Thompson Rivers University is pleased to announce the signing an agreement with the University of Gävle in Sweden that will allow students to simultaneously earn a degree from each university in the fields of Geography and Geomatics.
TRU students completing a Major in Geography in the Bachelor of Arts degree will be able to add the University of Gävle’s Bachelor of Science degree, Major in Geomatics to their resume with just one more year of study. The agreement also allows students to simultaneously earn two diploma-level credentials: an Associate of Arts degree (2 years) from TRU and a Geomatics Technician diploma (1 year) from the University of Gävle.
The Geography-Geomatics degree program is believed to be the first of its kind in Canada and one of only a handful of international double degree programs in the country.
Ross Nelson, a TRU faculty member who recently spent a year as a visiting researcher at the University of Gävle (pronounced Yev-le), about 2 hours north of the capital city of Stockholm, says the city provides a great base for TRU students to study and experience Europe.
“The University of Gävle is one of the leading centres for geomatics education in Scandinavia and is perhaps the only one to offer its whole program in English. In addition to the Department of Geomatics, the university also houses a Geographic Information Systems Institute while the headquarters for Sweden’s mapping and land information agency and a GIS industry centre are a short walk away.”
Geomatics is the technical branch of geography. It involves the collection, analysis, and display of spatial information about the earth ” satellite imagery and computer based maps are two of the most common forms of geomatics information.
According to Uli Scheck, TRU Associate VP Academics and Dean of Arts, these new double degree and diploma options present “an exciting opportunity for our students to internationalize their educational experience. Both options will be of great interest to students from across Canada and will set the stage for developing further international degree opportunities in the Faculty of Arts.”
The double degree and double diploma provide an attractive career pathway. Graduates of the programs will find work, for example, as planners, land managers, location analysts (people who determine where stores should locate), surveyors, cartographers, GIS technicians, and database managers. The combination of technical abilities and a solid knowledge base will make TRU students attractive to employers who value multi-skilled and adaptable problem solvers.
Contact:
- Dr. Ross Nelson, Academic Director, Faculty of Arts, (p)250. 852.6446
- Dr. Uli Scheck, Associate VP Academics & Dean of Arts, (p) 250.828.5428
