Remote Sensing and Geographic Information Systems PgDip, MSc Postgraduate Programme By Ulster University |TopUniversities

Programme overview

Main Subject

Geography

Degree

MSc

Study Level

Masters

Study Mode

Online

Why Remote Sensing and GIS? The demand for remote sensing and GIS professionals has been steadily increasing within government, business, education and voluntary sectors, whereas rapid growth in availability of spatial data, mainly via remote sensing satellites and other big data sources provide a huge potential to map, monitor and understand systems and change in terrestrial and marine environments. Skills in remote sensing and GIS enables analysis across global or local scales on a rapid basis in vast application areas spanning both physical and human geography – climate change, agriculture, forestry, natural resource management, marine planning, sustainable urban development, epidemiology and crime analysis are to name a few. This course aims to provide comprehensive training in capturing, storing, analysing, and interpreting big earth data, equipping professionals with the expertise needed to excel in these dynamic fields. Who is it for? Ask yourself these simple questions: Are you a fresh graduate desiring to enter remote sensing/GIS-related employment for the first time, or add remote sensing and GIS to your skillset to enhance employability, qualification or change career? Are you a professional already in remote sensing/GIS-related employment and want to broaden and deepen your remote sensing and GIS knowledge and skills with a view to making better use of spatial technologies, or want to enhance your career and promotion prospects, or even just qualification? If you answered yes to any of these, then good news – this course is for you! Our remote sensing and GIS programme offer flexible learning through part-time education – while each module has assessment deadlines, you study at a time and pace that suits you. Further, you decide the duration of the course! PG Certificate in 1 year, PG Diploma in 2 years and MSc in 3 years. Why us? We are a well-established provider of online distance learning postgraduate courses. With 30 years of experience in teaching GIS, including nearly 25 years via online distance learning, we have a proven track record in GIS education. Our innovative and career-focused modules and research are designed to impart knowledge, skills, and confidence, enhancing your employment prospects. We are proud to have achieved an exceptional 91% overall satisfaction score in the 2025 Postgraduate Taught Experience Survey (PTES), reflecting our continued commitment to delivering a high-quality postgraduate experience. Our modules are delivered online through the Blackboard Virtual Learning Environment, which provides access to lectures, practical exercises, reading materials, and additional study resources all in a single place. Integrated communication tools, such as discussion boards, video conferencing, and email, facilitate interaction and support from experienced lecturers and tutors. All assessments are conducted entirely online, with no formal sit-in examinations. What you get! Fully Online Course : Study from almost anywhere without the need to travel to classes. Choose study times each week that suit your schedule. Up-to-Date Skills : Gain the latest skills and experience in handling geospatial data and methods. Free Software : Receive a free copy of ArcGIS, the remote sensing package Erdas Imagine, and the data analysis package SPSS. Expert Support : Benefit from the support and advice of experienced lecturers, tutors, librarians, e-learning, and IT staff. Comprehensive Online Resources : Access e-books, digital lectures, podcasts, discussion boards, and video-conference tools within a dedicated e-learning platform. Enhanced Employability : Improve your professional and academic skills with extensive hands-on practice using key software. Independent Research Project : For MSc students, conduct a substantial independent research project, written as a research journal article, which may be submitted for publication with your supervisor's agreement. Modules This guide outlines the modules covered in this course. Our curriculum is regularly updated to incorporate the latest teaching methods, research advancements, and industry trends. Please note that the modules offered and their sequence may vary based on course updates, staff availability, scheduling, and student interest. In a part-time course, students enrol in just two modules per semester, with each module running in a different half of the semester. Please contact the course team if you need more information. Compulsory modules EGM711 – Principles of GIS (15 credits) – this module runs in weeks 1-6 of semester 1 and is a compulsory module. This module introduces the theory and practice of Geographic Information Systems, and is intended to provide an understanding of the breadth of potential GIS applications and to equip students with the key concepts and skills required relating to the input, management, manipulation, analysis and output of spatial data. Lecture-based teaching of key concepts is reinforced by linked practical exercises which allow students to develop competence in ESRI's ArcGIS package. The module assumes no prior knowledge or experience of GIS. EGM713 – Introduction to Remote Sensing (15 credits) – this module runs in weeks 7-12 of semester 1 and is a compulsory module. This module offers students the opportunity to study the principles and applications of remote sensing and image analysis and to explore links between remote sensing and GIS. Students will become familiar with theoretical foundations of remote sensing and will develop technical skills through a series of software-based practical exercises and assignments using Erdas Imagine. EGM703 – Advanced Active and Passive Remote Sensing (15 credits) – this module runs in weeks 1-6 of semester 1 and is a compulsory module. This module covers advanced topics in active and passive remote sensing, including the highly sought-after topics of hyperspectral and microwave remote sensing, covering both active and passive microwave applications. It also covers thermal and below-surface (i.e., ground-penetrating radar) remote sensing techniques. It builds on the topics introduced in EGM713 and provides a framework for more detailed modules covered later in the course, as well as the (optional) research topic. EGM712 - Spatial Data Management (15 credits) – this module runs in weeks 7-12 of semester 1 and is a compulsory module. This module builds on the knowledge and practical skills gained in EGM711 to provide students with further experience in the acquisition, manipulation and analysis of spatial data. Methods for generating and collecting digital spatial data from primary and secondary sources are

