 Why Obtain a GIS Certificate?
Some of the expanding possibilities include businesses using GIS for market analysis and store-site planning; environmentalists predicting future river scenarios under different management strategies; crisis management whether weather based or human induced, demographers analyzing and predicting election results; law enforcement agencies doing crime analysis; or universities managing admission strategies; just to name a few!
GIS analysts are highly mobile and have marketable skills and talents that bridge the entire spectrum of employment possibilities. You might start your career working as an analyst in natural resource management and five years later find yourself working as a business analyst, with other career options after that, such as strategic or business planning.
For a more complete review of the latest salary information for regional GIS professions, see the 2002 Minnesota GIS/LIS Consortium GIS Professional and Salary Survey (http://www.mngislis.org/displaycommon.cfm?an=1&subarticlenbr=56) and/or survey results obtained by GIS Jobs.com (http://www.gisjobs.com/survey/).
Saint Mary's University's GIS Certificate Program provides learners with broad exposure to principles and applications of GIS. A learner who has earned the GIS Certificate will be well-versed in GIS theory and will have knowledge and practical exposure to the following:
- hardware and software used in GIS,
- planning and construction of spatial databases,
- GIS analyses, and
- representation of data in both mapped and tabular form.
Requirements for the Certificate have been designed to parallel skills needed by GIS professionals.
Education is a key component of the GIS professional certification programs that have been evolving from the GIS Certfication Institute and Urban and Regional Information Systems Association (URISA). Both of these professional certifications allow application of credits with an accredited institution to satisfy a significant portion of the points needed to meet certification requirements.
GIS Certificate Curriculum
The GIS Certificate is customized for each individual participant. Learners, along with their Faculty Advisor, select courses from the Required GIS Courses and Elective GIS Courses to augment the skill-set of the student. Admission into the certificate program is open to any resource analysis student enrolled at Saint Mary’s University of Minnesota . Certificate credits earned may be applied to the Master of Science in Geographic Information Science.
To receive the Certificate in GIS, a learner must:
- complete eighteen credit hours of GIS coursework with a passing grade;
- have an earned Bachelor's degree.
Admission to the GIS Certificate Program
The admissions process for the certificate program is the same as for degree seeking learners. Applicants must submit:
- a completed application form with the nonrefundable application fee.
- an official transcript issued to Saint Mary's University from all colleges and universities attended, including the institution posting the applicant's completed bachelor's degree if earned.
- a personal statement which includes the following:
A. a brief description of the applicant's background, training, and
experience;
B. a statement indicating the career goals of the applicant and his
or her reasons for seeking admission to this program;
C. a description of the areas which the applicant considers to be his
or her strengths and areas in which the applicant wishes to
develop greater strengths and abilities; and
D. personal information the applicant wishes to share.
- Three letters of reference that verify professional and/or volunteer experience and academic ability. A current résumé listing educational background and work experience.
For those interested in certificate studies, application material should be sent to:
For Twin Cities Certificate Program
Saint Mary's University of Minnesota
Office of Admission – Resource Analysis
2500 Park Avenue
Minneapolis, MN 55404-4403
612-874-9877 or 866-437-2788 (toll-free)
For Winona Certificate Program
Saint Mary's University of Minnesota
Graduate Admissions
700 Terrace Heights #77
Winona, Minnesota 55987
507-457-7500 or 800-635-5987 (toll-free)
GIS Certificate Course Work:
The following courses (26 credits) are eligible for inclusion in the resource analysis GIS Certificate program. The learner in consultation with his advisor is free to choose the courses that best meet his/her need.
RA554 GIS Analysis (3 credits)
RA556 Spatial Data Methodology (2 credits)
RA559 Introduction to Imagery (3 credits)
RA560 Arcview (1 credit)
RA563 Advanced Modeling and Analysis (2 credits)
RA570 Advanced GIS (3 credits)
RA508 Internet Mapping Services (3 credits)
RA632 Programming Languages (3 credits)
RA506 GIS Customization (3 credits)
RA660 Introduction to ArcGIS (1 credit)
RA642 Databases/SQL (2 credits) |
