GIS Consulting Class

The Geography Department offers an upper-level course (GEO 4427: GIS Consulting Practicum) which links a group of 3-5 students with either a non-profit or governmental agency to provide pro-bono GIS consultation and technical support. The partnership provides students an opportunity to participate in the full life cycle of a GIS project, while developing their GIS capabilities in a team setting at a professional level. Students in this class are mostly seniors who have completed introductory and advanced GIS and remote sensing courses.

Conditions:

• Project scope should be approximately 100 hours
• Client must be a governmental agency or non-profit organization
• Client representative must provide a two-page Request for Proposal (RFP) and attend 4 presentation sessions during the semester to provide guidance and feedback on students’ work
• Project scope can be anything related to GIS and mapping. Spatial analysis (geostatistics) related projects are especially encouraged
• The site must be in the San Marcos area if field work is required
• GEO 4427 is only offered in the spring semester