Programme overview

Main Subject

Geography

Degree

MSc

Study Level

Masters

Study Mode

Online

Why Remote Sensing and GIS? The demand for remote sensing and GIS professionals has been steadily increasing within government, business, education and voluntary sectors, whereas rapid growth in availability of spatial data, mainly via remote sensing satellites and other big data sources provide a huge potential to map, monitor and understand systems and change in terrestrial and marine environments. Skills in remote sensing and GIS enables analysis across global or local scales on a rapid basis in vast application areas spanning both physical and human geography – climate change, agriculture, forestry, natural resource management, marine planning, sustainable urban development, epidemiology and crime analysis are to name a few. This course aims to provide comprehensive training in capturing, storing, analysing, and interpreting big earth data, equipping professionals with the expertise needed to excel in these dynamic fields. Who is it for? Ask yourself these simple questions: Are you a fresh graduate desiring to enter remote sensing/GIS-related employment for the first time, or add remote sensing and GIS to your skillset to enhance employability, qualification or change career? Are you a professional already in remote sensing/GIS-related employment and want to broaden and deepen your remote sensing and GIS knowledge and skills with a view to making better use of spatial technologies, or want to enhance your career and promotion prospects, or even just qualification? If you answered yes to any of these, then good news – this course is for you! Our remote sensing and GIS programme offer flexible learning through part-time education – while each module has assessment deadlines, you study at a time and pace that suits you. Further, you decide the duration of the course! PG Certificate in 1 year, PG Diploma in 2 years and MSc in 3 years. Why us? We are a well-established provider of online distance learning postgraduate courses. With 30 years of experience in teaching GIS, including nearly 25 years via online distance learning, we have a proven track record in GIS education. Our innovative and career-focused modules and research are designed to impart knowledge, skills, and confidence, enhancing your employment prospects. We are proud to have achieved an exceptional 91% overall satisfaction score in the 2025 Postgraduate Taught Experience Survey (PTES), reflecting our continued commitment to delivering a high-quality postgraduate experience. Our modules are delivered online through the Blackboard Virtual Learning Environment, which provides access to lectures, practical exercises, reading materials, and additional study resources all in a single place. Integrated communication tools, such as discussion boards, video conferencing, and email, facilitate interaction and support from experienced lecturers and tutors. All assessments are conducted entirely online, with no formal sit-in examinations. What you get! Fully Online Course : Study from almost anywhere without the need to travel to classes. Choose study times each week that suit your schedule. Up-to-Date Skills : Gain the latest skills and experience in handling geospatial data and methods. Free Software : Receive a free copy of ArcGIS, the remote sensing package Erdas Imagine, and the data analysis package SPSS. Expert Support : Benefit from the support and advice of experienced lecturers, tutors, librarians, e-learning, and IT staff. Comprehensive Online Resources : Access e-books, digital lectures, podcasts, discussion boards, and video-conference tools within a dedicated e-learning platform. Enhanced Employability : Improve your professional and academic skills with extensive hands-on practice using key software. Independent Research Project : For MSc students, conduct a substantial independent research project, written as a research journal article, which may be submitted for publication with your supervisor's agreement. Modules This guide outlines the modules covered in this course. Our curriculum is regularly updated to incorporate the latest teaching methods, research advancements, and industry trends. Please note that the modules offered and their sequence may vary based on course updates, staff availability, scheduling, and student interest. In a part-time course, students enrol in just two modules per semester, with each module running in a different half of the semester. Please contact the course team if you need more information. Compulsory modules EGM711 – Principles of GIS (15 credits) – this module runs in weeks 1-6 of semester 1 and is a compulsory module. This module introduces the theory and practice of Geographic Information Systems, and is intended to provide an understanding of the breadth of potential GIS applications and to equip students with the key concepts and skills required relating to the input, management, manipulation, analysis and output of spatial data. Lecture-based teaching of key concepts is reinforced by linked practical exercises which allow students to develop competence in ESRI's ArcGIS package. The module assumes no prior knowledge or experience of GIS. EGM713 – Introduction to Remote Sensing (15 credits) – this module runs in weeks 7-12 of semester 1 and is a compulsory module. This module offers students the opportunity to study the principles and applications of remote sensing and image analysis and to explore links between remote sensing and GIS. Students will become familiar with theoretical foundations of remote sensing and will develop technical skills through a series of software-based practical exercises and assignments using Erdas Imagine. EGM703 – Advanced Active and Passive Remote Sensing (15 credits) – this module runs in weeks 1-6 of semester 1 and is a compulsory module. This module covers advanced topics in active and passive remote sensing, including the highly sought-after topics of hyperspectral and microwave remote sensing, covering both active and passive microwave applications. It also covers thermal and below-surface (i.e., ground-penetrating radar) remote sensing techniques. It builds on the topics introduced in EGM713 and provides a framework for more detailed modules covered later in the course, as well as the (optional) research topic. EGM712 - Spatial Data Management (15 credits) – this module runs in weeks 7-12 of semester 1 and is a compulsory module. This module builds on the knowledge and practical skills gained in EGM711 to provide students with further experience in the acquisition, manipulation and analysis of spatial data. Methods for generating and collecting digital spatial data from primary and secondary sources are

Admission Requirements

We recognise a range of qualifications for admission to our courses. In addition to the specific entry conditions for this course you must also meet the University’s General Entrance Requirements. Entry Requirements As a normal requirement, applicants must hold an Honours degree (2:2 or above) with a substantial component of geography, environmental science, computing or other numerate discipline. Applicants with other equivalent and relevant qualifications or experience can also be considered on an individual basis. English Language Requirements English language requirements for international applicants The minimum requirement for this course is Academic IELTS 6.0 with no band score less than 5.5. Trinity ISE: Pass at level III also meets this requirement for Tier 4 visa purposes. Ulster recognises a number of other English language tests and comparable IELTS equivalent scores. English language requirements Your country

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