Course description
GIS Foundations
GIS is a framework for gathering, managing, and analyzing data. Using the principles of geographic science, it integrates many types of geospatial data, analyzes their relationships, and organizes them in layers of information for visualization and improved understanding. This free online course focuses on ESRI’s ArcGIS software, the industry standard within GIS software. Jack Dangermond, CEO of ESRI, describes GIS as “uncovering meaning and insights from within data.”
Participants in this course will learn GIS concepts and fundamentals, tools, and processing applicable to problems in a variety of fields, including cartography, remote sensing, data science, public health, health care, information technology, social science, urban planning, government, and business. Your enrollment in this course will prepare you to work with spatial data and conduct spatial data analysis with datasets and geographic data.
This self-paced course is designed for self-study. Coursework covers GIS applications of real-world problems, and prepares learners for more advanced applications such as 3D GIS and GIS Image Analysis, the two other GIS courses in the GIS Essentials Professional Certificate program. This course can be taken individually as an elective or as part of this larger specialization.
Upcoming start dates
Suitability - Who should attend?
Prerequisites
Windows OS is required to run ArcGIS Pro software.
Outcome / Qualification etc.
What you'll learn
- Use ArcGIS Pro software efficiently
- Explore, create and analyze geospatial data in ArcGIS Pro software
- Create and share new GIS data
- Use ArcGIS geoprocessing tools for data preparation, building workflows and spatial analysis
- Create informative visualizations in the form of maps, graphs and charts
- Perform spatial analyses on points, lines, and polygons data to gain deeper insight into data, patterns and relationships
Training Course Content
Introduction to GIS
- What is GIS?
- History of GIS
- GIS data types (vector and raster)
- GIS file types and datasets (File Geodatabase, Feature Class, Shapefile, Table, GeoTiff)
- Coordinate systems (geographic and projected)
- GIS applications and ArcGIS Pro access
Getting started with ArcGIS Pro Software
- Project set up in ArcGIS Pro
- Introduction to Geospatial data processing tools
- Introduction to feature class (point, line, polygon)
- Working with attribute tables
- ArcGIS best practices
Spatial Analysis using Geoprocessing tools
- Point analysis
- Line analysis
- Polygon analysis
Map Layout and Charts
- Create your first GIS map
- Add basic map elements to a map layout (title, scale, north arrow, descriptive text)
- Add advanced map elements (map grid and overview map)
- Create charts from spatial data
- Format and analyze GIS charts
Course delivery details
This course is offered through University of Alaska Fairbanks, a partner institute of EdX.
3-5 hours per week
Expenses
- Verified Track -$149
- Audit Track - Free