A few weeks ago, I wrote about the '
business of GIS education'. If we are to
gauge the problem based on the few queries I received - it can be
fairly said that more 'GIS education' is being imparted by the 'unorganised' and
private sector than by national or accredited universities and colleges. In our
domain, certification exists for individuals. Most are obtained by subjecting one
self to a rigourous set of tests e.g. the ASPRS certification. I do not know of a
recognised and reputed organisation offering institutional accreditation. Industry
accreditation for specialised 'industry centric' geospatial courses does exist
though. This situation leads one to question the existence of 'base standards' in
GIS education or as I had questioned earlier - who qualifies to be a
geospatialist?
To rephrase - what is the bare minimum academic curriculum needed to satisfy
the requirements of being called a geospatialist? If we are to have a smooth and
seamless utilisation of global human resources trained in GIS, a certain amount
of standardisation of curricula is the need of the hour. Will any one step ahead
and take up the cause?
Hrishikesh Samant
