Why study Earth Observation and Geoinformation Management at Edinburgh?
- Our programme combines satellite data, technology and science to find new solutions to the world's biggest challenges.
- You will gain extensive experience applying Earth Observation data 'in the field', including remote sensing. In addition, you will benefit from access to projects that involve equipment such as survey-grade GPS and Unpiloted Aerial Vehicles (UAVs).
- Our teaching staff are very research-active and benefit from international reputations. We are often invited to engage with other academic institutions, organisations and companies worldwide. Our students' research projects are often published in academic or professional journals.
- This flexible programme is ideal if you have a background in environmental, planetary or geographical sciences, whether or not you have experience in remote sensing.
- We have close connections with several organisations such as The Association for Geographic Information, Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors, Remote Sensing and Photogrammetry Society.
Online events
We're running a series of online events for applicants and offer holders.
These events will give you a unique opportunity to ask questions and find out more about studying with us at Edinburgh.
Applicant and Offer Holder Information Session
Date: Wednesday 19 February
Time: 12:00 - 13:00 GMT
Register for the event via the link below.
Back to the applicant website
Pre-arrival reading list
Your courses
This MSc programme comprises:
- A compulsory generic skills course designed to prepare you for various career paths in EO.
Compulsory courses on Spatial Modelling and Analysis and a choice from Active (Lidar and Radar) or Passive (hyperspectral drones).
- Plus a wide selection of elective courses to choose from across the University (subject to timetabling and quotas).
Courses are delivered by staff who are active researchers in each field. Several staff members also have experience of transforming their research into commercial offerings. Their expertise is supplemented by selected guest speakers, generally from the industry or other research organisations.
You can find out more about compulsory and optional courses on the Degree Programme Tables (DPTs). Please note that the information on the current DPTs is for academic year 2024-25 and is subject to change in future years. The DPTs for academic year 2025-26 will be published in April 2025.
Read more about selecting optional courses on the applicant website.
Your dissertation
Dissertations can be conducted within the university or in collaboration with commercial entities, NGOs or research centres.
Previous dissertations have included projects with: Belize Forest Department, Coalition of Rainforest Nation, Earthwave, Forest Research, Royal Botanic Gardens Edinburgh, and Global Surface Intelligence.
Example dissertation titles include:
Segmenting and Classifying building roofs in high resolution satellite imagery in Bulawayo, Zimbabwe
Mapping Characteristics of Ice Grounding Zones in the Amundsen Sea Region Using CryoSat-2
Detecting Livelihoods: The Use of Earth Observation for Livelihood Mapping in Kenya
Deep Learning: Population Estimation with Sentinel 1 & 2
Airborne Lidar for Forest Understory Profiles: Validating with Terrestrial Lidar Validating with Terrestrial Lidar
Where will you be taught?
For this MSc in Earth Observation and Geoinformation Management, the majority of teaching takes place in the Central campus, including High School Yards.
You will have access to a wide range of facilities, with specialist training offered. This includes a broad range of software licences, the Edinburgh International Data Facility parallel computing and DataStore facilities. Additionally, Edinburgh hosts the UK’s national supercomputing centre and these facilities can be used for research projects.
Our student Sebastian on studying the MSc
Field trips/excursions
Innovative features of the programme include a residential field course in the Scottish Highlands in semester 1 and an MSc Conference at which you will present your dissertation plans in semester 2.
Additionally, there is an alumni conference in June entitled GIS Update, which provides students with the opportunity to listen to presentations by EO/GIS researchers and network with potential future employers.
Students will also have the opportunity to attend a national UK conference on EO or GIS during their period of study.
Our compulsory field trips or field courses are free, including travel and accommodation.
Scholarships
School of GeoSciences scholarships
Scholarships and student funding
You can find funding opportunities, tuition fees and costs of living for prospective UK and international postgraduate students on the University website.
You are also encouraged to undertake your own research into the range of potential scholarships and other funding outside the University for which you may be eligible.
Careers
The Earth observation sector is growing exponentially, with a huge increase of commercial remote sensing satellites being launched in the last 5 years. There is also a rapid growth in the use of imaging sensors on drones, for environmental impact assessment, surveying and asset inspection. Specialised expertise in remotely sensed data as part of larger geospatial data management is therefore increasingly sought in graduates.
Our MSc Earth Observation and Geoinformation Management is designed to give you a unique and thorough understanding of this relatively new and rapidly expanding field.
You will benefit from our proven track record in helping students progress to roles with a diverse range of employers in public, private and third sectors. 3 of our current staff also have experience in starting new companies in the EO sector.
Some examples of organisations include:
- The Satellite Applications Catapult
- European Space Agency
- British Antarctic Survey
- GeoSlam
- Iceve
- Earthwave
- Global Surface Intelligence
- Esri-UK
- various NGO and governmental agencies
Additionally, we run a Careers Event every year during the February Innovative Learning Week – allowing students to meet with industry leaders in private EO/GI firms, the government sector and NGOs. This gives a great platform for planning your future career in the EO/GIS industry.
Alumni
We have a thriving global network of alumni living and working around the world. As well as individual MSc programme networks, the School of GeoSciences has a large alumni network, which you can join after graduation.
You'll have the opportunity to engage with and learn from like minded individuals who can offer advice about shaping your career path.
Every year, past students come back to talk to the new cohort at the GIS Update alumni conference, which has been running for over 20 years.
You can read our alumni profiles to find out more about our graduates experiences throughout their studies and beyond on our website.
If you prefer to watch a video, you can watch our alumni interviews on YouTube.
Future of your subject
The direction of travel for satellite applications is based on cloud-based computing at scale, with analytical solutions being delivered via web-based applications, rather than desktop computers (which do not have the processing power or storage space for scaling-up EO analytics). This is the reason why this Masters programme incorporates both the theory and practice of remotely sensed imagery, but also the skills needed to manage, process and deliver geospatial data at scale.
Your programme director and cohort lead.
Find our more about your programme director and cohort lead
Dr. Gary Watmough
The programme director for MSc Earth Observation and Geoinformation Management is Gary Watmough.
His research focuses on the use of earth observation satellite data to develop metrics about social, economic and health outcomes.
Gary has worked with UN agencies (UNICEF, FAO, IFAD) on a range of International Development Projects. He is also a research fellow for the Jameel Observatory for Food Security Early Action and is actively working in the East African region with a range of academic, industrial and third sector partners which often lead to interesting MSc Dissertation topics.
As well as his academic activities, he is currently a Bayes Innovation Fellow, examining how his research could be commercialised.
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