International Archives of the Photogrammetry, Remote Sensing and Spatial Information Sciences, Vol XXXV, Part B6. Istanbul 2004 
  
About 98% of them have evaluated the International Course on 
Remote Sensing and GIS as a very good course. The teaching 
staff of this course was evaluated by 9696 of them as very good. 
About 3994 considered the course infrastructure and equipment 
very good, 3596 considered them good and 23% considered 
them regular. 
The main reason of those who considered the course 
infrastructure and equipment as regular has commented that: 
There was not a room with equipments exclusively to 
the students; they had to deal the schedule with the 
Remote Sensing researchers or students of other post 
graduation courses; 
Due to the reduced number of computers, some of 
them had to accomplish their disciplines exercises as 
well as the final practical project using their personal 
computer and they felt prejudiced for it. 
Here should be mentioned that most of these considerations are 
about the period before the expansion of the course laboratory 
in 2001. 
More than 9896 of the former students have considered this 
course very important for the progression of their 
professional career. 
as 
Before finishing this research, some former students have made 
several comments about the importance of this course for their 
career as well as some suggestions: 
The International Course on Remote Sensing and GIS 
made possible to develop technical knowledge and the 
coexistence with INPE community allowed acquiring 
good human principles; 
After the course, it was possible to supervise 
graduation students, Remote Sensing, and GIS 
training courses as well as participates in several 
projects of this area. 
Some of them suggest publishing the monographs of 
all students during these 16 years. It could be made by 
Internet or available at /NPE’s library for any user. 
This course is very important to the professionals who 
live in developing countries and need to be qualified 
in this technology mainly for the development of the 
Latin American countries. 
It makes possible the dissemination of Remote 
Sensing to people who live far from the big 
technological centers, becoming an important tool in 
the research and planning processes. 
Considering the enormous growth of the Remote 
Sensing and GIS technology, it can also contribute to 
space analysis in studies of the society as social and 
cultural changes in Doctorate Program in 
Anthropology; 
It allows a deeper knowledge about the Remote 
Sensing and GIS technology to the professionals of 
private companies and consequently better work 
opportunities; 
Some of them suggest that their practical work theme 
should be related to their country and evaluated by the 
INPE's advisor and the student company manager; 
It was considered the lack of fieldwork during the 
development of the practical work and its importance 
to the final project. 
194 
4. CONCLUSIONS 
The International Course on Remote Sensing and GIS has been 
important and decisive to the current profession of all former 
students. 
[t makes possible the dissemination of Remote Sensing to 
people who live far from the big technological centers, 
becoming an important tool in the research and application 
processes. 
It attends a significant number of professions interested in the 
use of this technology. 
Most of these specialists have been working with the Remote 
Sensing and GIS technology for more than 5 years in private 
and public institutions, and universities. 
In addition, this technology has been disseminating by them in 
graduation courses and other company training and qualification 
courses. 
This course has motivated about 3096 of these specialists to 
continue their studies in Post graduation Programmes. Now 23 
of them have Master or Doctorate degree and 11 have been 
studying in some Post graduation course. 
Their performance during the International Course have been 
quite satisfactory and fulfilled all objectives and requisites of it. 
Consequently, it has been raising the course level year by year 
and positioning it in a very good concept. 
In addition, its teaching staff is composed of qualified 
professionals of the Remote Sensing and GIS area of the 
National Institute for Space Research and other Brazilian and 
foreign institutions. Most of these professionals have been 
involved directly with the applications of this technology for 
more than 20 years. 
However, the former students have commented about the lack 
of equipments and an adequate room to attend their needs 
during some course editions. 
Firstly, it is important to point out that INPE, a government 
institution, depends on the government's resources to make 
improvements in its facilities and to modernize its equipments. 
Unfortunately, this is not always possible and depends on the 
economical conjuncture of the current government. 
Therefore, in 2001 it was finally possible to accomplish the 
modernization of the Computer Science Laboratory and the 
equipments through the Brazilian funding agency, the FAPESP. 
According to the students, in the 2002 and 2003 editions, the 
course infrastructure and equipments have been attending their 
needs, satisfactorily. 
5. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS 
The authors thank all former students of the International 
Course on Remote Sensing and GIS for providing updated 
information and contributing to the assessment of the sixteen 
years of its existence.