Geographic Information Science for Development and Environment Concentration
The concentration in Geographic Information Science for Development and Environment is intended for students interested in applications of geospatial technologies to address the challenge of sustainable development. The issues are many, ranging from natural resource development while protecting biodiversity, smart development and planning of infrastructure to social issues such as disaster management, humanitarian assistance, water and sanitation, poverty and hunger alleviation, climate change impacts, conflicts, and migration.
The GISDE concentration builds upon the broad strengths of the Department of International Development, Community and Environment (IDCE), the Graduate School of Geography and Clark Labs. Accordingly, this concentration allows considerable flexibility in tailoring an individual program, crafted with the assistance of a faculty advisor.
Curriculum
Candidates for the MS in Geographic Information Science specializing in GIS for Development and Environment are required to complete 12 credits, including 3-5 required courses and associated prerequisites.
Required Courses:
GEOG 397 Advanced Raster GIS
IDCE 388 Advanced Vector GIS
IDCE 391 Professional Seminar (0.5 credit)
Students in the research track are also required to take:
GEOG 399 or IDCE 399 MS Directed Research (1 credit - Fall Semester of Year 2)
IDCE 30213 MS Final Research Requirement (1 credit - Spring Semester of Year 2)
Students in the internship track also have the following non-course requirements that must be fulfilled before graduation clearance will be given:
Submission of an approved MSGIS Internship Proposal before the beginning of your internship
Submission of your MSGIS Internship Report in your third semester
Submission of a completed and signed MSGIS Internship Supervisor Evaluation in your third semester
Public presentation using PowerPoint about your internship during GIS Week in your third semester
Prerequisites:
The following is a list of prerequisites for required courses. Students who can demonstrate that they have taken comparable courses at other institutions can be exempted from these prerequisites upon the approval of the program Coordinator. However, this does not reduce the requirement for a total of 12 credits for completion of the degree.
GEOG 310 Introduction to GIS
GEOG 311 Introduction to Quantitative Methods
GEOG 383 Introduction to Remote Sensing
Highly Recommended Electives:
IDCE 398 Internship[1]
GEOG 346 Geospatial Analysis with R
IDCE 302 Python Programming (0.5 credit)
IDCE 30274 Computer Programming for GIS (0.5 credit)
IDCE 359 Web mapping and Open source GIS
IDCE 30306 GIS for International Development (0.5 credit)
GEOG 382 Advanced Remote Sensing
Other Electives:
IDCE 30393 Social Applications of GIS (0.5 credit)
IDCE 30229 Monitoring and Evaluation
IDCE 361 Program and Project Management
IDCE 377 Approaches to Global Health and Social Change
IDCE 30330 Approaches to Community Health and Social Change
IDCE 30264 Introduction to Epidemiology and Biostatistics
IDCE 30360 Spatial Analysis for Health
IDCE 312 Famine and Food Security
IDCE 332 Sustainable Development Assessment & Planning
IDCE 30231 Humanitarian Assistances in Complex Emergencies/Disasters
IDCE 30103 Network and Analytics of Development
GEOG tbd Conservation GIS (new course to be offered in Fall 2019)
GEOG 336 Wildlife Conservation GIS Research Seminar
GEOG 332 Landscape Ecology
GEOG 386 Habitat Modeling (0.5 credit)
GEOG 304 Cartography and Map design (0.5 credit). Not regularly offered.
GEOG 322 Applications of Radar Remote Sensing
GEOG 323 Forest Ecology and Management
GEOG 333 Terrestrial Ecosystems and Global Environmental Change
GEOG 347 Intermediate Quantitative Methods
GEOG 349 Advanced Topics in Spatial Analysis
GEOG 352 GIS and Land Change Science
GEOG 360 GIS and Land Change Models
GEOG 363 Climate Systems and Global Environmental Change
GEOG 372 Contemporary Environmental Issues: Forest Ecosystems
GEOG 378 Emerging Issues in Climate Change Science
GEOG 379 GIS and Map Comparison
GEOG 385 Spatial Database Development (0.5 credit). Not regularly offered.
GEOG 387 New Methods in Earth Observation
GEOG 391 Innovations in Earth Observation
GEOG 392 Remote Sensing of Global Environmental Change
Students may also take courses offered by the Graduate School of Geography or the other four graduate programs in IDCE (International Development and Social Change, Community Development and Planning, Community and Global Health, and Environmental Science and Policy) or in other departments, as approved by their academic advisor. Please view Clark’s official Academic Catalog www.clarku.edu/academiccatalog for a complete listing of course offerings.
[1] Students on the internship track can optionally register for a 0.5 or 1.0 credit internship either during the summer when they take the internship, or in the fall semester immediately following. Note that international students taking their internship as CPT must register for the internship course (0.5 or 1.0 credit).
