Sie möchten Ihre GIS-Kenntnisse auf die nächste Stufe heben. Wie finden Sie die beste Trainingsplattform?

For the beginner level, I would suggest trying out QGIS software as it is an open-source system that provides a lot of functionalities. This way one can expand its pool of basic knowledge without investing a great amount of resources.

To elevate your GIS skills, start by researching reputable training platforms. Look for well-established platforms like Esri, Coursera, Udemy, or LinkedIn Learning. Consider factors such as course content, instructor expertise, and user reviews. Check if the platform offers hands-on projects and real-world applications to ensure practical learning. Additionally, explore forums and communities like GeoNet to gather insights from experienced GIS professionals. Look for certifications that align with your goals, such as Esri's Technical Certification or others recognized in the industry. Finally, take advantage of free trials or introductory courses to assess the platform's suitability before committing to a comprehensive program.

Before actually enrolling to a course, you have to ask yourself what part of the very broad aspects of GIS you want to learn, usually start with your interest or your field of study/work. Is it in forestry? agriculture? urban development? mining? From there, you can try out related case studies with any basic learning steps with any software. It helps you ease your learning experience with something that you are already interested in learning. The GIS part of it can be seen as a tool and a framework of thinking to your domain of interest.

Before starting in a GIS skill training journey, we should plan for the short and long term GIS goals (learning GIS basics for work, GIS for research, GIS for field missions, coding in GIS) A clear vision of our GIS goals will guide us to search for the adequate GIS learning program

In today's digital age, remote learning has emerged as the preferred choice, and the most effective approach is to opt for certified platforms like ESRI. They offer a wide range of free courses that can be accessed remotely, allowing individuals to enhance their skills and knowledge. Moreover, if you wish to validate your expertise, ESRI provides certifications that can further boost your professional credentials

For those individuals who want to dive right in and who learning by doing, Youtube has a plethora of tutorials for just about anything you're trying to do with spatial data and mapping. This is especially true for open source software like QGIS and SAGA GIS, which offer free yet powerful tools for analysis and cartography. These free software package do everything that ArcGIS does and more!

To acquire proficiency in ArcGIS, I discovered that the Esri training platform stands out as an excellent choice. It offers free courses that allow you to explore and identify your preferred learning style. Moreover, they provide a license throughout the course duration. The training incorporates real-life scenarios, instructional videos, diagrams, textual resources, practical exercises, and various teaching methods. Additionally, some courses include forums where you can seek assistance and ask questions. My personal experience with Massive Open Online Courses (MOOC) on this platform has been exceptional, making it my top recommendation for online learning.

In my experience, starting your learning journey by committing to a series of free online courses is a great way to start. Once you've established your proficiency in basic GIS, you can fully immerse yourself with specific case studies. For example, you are interested in forestry, you might want to explore courses or mentors who are experienced in forestry industry with GIS tools and techniques. With this, you can start developing a specific learning journey in GIS with your desired topics.

As Aristotle said : "Knowing yourself is the beginning of all wisdom" and it applies for GIS trainings because you will learn more easily and effectively if you choose a program that suits your learning preferences Some people will prefer face to face sessions in a group, others will prefer webinars and online sessions, learning from an online MOOC is instructive and some people will prefer this format, a GIS mentor is important to learn from a GIS experienced specialist and receive advice for our GIS journey, also learning as an autodidact is an option

There are so many free and open courses that you can find online, and almost everything covers the basics. From my experience, try to invest your time learning with the lowest cost possible for as long as you can. When you found a case study or a project that needs a very specific methodology in GIS and require you to get assistance from people experienced in the case study, thats when you can consider spending budget to further your GIS mastery.

For GIS learning there are many paid and free courses, for free courses Esri provides free MOOCs in GIS use in different topics (Cartography, Imagery, Climate Action) which are useful to improve our GIS skills using ArcGIS Pro and ArcGIS Online

A feedback is important in any learning program and for GIS there are many options such as exercices, quizzes and exams GIS trainees should know more about any learning program before starting it in order to maximize learning benefits and improve their GIS skills but the most important feedback is the ability to practise GIS skills for problem solving in a concrete project

Another important thing to consider in improving your skills in GIS, is to think outside of the box. Whatever platform you choose to learn from and however much you learn, in GIS, there is always more than one way to find solutions to problems, so do not put yourself in a box, attempt new solutions, outside of what you have learnt in your formal classes/courses and this is what will stand you out as a GIS professional.