Q: I have a Bachelor's degree from a university or college which is not accredited. Can I get into the GIS Graduate Certificate Program?

A: From the perspective  of admissions into a graduate program, having a degree from a university or college which is not accredited is like having no degree at al l, so similar rules would apply (i.e. only individuals with many years of solid experience will be considered).

Q: I do not have the required introductory GIS course or GIS work experience. What courses do you recommend?

A: To get up-to-speed with the fundamentals of GIS, the Department of Geography offers the following courses:
1. GEO 4131C Geographic Information System (restricted to Geography majors at  USF).
2. GIS 5049C GIS for Non-Majors (open to undergraduate, graduate and non-degree students at USF) – this course is offered on a regular basis but enrollment is is limited – check OASIS for current scheduling.
3. GIS Introduction, a non-credit course offered in collaboration with Professional Workforce Development – see the USF Continuing Education in GIS website for details.
Courses at other institutions and of similar quality are also acceptable, of course, but limited opportunities exist in the Tampa Bay area at present.

Q: I have taken several ESRI software training classes. Does that qualify as an introductory GIS course?

A: Software training by ESRI or any other vendor is not the same as a good university course in the fundamentals of GIS, so the answer is no. However, ESRI  courses combined with some work experience may qualify.

Q: Is acceptance into the GIS Certificate Program competitive?

A: Yes. We accept between 10 and 15 students into the program every Fall and Spring Semester, and we typically receive more applications than we have spaces for. So some applicants meeting the minimum requirements get rejected.

FINANCIAL QUESTIONS

Q: How much does it cost?

A: The courses in the Graduate Certificate Program are regular graduate level courses. At present the tuition for a 3-credit graduate level course is around $750 for Florida residents. So the entire program of 5 courses would be around $3750. Please check http://usfweb.usf.edu/pfs/tuition_cost.htm for exact tuition costs. Each course will require some additional materials (e.g. textbook, reading package), the cost of which typically will not exceed $100 per course. There is no fee for use of the lab facilities.

Q: Do you have any form of financial aid of assistantships for certificate students?

A: Financial support at present is limited to full-time graduate students in Geography, not for students only enrolled as certificate students.

CURRICULUM QUESTIONS

Q: Do the courses I take in the GIS Certificate program count towards a graduate degree?

Yes, but it depends. The courses being offered for the GIS Certificate Program are regular graduate courses that can count towards a graduate degree. USF’s policy states that up to 12 credit hours of graduate courses taken as a non-degree student (which includes certificate students) may be applied towards a graduate degree. Below are several scenarios:
1. If you are already a graduate student at USF, and you are taking GIS-related courses but are not interested in the GIS Certificate, the courses can serve as electives towards your graduate degree if your Department accepts the courses as electives.
2. If you are already a Geography graduate student at USF, and want to pursue both a Masters’ in Geography and the GIS Certificate, you can only apply up to 9 credit hours towards both. In other words, if you want both, you will need to take at least 6 credit hours of courses in addition to the regular Master’s program. This rules has been set by the Department of Geography.
3. If you are a graduate student in another Department at USF, and want to pursue both a graduate degree and the GIS Certificate, you will need to check with your Department to see how many credit hours you can apply to both.
4. If you are a GIS Certificate student and then get accepted into a graduate program, the same double-counting rules as above apply if you want to pursue both a graduate degree and the GIS Certificate; however, keep in mind that USF’s general policy is that only 12 credit hours of graduate courses taken as a non-degree student (which includes certificate students) may be applied towards a graduate degree. So if you are taking several GIS-related courses as well as several other courses, and you are ultimately interested in a graduate degree, do not take more then 12 credit hours before applying to a graduate program.

Q: I’m interested in taking only one of the GIS-related courses – is that possible?

A: In theory, yes. However, most courses have pre-requisites, so your options are somewhat limited. Non-degree seeking students also get lower enrollment priority than certificate and graduate students.

Q: I have already graduated from the GIS Certificate Program – can I continue taking courses?

A: All our GIS-related courses are open to non-degree seeking students, provided they meet the prerequisites for a particular course and provided there is space in the course – certificate students and graduate students who still need a course to meet their program requirements get priority enrollment.

Q: Do you have an internship option in the GIS Certificate Program?

A: No, not at present, but this is being considered for the future.

Q: Do you offer a course in GIS programming?

A: No, not at present, but this is being considered for the future.

Q: Once I’m accepted into the GIS Certificate Program, can I transfer into the Master’s in Geography program?

A: Transfer is possible, but keep in mind that the program have a separate application process and use different criteria. Acceptance into the GIS Certificate Program does not guarantee acceptance into the Master’s program.

Q: Am I required to take at least one course every term?

A: No, students can decide not a take a course for one of more terms at no penalty or cost. However, enrollment limits exist for most of our classes, so if you decide to not take courses for some time, there is no guarantee you will be able to take the courses you want exactly when you want upon resuming taking courses.

Q: Can I take more than one course per term?

A: You can take as many courses as you schedule and time availability allows, as long as you meet the pre-requisites for each course.

Q: Do you plan to offer any daytime classs?

A: At present, all our certificate courses are taught as evening classes – daytime offerings may be considered if program enrollments continue to increase.

Q: Will you be offering any courses in the Summer term?

A: Occasionally, we will be in a position to offer courses in the Summer term, but there is no guarantee and is determined on a year-by-year basis. Course selection will be based upon anticipated enrollments.

GENERAL QUESTIONS

Q: The course offerings in the GIS Certificate Program do not meet my specific needs. What other options do I have?

A: Some of you other options are:
1. ESRI instructor-led training classes – these are offered by ESRI at USF (in fact, many of them in the GIS teaching lab of the Department of Geography where the certificate courses are held) – for a recent training schedule, check www.esri.com/training and select Tampa as the location. ESRI classes focus on learning recent software and do include some topics which the certificate program does not cover, like ArcIMS and ArcSDE. Courses run at about $400 for one full day.
2. ESRI on-line courses – check campus.esri.com for a list of offerings. Courses run at about $100 for a single course. Keep in mind that students enrolled at USF get free access to some of the ESRI on-line courses, typically in the form of extra study resources for a regular USF course.
3. Continuing Education courses offered by the Department of Geography is collaboration with Professional Workforce Development – currently, only an Introduction to GIS course is being offered, but additional courses on various technical topics related to GIS are in the works. Courses run at about $150 to $200 for one full day, but course schedules and fees will vary.

Q: How does this GIS Certificate program compare to similar programs elsewhere.

A: The GIS Certificate Program at USF compares very favorably to similar programs elsewhere, for several reasons:
1. Students entering the program already have GIS knowledge through courses and/or work experience, so the starting level is higher than in most other programs.
2.The program consists of a total of 15 credit hours, which is more than in many other programs.
3. Most courses are taught in small class by full-time tenure-track faculty members.

Q: How does the GIS Certificate Program relate to the Certification of GIS Professionals.

A: The GIS Certifcate Program is NOT a certification program. Certification is a recognition of an individual skills and experience in a particular professional field, typically carried out by a professional organization; a university therefore cannot “certify” you. Certification of GIS professionals is in the hands of the GIS Certification Institute (http://www.gisci.org). Graduate level courses like the ones in the GIS Certificate Program count heavily towards GIS certification.