FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

In this context, a project is anything that a GIS student must complete as part of their academic requirements. The learning objectives of such projects may include data analysis, modeling, cartography and visualization, oral and written communication, and project management. In order for a project to be successfully complete-able within a student's academic guidelines, the project must have a clear and unambiguous "end" or set of deliverables.

Often, a project is a discrete set of tasks that involves spatial analysis, via GIS, in one way or another. The tasks will be applied to spatial data that have been organized and prepared, and they may be manipulated with one or more software packages. Some computer programming may be involved in order to complete, or automate, the tasks.

For more information, review the Client Guidelines and explore this Gallery of Completed Projects.

Great! Read through the Client Guidelines and get a sense of whether your project fits the guidelines. If your project doesn't fit the guidelines, it's better to figure that out now than later! But if it does, Sign up and create an account and then you can enter the information about your project into the database. If after reading the Client Guidelines you're still not sure, drop us a line (link to a Contact Us form) and we can chat about it.

UCGIS provides access to the collection of projects only to students and faculty from their member institutions. It's a benefit of membership. Unfortunately, your university (or department) is not currently affiliated with UCGIS. Let your faculty advisor know about UCGIS and perhaps your institution may be able to join.

There are many possible reasons. Academic calendars vary greatly and sometimes students are only in the mode of selecting projects in a September, or in a January. You may have just missed a window of time, and/or another one might begin soon. Or, perhaps your project isn't well-aligned with what a student needs (or wants) to do. Review the Client Guidelines and make sure that what you're proposing is within the parameters of this collection. Consider revising how you're written the project's description. Keep current and revise all of the dates for when the project can and must be completed. Still no luck? Turn "off" the project for a few months and try again later, and/or let us know if you want the Project removed from the collection. The GIS&T Projects collection won't work for everyone.

No, you don't. In many academic programs, students are required to work on a project as part of their course work. They need the experience of applying their developing skills to a "real" project, and you can help them with that! However, if you do have funding that must be allocated to do the project, arranging for the student to receive those funds would be entirely between you (as the Client) and the student (as the worker). UCGIS would play no role in those arrangements and details.

Congratulations on successfully completing your degree! We're glad you were able to take advantage of this service to identify a project. But once you have graduated from your institution, please do not continue to use this collection. There may be a lag between the time when you graduate and when your profile is removed from this system, especially because your institutional email may continue to work, but this service is intended for currently enrolled and active students.

Meanwhile, with your skills you're likely to get a position soon that will use GIS, and you may find that your new employer has many potential "projects" that could benefit from this service too! You may find yourself on the Client side soon!