The 2014 National Geospatial Technology Skills / Mapping Competition

Win a trip to San Diego for the ESRI International User’s Conference!

Extended Deadline for Round 1 (exam only) : April 15, 2014
More Info: [email protected]
Competition Rules 2014 (note updated dates below)


Competition Overview

Welcome to the 2014 National Geospatial Technology Skills Competition! We are excited to open the 2014 national mapping competition exclusively to students who are enrolled in a two year, community or technical college geospatial technology program in the U.S. This competition allows two year college learners to demonstrate their expertise in the skills identified in the new Department of Labor “Geospatial Technology Competency Model” or “GTCM”. The GTCM is a comprehensive document, release in June 2010, which precisely defines for the first time, the entire Geospatial Technology Industry and its sectors. You can read about the GTCM on the DOL website.The intent of the National Geospatial Technology Skills Competition/Mapping Contest is to showcase the geospatial technology skills of students in two year, community and technical colleges in the U.S. The contest will test student aptitude in geospatial theory and software applications, and will draw content from the Geospatial Technology Competency Model (GTCM) to insure that the most relevant skills and knowledge are being assessed. The National Geospatial Technology Skills competition will take place in three rounds with the first round requiring students take an online examination that tests their knowledge of geospatial science and technology (geographic information systems, remote sensing, and global navigation satellite systems (GNSS)). The second round will require students to create a project using geospatial technology that demonstrates their knowledge and addresses a real-world problem. The student will then capture the project as a video that will demonstrate their use of geospatial tools and communication and presentation skills. The student will then upload their video to the GeoTech Center YouTube Channel. The videos of the projects will be judged and scored by panelists of geospatial professionals (GISCI). The scores from the exam and project will be combined to select the top five students. The final round of the competition will take place at the 2014 Esri Education Users Conference (EdUC) July 12-15 in San Diego, California where the five finalists will present their project and be judged by a panel of geospatial professionals. 

Important Dates

*Note: The deadline for round one has been extended until April 15, 2014.

  • January 21, 2014 - Competition Announced
  • January 27, 2014 - April 15, 2014 12:00 midnight EST - Round One Exam Available and must be taken by midnight EST on April 15.*
  • May 1, 2014 12:00 midnight EST – Round 2 Project must be uploaded to YouTube no later than May 1, 12:00 midnight.
  • May 15, 2014 - Five Semi-finalists Announced and invited to attend Esri EdUC
  • June 1, 2014 - Invitations to EdUC Semi-finalist must be acknowledged and accepted or rejected.
  • July 13—16, 2014 - Conference Attendance by Semi-finalists at EdUC and UC in San Diego, CA
  • July 15, 2014 - Presentation at Esri User Conference on Tuesday,
  • July 15, 2014 - Winners announced on Tuesday during the ESRI Special Interest Group meeting for Community Colleges.


Detailed Contest Rules and Registration

Students who are at least 18 years old and currently enrolled during the Spring 2014 semester in a geospatial technology course (e.g., geographic information systems, remote sensing, or GPS/GNSS) or geospatial technology program at an accredited 2 year institution are eligible to enter. If you have any questions regarding eligibility contact the competition coordinator at [email protected]. Students may enter the contest only once and participate on only one project. Students must provide the contact information for their instructor (Instructors Name, email address, school name, and phone number) when they register. The category of the project must be clearly defined and adhere to the rules and expectations outlined in the National Geospatial Technology Skills Competition guidelines below. To compete in the 2014 National Geospatial Technology Skills Competition students must create a profile on LinkedIn.com. The student profile must: [1] contain a recent picture of themselves (head shot only, please), [2] provide current contact information including a current email address and phone number [3] identify the educational institution they are attending and, [4] provide a contact (email address and phone number) for one of their current geospatial instructors. Once the student profile is complete they need to request to join the GeoTech Center’s National Geospatial Technology Competition LinkedIn Group. Students can find the group by using the LinkedIn search tool. If the student already has a LinkedIn profile, and all of the requested information is included, they will only need to request to join the GeoTech Center’s National Geospatial Technology Competition LinkedIn Group. Failure to provide a complete profile will prevent the student from being able to take the online examination.

Linkedin Group Site: http://www.linkedin.com/groups?home=&gid=7425740&trk=anet_ug_hm)



What do you do after you register? For detailed competition rules and requirements please refer to the pdf version here: Competition Rules 2014 (note updated dates above()

Application Deadline: April 15th, 2014


Contact Us:

Scott Jeffrey, Lead
[email protected]