Why GIScience at the University of Georgia The Geographic Information Science Certificate Program is designed to prepare graduates with advanced training for the rapidly expanding field of geographic information science (GIS). A comprehensive collection of courses in GIScience and GI Technology is offered by the Department of Geography and other UGA departments. Learning geospatial concepts and skills in geographic data collection and analysis will increase your research and employment opportunities in the growing field of GIScience. GIScience faculty have research interests covering various aspects including theories and methods in GIScience, remote sensing, landscape ecology, cartography and geovisualizaiton, health and the environment, urban studies, transportation, community studies, social media, natural resources, human-environment interaction and more. Gain real-world experience through GIS internship or a GIS independent study. Inquiries, Application, and Completion There are no prerequisite courses required for the graduate certificate program. If you have any inquiries, please contact the certificate program coordinator (Dr. Lan Mu, mulan@uga.edu). To apply, fill in the first line of the Certificate/Concentration Change Form and email it to the certificate program coordinator. You will receive a reply confirming your registration for the certificate. After you have completed all the course requirements, please fill out the Graduate GIScience Certificate Completion Form and send it to the certificate program coordinator for the final evaluation and approval. Your GIScience Certificate will be approved if you have fulfilled all the course requirements with an average 3.0 and above GPA in the 15 credits of GIScience courses. You will receive the following confirmation and documents: A signed copy of the UGA Graduate GIScience Certificate through the mail (please make sure we have your most updated mailing address). An official record on your UGA transcript to show that you have earned the Graduate GIScience Certificate. Course Requirements (15 credits, with at least 9 credits of GEOG courses) Fifteen credit hours are required to complete the GIScience Graduate Certificate Program. A repeated course (such as a directed study) can only be counted once toward the GIScience Certificate Program’s requirements. Only courses with A-F grading can be used to fulfill the course requirements. Required (6 credits) Choose 1 course(s) from the following: GEOG 4370/6370-4370L/6370L: Geographic Information Science GEOG 4370E/6370E: Introduction to Geographic Information Science Choose 3 credit hour(s) from the following: GEOG 4991/6991: Internship in Geographic Information Science GEOG 8590: Directed Problems in Geographic Techniques A GIS research or applied project conducted under an 8000-level course. Approval of the Internship and/or the GIS research project is required by the certificate program coordinator prior to the student taking these courses. Elective (9 credits) GIScience GEOG 6380-6380L: Transportation Modeling and GIS GEOG 6385: Community GIS GEOG 6636: Maps and the City GEOG 6570-6570L: Advanced GIScience GEOG 6571-6571L: GIScience for Health and the Environment GEOG 8570: Seminar in Geographic Information Science Remote Sensing ATSC(GEOG) 6140: Satellite Meteorology and Climatology GEOG 6330-6330L: Aerial Photographs and Image Interpretation GEOG 6350-6350L: Remote Sensing of Environment GEOG 6430-6430L: Advanced Image Analysis and Photogrammetry GEOG 6450-6450L: Digital Image Analysis GEOG 6460-6460L: Field Methods in Remote Sensing GEOG 8350: Seminar in GeoAI GEOG 8450: Geospatial Techniques in Landscape Analysis GEOG 8530: Advanced Topics in the Use and Interpretation of Aerial Photographs GEOG 8550: Problems in Remote Sensing of Environment II Data Science and Programming ATSC/GEOG 6100: Programming for Atmospheric Scientists GEOG 6300: Data Science in Geography GEOG 6410-6410L: Geovisualization and Data Visualization GEOG 6470-6470L: Geospatial Analysis GEOG 6590-6590L: Programming for GIScience GEOG 6591: Introduction to Geospatial AI GEOG 6592: Advanced Geospatial AI GEOG 8350: Machine Learning with Geospatial Big Data GIS in related disciplines CRSS 6050: Improving Nutrient and Energy Efficiency with Geographic Information Systems DMAN 7450: GIS and Disasters ECOL 6450: GIS for Ecologists EDES 6270: Environmental Design Uses of Geographic Information Systems EDES 6280E: Environmental Design Uses of Geographic Information Systems ENGR 5930/7930: GPS with Engineering and GIS Applications FANR 5620/7620: GIS Applications for Natural Resources and Ecology FANR 8400: Advanced Spatial Analysis FORS 5650/7650: Aerial Photogrammetry in Forestry FORS 7690: Applied Geographic Information Systems (GIS) for Forest Resource Management GEOL 6530: Principles and Environmental Applications of GIS Additionally, upon request by the applicant, a GIS related graduate course taken in another department at UGA can be considered as an elective course contingent upon an evaluation by the certificate program coordinator or the GIScience faculty. B. Internship/Applied GIS Project (3 credits) Internship in GIS with a private firm or government agency (GEOG 6990), 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 the certificate program coordinator prior to the student taking these courses. Additional Stipulations In order to ensure that certificate recipients display a strong command of GIScience, the certificate is granted only to those students who achieve a 3.0 GPA in courses that constitute the GIScience Graduate Certificate Program. The GPA for certificate purposes will be computed in accordance with UGA policy. Note: Applicants to this certificate program must be degree-seeking University of Georgia students and will be required to satisfy the requirements of their chosen field in addition to earning this certificate.
