Geospatial Intelligence Accreditation

Written by Sue Kalweit

Anyone who has used or been “wowed” by Microsoft Virtual Earth or Google Earth understands the basic premise of geospatial intelligence.

According to the Defense Department, geospatial intelligence is specifically the “exploitation and analysis of imagery and geospatial information to describe, assess, and visually depict physical features and geographically referenced activities on the earth. Geospatial intelligence consists of imagery, imagery intelligence, and geospatial information.”

Though agencies and organizations might define geospatial intelligence differently, one point is clear: the geospatial technologies sector is rapidly growing while quickly running short on well-qualified employees.

A U.S. Department of Labor study identified geospatial technologies as one of 14 “high-growth” industry sectors. This growth coupled with a consensus throughout the geospatial industry that the pool of qualified entry-level workers does not meet the demand of the quickly growing geospatial enterprise is cause for concern.

Enter the United States Geospatial Intelligence Foundation (USGIF), a non-stock, not-for-profit corporation established to promote the geospatial intelligence tradecraft and develop stronger community of interest between government, industry, academia, professional organizations and individuals whose mission focuses on the development and application of geospatial intelligence data and geo-processing resources to address national security objectives.

In October of 2004, USGIF established the USGIF Academy. With a mission to expand the workforce of highly-qualified geospatial intelligence professionals, the Academy—through outreach to academia and academic institutions—supports lifelong learning and professional development in the skills and competencies associated with the geospatial intelligence profession and tradecraft.

One of the immediate concerns of the academy was to establish a Geospatial Intelligence Certificate Program to orient students to a broad set of technical and critical thinking skills and knowledge relevant to entering and fostering a career in the geospatial intelligence profession.

Although there are a variety of professional and academic certificates in geographic information systems (GIS), there is no accreditation program that focuses on the essential aspects of geospatial intelligence and the needs and expectations of employers in the geospatial intelligence market.

Additionally, the uniqueness of the USGIF Geospatial Intelligence Certificate Program is to integrate technical skill competencies and critical thinking with its application to the analytic tradecraft useful in military intelligence and business intelligence activities. The bottom line being that approved curriculum encompasses more than what is traditionally included in a GIS certificate program.

The proposed accreditation by the USGIF Academy for academicbased Geospatial Intelligence Certificate programs would help grow the profession, help to ensure the geospatial competencies of professionals entering the field, and provide relevant continuing education opportunities for employers to offer their staff. The USGIF Geospatial Intelligence Certificate Program comprises four elements:

• A set of curriculum guidelines relevant to the work roles of geospatial intelligence professionals.

• A set of accreditation standards that measure the degree to which an academic institution meets USGIF Academy standards for offering a comprehensive geospatial intelligence certificate program.

• Subject matter experts that develop and maintain the curriculum guidelines and accreditation standards and oversee the accreditation process.

• An online catalogue of USGIF accredited courses and programs offered by academic institutions.

The USGIF Geospatial Intelligence Certificate Program is meant to be offered by recognized academic institutions that will be accredited by the USGIF Academy. USGIF intends that the certificate program will complement a college degree, support career development and provide professional recognition. Every student who successfully completes an accredited Geospatial Intelligence Certificate Program at his or her college or university will then receive a USGIF Certificate.

An important role of the USGIF accreditation process is to assure excellence of the educational programs offered by various institutions that can serve the geospatial intelligence industry. Students receiving a USGIF Geospatial Intelligence Certificate from accredited institutions can be assured that they are educated in the core competencies and trained in the basic skills. Employers seeking qualified candidates can use the certificate as one method of assessing the relevant educational base of applicants. The intent is that the certificate be a significant discriminator for both students and employers of geospatial intelligence professionals in the hiring process.

To support the creation of the USGIF Geospatial Intelligence Certificate Program, the Foundation established the USGIF Academy Panel, a panel of industry, academia and government subject matter experts. These experts, with support from the USGIF Academic Subcommittee members, established the curriculum guidelines and accreditation standards that form the basis for the USGIF Geospatial Intelligence Certificate Program.

The USGIF Academy Panel leveraged work by the University Consortium of Geographic Information Sciences (UCGIS), the University of Southern Mississippi GeoSpatial Workforce Development Center and the University of Mississippi Institute for Advanced Education in Geospatial Sciences (IAEGS). The guidelines include many direct references to the UCGIS Body of Knowledge. The competency model developed by the GeoSpatial Workforce Development Center provided a critical source of information for linking learning objectives to workplace competency needs. Finally, the courses developed under the IAEGS provided an important source of information on remote sensing learning objectives that assisted in the formation of the same for the USGIF Program.

The curriculum guidelines are designed for employees or potential employees who either are new entrants into the workplace, current employees seeking to re-skill in the area of geospatial intelligence, or new employees (less than 3 years) in the geospatial intelligence profession. The curriculum guidelines cover topics in:

• Geographic information science and technology (GI S&T) fundamentals

• Remote sensing theory and applications

• Integration of GI S&T and remote sensing

• Computer science fundamentals

• Communications principles

• Analytic processes

• Legal and ethical issues

In addition to providing skills and knowledge in each of the individual topics, every accredited USGIF Geospatial Intelligence Certificate program will include a capstone course. The Capstone course is the heart of the program, as it demonstrates students’ accomplishment in applying the technical, communications and analytic skills learned in prior courses. The capstone exercise will further allow students to address and solve a scenario-based problem that geospatial intelligence professionals would face in the workplace.

USGIF encourages colleges and universities to design the capstone course around collaboration and teamwork and that as new information becomes available or emerge as the scenario unfolds the students must reach new outcomes. This approach is intended to closely mirror how geospatial intelligence professionals conduct their work. The accreditation program will be 15-21 credit hours and may be earned along with meeting other degree or certificate requirements in a program.

The USGIF Academy will consider for accreditation any Geospatial Intelligence Certificate Program offered by an institution of higher learning that is accredited by a recognized body for regional institutions in the US, or similarly recognized bodies in other countries. An educational institution may partner with other institutions in order to meet all of the accreditation requirements, but only one program may apply for USGIF accreditation.

The USGIF plans to invite interested educational institutions to apply for accreditation beginning in the spring of 2007. The USGIF Academy Panel will hold its first accreditation review in November of 2007. Information regarding the process for applying for accreditation will be posted on the USGIF Website by June 2007.

Editor’s Note: For more information on the USGIF Geospatial Intelligence Certificate Program, including the draft curriculum guidelines and accreditation standards, go to the USGIF Website at www.usgif.org, or contact Sue Kalweit, USGIF Academic Subcommittee Chairwoman, at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it or (703) 377-4727. ♦

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