The second-level Master’s Degree in GIScience and Remotely Piloted Systems for the integrated management of land and natural resources prepares new GIScience professionals for various career paths. Graduates will be able to:
use interdisciplinary approaches, technological solutions, and geographic information to address complex territorial cases;
acquire, represent, and analyze geographic data, promoting its expert use in complex decision-making processes;
manage the transformation of technologies supporting GIScience to identify solutions for businesses, public institutions, and citizens.
The Master is designed to respond to the increasing availability of geographic information and the development of new technologies for managing geographic data (drones, WebGIS, mobile GIS). These advancements require the updating, reorganization, and processing of decision-making processes across public, private, and non-profit sectors, considering that approximately 80% of available information and both collective and individual decisions are related to territory.
The training activities of the second-level Master’s Degree in GIScience and Remotely Piloted Systems (RPS) are organized into seven specialized tracks, including one synchronous online track (live online lectures) and six asynchronous online tracks (recorded video lectures).
The first part of the Master consists of courses common to all tracks, delivered in synchronous online mode (live lectures), which are essential for building a comprehensive geographic background and acquiring specific knowledge. The program begins with human and physical geography and cartography, expanding into a broader understanding of territory. It then moves on to GIScience in the strict sense, followed by track-specific courses that provide sectoral expertise for different professional profiles.
The Master adopts a learning-by-doing approach, alternating lectures with practical examples and hands-on activities, as well as field trips and on-site experiences, including the use of Remotely Piloted Aircraft Systems (three in-person weekends are scheduled during the first part of the program).
Starting from the fundamentals, the program provides specialized skills in GIScience, cartography, mobile GIS, GIS software and data formats, territorial analysis, technical instrumentation, geodatabases and coding, satellite and drone remote sensing, WebGIS, Remotely Piloted Systems, participatory GIS, and geoinformatics.
For more information: mastergiscience.it
The second-level Master’s Degree in GIScience and Remotely Piloted Systems for the integrated management of land and natural resources is designed for recent graduates, as well as public and private sector officials and technicians, and freelance professionals interested in acquiring advanced training and scientific specialization. These competencies are increasingly in demand by public institutions, private organizations, and non-profit entities that must manage the growing availability of geographic information and the rapid development of new technologies for geographic data management (from drones to WebGIS and mobile GIS).
The Master prepares the following professional profiles in the field of GIScience:
- Geographic Information Manager
- Geographic Information Officer
- Geographic Knowledge Enabler
- Geographic Information Specialist
- GeoData Analyst
The Master’s Degree in GIScience and Remotely Piloted Systems is structured into three main parts:
1) Core courses: from November to February, participants build the essential place/people/pixel background needed to develop key competencies. Through a structured pathway starting from the general characteristics of the Earth’s surface, the program progresses to specific GIScience modules. This part is delivered in blended mode (live online lectures and three in-person weekends).
2) Specialized tracks: from March to July, participants attend advanced courses by choosing one of seven specializations:
- Production and management of geoinformation (synchronous online): trains professionals skilled in evaluating and managing existing territorial information and in planning actions to acquire new data, selecting the most appropriate technologies (particularly the role of Remotely Piloted Systems) based on organizational needs.
- GIScience for environmental conflict management and participation (asynchronous online): prepares versatile professionals specialized in managing inclusive decision-making processes and environmental conflicts within the framework of sustainable territorial citizenship, as defined by the Aarhus Convention and related European and national environmental policies.
- Cartography and GIS for green infrastructures (asynchronous online): trains professionals in the design of green infrastructures within integrated European policies on biodiversity conservation and climate change mitigation.
- Sustainable agriculture (asynchronous online): prepares professionals skilled in geoinformation processing and related technologies to improve the environmental performance of agriculture and promote sustainable practices.
- Territorial planning (asynchronous online): trains professionals in the use of advanced geographic information technologies for land management and governance.
- Spatial data infrastructures and geoportals (asynchronous online): prepares professionals specialized in the design and management of spatial data infrastructures, WebGIS, and GIS development.
- GIScience and geoinformatics (asynchronous online): trains professionals with strong expertise in geoinformation and geoinformatics, including solid knowledge of Python programming, and skills in managing and developing territorial projects, from spatial data management to WebGIS systems.
3) Internship: the program is completed with an internship or project work (450 hours), plus an additional 100 hours dedicated to the preparation of the final thesis.
