Abstract
This study examines the characteristics of the members in the most popular Geographic Information Systems (GIS) Professional (GISP) certification program in the United States as well as the spatial patterns of the certified GISPs. The results show that the majority of GISPs (97.3%) are located in urban areas. About 75% of the GISPs are male. Among all the GISPs, 3971 GISPs (43.3%) play a managerial role, while 4983 individuals (54.5%) assume a non-administrative role. Among the GISPs with a non-administrative role, 348 GISPs (7%) fall within the GIS Developer group, 3392 GISPs (68%) belong to the GIS Analyst group, and 1243 GISPs (25%) play other roles. Additionally, in our analysis of spatial patterns, we identified two hotspots and two coldspots. The first hotspot is centered around Idaho and Wyoming, while the second hotspot includes Virginia, Washington DC, and Maryland. One coldspot is along Iowa, Missouri, Arkansas, and Louisiana in the central U.S., while the other coldspot includes states such as Connecticut, New Jersey, and New York on the east coast. The information presented in this study can help GIS educators and practitioners develop a better understanding of the current state of this certification program in the U.S and shed light on how to further improve the GISP certification program.
Highlights
Geographic information systems (GIS) are computer systems for collecting, processing, analyzing, managing, and visualizing various types of geographic information [1]
We derived a subset of GIS Professional (GISP) with a valid certification, which indicated that 6200 GISPs (67.72%) have a valid certification in the U.S as of January 2019
We manually checked the unclassified records and found that most of them are foreign names. Given that they only account for a small percentage (3%), we focus on the analysis of the GISPs that are successfully genderized in subsequent analysis
Summary
Geographic information systems (GIS) are computer systems for collecting, processing, analyzing, managing, and visualizing various types of geographic information [1]. Pugh [3] identifies a list of criteria for professionalism: (1) a self-awareness; (2) a unique body of knowledge; (3) a social ideal to unify the professionals; (4) a formal organization of its members; (5) a hall of fame; and (6) a code of ethics This set of characteristics, which has been widely used in many contemporary discussions related to the professionalism of GIS, advances earlier dialogs on GIS certification, which generally focused on topics such as the feasibility of certification, certification examination, and the core skills/knowledge for a competent GIS professional [2,4,5,6]. Many universities have developed GIS programs at undergraduate and graduate levels and cultivated a large number of GIS professionals for the society in the U.S in the past few decades [8,9]. GIS has been widely accepted as a profession [4,11], which makes it natural to develop relevant certification programs for this occupation
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
