GIS Certificate

Program Overview

Lamar University offers the region's first complete certificate program in Geographic Information Systems. The Department of Earth and Space Sciences offer a GIS Certificate for undergraduate, graduate students and professionals.

GIS offers an integral aspect for supporting decision making in a variety of fields, such as physical and environmental sciences, urban planning and management, political science, civil engineering, economy/business, education administration, real estate, public health and health care.

The goal of the program is to ensure that you become sufficiently grounded in the concepts behind GIS, including organization, management and visualization of geospatial data. You will have the opportunity to gain valuable GIS knowledge and skills that can be applied to careers in both academia and industry. GIS certificates will provide Lamar University's students and professionals additional future career opportunities. The GIS certificate is a 15-hour program administered by the Department of Earth and Space Sciences.

Careers

  • Locate your dream job as Geospatial Analyst, GIS Analyst, GIS Data Manager, GIS Developer, GIS Specialist, GIS Technician and Project Manager.
  • The geospatial market is growing at an annual rate of nearly 35%, with commercial ventures increasing at a rate of 100% each year. According to the U.S. Department of Labor, the median wages for a Geographic Information Systems Technicians, Scientists or Technologists are $86,510 per year nationwide.

Admission

  • There are no requirements for Lamar students. No prior knowledge of GIS is required.

Undergraduate Coursework

Coursework consists of three core courses, and two elective courses.

Required Courses

Course #

Course Name

Credits

Semester

GEOL 3311

Fundamentals of GIS

3

Fall/Summer

GEOL 3312

Advanced GIS

3

Fall/Summer

GEOL 3314

Fundamentals of Remote Sensing

3

Fall

Elective Courses

GEOL 4313

GIS Research Project

3

Fall/Spring/Summer

GEOL 4316

Remote Sensing for Environmental Analysis

3

Spring

GEOL 4301

Drone Photogrammetry

3

Summer

GEOL 3303

GPS Methods and Apps

3

Fall

CPSC 4335

Image Processing

3

Spring/Summer

COSC 4334

Computer Vision

3

Fall/Summer

CVEN 2370

CAD & Surveying

3

Spring

Graduate Coursework

Coursework consists of THREE core courses, and TWO elective courses.

Required Courses

Course #

Course Name

Credits

Semester

GEOL 5311

Principles of GIS

3

Fall/Summer

GEOL 5312

Advanced GIS Analysis and Applications

3

Fall/Summer

GEOL 5315

Principles of Remote Sensing

3

Fall

Elective Courses

GEOL 5313

Geospatial Research Project

3

Fall/Spring/Summer

GEOL 5316

Remote Sensing Data and Applications

3

Spring

GEOL 5301

Drone Photogrammetry and Applications

3

Summer

GEOL 5303

Advanced GPS Methods and Apps

3

Fall

COSC 5311

Advanced Data Mining

3

Fall

COSC 5340

Advanced Data Science and Big Data Analysis

3

Spring

CVEN 5370

GIS Apps in Engineering

3

Spring

Program Director

Dr. Reda Amer
Director of Geospatial Center
Director of GIS Programs
Lamar University
Geology Building
P.O Box 10031
Beaumont, TX 77710

Office: 409-880-8234
Fax: 409-880-8246
E-mail: ramer2@lamar.edu