Geographical information systems 15 credits

About the course

The course provides advanced knowledge of Geographic Information Systems (GIS) and remote sensing, primarily with applications within environmental science, including ecology and geoscience.
The course focuses on theoretical knowledge within GIS and remote sensing, in addition to practical applications of various GIS programs in order to process and analyse various types of spatial data including raster and vector data and to create maps. The course assumes that the student has a basic understanding of the following aspects within GIS and remote sensing: projections and coordinate systems, basic processing of vector and raster data including creation of files, selections from attribute tables, editing of vector data and attribute tables, digitizing new vector files raster math and georeferencing. The course focuses on processing and various types of analyses of GIS and remote sensing data, including digital elevation models, satellite imagery, interpolations, spatial modelling, etc.
Data will be obtained and handled during the course from various digital databases, maps, orthophotos, and GPS points. Various types of digital data are included as course material, including from the Swedish Meteorological and Hydrological Institute (SMHI), the Swedish Land Survey (LM), the Swedish University for Agricultural Sciences (SLU), and the European Space Agency Copernicus Earth Observation program.

The course is divided into two modules of 10 ECTS and 5 ECTS.
Module 1:
Theoretical elements: focus on understanding the theory behind GIS analyses and how they are used in scientific studies, through lectures and seminars.
Practical exercises focus on learning to conduct advanced spatial analyses in various GIS software.
Module 2:
Project: Includes a project where the students obtain their own spatial data to answer their own research question.

Show syllabus

Apply

Spring 2027
- Geographical information systems
  
  Second admissions round for EU/EEA citizens
  
  VT27 / Umeå / English / On campus
  
  Submit a late application
  
  Show more Show less
  
  Starts
  18 January 2027
  
  Ends
  24 March 2027
  
  Number of credits
  15 credits
  
  Type of studies
  On campus
  
  Study pace
  100%
  
  Teaching hours
  Daytime
  
  Study location
  Umeå
  
  Language
  English
  
  Application code
  UMU-50012
  
  Eligibility
  
  Diversity of Nature, 15 ECTS, Earth Science 15 ECTS and Ecology 15 ECTS, or GIS 7,5 ECTS. Proficiency in English equivalent to Swedish upper secondary course English 6/level 2.
  
  Selection
  
  Academic credits awarded by application deadline (HPGR 1-165 ECTS)
  
  Application
  Application deadline was 15 October 2026. Please note: This second application round is intended only for EU/EEA/Swiss citizens. Submit a late application at Universityadmissions.se.
  
  Application and tuition fees
  As a citizen of a country outside the European Union (EU), the European Economic Area (EEA) or Switzerland, you are required to pay application and tuition fees for studies at Umeå University.
  
  Application fee: SEK 900
  
  Tuition fee, first instalment: SEK 38,075
  
  Total fee: SEK 38,075
  
  Details about tuition, fees and funding

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Late applications
Admissions to most programmes and courses typically close after the final application deadline. However, some programmes and courses may still accept late applications if seats are available. These are marked “Open for late application” on universityadmissions.se. Please note that late applications are not guaranteed to be reviewed.

More about application and admission

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