Program Overview

Programme: BScHons in Geoinformatics

The BScHons in Geoinformatics programme is offered by the Faculty of Natural and Agricultural Sciences, Department of Geography, Geoinformatics and Meteorology.

Admission Requirements

General Admission Regulations

• All applications must be accompanied by certified full academic transcripts from undergraduate to current level.
• Certified copy of ID or passport.
• A research concept note (not applicable to honours or coursework master's degrees).
• All applicants with international qualifications must submit a SAQA evaluation of the completed qualification or a comprehensive Foreign Qualification Report.
• TOEFL or IELTS or Pearson Test of English or Oxford Test of English test results (if applicable).
• Certified copy of passport.
• All postgraduate applications are subject to departmental admissions processes.
• Admissions is based on the content of and performance in the prior degree, bridging arrangements (where required), academic merit and prior work experience (if applicable).
• Admission to all qualifications is subject to supervisory capacity and/or research projects in the field of specialisation in a department.
• Complying with the minimum admissions requirements does not automatically guarantee admission to the degree.
• Proposed research studies for masters and doctoral applicants should align with the research focus of the relevant department.
• If a qualifying candidate has expressed an interest in a field of study that the relevant department cannot accommodate, the applicant may be considered for an alternative project.
• All postgraduate applicants must be proficient in English as English is the official language of tuition, communication and correspondence at the University of Pretoria.
• Candidates who cannot provide evidence that previous studies were completed in English, must submit TOEFL or IELTS or Pearson Test of English or Oxford Test of English test results with their application.
• All applicants must be computer literate.
• All students need to have access to an internet enabled device, as well as consistent email and internet access.
• Allowance will be made for the diversity profile of students in accordance with the University strategy.

Minimum Admissions Requirements

• Bachelor of Science in Geoinformatics degree or relevant Bachelor of Science degree (NQF level 7).
• An average of at least 60% each in relevant final-year modules of the bachelor's degree (NQF level 7).
• Note: An admission examination may be required. Additional modules may be required in order to reach the desired level of competency.

Programme Structure

• Minimum duration of study: 1 year.
• Total credits: 135.
• NQF level: 08.
• Fundamental credits: 10.
• Core credits: 110.
• Elective credits: 15.

Modules

Fundamental Modules

• GIS 701: Research methods 701 (Credits: 10.00).
  • Module content: The module introduces students to planning, research design, scientific reading, writing and presentation as required for geoinformatics research.

Core Modules

• GIS 702: Research project 702 (Credits: 35.00).
  • Module content: An approved individual Geoinformatics research project with a system design and/or spatial analysis component.
• GIS 704: Spatial statistics and geodesy 704 (Credits: 15.00).
  • Module content: Principles of least squares in statistics, Spatial least squares regression, Surface interpolation using least squares and coordinate transformations.
• GIS 705: Advanced geospatial data 705 (Credits: 15.00).
  • Module content: Advanced topics in geospatial data management, such as data quality, data acquisition and management, standards, spatial data infrastructure (SDI) and legislation.
• GIS 708: Advanced GIS 708 (Credits: 15.00).
  • Module content: Advanced topics in GIS application, such as principal component analysis, multi-criteria evaluation and other geospatial analysis methods.
• GIS 709: Geospatial data and services 709 (Credits: 15.00).
  • Module content: Advanced topics in spatial databases, such as computational geometry, spatial data indexing and query processing.
• GMA 705: Advanced remote sensing 705 (Credits: 15.00).
  • Module content: The aim of the module is to provide knowledge and understanding of image analysis and information extraction methods in remote sensing.

Elective Modules

• ENV 704: Environmental policy and communication 704 (Credits: 15.00).
  • Module content: The module introduces students to contemporary debates about the role of policy, discourse and communication in achieving environmental sustainability.
• ENV 785: Environmental assessments 785 (Credits: 15.00).
  • Module content: The aim of this module is to understand the principles and processes behind environmental assessments.
• GGY 710: Geographical and environmental principles 710 (Credits: 15.00).
  • Module content: The module provides a critical review of the structures and paradigms in which the geographical and environmental sciences are practised.
• GGY 789: Environmental change 789 (Credits: 15.00).
  • Module content: Study themes include past environmental change, causes and consequences of human-induced environmental change and South Africa and climate change.
• GIS 707: Special topics 707 (Credits: 15.00).
  • Module content: A special topic in Geoinformatics linked to research specialisation in the department and/or visiting lecturers.
• INF 791: Applied data science 791 (Credits: 15.00).
  • Module content: In this information age a lot of data is captured every day and recorded in databases, but the wealth of this data is kept locked in the databases because relatively little mining is performed on this data.
• WKD 703: Seasonal and climate modelling 703 (Credits: 15.00).
  • Module content: Fundamentals of seasonal forecasting.
• WKD 704: Numerical modelling: applications 704 (Credits: 15.00).
  • Module content: Initial atmospheric state, observation network, data assimilation, initialization, parameterisation, post-processing.
• WKD 723: Atmospheric composition and air quality 723 (Credits: 15.00).
  • Module content: Tropospheric atmospheric composition in southern Africa, with a particular focus on air quality.
• WKD 724: Climate change 724 (Credits: 15.00).
  • Module content: Concepts related to climate and climate change. Definitions, classification and factors influencing climate. Causes and impacts of climate change.