UNIGIS @GEOSummit Bern

Today the biggest conference on geoinformatics in Switzerland came to a successful end. UNIGIS was part of the first time "GEOSummit" which is the successor of the formerly GIS/SIT. The bianual conference and exhibition aims to bring together users, business partner and to a certain degree scientists.

For UNIGIS it was definitely the right place to be as there is a growing community of UNIGIS students, alumnis and potentially new students in Switzerland. Together with our Swiss cooperation partner (HSR Rapperswil) we enjoyed the very high frequence at our booth and the friendly and communicative atmosphere.

Once again it became obvious how cooperations in the field of GIS education lead to a significant benefit as they enlarge networks, open new doors and combine existing competences.
With the strong feeling that there is still a quite high demand for a flexible, distance based offer for GIS education UNIGIS is getting ready for the next big event: this year's AGIT & GI-Forum in Salzburg. See you there!

UNIGIS Academic Excellence Prize 2012

The UNIGIS International Association is pleased to announce this year's 'UNIGIS International Academic Excellence Prize' competition. The UNIGIS Academic Excellence Prize, launched in 2007/08, is awarded on an annual basis to a student, from one of the UNIGIS Centers Worldwide, who submitted the most outstanding MSc Dissertation/Thesis, or paper based on a thesis, during the previous academic year.

The criteria used by the evaluation committee include: technical quality, quality of literature review, relevance, presentation and originality. The standard of work submitted last year was excellent, and similarly high standards are expected this time.

The competition for the 2012 Prize is now open! Candidates must submit their MSc thesis or paper through their graduating UNIGIS partner institution no later than August 31.

UNIGIS Salzburg – Communication matters

“Especially in distance study programs like UNIGIS a key factor of personal success is getting to know fellow students in the beginning and to develop a culture of discussion and mutual support in learning processes” explained Prof. Josef Strobl, Director of UNIGIS Salzburg and Chair of UNIGIS International to a group of 14 new UNIGIS professional students participating in an introductory workshop last weekend in Salzburg. At latest by the dinner in a traditional pub in the city center the ice was broken. No matter if this was a result of the mentioned advice or just a natural consequence of having a group of nice people around a table in a snug atmosphere – the workshop provided a good starting point into a year of learning together.

UNIGIS now an Academic Member of FIG

The 35. FIG (International Federation of Surveyors) Working Week was held in Rome from the 6th to the 10th of May in 2012. The motto of Italian Working Week is "Knowing to manage the territory, protect the environment, evaluate the cultural heritage". 500+ papers have been accepted for presentation in Rome in almost 100 sessions, forums and workshops (http://www.fig.net/fig2012/downloads/tech_prog.pdf). Many of the papers are peer reviewed and published soon at the Surveyors Reference Library (http://www.fig.net/srl/). 

The FIG Council has admitted UNIGIS International Association as an academic member of FIG. The Certificate of Academic Membership was presented by FIG President, CheeHai TEO to Prof Bela MARKUS in a ceremony during the General Assembly.

Next UNIGIS course for Central Asia students

The UNIGIS study centre for Central Asia at ACA*GIScience in Bishkek has now opened the registration period for the next intake of distance learning students, starting with October 2012. Applications will be accepted until September 10, and candidates are expected to have a background in any 'spatial discipline' or experience in a GIS application domain.

UNIGIS Central Asia offers tutoring in Russian language, but as an international program requires profound English language skills for working with study materials, complete assignments and communicate within the worldwide network of UNIGIS students and alumni.

With a clear focus on continuing education for geospatial / GIS professionals, most candidates come from national and international organisations, the geospatial services industry, and academia. For the first time, candidates are offered the options of registering for a professional diploma or an MSc program of studies, with both qualifications awarded by the University of Salzburg, Austria.

Further information can be found at http://bishkek.unigis.net, email enquiries can be directed to office.bishkek@unigis.net