Established course with a strong focus on employability and professional skills.

With over 30 years’ experience of teaching GIS, and nearly 25 years via online distance learning, we have a long and successful track record in GIS education. This course teaches the concepts behind GIS and provides in-depth practice using both commercial and open-source software. You can study either full-time or part-time, and can aim for a Postgraduate Certificate, Postgraduate Diploma or Masters degree.

We look at how to obtain, analyse, problem-solve and communicate with maps and spatial data, with modules on GIS, remote sensing, spatial data management and databases, web-GIS and GIS in the commercial environment. Optional modules include GIS work experience, spatial analysis and modelling, GIS for environmental management, and Customising GIS. You will gain extensive hands-on experience: in addition to developing core skills using ArcGIS, you will use a wide range of software including ERDAS Imagine, Excel, SPSS, QGIS, OpenLayers, GeoServer, PostgreSQL and PostGIS, together with GIS extensions, plug-ins and programming languages. If you opt to complete the Masters project you can focus on a topic of your own choosing.

Our graduates have a high success rate in obtaining GIS employment (over 95%, according to graduate surveys). People taking the course who already have GIS work experience say they benefit significantly because the course enables them to broaden, deepen and formalise their knowledge.

Why Study with Us?

• Join an established course with excellent reputation and feedback.
• Get support and advice from experienced lecturers, tutors, librarians, e-learning and IT staff.
• Access online resources such as e-books, digital lectures and podcasts, discussion boards and video-conference tools all within a dedicated e-learning platform.
• Develop and improve your employability, professional and academic skills and gain extensive hands-on practice with key software.
• Obtain free student copies of GIS, remote sensing and statistical software.
• Be assessed entirely by coursework – there are no formal examinations.
• Pay your fees by instalments.
• With a fully online course, you can study from almost anywhere and there is no need to travel to classes.
• You can study part-time or full-time and choose the times you study each week to suit yourself.
• Substantial relevant work experience may be accepted in place of standard entry requirements.
• Study for a Master’s degree, a PG Diploma, PG Certificate or enrol for individual modules.

Our students come from a wide range of backgrounds, but broadly speaking fall into two groups.

• New or recent graduates wanting to enter GIS-related employment for the first time, or to add GIS to their skill-set to enhance their employability or change career.
• People who are already in GIS-related employment but want to broaden and deepen their GIS knowledge and skills with a view to making better use of GIS or improving their career and promotion prospects.

Graduate feedback and employment rates show that our course caters very well for both of these groups. Students consistently describe the course as both challenging and enjoyable, and frequently remark on the high quality of online support they receive. Many of our students decide to join the course on the recommendation of previous students.

Why Study GIS?

The benefits of GIS are increasingly recognised within government, business, education and the voluntary sector, and the applications of geospatial data technologies are steadily growing. Using GIS, it is possible to combine data from a broad range of sources and in a variety of formats, such as paper and digital maps, routinely collected administrative data, censuses and population surveys, satellite imagery, aerial photography, GPS tracking and surveys, LiDAR and crowd-sourcing. The uses of GIS are very diverse, and include mapping, spatial analysis, planning and decision-making within a wide range of disciplines and sectors – common examples include environmental management and conservation, resource management, emergency service planning and humanitarian assistance, health care provision, land use planning and urban development, the utilities, transport, geo-demographics, mineral extraction and retail analysis. Increasing uptake of GIS and associated techniques and technologies means that there is a growing demand for qualified personnel who have the skills to manage spatial data effectively. Strong industry links help ensure that our course is relevant to the needs of employers.

Course Summary

The course is designed to help people gain understanding and experience of GIS concepts, functionality and applications. Content focuses on the representation, acquisition, management, manipulation and analysis of spatial data. It also includes modules on remote sensing, spatial databases, web-GIS and GIS in the commercial environment. Additional optional modules include GIS work experience, spatial analysis and modelling, GIS for environmental management, and Customising GIS.

In addition to acquiring substantial theoretical knowledge of the subject, you will gain extensive practical experience using a variety of software, focusing primarily on ArcGIS but also including ERDAS Imagine, PostgreSQL, PostGIS, MySQL, OpenLayers, Geoserver, QGIS, Excel, SPSS and a number of GIS extensions and plug-ins. One of the core modules provides experience of web-based programming languages such as HTML, CSS and JavaScript, whilst an optional module in customising GIS applications introduces Esri’s ModelBuilder and the Python programming language.

After successfully completing the PgDip modules, you may transfer to the Masters part of the programme. This requires the completion of a substantial independent research project, written in the form of a research journal article (which may, with agreement of your supervisor, be submitted for publication).

As part of the course resources, you will be provided with a free copy of ArcGIS, the remote sensing package ERDAS Imagine, and the data analysis package SPSS.

Entry Requirements