Studies & Degrees in Geomatics Engineering

Geomatics engineering is the branch of engineering that measures, models and manages information about the Earth's surface and what is built on it. It grew out of land surveying and now brings together surveying, geodesy, cartography, photogrammetry and remote sensing with newer tools: geographic information systems (GIS), satellite positioning, laser scanning, drones and the processing of very large data sets. ETH Zurich describes geomatic engineers as specialists in recording and visualising spatial structures and changes.

Students start with mathematics, physics, computing and statistics, as in any engineering degree. They then move on to surveying instruments and methods, geodesy and map projections, digital cartography, photogrammetry and satellite image processing, spatial databases and web mapping, the land register (cadastre) and spatial planning. Fieldwork and a final project are part of the degree.

Qualifications and levels

Spain. The bachelor's degree (grado) has 240 ECTS credits and takes four years. Its name differs by university: Grado en Ingeniería Geomática, Grado en Ingeniería Geomática y Topográfica or Grado en Ingeniería en Geomática y Topografía. Land surveying is a regulated profession in Spain (Ingeniero Técnico en Topografía). A ministerial order, Orden CIN/353/2009, sets the conditions for degrees that give access to it: 240 European credits, with 60 credits of basic training, 60 credits common to the surveying branch, 48 credits of specific technology and a final degree project of 12 credits. Before enrolling, it is worth checking that the degree gives access to the profession; the Universidad de Jaén, for example, states that its degree does, and that it holds the EUR-ACE engineering label.

After the grado, students can take a master's degree. The surveying school of the Universidad Politécnica de Madrid (UPM) lists master's degrees in geomatics applied to engineering and architecture, in seismic risk analysis with geospatial technologies and in geospatial intelligence, as well as a doctoral programme. UPM also offers a double degree that combines geomatics with geospatial information technologies.

Other countries. At ETH Zurich the bachelor's programme in Geospatial Engineering has 180 credits and is followed by master's programmes of 120 credits each, one of them in Geomatics; the university refers to its German-language pages for the details of the bachelor's degree. Florida Atlantic University offers a Bachelor of Science in Geomatics Engineering of 120 US credits, which prepares students for the surveying and engineering examinations that lead to a professional licence in the United States. Kathmandu University in Nepal launched its Geomatics Engineering programme in 2007 and now teaches a bachelor's degree, master's programmes in land administration and geoinformatics, and a PhD.

Where to study it

SpainExchange lists 14 active schools for Geomatics Engineering. Ten are in Spain; the others are in Nepal, the United States, the United Kingdom (University College London) and Switzerland.

In Spain the degree is taught at public universities, often on smaller campuses. The Universidad de Oviedo teaches its Grado en Ingeniería Geomática at the Escuela Politécnica de Mieres, with two specialisations and Spanish and English as languages of instruction. The Universidad de Jaén teaches the Grado en Ingeniería Geomática y Topográfica in Spanish at its Escuela Politécnica Superior and states that it is the only centre in the Andalusian university system offering this engineering degree. UPM teaches it in Madrid at its school of surveying, geodesy and cartography. The directory also lists the Universidad de Salamanca, the Universidad de Extremadura, the Universidad del País Vasco, the Universidad de Santiago de Compostela and the Universidad de Las Palmas de Gran Canaria.

Admission to a Spanish grado follows the general university access rules, so applicants with foreign school qualifications need to have them recognised first. Public tuition fees are set per credit by each region. The Universidad de Oviedo applies the same fee band as for Spanish and EU nationals to nationals of a list of mostly Latin American countries, including Argentina, Colombia, Mexico and Peru.

Careers

Graduates work wherever location data is produced or used: surveying and construction companies, mapping agencies and land registries, town and regional planning offices, utilities and transport, agriculture and environmental management, and software and GIS companies. ETH Zurich mentions engineering offices, industrial companies, IT system manufacturers, public administration, research and education. In Spain, practising surveyors are organised in a professional body, the Colegio Oficial de Ingeniería Geomática y Topográfica. In the United States, a licence as a professional surveyor requires examinations after the degree; Florida Atlantic University asks its students to take the first of them, the Fundamentals of Surveying examination, before graduating.

Frequently asked questions

Is geomatics engineering the same as surveying?

Surveying is its origin and still a core part of it. Geomatics is wider: it also covers geodesy, cartography, photogrammetry, remote sensing, satellite positioning and geographic information systems.

How long does a geomatics engineering degree take in Spain?

Four years. The grado has 240 ECTS credits, including a final degree project.

Can geomatics engineering be studied in English?

In Spain the degree is mainly taught in Spanish; the Universidad de Oviedo lists both Spanish and English as languages of instruction. Florida Atlantic University and Kathmandu University are English-speaking options in the directory.

Does the Spanish degree give access to a regulated profession?

Degrees that meet Orden CIN/353/2009 give access to the regulated profession of Ingeniero Técnico en Topografía. Each university states this on the page of its degree.