 credit hours)

Required Courses (16 credit hours)

Geog 5010 Introduction to GIS 4 hrs
Geog 5670 Spatial Analysis 4 hrs
Geog 5690 Intermediate GIS 4 hrs
Geog 5820 Remote Sensing of the Environment 4 hrs

Electives (3-4 credit hours)

Geog 5630 Surveying Techniques 4 hrs
Geog 6690 Advanced GIS Seminar 3 hrs
Geog 6820 Advanced Remote Sensing 3 hrs

In addition to meeting the admission requirements of The Graduate College, all applicants must have basic facility in desktop computer operations and, before they take GEOG 5670 Spatial Analysis, they should have a basic knowledge of descriptive and inferential statistics equivalent to the requirements in STAT 3660.