GIS and Remote Sensing Minor Concentration (B.A.) (18 credits)
Offered by: Geography (Faculty of Science)
Degree: Bachelor of Arts; Bachelor of Arts and Science
Program credit weight: 18
Program Description
The Minor Concentration in GIS and Remote Sensing program provides B.A. students with the fundamentals of geospatial tools and technologies.
Note: For information about Fall 2025 and Winter 2026 course offerings, please check back on May 8, 2025. Until then, the "Terms offered" field will appear blank for most courses while the class schedule is being finalized.
Required Courses (6 credits)
| Course | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| GEOG 201 | Introductory Geo-Information Science. | 3 |
Introductory Geo-Information Science. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. An introduction to Geographic Information Systems. The systematic management of spatial data. The use and construction of maps. The use of microcomputers and software for mapping and statistical work. Air photo and topographic map analyses. | ||
| GEOG 314 | Geospatial Analysis. | 3 |
Geospatial Analysis. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Overview of both the theoretical and applied aspects of geographic information science and systems. Topics will include spatial analysis techniques, geographic models as abstractions of the real world, spatial data manipulation and management, and conceptual issues related to geographic data and technology. Introduction to a number of leading commercial software including ESRI’s ArcGIS Pro. | ||
Complementary Courses (12 credits)
3 credits selected from:
| Course | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| COMP 202 | Foundations of Programming. | 3 |
Foundations of Programming. Terms offered: Summer 2025 Introduction to computer programming in a high level language: variables, expressions, primitive types, methods, conditionals, loops. Introduction to algorithms, data structures (arrays, strings), modular software design, libraries, file input/output, debugging, exception handling. Selected topics. | ||
| GEOG 333 | Introduction to Programming for Spatial Sciences. | 3 |
Introduction to Programming for Spatial Sciences. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Introduction to conceptual and practical aspects of programming for the spatial sciences, focusing on programming concepts and techniques irrespective of the specific programming language, framework, or software. Topics include spatial data structures, flow control, classes and objects, and basics of geospatial data modeling and analysis. | ||
6 credits selected from:
| Course | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| ATOC 309 | Weather Radars and Satellites. 1 | 3 |
Weather Radars and Satellites. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Basic notions of radiative transfer and applications of satellite and radar data to mesoscale and synoptic-scale systems are discussed. Emphasis will be put on the contribution of remote sensing to atmospheric and oceanic sciences. | ||
| ESYS 300 | Earth Data Analysis. | 3 |
Earth Data Analysis. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. An applied introduction to programming and statistical image processing tools used in Earth system science, typically covering linear regression, statistical significance, Fourier analysis, empirical orthogonal function analysis. Use of global remote-sensing and in-situ observations. | ||
| GEOG 202 | Statistics and Spatial Analysis. | 3 |
Statistics and Spatial Analysis. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Exploratory data analysis, univariate descriptive and inferential statistics, non-parametric statistics, correlation and simple regression. Problems associated with analysing spatial data such as the 'modifiable areal unit problem' and spatial autocorrelation. Statistics measuring spatial pattern in point, line and polygon data. | ||
| GEOG 308 | Remote Sensing for Earth Observation. 1 | 3 |
Remote Sensing for Earth Observation. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. A conceptual view of remote sensing and the underlying physical principles. Covers ground-based, aerial, satellite systems, and the electromagnetic spectrum, from visible to microwave. Emphasis on application of remotely sensed data in geography including land cover change and ecological processes. | ||
| GEOG 384 | Principles of Geospatial Web. | 3 |
Principles of Geospatial Web. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Theory and practice of geospatial web, including examining spatial data accuracy and uncertainty of user generated content; Understanding motivations of contributors of volunteered geographic information for purposes like citizen science and crisis mapping; Critically evaluating political, societal, economic and legal issues in online mapping applications; Developing geospatial applications and identifying basic problem solving requirements for geospatial apps. For proposed solutions, evaluating and justifying various existing and emergent geospatial technologies and enabling software stacks; Exploring underlying methods of digital earth architectures; Understanding implications to geospatial analysis and visualization of real time streaming data and mobile sensors | ||
| GEOG 414 | Advanced Geospatial Analysis. 1 | 3 |
Advanced Geospatial Analysis. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Advanced techniques in geospatial analysis. Geospatial methods and using geospatial information systems. Topics: geodatabases, interpolation techniques, spatial classification methods, data mining and machine learning, including working with a number of leading commercial software including ESRI’s ArcGIS Desktop/Pro. | ||
| GEOG 506 | Advanced Geographic Information Science. | 3 |
Advanced Geographic Information Science. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Critically analyse major themes in geographic information science and draw out the practical ramifications for spatial technologies and research. Topics such as spatial interoperability, data quality, scale, visualization, location based services and ontologies are covered. | ||
| GEOG 535 | Remote Sensing and Interpretation. | 3 |
Remote Sensing and Interpretation. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Basic photogrammetry and interpretation procedures for aircraft and space craft photography and imagery. | ||
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May be taken in either list of complementary courses, but credits from one group may not be doubled-counted in the other.