Certificate in Spatial Analysis

Geographic Information Systems (GIS) and satellite remote sensing have triggered a rapid expansion of spatial analysis in academia and private, nonprofit and government sectors. GPS researchers are at the forefront of mobilizing these tools, with applications ranging from creating early warning systems for infectious disease, to mapping groundwater use in California’s Central Valley to using satellite imagery to research data-starved contexts like North Korea. The Certificate in Spatial Analysis helps graduates signal deep familiarity with both GIS and remote sensing, not only for data processing and visualization, but also for analyses applied to settings such as disaster management, public health, urban growth, environmental science and conflict analysis.

Program Overview

GPS’s Certificate in Spatial Analysis is awarded to students who have attained three cutting-edge sets of skills – manipulation and analysis of geospatial data, satellite remote sensing, and data science methods for spatial data. These tools are applicable across a broad range of private and public thematic settings, and are an increasingly important lens through which to understand the world and model future scenarios. Students also work on individual research or policy projects which deepen their mastery of these tools in thematic areas of their professional interest. GPS is unique among policy schools in offering such depth in this particular set of skills.

The course sequence provides close contact with faculty who are active in conducting spatial analysis. Many students are also able to join faculty projects as research assistants and benefit from involvement in high-quality spatial research in topics across the social sciences. Students prepare final projects in all classes in the sequence, which are often used by graduates as writing samples for job applications.

The program certificate is open only to current graduate students at UC San Diego (including graduate students outside GPS). The certificate will not show as part of a formal transcript, rather it is a document you can provide to potential employers or program advisers. You can list it on your resume, CV and applications, documenting that you have developed state of the art skills in spatial analysis.

Questions? Contact Professor Gordon McCord, director of the Certificate in Spatial Analysis program.