Geographic Information Systems (GIS) are any set of tools or technologies used to collect, integrate, store, edit, analyze, share, or display geographic information. GIS applications are tools that allow users to create interactive queries, analyze spatial information, edit data in maps, and present the results of all these operations.
Our role is to facilitate your geospatial analysis within the realm of our supported software packages (i.e., ArcGIS, QGIS, Carto, ArcGIS Online, and Esri Story Maps). We can assist you with issues that you may encounter with respect to data finding (locating geospatial data), preparation (importing, merging, and cleaning data), analysis (geoprocessing), and results (understanding the formatting of the output). We can also help you select the best package for your task, interpret error messages, and locate documentation and further resources.
In addition to providing regularly scheduled software-specific tutorials, we can also help instructors by providing classroom presentations to introduce geospatial software.
Our role is to assist you with your analysis, rather than to conduct analyses for you. It is the researcher's responsibility to ensure that the research design, analysis, and programming are justified and appropriate for the discipline at hand.
Consulting services are limited to current NYU students, faculty, and staff.
One-on-one GIS/mapping tutoring and general inquiries about methodology and statistical topics
Assistance with projects of commercial nature or those involving classified information, non-disclosure agreements, related to or likely to be involved in litigation, etc.
The NYUAD Librarian for Geospatial Data Services offers a variety of drop-in workshops throughout the academic year. Resources from some of those workshops are available below. Visit the NYUAD Library event calendar to see all library workshops offered.
The NYUAD Librarian for Geospatial Data Services regularly collaborates with faculty across the disciplines to offer integrated support for GIS learning. Such instruction often involves:
If you are interested in integrated course support for GIS, please reach out to the NYUAD Librarian for Geospatial Data Services for further questions or requests.
Any NYUAD community member may request a custom geospatial data or GIS workshop for NYUAD supported tools and services.
A minimum of three participants are required for a custom workshop. Email the NYUAD Librarian for Geospatial Data Services to further discuss workshop options and make arrangements.
The NYUAD Librarian for Geospatial Data Services offers a variety of drop-in workshops throughout the academic year. Resources from some of those workshops are available below. Visit the NYUAD Library event calendar to see all library workshops offered.
Below are links to step-by-step written instructions that will help you complete many requirements in your assignments. For example, georeferenceing, reprojecting data, and creating and editing shapefiles.
Below are resources used in class and suggested websites and videos for general assistance with the workshop content and course assignments.
Below are some resources that provided historical maps and atlases.
Note: The resources on this page were put together by NYU NY Data Services. For questions, comments, or concerns about the content, contact NYU NY Data Services. Visit their GIS guide for further resources and guidance.
If you are currently at NYUAD, the Geospatial Services Librarian can assist with accessing the resources.
Geospatial Analysis & File Conversion: Understanding basic possibilities of GIS
Data Cleaning & Management: Transforming and manipulating data for GIS analysis
Geospatial Visualization: Approaches to creating maps and illuminating GIS data
Geocoding: Generating latitude and longitude coordinates to reference data in GIS software
Georeferencing: Ascribing location data to scanned images of historic maps
Examples of QGIS in the Humanities
This workshop was led by Taylor Hixson, NYUAD Librarian for Geospatial Data Services, on 30 October 2019 for the NYUAD student chapter of the American Society of Civil Engineers. Use this guide to access resources from the workshop and as a further resource for learning about GIS in civil engineering.
Below are three good resources that describe geographic information systems and geospatial data in the context of civil engineering.
David A. Holdstock. “Basis of Geographic Information Systems (GIS).” Journal of Computing in Civil Engineering, vol. 12, no. 1, Jan. 1998, p. 4
Jack Dangermond, and Adena Schutzberg. “Engineering, Geographic Information Systems, and Databases: A New Frontier.” Journal of Computing in Civil Engineering, vol. 12, no. 3, July 1998, p. 2.
Hassan A. Karimi. “Data Acquisition through Emerging High-Resolution Satellite Imagery.” Journal of Computing in Civil Engineering, vol. 12, no. 3, July 1998, p. 3.
It is the researcher's responsibility to ensure that the research design, analysis, and programming are justified and appropriate for the discipline at hand. Further details about the NYUAD Geospatial Services.
Current NYUAD faculty only.
All other communities may schedule appointments and consult with the Geospatial Services Librarian about capstone assistance, finding data, choosing packages and software, interpreting errors, and other inquiries outlined on the NYU Data Services Consulting guidelines located on the NYUAD GIS Home page.
Faculty are required to schedule a preliminary appointment with the geospatial data services librarian to determine the approximate hours required and feasibility of the suggested work before scheduling consulting hours. Email the librarian or schedule an appointment.
The Geospatial Data Services Librarian offers 8 hours each week dedicated to working on faculty research. Those hours are not inclusive of other tasks related to instruction, finding resources, geoprocessing task run time, which a faculty member may request in addition to consulting hours. On a case-by-case basis, faculty members requiring more hours or long-term assistance may discuss research partnerships with the librarian and NYUAD Center for Digital Scholarship.
