The Geographic Information Science Certificate Program is designed to prepare graduates with advanced training for the rapidly expanding field of geographic information science (GIS).

Contact Person:  Dr. Mu Lan     mu@uga.edu      (706) 542-1058

Prerequisite Skills

(To be acquired prior to entry in the certificate program) Skills in four general areas are expected prior to entry into the certificate program. These areas are cartography, computer science, mathematics, and statistics. A course in each area is required. Example courses providing skills in required areas are listed below but other courses may also be used. The GIS Certificate advisory committee will determine if a student has the appropriate background. [A grade of “C” or better is required in these courses.]

CSCI 1302 Software Development
ENGR 1020 Surveying
ENGR 5930 GPS with engineering and FIS Applications
FORS 3000-3000L Field Orientation and Measurement in Forest Resources
FORS 3610-3610L Forest Biometrics
FORS 3910-3910L Spatial Information in Forest Resources
GEOG 2300 Geographic Data Analysis
GEOG 3510-3510L Cartography and Graphics
GEOG 4/6330-4/6330L The Use and Interpretation of Aerial Photographs
MATH 2200 Analytical Geometry and Calculus
STAT 2000 Elementary Statistics
STAT 4210/6210 Statistical Methods
STAT 4220/6220 Applied Experimental Designs

Application Form PDF
When you meet the prerequisite requirements, please fill out the application form and send it to the program contact person. You will receive a decision notification soon.

Required Course Credit
Seventeen hours of course credit is required to complete the GIS Certificate. These hours are distributed among three categories: 9 Core Credits; 6 Elective Credits; and
2 Credits of either an internship or a GIS research/applied project. Upon request by the applicant, a graduate GIS course taken in another department at UGA can be considered as an equivalent course contingent on an evaluation of equivalence by the GIS Certificate Committee.

A. Required Core Courses (9 credits)
GEOG 6370 Introduction to Geographic Information Systems
GEOG 6470 Geospatial Analysis
GEOG 8570 Seminar in GIScience OR GEOG 8350 Advanced Remote Sensing & Geospatial Techniques

B. Elective courses (6 credits) from the following, one of which must be 8000 level
GEOG 6330 Aerial Photographs and Image Interpretation
GEOG 6350 Remote Sensing of Environment
GEOG 6380 Transportation Modeling and GIS
GEOG 6410 Cartographic Visualization Methods
GEOG 6430 Advanced Image Analysis and Photogrammetry
GEOG 6570 Advanced GIScience
GEOG 6590 Programming for GIScience
GEOG 8350 Advanced Remote Sensing & Geospatial Techniques
GEOG 8450 Geospatial Techniques in Landscape Analysis
GEOG 8510 Seminar in Cartography and Visualization
GEOG 8530 Advanced Topics in the Use and Interpretation of Aerial Photographs
GEOG 8570 Seminar in Geographic Information Science

C. Internship/Applied GIS Project
Internship in GIS with a private firm or government agency (GEOG6990), or a GIS research or applied project conducted under an 8000-level course. For students wishing to use a geography course, GEOG 8590 - Directed Problems in Geographic Techniques meets this requirement. Approval of the Internship and/or the GIS research project is required by GIS Certificate Committee prior to the student taking these courses.

Notes on Requirements
1. The student must earn a grade of "B" or higher in all courses meeting the certificate requirements.
2. The completion of a graduate degree from the University of Georgia is required in order for the certificate to be awarded. The certificate will be awarded simultaneously with the degree.

For more information

PROFILE

Mu, Lan

Associate Professor

Research Interests

GIScience, spatial analysis and modeling, GIS for health and the environment, computational geometry, cartography and geovisualization.