Geographical Information Systems

Hours for taught courses

If you plan to study part-time, we recommend you take no more than 30 credits per term. Students typically take one or two 15-credit short courses per term.

15 credits

• Around 150 hours of study and assessment time to complete.
• You’ll study 10 – 15 hours per week per term, plus more at assessment times.

30 credits

• Around 300 hours of study and assessment time to complete.
• You’ll study 20 – 30 hours per week per term, plus more at assessment times.

This is an indicative guide to the time required for a typical student at this level to achieve the learning outcomes. This includes time for independent study, as well as teaching and assessments.

You can largely set your own study hours each week to cover the materials. MyAberdeen is available 24/7, so you can log in and study when it suits you.

Activities at fixed times

Some activities will be scheduled for fixed times, such as online meetings with your tutor or assessments with deadlines. But otherwise, you can access and work through each course at your convenience.

Hours for 60-credit projects and dissertations

A 60-credit project or dissertation is around 600 hours of study time.

This is around one term of full-time study.

You can dedicate a full term to your project or dissertation and work on it full-time. Or you can complete it part-time, spreading the hours you dedicate to it over two terms.

When you study with us, you can expect a first-class support structure so that you’re never alone in your studies.

But learning online does mean you have to motivate yourself and manage your own time.

Your most important commitment will be time – the time to work through, reflect on and understand your teaching materials.

Before you start a course that involves a high degree of independent study, we recommend looking at the time you will be able to devote to your studies each week:

• Be realistic
• Create a weekly schedule as a guide

If you have any questions about studying online, get in touch with our friendly team. We’re here to help.

Our first-class support structure will ensure that you aren’t alone in your studies. You’ll have contact with your tutors via MyAberdeen and email. You can use social media and discussion boards to chat with your fellow students too.

We provide a wide range of services to support you in your studies and beyond:

• Careers and Employability Service – including one-to-one advice sessions
• Disability support
• IT support
• Library support
• Student Support Service – help with finances, stress, wellbeing and non-academic issues
• Student Learning Service – study support, with advice sessions available via phone or Skype
• Aberdeen University Students’ Association (AUSA) – run by students for students
• Toolkit – clever apps and free training that can make your study life easier

Wherever you are in the world, you’ll feel part of our very special Aberdeen learning community.

We’re a member of the Access scheme run by the Society of College, National and University Libraries (SCONUL).

Access study spaces, books and journals in your area

The SCONUL Access scheme allows you, as a University of Aberdeen student, to access books and resources at university libraries across the UK and Ireland, or visit them for a quiet place to study.

You’ll be able to use study spaces, books and journals at over 150 university libraries which belong to the scheme.

Find out about the SCONUL Access scheme for libraries.

TerrSet Software

You will need to purchase a piece of software for one of the courses in this degree: Advanced Spatial Analysis and Programming. The software is called TerrSet. You can buy TerrSet online. The current price (as of July 2022) is US$99. Find out about TerrSet.

Learning resources

All other software and all books and resources you need are included in your tuition fee. They will be available online and you do not have to you buy your own copies. We also provide recommended reading lists. These include books that you may wish to purchase for additional reading, but it is not essential.

Printing

You will have to pay for a printed A0 poster for one of your presentations. As a guide, printing for this is around £35. You may also wish to set aside a small budget for printing in general, depending on how you like to work.

Memory stick and/or external hard drive

You may have to purchase a suitable memory stick or external hard drive, if you do not already have these, for storing data and coursework.

There are several ways you may be able to get help funding your studies:

• Employer sponsorship – we accept full and partial fee payments from sponsors
• Student loans
• Scholarships – search our funding database for scholarships

Find out more about funding options.

Student card

All our students are entitled to a University of Aberdeen student card. This gives you access to a range of student discounts around the city and online.

20% Alumni discount

You’re entitled to 20% off our postgraduate taught degrees and short courses if you have a degree from the University of Aberdeen. View Alumni discount details.

How discounts work

Discounts are applied during your application process. You can only use one discount per application.

Entry requirements

We welcome students from all over the world.

See the minimum entry requirements above. If you do not have qualifications from the UK, check equivalent qualifications from your country.

Visa requirements

You do not need a student visa to study online with us.

English language requirements

Teaching is delivered in English.

If English is not your first language, use our English requirements checklist to see if you need to provide evidence of your English language skills when you apply.

English language tests and scores

If you do need to provide English language test scores, these are the tests and minimum scores we accept for this course or degree.

These are our Postgraduate Standard requirements.

