MSc Geographical Information Science / Course details

Year of entry: 2024

Course description

I chose the University, most importantly of all, for the curriculum of GIS here.

"It is very diverse and that's what interested me the most. It gives you a detailed idea of the application of GIS in different domains and this gave me the clarity of what I really want to do, in which domain I want to pursue my studies or career in.

Shreya Mukherjee / MSc Geographical Information Science

MSc Geographical Information Science focuses on the multi-disciplinary science concerned with the development and application of geographical information science technologies.

It will prepare you to pursue a career in a geographical information science field.

Geographical information technologies are increasingly used in everyday life, such as Google Earth and geosocial networking.

Core geographical information science technologies, including geographical information systems (GIS) and remote sensing, have had a long history of application in government and private sector environmental agencies, planning, agriculture, forestry, utilities and transportation.

This course will enable you to develop fundamental skills and in-depth knowledge of key application areas.

You can choose to undertake an applied study unit, which gives a range of work experience skills and can lead to dissertation opportunities working with key local and national employers.

We offer research-led teaching and a range of extra-curricular activities designed to deepen and enhance your learning experience.

These include access to additional training resources, educational visits, career talks, and alumni presentations.

You will also gain experience using commercial and open-source software and acquire skills in the development of spatial software for both desktop and online platforms.

Aims

You will develop advanced knowledge of and practical experience in:

  • GIS and remote sensing theory and practice;
  • advanced techniques for GIS analysis and image processing;
  • spatial analysis;
  • computer modelling and software development;
  • internet and GIS Web technologies;
  • databases and database technologies;
  • scientific communication of analytical results and their interpretation.

Special features

Teaching and learning

The course has five core course units.

You select your remaining four course units from a wide range of options offered by Geography, Planning, Property and Environmental Management, and the Global Development Institute (GDI), all within the School of Environment, Education and Development (SEED).

These optional course units enable you to tailor the course to your unique interests.

Part-time students

Part-time students complete the course over 24 months.

There are no evening or weekend course units available; you should, therefore, discuss course requirements with the Programme Director.

Timetabling information is usually available from late August.

You can discuss course unit choices during induction week with the Programme Director.

Important notice

The School of Environment, Education and Development (SEED) recognises the value of fieldwork. However, the safety and wellbeing of our students and staff remains our priority. The School will assess on a regular basis the viability of any travel and fieldwork and communicate any significant changes to our students at the earliest possible opportunity.

The ability of fieldwork and travel to proceed, and whether any changes to proposed fieldwork and travel might be necessary, will remain subject to factors such as the:

  • rules and guidance on travel and activities implemented and published by the UK and overseas governments;
  • outcome of any risk assessments conducted by the University;
  • educational value and student experience of the fieldwork, if significant changes to the proposed fieldwork would be necessary;
  • availability of appropriate insurance cover;
  • availability of appropriate travel and accommodation and any significant changes to their financial costs.

All fieldwork and travel will be subject to a rigorous risk assessment process and the implementation of any protective measures identified by the risk assessment to ensure the health and safety of all our students and staff.

In some circumstances, it may become necessary to make changes to fieldwork or programme related travel. The University will notify you of those changes at the earliest opportunity. If any fieldwork does not go ahead as planned, then the School's focus will be on seeking to offer a suitable alternative and ensure that the Intended Learning Outcomes (ILOs) of the programme are met.

Please note that countries may change their immigration and visa regulations at short notice. The School cannot guarantee that where visas are required for fieldwork, they will be granted but we will take steps so that if a visa is refused, affected students are not academically disadvantaged.

Coursework and assessment

Assessment is primarily coursework-based and includes a variety of project work, essays and presentations. This enables you to gain a significant amount of hands-on experience of applying geographical information science skills to real world environmental applications.

The dissertation, based on an original research project of your own design, accounts for 60 credits. Dissertation topics can focus on aspects of geographical information science (GIS) and are supported by researchers who specialise in core areas of GIS, remote sensing, or modelling. The remaining 120 credits are based on eight 15-credit course units (four in each semester).

Course unit list

The course unit details given below are subject to change, and are the latest example of the curriculum available on this course of study.

TitleCodeCredit ratingMandatory/optional
Dissertation Support GEOG60662 15 Mandatory
Environmental Remote Sensing GEOG60941 15 Mandatory
GIS and Environmental Applications GEOG60951 15 Mandatory
Data Acquisition for GI Scientists GEOG62411 15 Mandatory
Dissertation (MSc Geographical Information Science) GEOG71200 60 Mandatory
Digital Terrain Analysis GEOG60412 15 Optional
Environmental Monitoring and Modelling Practice GEOG70552 15 Optional
Applied Study Unit GEOG70560 15 Optional
Environmental Monitoring and Modelling Concepts GEOG70581 15 Optional
Fundamentals of Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) applied to Environmental Monitoring GEOG70632 15 Optional
Understanding GIS GEOG71551 15 Optional
Spatial Ecology GEOG71922 15 Optional
Fundamentals of Information and Information Systems MGDI60481 15 Optional
ICTs in Practice MGDI71932 15 Optional
Neighbourhood Planning Project PLAN60812 15 Optional
Displaying 10 of 15 course units

Facilities

We are one of Europe's best-equipped universities for geography, with numerous laboratories. These include the main teaching laboratory, microscopy laboratory, and sediments and project laboratories.

You can also learn professional skills such as coding and programming specialist, industry-standard software such as image processing, GIS, GPS and cartographic representation.

The University's Main Library is home to the University Map Collection, which comprises about 100,000 map sheets of every part of the world.

For more information visit our  Facilities webpage .

Disability support

Practical support and advice for current students and applicants is available from the Disability Advisory and Support Service.

For more information, email dass@manchester.ac.uk