GISCI does not endorse any particular exam preparation materials, and we have not produced materials beyond the Exam Candidate Manual available elsewhere on this site. 

However, this page will attempt to provide a summary of materials publicly available to assist individuals with their own course of study in preparing to take the Exam.

The Exam is fairly robust, and individuals cannot expect to do well with only a few hours of study.   The material covers an extensive array of knowledge, fully described in  the Exam Candidate Manual, and not all individuals will have come in contact with this during the course of their academic work or experience.  However, the material does come from those Knowledge Areas commonly encountered by active GISPs, and it is this minimal level of knowledge that a prospective GISP is expected to demonstrate in order to be approved for GISP Certification.

GISCI Practice Exam

GISCI has produced its first practice exam, available in PDF form for download here:

GISCI Practice Exam 1

Personal-Assessment Tools

The GeoTech Center has produces a free, online, personal-assessment survey available on their website, here:  http://www.geotechcenter.org/professional.html

They are in the process of developing an online, practice exam, hopefully available sometime in the 1st Qtr 2017.  This would provide a means of further self-assessing an individual's capability of several Knowledge Areas, including those covered by the GISCI Exam.   Visit the GeoTech Center web site for this resource.

Study Materials

While study materials are being considered for production by various organizations, one source of material has been provided by an  individual who consolidated online reference materials, based on the GISCI Exam Blueprint, prior to his taking the GISCI Exam.   He has willingly provided the links, below, as a resource for others to use.  This material represents his focus on material he needed to prepare for the exam, and it is the kind of work we expect each individual to produce for him or herself:

 https://docs.google.com/document/d/1wifTSbtaR_5oT14U_6aydFmArLpkML8Fd4lMwqIf8qg/edit?usp=sharing

 https://docs.google.com/document/d/1ioKARKLJJpG3lFbPqSqXxNHIdVBhBTrfiQ-H9ivXs_w/edit?usp=sharing

Exam Prep Workshop

URISA provided the first workshop specifically directed to the Exam at URISA Pro 2016 in Toronto.  They are now reviewing the material content and hope to offer this material at other locations around the US in 2017.    Visit their site or contact them for updates.    http://www.urisa.org/