Conservation Applications Concentration
Conservation GIS is concerned with the application of Geographic Information Systems and related geospatial technologies to the needs of Conservation Biology, Landscape Ecology, Wildlife Management and Conservation Planning. The MSGIS in Conservation Applications builds upon the history of close partnerships between Clark University and Clark Labs with organizations such as Conservation International, The Nature Conservancy, the Wildlife Conservation Society and the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation. Through these relationships, for example, Clark Labs has developed a distinctive set of geospatial software tools for Conservation such as the Land Change Modeler, the Habitat and Biodiversity Modeler, the Climate Change Adaptation Modeler, the Ecosystem Services Modeler and the Earth Trends Modeler. Clark is also in the process of becoming the home of the New England chapter of the Society for Conservation GIS.
The objectives of the Master of Science in Conservation Applications are to gain spatial analysis skills required in ecological and conservation applications including: vector and raster spatial data analysis, analysis of image time series, remote sensing applied to environmental monitoring, GIS programming skills, spatial conservation planning, spatial modeling of species distributions, and effective map communication.
Curriculum
Candidates for the MS in Geographic Information Science specializing in Conservation Applications are required to complete 12 graduate course units, normally including 6-8 required courses.
Required Courses:
GEOG 397 Advanced Raster GIS
IDCE 388 Advanced Vector GIS
IDCE 391 Professional Seminar (0.5 credit)
GEOG 332 Landscape Ecology
GEOG 386 Habitat Modeling (0.5 credit)
GEOG tbd Conservation GIS (new course to be offered in Fall 2019)
Students in the research track are also required to take:
GEOG 399 or IDCE 399 MS Directed Research (1 credit - Fall Semester of Year 2)
IDCE 30213 MS Research Final Requirement (1 credit - Spring Semester of Year 2)
Students in the internship track also have the following non-course requirements that must be fulfilled before graduation clearance will be given:
Submission of an approved MSGIS Internship Proposal before the beginning of your internship
Submission of your MSGIS Internship Report in your third semester
Submission of a completed and signed MSGIS Internship Supervisor Evaluation in your third semester
Public presentation using PowerPoint about your internship during GIS Week in your third semester
Prerequisites:
The following is a list of prerequisites for required courses. Students who can demonstrate that they have taken comparable courses at other institutions can be exempted from these prerequisites upon the approval of the program Coordinator. However, this does not reduce the requirement for a total of 12 credits for completion of the degree.
GEOG 310 Introduction to GIS
GEOG 311 Introduction to Quantitative Methods
GEOG 383 Introduction to Remote Sensing
Highly Recommended Electives:
IDCE 398 Internship[1]
GEOG 346 Geospatial Analysis with R
IDCE 302 Python programming (0.5 credit)
IDCE 30274 Computer Programming for GIS (0.5 credit)
IDCE 359 Web mapping and Open source GIS
GEOG 336 Wildlife Conservation GIS Research Seminar
Other Electives:
GEOG 304 Cartography and Map design (0.5 credit). Not regularly offered.
GEOG 322 Applications of Radar Remote Sensing
GEOG 323 Forest Ecology and Management
GEOG 333 Terrestrial Ecosystems and Global Environmental Change
GEOG 349 Advanced Topics in Spatial Analysis
GEOG 352 GIS and Land Change Science
GEOG 360 GIS and Land Change Models
GEOG 363 Climate Systems and Global Environmental Change
GEOG 372 Contemporary Environmental Issues: Forest Ecosystems
GEOG 378 Emerging Issues in Climate Change Science
GEOG 379 GIS and Map Comparison
GEOG 385 Spatial Database Development (0.5 credit). Not regularly offered.
GEOG 382 Advanced Remote Sensing
GEOG 387 New Methods in Earth Observation
GEOG 391 Innovations in Earth Observation
GEOG 392 Remote Sensing of Global Environmental Change
GEOG 395 Advanced Topics in Biogeosciences
BIOL 306 Advanced Biostatistics. Not offered regularly
BIOL 316 Ecology
BIOL 358 Small Scale Land Conservation Principles
Students may also take courses offered by the Graduate School of Geography or the other four graduate programs in IDCE (International Development and Social Change, Community Development and Planning, Community and Global Health, and Environmental Science and Policy) or in other departments, as approved by their academic advisor. Please view Clark’s official Academic Catalog www.clarku.edu/academiccatalog for a complete listing of course offerings.
[1] Students on the internship track can optionally register for a 0.5 or 1.0 credit internship either during the summer when they take the internship, or in the fall semester immediately following. Note that international students taking their internship as CPT must register for the internship course (0.5 or 1.0 credit).
