Geographic Information Sciences (Professional Science Master’s)

Program Mission: The Professional Science Master’s in Geographic Information Sciences is an interdisciplinary program designed to allow students to pursue an advanced degree with training in the Geographic Information Sciences while at the same time developing skills in business that are highly valued by employers. Program size facilitates the personal development of the student by encouraging student mentoring with faculty from the departments of Geology/Geography, Biological Sciences, Economics, Political Sciences, Business, and Technology. Experiences provided by the faculty in the classroom, laboratory, and field will prepare the student for internships. Each experience will form a basis for the degree requirements of the program as well as for preparing the successful graduate to address the documented local and regional workforce needs in business, government, and non-profit sectors.

Admission Requirements: To be eligible for degree candidacy, applicants must meet all the requirements for admission to the Graduate School (see “Admission to Graduate Degree and Certificate Programs”).

For full admission to the PSM in GISci, applicants must submit: a statement of background and purpose; 3 letters of recommendation; GRE scores are optional, but will be considered if submitted.

Degree Audit: The graduate plan of study is the EIU Degree Audit, which is generated automatically in the Degree Audit Reporting System (DARS) at the time of degree or certificate candidacy. Modifications of the standard EIU Degree Audit are submitted by the graduate coordinator to the certification officer in the Graduate School at the time modifications are approved. The Degree Audit serves as an unofficial summary of requirements for the program. Degree and certificate candidates are advised to review the comprehensive summary of the Degree Audit process specified on the “Requirements for All Degree and Certificate Candidates” section of the Graduate Catalog. Individual programs may require candidates to submit plans of study in addition to the Degree Audit, candidates should consult with the program coordinator.

Degree Requirements

Degree requirements include those outlined for the master’s degree by the Graduate School (see “Requirements for the Master’s Degree”).

Additional requirements are outlined below:

Core Courses

It is assumed that applicants are interested in increasing their current competencies in the area of Geographic Information Sciences and its application to the business, government and non-profit sectors. All degree candidates must successfully complete courses designed as the core classes. The purpose of this group of required courses is to present aspects of the fundamental theory and practice of Geographic Information Sciences and give candidates a preliminary background in business administration.

Students will enroll in the following core courses. Credits: 12

GEO 5810 - Introduction to Geographic Information Science Credits: 3
GEO 5820 - Remote Sensing I Credits: 3
MBA 5001 - Business Operations in Sustainable Energy Facilities Credits: 3
OR
MBA 5010 - Accounting from a Management Perspective. Credits: 3
MBA 5680 - Organizational Behavior and Group Dynamics. Credits: 3

Elective Set I

Students will complete one of the following statistics and modeling courses.

Credits: 3 to 4

BIO 4750 - Biometrics. Credits: 3
BIO 4820 - Spatial Analysis for Environmental Sciences Credits: 4
BIO 5381 - Advanced Biostatistics. Credits: 3
MAT 5151 - Probability. Credits: 4
GEO 5880 - Geospatial Data Models Credits: 3

Elective Set II

Students will complete minimally 14 credit hours from the following list.

Credits: 14

BIO 4820 - Spatial Analysis for Environmental Sciences Credits: 4
BIO 4840 - Resource Management and Environmental Assessment Credits: 3
BIO 5380 - Landscape Ecology. Credits: 3
CIT 4823 - Big Data and Cloud Computing Credits: 3
GEO 4910 - GIS Programming Credits: 4
GEO 5830 - GIS: Building Geodatabases Credits: 3
GEO 5870 - Remote Sensing II Credits: 3
GEO 5880 - Geospatial Data Models Credits: 3
OSC 4820 - Business Analytics and Data Mining Credits: 3
PLS 4793 - Civic and Nonprofit Leadership Credits: 3
PLS 4893 - Budgeting in Government and Nonprofit Organizations Credits: 3
PLS 5543 - Proseminar in Public Administration Credits: 3
TEC 5323 - Advanced Database Technology. Credits: 3
TEC 5970 - Special Topics in Technology Credits: 1 to 3

Experiential (Internship) Component

Minimum of 3 credit hours of internship.

BIO 5980A - Graduate Internship in Biological Sciences. Credits: 1-6
ECN 5980 - Internship in Economics. Credits: 1 to 3
GEO 5980 - Geography Internship Credits: 6
PLS 5980 - Administrative Internship. Credits: 1 to 6
TEC 5980 - Industrial Internship in the Technologies. Credits: 1 to 10
MBA 5980 - Internship in Business Administration. Credits: 1 to 12

Comprehensive Examination and the Examining Committee

The candidate for the Professional Science Masters in Geographic Information Sciences must successfully complete a final comprehensive examination. The examination will require the candidate to complete a literature review of a topic within their field of study, present a seminar to their graduate committee, and demonstrate comprehensive knowledge in their field of study. The candidate’s examining committee shall consist of a minimum of the
candidate’s advisor and two other faculty members agreed upon by the candidate and advisor. Successful completion of the examination in a specific concentration must be filed in the Graduate School at least one week prior to the graduation date.

Transfer Credit

Up to six semester hours of transfer credit from another accredited graduate school may be applied to the degree. Course work must be applicable to the degree program. The program director must approve transfer credit. All transfer credit must meet the requirements for transfer credit established by the Graduate School.

Study Plan

The student, in consultation with the advisor, must obtain approval of the study plan from the program director and student’s advisory committee prior to the completion of 12 semester hours of graduate credits, which count toward the graduate degree.

Graduate Assistantships

Information on graduate assistantships may be obtained by contacting the program director.

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