The Program The Master of Science degree program in Geoinformatics

offers opportunities for advanced study and research

designed to prepare students for leading roles in industry,

government, research and/or academic institutions. The

educational objective of this program is to produce graduates who are capable of applying geospatial science and

technology to solve problems in industry or academia as well as assuming a leadership role in their chosen employment

field. This is a multidisciplinary program administered by the Department of Geological Sciences. It encompasses faculty

and resources from the College of Sciences, College of Liberal and Fine Arts, College of Engineering, College of Public

Policy, College of Architecture, Construction and Planning, as well as individual faculty from other academic departments.

Facilities The program has special laboratory facilities for geographic

information systems, remote sensing, and field instruments:

GPS, EM31, snow radar, terrestrial lidar, thermal infrared

camera, ground penetrating radar, spectroradiometer, micro

rain radar, rain gauge, and monitoring equipment for

hydrological investigations.

Research The cross-disciplinary nature of the program utilizes spatial

data (geographic and/or remote sensing data) to solve a real-

life problems related to locations and changes in space and

time, with wide applications in oil and gas industry, water

resources and management, land use and land cover, climate

change and cryosphere, archaeology, political science, urban

planning and transportation, demography, public health,

disaster response and relief effort, geospatial intelligence ,

and cyber-security.

Big data and cloud computing are the two new aspects of the

program’s collaborative research and applications, since

geospatial and remote sensing data are big in nature and

need advanced technology and methods for data mining,

processing, storing, sharing, and distribution.

MS in Geoinformatics

How to Apply Applicants are expected to have completed either a bachelor

of science degree, with emphases in geological, biological,

physical, environmental, or computational sciences, or a

bachelor of arts degree, with emphases in geography, social

sciences, humanities, or business. Five required background

classes or equivalents are: Algebra (MAT 1073), Computer

Programming (CS 1073), Physics (PHY 1603 or 1943),

Statistics (STA 1053), and World Geography (WRG 1023).

The application process is online at graduateschool.utsa.edu.

The Graduate Studies Committee is responsible for

reviewing applications and recommending acceptance into

the program.

Deadlines:

Domestic International

Spring November 1 September 1

Spring Priority October 1 -

Fall June 15 March 1

Fall Priority March 15 --

Student Support Financial assistance (teaching and research assistantship) is

limited and awarded on a competitive basis. Individual

faculty members may have opportunities for research

assistantships or research fellowships and should be

contacted directly.

M.S. in Geoinformatics

The University of Texas at San

Antonio

One UTSA Circle

San Antonio, TX 78249

(210) 458-4455

Graduate Advisor of Record/Program

Manager

Hongjie Xie

(210) 458-5445

Other Core Faculty Members

Sonia Alconini, Janis Bush, Darrell Carpenter, Victor De

Oliveira, Marcio Giacomoni, Matthew Gibson, Alex Godet,

Judy Haschenburger, Jeffrey Hutchinson, Azza Kamal,

Myung Ko, Lance Lambert, Max Kilger, Marina Suarez,

Newfel Mazari, Alberto Mestas, Jeff Prevost, Firat Testik,

Blake Weissling, and Keying Ye.

Graduate Studies Committee

Nazgol Bagheri, Ph.D., (nazgol.bagheri@utsa.edu)

Assistant Professor in Political Science and Geography,

with specialty in Urban Geography, GIScience, Middle East

Yongli Gao, Ph.D., (yongli.gao@utsa.edu)

Associate Professor in Geological Sciences, with specialty

in Karst Hydrogeology, GIS and Database Management

Hatim Sharif, Ph.D., (hatim.sharif@utsa.edu)

Professor in Civil and Environmental Engineering, with

specialty in Hydrometerology, GIS in Water Resources

Corey Sparks, Ph.D., (corey.sparks@utsa.edu)

Associate Professor in Demography, with specialty in Spa-

tial Analysis, Health and Mortality, Small Area Estimation

Rebecca Walter, Ph.D., (rebecca.walter@utsa.edu)

Assistant Professor in Urban and Regional Planning, with

specialty in Urban Geography, Spatial Analysis, and As-

sisted and Affordable Housing

Hongjie Xie, Ph.D., (hongjie.xie@utsa.edu)

Professor in Geological Sciences, with specialty in Remote

Sensing, GIS, Hydrology, Cryosphere Science

Degree requirements

A minimum of 32 credit hours with thesis and non-thesis

options. The six core courses are:

GEO 5033 or CE 5293 (Geographic Information Systems)

GEO 5053 (Remote Sensing)

GEO 5063 (Applied Statistics for Geoinformatics)

GEO 6011 Seminar in Geospatial Science and Application

GEO 6513 (Advanced GIS)

GEO 6533 (Programming for Geospatial Application)

Plus other prescribed-elective and free-elective courses, and

thesis hours for thesis option and independent study hours

for non-thesis option.