Overview
The requirement for the MSc in GIS & Archaeology programme is the completion of courses and a dissertation worth a total of 180 credit points.
The programme is composed of:
- 80 credits of core courses
- 40 credits of optional courses
- 60 credits worth of research dissertation work
Teaching is based around four five week blocks, preceded by an induction week in September. Work on the research project commences early in the year with the majority of work taking place over the summer.
If you wish to study part-time, you can discuss your individual programme of study with the Programme Director.
Taught courses
Students undertake a number of key compulsory courses and choose their remaining courses from a wide range of options.
Recommended optional courses are selected from the School of Geosciences and the School of History, Classics and Archaeology. Students also have the opportunity to select optional courses from other Schools within the University of Edinburgh.
You should be aware that because different options are available in the four blocks, not all course combinations will be possible. This is particularly the case with courses timetabled by other Schools within the University. In addition, not all the option courses may be offered every year. Successful applicants will be advised of the precise timetabling on arrival in Edinburgh.
Research dissertation
Each student will conduct an individual research project on a subject supervised by a member of teaching staff. MSc candidates write up their work as a dissertation which is submitted before the end of August.
Introductory course
An introductory course, of two days duration, will take place at the start of the year during Induction Week. This will provide an overview of the GIS Laboratory computer systems and their operating systems. It is intended to provide a basic set of skills which are required for the remainder of the programme.
All students are required to attend this module regardless of previous computing experience. This component is not examinable.
Field trip
A field trip is undertaken at the Kindrogan Field Centre, Perthshire at the end of October, where students use a variety of field based techniques and equipment concerned with the capture of geospatial information and apply these to the design and management of team based projects.
Seminars
Students attend:
GIS seminar series run jointly by the Edinburgh Earth Observatory and the Association for Geographic Information in Scotland (AGI-Scotland) with seminars delivered by GI professionals.
Archaeology seminar series which provides a forum for the exchange of ideas and promotion of new research.
This article was published on Apr 17, 2012