IELTS Academic, IELTS UKVI Academic, and IELTS Online (not IELTS Indicator or IELTS General Training)

• 6.5 overall
• 5.5 for listening, reading and speaking
• 6.0 for writing

TOEFL iBT and TOEFL iBT Home Edition

• 90 overall
• 17 for listening
• 18 for reading
• 20 for speaking
• 21 for writing
• TOEFL DI code is 0818

Cambridge English: B2 First, C1 Advanced, or C2 Proficiency

• 176 overall
• 162 for listening, reading and speaking
• 169 for writing

LanguageCert Academic/LanguageCert Academic SELT

• 70 overall
• 60 for listening, reading and speaking
• 65 for writing

LanguageCert International ESOL B2 Communicator (Written and Spoken) – Online / In-centre

• Overall High Pass
• 33 for listening, reading and speaking
• 38 for writing

Oxford ELLT Digital – English Language Level Test Online

• 7.0 overall
• 5.0 for listening, reading and speaking
• 6.0 for writing

PTE Academic (online test not accepted)

• 62 overall
• 59 for listening, reading, speaking and writing

Duolingo – tests taken from 1 July 2024 onward

• 120 overall
• 95 for listening, reading and speaking
• 105 for writing

University of Aberdeen English Pre-sessional Programme (PSE)

• Pass
• Valid for one year. Refresher can be offered if out of date

Pre-sessional academic English preparation programmes undertaken at other UK universities

• Pass at an equivalent of 6.5 (C1)
• B2 in all four skills
• Certification must be within one year prior to the start of your course

For full information about language requirements, see our English Language Requirements page.

You apply through our online Applicant Portal. It allows you to upload relevant qualifications and documents.

Applying to the University of Aberdeen is always free.

What you need to apply for this degree

• Degree transcript
• Personal statement
• Degree certificate
• CV / Resume

Your personal statement

Motivation and understanding of this degree is an important factor in securing admission. Your personal statement should focus on providing answers to the following questions:

• What is your background in geospatial technologies?
• What specific aspects and areas of geospatial technologies are you interested in?
• What applications of geospatial technologies would you like to pursue and why?
• How do you think your background (both academic and work-related) is relevant to the study of the geospatial technologies?
• How do you see a qualification in the geospatial technologies helping your future career?

You also need to apply on time

Apply as early as you can. Please apply at least two weeks before the degree start date. This is because we need time to review your application and get a decision to you. If you’re successful, we also want to enrol you before teaching starts.

Read our step-by-step guide to get started. It explains degree transcripts, what to write in your personal statement and more.

You can apply to start in either September or January.

Apply as early as you can. This is so we have time to review your application and get a decision to you. We also want to ensure you have time to enrol before teaching starts.

January 2025 intake

For our January 2025 intake, the application deadline is 9 December 2024.

You will need to accept your offer and provide any outstanding documents to meet the conditions of your offer by 18 December 2024.

Teaching starts on 27 January 2025.

September 2025 intake

Teaching starts on 22 September 2025.

Application deadlines will be announced in due course.

Studying GIS involves storing and processing large datasets. In order to handle this, you need access to adequate computing power. You will need:

A computer (ideally a PC or laptop) or Mac operating on either:

• Windows 10 or later
• macOS 10.15 (Catalina) or later (see note for Mac users* below).

*A note for Mac users

While you can use a Mac, this may limit running software used in GIS.

Most of the software you’ll use is best suited to a PC or laptop running MS Windows 10 or later. If you use a Mac, we recommend you partition your hard drive so that one partition runs macOS and the other MS Windows.

Alternatively, you can use our Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI) to access and use the software required. Find out about our VDI.

If you’re unsure about the suitability of your hardware, please get in touch with us prior to enrolling so that we can offer guidance. Contact the Online Learning team.

Computer specifications

Any desktop or laptop should be the highest spec you can afford, with:

• a minimum of 8 to 16GB RAM (ideally 32GB or more)
• plus graphics card/onboard RAM
• a fast processor
• a large hard drive or SSD (1TB or above).

External hard drive and memory stick

You’ll need some external storage for storing and backing up your data and coursework. We suggest:

• at least a 1TB external hard drive, and
• at least a 32GB memory stick.

Reliable internet access

We recommend:

• a wired connection
• a minimum download speed of 2 Mbps so you can take part fully in live sessions.

Speakers or headphones

• We recommend a headset with built-in microphone and earphones if you’re likely to study in an environment with background noise.
• A webcam is optional, but you may like to use one from some interactive sessions.

Software

One of the courses in this degree, Advanced Spatial Analysis and Programming, requires you to purchase a piece of software that is not included in your tuition fee. The software is called TerrSet. You can buy TerrSet online. Find out about TerrSet.

We’ll provide you with access to all the other specialist software you require.

We’ll also give you access to Office365 applications. This means you can use online versions of Microsoft Word, Excel, and PowerPoint and install these programs on up to five personal devices.

See our IT requirements article for full information on our IT services.