Urbana, IL — The United States Geospatial Intelligence Foundation (USGIF) has granted accreditation to the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign for the graduate certificate and master’s degree in CyberGIS and Geospatial Data Science. In total, 23 colleges and universities, including the University of Illinois, offer USGIF-accredited programs and over 1,600 students have
received a USGIF recognized certificate.
“There is a critical need for a robust talent pipeline in the geospatial intelligence field,” said Ronda Schrenk, USGIF CEO. “USGIF accreditation elevates the programs training future GEOINT talent. We
are proud of our academic partners and delighted to work with the University of Illinois.”
USGIF’s accreditation program provides colleges and universities with an independent, expert assessment of its geospatial curricula. This recognition helps students determine which schools provide a high-quality geospatial intelligence education and helps future employers develop their talent pipeline.
“We are excited to be accredited by the USGIF for our online Master’s degree in CyberGIS and Geospatial Data Science,” said Dr. Julie Cidell, Professor and Head of the Department of Geography
and Geographic Information Science at the University of Illinois. “Students can acquire the skills they need in visualization, AI, data processing, and data-intensive computation and know that their work will be recognized by the geointelligence community.”
Dr. Anand Padmanabhan, faculty adviser for the online CyberGIS and Geospatial Data Science programs in the Department of Geography and Geographic Information Science, works with students who wish to receive the USGIF designation. He shares that “for the USGIF recognized certificate, students must complete 12 credit hours of coursework and a 4-credit capstone. All master’s degree students receive the USGIF certification automatically by completing the 32-credits and requirements for the degree which includes a capstone.”
For students interested in this credential, they may contact the department or apply by visiting https://gis.illinois.edu.
Each program is awarded accreditation for a full term of five years.
For more information on USGIF
accredited schools, visit: https://usgif.org/education
