I really liked this course - it's an introductory course but you get a real feel for the steps required to work through the whole process of GIS and by the end are able to navigate the software comfortably.

The fact you can get a license for ArcGIS is really great and means you are doing not just observing. ArcGIS is quite a computationally heavy package (for my laptop anyway) but you can usually follow the video lectures with it open and follow the commands which helps the learning experience.

The workload is just the right amount for an online course - not too much to do but enough to keep you busy.

I will be continuing on the specialisation.

I've taken GIS courses before in college, but these were way more informative and way more interesting given the short period of time that he has to explain everything. I had some problems at the start because I am on a 2011 MacBook Pro, but I bought Parallels and it works perfectly fine with ArcMap. I tried to download Windows using Bootcamp, but it was a hassle (didn't switch to Windows when I wanted it to after restart or would just come up with an error screen) so I definitely think the Parallels investment is a go-to if you have an older Mac and want to continue with the rest of this Specialization.

Wonderful course. The structure of the course was very beneficial to me. There are non graded assignments that help you better understand the weekly material and practice basic workflows in GIS. There is only one grade assignment due at the end of the course. Also, you get to work with watershed data which was a plus for me since I am interested in water issues as it relates to public health and the environment. It is a foundational course so you will learn how to add data to your map and work with geoprocessing tools to make maps that are understandable and appealing. 5 stars!

Although very focused on hydrology from a learning perspective, this course gave a lot of information which allowed me to complete all of the required tests and final assignment without issue, and I certainly felt like I refreshed my previously limited GIS knowledge whilst adding to it some new features such as how to add and modify metadata. I liked that it went out of its way to provide additional information to the user for further practise although this was focused on a single, quite expensive book. Looking forward to taking the rest of the specialisation.

The course was really good. I learned a lot of things related GIS. The most important thing is, you can learn about GIS from many sources but you may struggle to implement them in a good GIS software. This Course is so well organized that it will ensure that you understand how to use the software efficiently .Besides, The assignments were superb ! Whenever I face any difficulties in doing work in ArcGIS , I go through the assignment files. They are really helpful. will recommend everyone to give it a try. You will make the best use of your time surely. :)

Great course, great presentations, great lecturer.

All the contents are pretty clear, very effective and detailed explanations and very high level in general, considering it's an introduction course.

It looks like they they care so much about it and there's a lot of hard work underneath.

I took some other courses of GIS in the past and I can say this is one of the highest quality.

Congratulations Nick Santos and all the UC Davis team involved that make it possible!

Can't wait to take the next one.

Juan Esteller,

Granada, Spain

It was really good course I have learned a lot. The lecturer is really wonderful Professor. The thing that I did not understand WHY I didn't get my certificate until now! I already submitted it before the deadline and also manage to review my colleagues work. I went for a holiday and come back yesterday to the website it says I didn't submit the assignment and didn't review any work!!!!!!! WHAT!!!!!!!! HOW COME!!!!!!! I have to re-subscribe and submit again! I tried to upload the PDFbut it doesn't work.

Really good course for those who have never worked with GIS and maps before. Covers al the basics, but isn't boring for those with some experience in the field.

I really enjoyed learning a bit about all of the different sides of GIS. The final project was a bit too easy.

I was a bit disappointed by the cartography aspect. As a designer I always find the end products of Arcgis to look a it stale. I didn't particularly find that the way in which symbology was implemented qualifies as good design.

Me ha parecido un curso excelente, los temas abordados, la enseñanza virtual ha sido de calidad, el material proporcionado durante todo el curso para realizar practicas de lo aprendido, el sistema de evaluación entre participantes me ha parecido muy novedoso.

En este corto tiempo, he aprendido muchísimo acerca de GIS y de las funciones básicas del software ArcGIS.

Felicidades al equipo que ha trabajado para hacer de este curso una experiencia única.

Muchas gracias Coursera por esta oportunidad.

This course was an easy and exciting glimpse into the world of GIS. I'm grateful for the instructor, Nick's, ability to take a complicated subject and break it down into simplified terms for someone as brand new to GIS as I am (as well as many others, I'm sure!). The layout, time/effort requirement, and quality of the course are commendable and I would highly recommend this course and Coursera to friends, family, and colleagues. Thanks so much, Nick, UC Davis, ESRI, and Coursera!

Like a lot of people, I started using GIS at work and was kind of thrown into it and fumbled my way through for a while. Going into this course I had a basic understanding of how to make maps and import data etc but I didn't really understand what it all meant. This course was extremely helpful for gaining insight and understanding into the basic why's and how's of this program. I highly recommend it if you use GIS at work but never received any real formal training.

