Certificate Program Description
Graduate Certificate in Geographic Information Systems
Assefa Melesse, Director, Earth and Environment
Coordinating Committee
Zhaohui Jennifer Fu, Library GIS-RS Center
Jennifer Gebelein, Earth and Environment
Hugh Gladwin, Global and Sociocultural Studies
Dean Whitman, Earth and Environment
Keqi Zhang, Earth and Environment
Xin Jin, Civil and Environmental Engineering
A Geographic Information System (GIS) is a set of computer hardware and software used to organize, manipulate, and analyze maps and spatial data. GIS is a rapidly developing technology that can be applied to many areas of the natural sciences, social sciences, engineering, and planning.
The Graduate Certificate in Geographic Information Systems provides students with an interdisciplinary background in GIS. The program consists of graduate level courses in Geographic Information Systems and related subjects offered by the departments of Biology, Civil and Environmental Engineering, Computer Science, Earth and Environment, Global and Sociocultural Studies, Public Administration, and Statistics. This certificate program is open to degree-seeking students ONLY.
For more information, contact the Program Director, Assefa M. Melesse: phone: (305) 348-6518; email: melessea@fiu.edu, or visit the GIS Center website: http://gis.fiu.edu.
Admission Requirements
Applicants must satisfy all minimum requirements as specified by the University Graduate School for admission into Graduate Programs.
In addition, the applicant must satisfy the following minimum requirements:
- A bachelor's degree in engineering or natural or social sciences or a bachelor's degree in arts or humanities or languages, plus either 1) minimum GRE score of 1000 (combined Quantitative and Verbal score) or 2) at least two years of professional experience in relevant fields, such as Computer Science, Engineering, Earth Sciences, Information Science, International Relations, Environmental Studies, Economics/MBA, Landscape Architecture, Urban Planning, Biology, or Public Health.
- Basic proficiency with computers.
Prescribed Courses and Other Requirements
The certificate program will require 15 graduate level credits (5 courses) distributed as follows:
Required Courses: (One course from each of the following 3 categories)
1. Introduction to GIS
CGN 5320 GIS Applications for Civil and Environmental Engineering
GIS 5050 Environmental GIS
Students who demonstrate prior GIS course work or substantial GIS work experience may substitute this requirement with 3 elective credits from the courses listed below with approval of the Program Director.
2. Intermediate/Advanced GIS
CGN 6325 Advanced GIS for Civil and Environmental Engineering
EVR 5044 Advanced GIS and Environmental Data Analysis
GLY 5758 GIS and Spatial Analysis for Earth Sciences
SYA 6356 GIS and Social Research
or equivalent
3. Remote Sensing
GLY 5754 Applied Remote Sensing in Earth Sciences
or equivalent
Electives: (6 credits out of the following)
COP 6727 Advanced Database Systems
EVR 6268 Remote Sensing in Hydrology
EVR 7056 GIS Water Resources
EVR 7329 Watershed Analysis and Management
GIS 5620 Surveillance, Intelligence, and International Relations
GIS 5935 Topics in GIS
MET 5412 Remote Sensing in Meteorology
PCB 5328 Spatial Ecology
PAD 6710 IT and E-government
PAD 6717 GIS Applications for Urban Management
or equivalent
or
Additional intermediate/advanced GIS courses under Category 2 Required Courses,
or
Other GIS-related courses approved by the Program Director in consultation with the Coordinating Committee. Up to 3 credits of a graduate level statistics or data analysis course may be counted towards the Certificate requirements with approval of the Program Director.