What is the career in Geoinformatics?



Maps are no longer just pieces of paper connecting one place to another. Today, they help us drive to unfamiliar places, have food delivered to our doorstep and have a cab pick us up within minutes. This is all thanks to the geoinformatics (GIS) and remote sensing technology, which is used in navigation and several apps. As the technology advances, it has opened up a plethora of career avenues.



What is GIS?



Geoinformatics is a specialised field necessitating expert knowledge. A GIS professional interprets and understands geographical data and presents it in a way people can access easily. They build and maintain GIS databases, use the technology to analyse spatial and non spatial information. GIS professionals hold a wide variety of job titles, including GIS Analyst, GIS Technician, and Cartographer.



What is the scope?



GIS professionals can work in different organisations. In the government sector, job prospects include government space agencies, research institutes, national informatics centre, agricultural research institute, among others. There are growing opportunities in the private sector as well with companies discovering the benefits of geoinformatics.



Environmental agencies, survey and mapping organisations, mineral exploration, utility companies, emergency services, public health and epidemiology, international organisations, crime mapping, transportation and infrastructure, tourism industry, market analysis and e-commerce are some of the other avenues available in this field.



Job profiles range from scientist project co-ordinator, project scientist and technical assistant to research scholar, research associate, GIS expert and GIS environment analyst in private sector.



What to study



Students specialising in Geography, Geology: Agriculture, Engineering,. Information Technology or Computer Science can gain admission to Master of Science (M.Sc.). Master of Technology (M.Tech.) courses in Geoinformatics and Remote Sensing. There is also the option to follow it up with Ph.D. programmes



Where:




  • Indian Institute of Remote Sensing and Sensing: Dehradun: M.Tech. (RS & GIS) conducted in collaboration with Andhra University, Visakhapatnam: M.Sc in Geoinformatics conducted in collaboration with the Faculty of Geo information Science & Earth Observation of the University of Twente, the Netherlands

  • Birla Institute of Technology: Ranchi, Extension centres - Kolkata, Jaipur. MSc. in Geoinformatics

  • National Remote Sensing Agency: Hyderabad: Training courses in in geo spatial technology

  • ISRO, Bengalund Training in the field of Remote Sensing: Geo-informatics and GPS Technology for Natural Resources and Disaster Management for Master of Engineering (M.E), M.Sc. M. Tech, Master of Computer Applications students

  • Symbiosis Institute of Geoinformatics, Pune: M.Sc. in Geoinformatics.



 



Picture Credit : Google