This was a fantastic class. The instructor and those that constructed the lectures, exercises, quizzes and projects managed to put so much into very efficient, but complete packages that are really well organized. I was able to watch some on my phone, some on my tablet and many on my PC. Instruction was very clear and valuable. The exercises were great. The project at the end was challenging and interesting. I look forward to the next class in this specialization.

This course stands true to its name. It covers all fundamental concepts of GIS and helps one become familiar with the software used by GIS specialists. The step by step instructions make the course very easy to follow. I was a little intimidated by the course content because long distance learning can be difficult as I do not have a GIS oriented study group of sorts and am now proud of the fact that I challenged myself with the course as it's just great! :)

I previously had some GIS experience, but it was two years ago and I hadn't used it since. This course was a perfect way of remembering what I learned while adding new skills. I loved the ability to go at my own pace and really think about why certain things worked the way they did. I would highly recommend to anyone who wants a GIS refresher. For people who have never used GIS it may be a little more difficult, but I still think it's completely do-able.

I absolutely enjoyed this course. Provided me with the essential knowledge and skills needed to perform basic GIS tasks. The Syllabus is easy to follow and exercises are concise with pertinent details, tips and tricks. There was a whole lot of information made available to participants, not only for this course, but what you can apply in all of your GIS tasks. I encourage everyone to take this course-you have nothing to lose, but lots to gain!

I completed this course a couple of months prior to beginning my Masters Degree in Marine and Coastal Management. My degree relied heavily on GIS, with roughly a semester dedicated primarily to the software. This course was a great introduction and gave me pre-requisite understanding of some basic tools and the software interface in general. Highly recommended for beginners, especially if you plan on pursuing a degree which incorporates GIS.

This course provides an excellent overview of GIS for beginners, building a solid theoretical foundation from which to work and continue learning. The instructor walks through basic concepts from the beginning in a way that anyone can understand. The course assignments are very helpful practice in using the skills covered. The course focuses primarily on ArcGIS, but some of the material is useful regardless of the computer application used.

it was really very very interesting course i enjoyed it

thanks to : the primary instructor of this course : Nick Santos

thanks to the outstanding team of dedicated educators at UC Davis Extension including:

Instructional Designers and Project Managers: Jennifer Kremer, Dan Comins, Andy Roy, and Jeff LouxVideo Production: Kristen Hoard, Joe Najera, Adi Maldonado, and Dominick Porras

Thanks as well to Esri for their support of this course.

This course was outstanding. Nick does an excellent job of breaking down the key elements of ArcGIS into easily digestible lectures as well as applying those elements in exercises and quizzes. There truly is no experience necessary before jumping in. If you work in a field that currently uses GIS or could, this course and specialization is right for you - and likely a better use of money than getting a degree or certificate in GIS.

This course was an excellent introduction to Esri's ArcGIS! I really liked the format it followed, where there were video tutorials followed by forum discussions, quizzes, and practice assignments, which prepared me well for the final assignment. The professor was able to clearly and simply explain concepts, and provided lots of helpful examples. I would highly recommend this course to anyone who wants to begin learning GIS!

This course was extremely useful for me to kick start learning about GIS and software. It has clearly laid our syllabus and neatly made videos which help overcome inhibitions about technical nitty grittties.. The course has instilled confidence in me to continue further studying various aspects of GIS. I enjoyed doing my assignments too. I highly recommend this course to any one who deals in spatial aspects in their work.

I thoroughly enjoyed this class! Nick Santos does a fantastic job of breaking down the core concepts and making them easy to understand while at the same time showing you how to jump right in and start learning by doing. I'm hooked! At this point, all the other things in my life (job, family, dog, sleeping, eating etc.) are just annoyances that are getting in the way of me being able to learn more in these courses.

my only problem with this course is the use of Arc GIS.I have been able to download it or parts of it and I'm not sure which, but I can't get a license to work even the temporary one so I can't do the work. And frankly I don't have any intention of using the Arc GIS when I am done I intend using integrated program that I can use within Adobe's CAD system. So I really don't want to have to buy a full copy of Arc GIS

This was my first introduction to GIS and I really enjoyed how this course provided a comprehensive and hands-on overview of the topic. The content of the course is very well structured and the different lessons nicely build upon each other. All the necessary information to successfully complete the assignments were readily available. The lecturer's excitement for GIS was truly infectious! Can only recommend!

Great course! The instructor is very knowledgeable and enthusiastic and makes the material relatable to many different fields. The assignments closely align with the material and are at the appropriate difficulty level with good walkthroughs to get you started. And the final project was also appropriate for the scope of the course - very doable but took a little bit of tinkering and experimentation.