Geoinformatics & GIS at ISSE

Geoinformatics and Geographical Information Science (GIS) are vital components of cutting-edge technological advancement and research activities in geography, planning, surveying and regional sciences.

Geospatial information is now a driving force for decision making; for creating innovative solutions; and for enhancing effective implementation of projects in rural postal services, electrification planning, population estimation and mapping, health, urban planning, environmental management, precision farming, transportation planning, water resources management, crime and security assessment, mineral resources mining, oil and gas discovery, exploration and monitoring, hazards and disasters mitigation planning and management, etc. Global positioning system devices and remote sensing satellites and technologies with specialized software are some of the driving tools for geo-spatial data availability and its usefulness.

The Geoinformatic program at ISSE involves teaching, research and hands-on training on the use and appreciation of different tools for different tasks performed from theory to practice. The MSc and PhD programmes are research based, covering areas such as GIS tools development for capturing, collecting, cataloguing; geospatial data processing and analysing; and various applications. The program is largely supported by the satellite resources of NASRDA and its vast laboratories and expertise in GIS and remote sensing.

To apply for the MSc Geoinformatics program at ISSE, the candidate must have an undergraduate degree in relevant fields such as urban and regional planning, surveying, geography, environmental sciences, computer science and geology. PhD applicants need to have, in addition to the MSc requirements, acceptable qualification in a relevant MSc degree.

The MSc program in Geoinformatics requires 18 months and is based on a combination of core and elective courses, plus thesis research. The program is very intensive and only well motivated and prepared students are encouraged to apply. The courses are taught as 3- or 4-week modules of 45 to 60 hours, including lectures and problem solving sessions. First year PhD students are expected to take up to 15 modules. The courses covered in the MSc and PhD programs in Geoinformatics are contained and described in the ISSE Student Handbook.