Remote Sensing Concentration
Remote Sensing is the scientific discipline concerned with the acquisition of environmental data at a distance (typically from imaging sensors on satellites and aircraft) and their subsequent analysis to yield information, typically in map form. Clark’s program in Remote Sensing focuses on the analysis of image data for environmental applications, particularly related to earth system science, natural resource inventory and ecological/conservation applications. Faculty, students and staff are involved not only in the application of remote sensing to crucial environmental concerns, but also, in some cases, in the development of new image processing procedures and software implementations.
Clark’s program in Remote Sensing places a strong emphasis on acquiring the quantitative analysis and problem solving skills necessary to function as a professional analyst. The products of remote sensing image analysis are almost universally in map form. Thus the program also puts emphasis on acquiring the Geographic Information System (GIS) skills necessary for the development of end products. It is also the philosophy of the Clark faculty that analytical skill also depends on experience. Thus most of the courses have an applied project component as an integral element.
Clark continues to have strong partnerships with many organizations that have remote sensing image analysis needs, including the Department of Agriculture Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS), the GIMMS laboratory at NASA, the Wildlife Conservation Society, Conservation International, Digital Globe and the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation. Clark is also closely connected to the NASA DEVELOP program.
Curriculum
Candidates for the MS in Geographic Information Science specializing Remote Sensing of the Environment are required to complete 12 graduate course units, normally including 4-6 required courses.
Required Courses:
IDCE 388 Advanced Vector GIS
GEOG 397 Advanced Raster GIS
IDCE 391 Professional Seminar (0.5 credit)
GEOG 382 Advanced Remote Sensing
Students in the research track are also required to take:
GEOG 399 or IDCE 399 MS Directed Research (1 credit - Fall Semester of Year 2)
IDCE 30213 MS Final Requirement: Research Track (1 credit - Spring Semester of Year 2)
Students in the internship track also have the following non-course requirements that must be fulfilled before graduation clearance will be given:
Submission of an approved MSGIS Internship Proposal before the beginning of your internship
Submission of your MSGIS Internship Report in your third semester
Submission of a completed and signed MSGIS Internship Supervisor Evaluation in your third semester
Public presentation using PowerPoint about your internship during GIS Week in your third semester
Prerequisites:
The following is a list of prerequisites for required courses. Students who can demonstrate that they have taken comparable courses at other institutions can be exempted from these prerequisites upon the approval of the program Coordinator. However, this does not reduce the requirement for a total of 12 credits for completion of the degree.
1. GEOG 310 Introduction to GIS
2. GEOG 311 Introduction to Quantitative Methods
3. GEOG 383 Introduction to Remote Sensing
Highly Recommended Electives:
IDCE 398 Internship[1]
IDCE 302 Python Programming (0.5 credit)
IDCE 30274 Computer Programming for GIS (0.5 credit)
IDCE 359 Web Mapping and Open Source GIS
GEOG 346 Geospatial Analysis with R
Other Electives:
Students may select from any relevant graduate-credit courses in Geography or IDCE to fill out their requirement of 12 credits for the degree. However, the following is a list of elective courses with a strong focus on Remote Sensing or GIS.
GEOG 392 Remote Sensing of Global Environmental Change
GEOG 322 Applications of RADAR Remote Sensing
GEOG 345 Remote Sensing of the Cryosphere
GEOG 387 New Methods in Earth Observation
GEOG 391 Innovations in Earth Observation
GEOG 330 Species Distribution Modeling
GEOG 332 Landscape Ecology
GEOG 336 Wildlife Conservation GIS Research Seminar
GEOG 352 GIS and Land Change Science
GEOG 360 GIS and Land Change Models
GEOG 379 GIS and Map Comparison
GEOG 398 Internship (Requires permission)
GEOG 399 Directed Study (Requires permission)
Students may also take courses offered by the Graduate School of Geography or the other four graduate programs in IDCE (International Development and Social Change, Community Development and Planning, Global and Community Health, and Environmental Science and Policy) or in other departments, as approved by their academic advisor. Please view Clark’s official Academic Catalog www.clarku.edu/academiccatalog for a complete listing of course offerings.
[1] Students on the internship track can optionally register for a 0.5 or 1.0 credit internship either during the summer when they take the internship, or in the fall semester immediately following. Note that international students taking their internship as CPT must register for the internship course (0.5 or 1.0 credit).
Community and Global Health Applications Concentration
The concentration in GIScience for Community and Global Health Applications is intended for students interested in applications of geospatial technologies in areas of community and global health. The program is aimed at individuals who plan to work as GIS Analysts/Specialists in international health organizations (such as WHO, International Red Cross), federal, state and local government agencies (CDC, FEMA, state and municipal health departments), NGOs (Partners in Health, Planned Parenthood, etc.) or research organizations and Universities (Schools of Public Health, Health GIS Research Labs).
