The following information is intended for students currently enrolled in the GIS and Geospatial Technology certificate program. If you are a new or prospective student and are interested in enrolling for the first time, learn how to enroll.
Welcome to all current and prospective certificate students! This page provides information about the program's sequencing and curriculum to ensure that you can effectively plan for your participation in the GIS and Geospatial Technology certificate program.
Student Handbook
We suggest that all students carefully review the GIS and Geospatial Technology Certificate Program online student handbook before the beginning of each academic term. The handbook is an evolving document that describes policies, guidelines, and practices that both formally and informally govern students within the certificate program. All enrolled students are expected to be familiar with the contents of the handbook.
Next Quarter: Winter 2020 (Begins January 13)
Let's begin by taking a look at the course offerings for the next academic quarter. Courses for the Winter 2020 quarter begin on January 13, and the following certificate courses will be offered (click the link for each course to start the enrollment process):
- GEOG XL 7: Introduction to GIS
- GEOG XL 167: Cartography
- GEOG X 191C: GIS Databases and Enterprise GIS
Annual Course Scheduling Plan
The GIS and Geospatial Technology certificate program follows a pre-defined course schedule every academic year. The program's foundational course, Introduction to GIS, is taught every quarter, and the other four required courses are each taught every other quarter per the following schedule:
- GEOG XL 7: Introduction to GIS -- offered every academic quarter; four start dates per year
- GEOG XL 168: Intermediate GIS -- offered every Spring quarter (begins April) and Fall quarter (begins October)
- GEOG XL 170: Advanced GIS -- offered every Spring quarter (begins April) and Fall quarter (begins October)
- GEOG XL 167: Cartography -- offered every Winter quarter (begins January) and Summer quarter (begins July)
- GEOG X 191C: GIS Databases and Enterprise GIS -- offered every Winter quarter (begins January) and Summer quarter (begins July)
Academic Year 2019 - 2020 Quarter Start/End Dates
- Fall 2019: October 7 to December 15, 2019
- Winter 2020: January 13 to March 22, 2020
- Spring 2020: April 6 to June 14, 2020
- Summer 2020: June 29 to September 6, 2020
Curriculum Change Beginning in Spring 2019
Beginning with the current Spring 2019 quarter, new certificate students will be required to complete GEOG X 191C: GIS Databases and Enterprise GIS (a new course) instead of GEOG XL 173: GIS Programming. We are making this change to ensure that students who complete the certificate remain optimally prepared for entry-level GIS employment, for which experience in working with enterprise geodatabases is often very helpful. This new course will provide students with useful and highly marketable knowledge and skills related to the design, management, and collaborative use of geospatial database management systems.
After Summer 2019, GIS Programming will no longer be offered on a regular basis, and students who have not yet completed either course will be required to take GIS Databases in order to earn the certificate. Students who have already completed GEOG XL 173: GIS Programming are not required to complete this new course in order to earn the certificate, though GIS Databases may be taken as an additional elective course (i.e., GIS Databases may not be taken in place of any other required courses in the certificate program.)
Information posted on this page is subject to change and revision.