The Master’s programme is interdepartmental and involves the following five departments of the University of Padua:
- Civil, Construction and Environmental Engineering – ICEA (coordinating department)
- Department of Geosciences
- Department of Historical, Geographical and Ancient Sciences – DISSGEA
- Department of Agronomy, Animal Science, Food, Natural Resources and Environment – DAFNAE
- Department of Land and Agro-Forestry Systems – TESAF
The second-level Master’s Degree in GIScience and Remotely Piloted Systems for the integrated management of land and natural resources is highly active in building partnerships with institutions and companies to establish internship agreements. To date, the Master has more than 50 agreements with organizations and companies operating in the field of GIScience.
Each year, the GIScience Master team continuously expands its network of partnerships and collaborations with institutions and businesses. Participants may also propose their own project work (subject to evaluation by the faculty), which can be developed in collaboration with one of the lecturers affiliated with the five departments involved in the program: DICEA, Geosciences, DISSGEA, DAFNAE, and TESAF.
The internship or project work consists of a total of 450 hours, with an additional 100 hours dedicated to the preparation of the final thesis.
If the number of enrolled participants exceeds 20, two awards of €1,000 (gross) each will be made available.
Additional benefits: Master’s students will have access to an ArcGIS Student Edition license for one year, an Agisoft Metashape Professional license (for specialization courses in Photogrammetry and SfM), an ENVI license (for specialization courses in Remote Sensing), a dedicated server for processing with WebODM, open-access platforms for WebGIS, and an open-access platform for managing drone-based photogrammetry surveys.
The Master in GIScience and Remotely Piloted Systems organizes two virtual open days between June and September (published on the website mastergiscience.it – click here).
These meetings are opportunities to connect and exchange information, aimed at anyone interested in receiving further details, asking questions, or clarifying doubts. During the Open Days, participants can interact with the Master’s Director, Prof. Massimo De Marchi; the Deputy Director and coordinator of internships and project work, Prof. Salvatore Pappalardo; the classroom tutor, Dr. Giuseppe Della Fera; and several members of the Academic Committee.
The Master’s team is also highly active locally, organizing scientific outreach and socio-cultural events each year in the fields of GIScience and Remotely Piloted Systems, with the goal of promoting a culture of geographic information that is open, shared, and accessible to all.
All events are free of charge and include recurring initiatives such as: Estate GIS (June–September), the Drones for Good Festival (September), Science4All (September), Geo November (November), GIS Day (November), and the International Geography Awareness Night (April).
The general ranking of merit will be published on the Italian page of this Master according to the timing provided in the Call.
Information
FAQ
The program includes 304 hours of taught courses, 646 hours of individual study, and 550 hours dedicated to internship/project work (450 hours for the internship/project work and 100 hours for the final thesis), for a total of 1,500 hours.
The Master is organized into 20 ECTS credits (CFU) of core courses, 18 ECTS credits of specialization courses, 18 ECTS credits of internship, and 4 ECTS credits for the final thesis.
The training is completed with either an internship or a project work. The internship can be carried out within one of the University departments or at partner institutions and companies. Alternatively, a project work can be developed, subject to agreement with the program’s management.
All applicants to the Master in GIScience and Remotely Piloted Systems must have obtained their Master’s Degree no later than the official start date of the program’s classes (which will be available once the academic calendar for the core courses is published).
For all tracks, the first part of the Master consists of core courses common to all specializations. These are delivered in a blended format, combining live online lectures (synchronous mode) with three in-person weekends (held at the University of Padua and in the field). Attendance at the core courses requires live online participation for everyone, and classes are delivered via the Zoom platform.
When the specialization courses begin, Track 1 (synchronous online) continues with live online lectures via Zoom. The asynchronous tracks, on the other hand, follow recorded video lectures available on the University’s Moodle platform.
The required attendance rate is 70%, calculated on the total number of lessons, including in-person, synchronous, and asynchronous activities.
Under Ministerial Decree D.M. 270/2004 of the Italian Ministry of Education, University and Research, the Master in GIScience and Remotely Piloted Systems is classified as an Executive Master. It integrates academic education with experiential learning and practical training (both basic and advanced), offering professionally oriented content.
The program aims both to facilitate entry into the job market and to provide advanced training and specialization for individuals who are already engaged in professional activities.