Putting information into a spatial context allows exploring the spatial relationships among health and behavior indicators, health outcomes, environmental risk factors, and demographic and cultural characteristics at a particular location. GIS and remote sensing allow visualizing and analyzing spatial patterns of disease distribution, accounting for spatial dependencies in the data, and investigating how health outcomes and processes that drive them differ from place to place. GIS maps may indicate connections and trends that would be otherwise not readily apparent, if the data were not integrated together via spatial overlays. In addition to a set of core GIScience courses, students in this concentration will take a capstone course titled Spatial Analysis for Health and complete a research project as part of that course. Graduates with this concentration will have a solid understanding of health issues facing communities (both global and domestic), and of the policy environments affecting global and domestic health. They will also develop competency in a wide range of GIS analytical methods, with particular emphasis on techniques applicable to global and community health issues.
Faculty who teach in this concentration have developed strong partnerships with many local and global organizations that have spatial analysis needs, including the City Worcester (Department of Public Health), Family Health Center of Worcester, Inc., Department of Family Medicine and Community Health at the University of Massachusetts Medical School, Departments of Obstetrics/Gynecology and Pediatrics, University of Massachusetts Medical School/UMass Memorial Health Care, Partners in Health, and others. Several MS students have done summer internships in some of these organizations or worked as research assistants with faculty on health-related GIS projects, and co-published academic papers in peer-reviewed journals.
Curriculum
Candidates for the MS in Geographic Information Science for Community and Global Health are required to complete 12 graduate course units, normally including 5-7 required courses.
Required Courses:
IDCE 388 Advanced Vector GIS
GEOG 397 Advanced Raster GIS
IDCE 391 Professional Seminar (0.5 credit)
IDCE30360 Spatial Analysis for Health
Students must also take at least one of the following courses:
IDCE 377 Approaches to Global Health and Social Change
IDCE 30330 Approaches to Community Health and Social Change
IDCE 30264 Introduction to Epidemiology and Biostatistics
Students in the research track are also required to take:
GEOG 399 or IDCE 399 MS Directed Research (1 credit - Fall Semester of Year 2)
IDCE30213 MS Final Research Requirement (1 credit - Spring Semester of Year 2)
Students in the internship track also have the following non-course requirements that must be fulfilled before graduation clearance will be given:
Submission of an approved MSGIS Internship Proposal before the beginning of your internship
Submission of your MSGIS Internship Report in your third semester
Submission of a completed and signed MSGIS Internship Supervisor Evaluation in your third semester
Public presentation using PowerPoint about your internship during GIS Week in your third semester
Prerequisites:
The following is a list of prerequisites for required courses. Students who can demonstrate that they have taken comparable courses at other institutions can be exempted from these prerequisites upon the approval of the program Coordinator. However, this does not reduce the requirement for a total of 12 credits for completion of the degree.
GEOG 310 Introduction to GIS
GEOG 311 Introduction to Quantitative Methods
GEOG 383 Introduction to Remote Sensing
Highly Recommended Electives:
IDCE 398 Internship[1]
GEOG 346 Geospatial Analysis with R
IDCE 302 Python programming (0.5 credit)
IDCE 30274 Computer Programming for GIS (0.5 credit)
IDCE 359 Web mapping and Open source GIS
IDCE 30393 Social Applications of GIS (0.5 credit)
Other Electives:
Students may select from any relevant graduate-credit courses in Geography or IDCE to fill out their requirement of 12 credits for the degree. However, the following is a list of elective courses with a strong focus on Remote Sensing, GIS, or Global and Community Health.
IDCE 30229 Monitoring and Evaluation
IDCE 361 Program and Project Management
IDCE 377 Approaches to Global Health and Social Change
IDCE 30330 Approaches to Community Health and Social Change
IDCE 308 Health (in)equity: social determinants and policy solutions
IDCE 3026 Introduction to Epidemiology and Biostatistics
GEOG 322 Applications of RADAR Remote Sensing
GEOG 382 Advanced Remote Sensing
GEOG 345 Remote Sensing of the Cryosphere
GEOG 352 GIS and Land Change Science
GEOG 360 GIS and Land Change Models
GEOG 379 GIS and Map Comparison
GEOG 330 Species Distribution Modeling
GEOG 332 Landscape Ecology
GEOG 336 Wildlife Conservation GIS Research Seminar
GEOG 385 Spatial Database Development (0.5 credit). Not regularly offered.
Students may also take courses offered by the Graduate School of Geography or the other four graduate programs in IDCE (International Development and Social Change, Community Development and Planning, Community and Global Health, and Environmental Science and Policy) or in other departments, as approved by their academic advisor. Please view Clark’s official Academic Catalog www.clarku.edu/academiccatalog for a complete listing of course offerings.
[1] Students on the internship track can optionally register for a 0.5 or 1.0 credit internship either during the summer when they take the internship, or in the fall semester immediately following. Note that international students taking their internship as CPT must register for the internship course (0.5 or 1.0 credit).
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