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E&ES > Geography > International students > Master of Geography

Interuniversity programme: Master of Geography

Interuniversity programme

The department Earth and Environmental Sciences of K.U.Leuven and the department Geography of VUB joined forces to offer a highly competitive educational programme firmly rooted in contemporary research programmes at both universities. Both departments continuously develop and maintain innovative and internationally recognized research programmes on fundamental and applied aspects of the geosciences, covering a wide range of spatial and temporal scales. Most research programmes are international collaborative efforts and the department is participating in various international research networks.

All courses of the common basis are mandatory. Furthermore, the student chooses one specialty and takes all the courses of that specialty. The student chooses at least 30 credits optional deepening courses of his/her specialty. The 30 credits of the master’s thesis brings the total amount of the master.

Research

The courses and specialisations that are offered in the interuniversity programme are strongly embedded in ongoing research programmes of both universities. Master students carry out their own research project which is closely related to one of the ongoing research programmes. By being part of a professional research team students get maximal chances to learn and develop scientific skills. In many cases students spend a couple of months abroad for fieldwork and data collection in the framework of their master thesis.

The department Earth and Environmental Sciences of K.U.Leuven has a staff of ca. 200 people. The geography research of the department focuses on:

• Geomorphic processes, soil degradation and soil conservation with as major points of interest: soil degradation and soil conservation, desertification, sediment production, -transport and –deposition in various parts of the world and rain-, runoff- and wind simulation.
• Regional climate studies with as major points of interest: the atmospheric branch of the hydrological cycle, the use of new remote sensing instruments for model evaluation, the effect of precipitation processes on soil erosion and yield of field crops, the impact of the land surface on drought persistence, the role of atmospheric circulation on pollution and dust concentration and polar meteorology.
• Terrestrial ecosystems and environmental change with as major points of interest: interaction between human impact and landscape dynamics at different temporal scales, the relative role of human and climate impact on the dynamics of terrestrial ecosystems, the impact of environmental changes on biogeochemical cycles, landscape and paleo-environmental reconstruction.
• Socio-economic geography of settlements with as major points of interest: urban hierarchy and spheres of influence, internal social-spatial structures of cities, the social production of space in an urban context, the housing market, the transformation of the agrarian landscape.
• Economic geography and regional development with as major points of interest: regional development and globalisation.
• Planning policy, recreation and tourism with as major points of interest: urban revitalisation, tourism, recreation and landscape.

The department Geography of VUB has a staff of ca. 30 people. The geography research of the department focuses on:

• Dynamics of glacial systems with as major points of interest:evolution of icecaps (Antarctica, Greenland), global warming, global climate models and the study of glaciers.
• Geomorphology and quarternary geology with as major points of interest: carbon sequestration in soils and interaction with land use, landscape evolution
• Small scale cartography and map projections with as major points of interest: distortion on map projections, development of new projection systems with minimal distortion, selection and development of map projections for specific applications.
• Remote sensing with as major points of interest: mapping land cover, impervious surfaces and vegetation, mapping land cover in urban areas, change detection, multi-sensor image interpretation, hyperspectral remote sensing, machine learning, uncertainty in image classification, impact of uncertainty on spatial models and decision mechanisms.
• Geography of large cities with as major points of interest: residential patterns and residential differentiation, structure and mechanisms of the housing market, migrations, demographic evolutions, evaluation of urban development projects, urban cultural policy, sustainable neighbourhood development, urban image building, position of Brussels in the European urban network

The master

Admission Requirements

The master programme supposes a broad basic knowledge of the natural and social sciences, as well as a broad introduction in geography. A complete introduction to geography is not required. The starting conditions are expressed through the amount of credits the student should have acquired. The following bachelor degrees provide direct access to the programme:

• Bachelor of Geography
• Bachelor of Geography and Geometric, specialisation Geography
• Bachelor of Biology, minor Geography
• Bachelor of Geology, minor Geography
• Bachelor of Computer Sciences, minor Geography
• Bachelor in de geografie
• Bachelor in de geografie en de geomatica, afstudeerrichting geografie (UGent)
• Bachelor in de biologie, afstudeerrichting minor geografie
• Bachelor in de geologie, afstudeerrichting minor geografie
• Bachelor in de computerwetenschappen, minor geografie (VUBrussel) (2007-2008)

Non-native English students are required to submit a TOEFL or IELTS certificate.

Organizing universities

The courses are organised on both the campus of K.U.Leuven in Heverlee and the campus of VUB in Etterbeek. After succesfull completion of the programme a degree from both universities is awarded.

The courses are organised on both the campus of K.U.Leuven in Heverlee and the campus of VUB in Etterbeek. After succesfull completion of the programme a degree from both universities is awarded.

Katholieke Universiteit Leuven

In 1425, a university was founded in Leuven by decree of Pope Martinus V. It was modelled on the universities of Paris, Cologne and Vienna. Today, the university provides undergraduate and graduate education in a full range of academic studies to 29,900 students, over 3,700 of whom are foreign students coming from one hundred different nations. More than 4,800 professors and researchers make up the academic staff of the university. In the past decades, the quality and quantity of K.U.Leuven’s research efforts and output have increased considerably, thus positioning Leuven at the forefront of European universities.

The city of Leuven

Leuven is a small but pleasant town 25 kilometers from Brussels. Leuven is a typical university town with many attractive student cafés and restaurants that add to its charm. The city of Leuven has an impressive collection of monuments of which the 15th century Gothic City Hall is the central pearl. Leuven also offers excellent concerts and recitals, and hosts exhibitions of the most important Flemish painters and sculptors. Leuven is a wonderful base for trips throughout Europe: places such as Paris, Strasbourg, Geneva, Venice, Cologne, London and Amsterdam are easily accessible by train. This broad orientation strengthens the cosmopolitan character of K.U.Leuven and fosters its international spirit.

Vrije Universiteit Brussel

The Vrije Universiteit Brussel is the offshoot of the French-speaking Université Libre de Bruxelles that was founded in 1834 by a Brussels lawyer with Flemish origins, Pierre-Théodore Verhaegen. He wanted to establish a university that would be independent from the state and the church and where academic freedom would reign. Although some courses at the ULB's Faculty of Law were already being taught in Dutch in 1935, it was not until 1963 that almost all the faculties offered courses in Dutch. The Dutch-speaking university was finally split off from its French-speaking counterpart on 1 October 1969. VUB offers quality education to more than 9000 students

The city of Brussels

Brussels is one of the most cosmopolitan cities in the world. The Brussels-Capital Region, one of Belgium's three regions, is also a city with 19 boroughs covering 162 km2 and housing a million inhabitants. It is officially bilingual (French and Dutch), although it boasts an astonishing variety of cultures, styles and nationalities. Being the capital of an expanding Europe, Brussels is an international city like no other. 31% of its population is of foreign origin, and this makes for a unique atmosphere in which cultures interact easily with one another. English is rapidly becoming an important language in Brussels because of the numerous international political organizations. As the decision-making heart of Europe, it has become an international capital where opinion leaders from all over the world meet to use their influence in policy making decisions as well as to do business.

Career opportunities

Geographers study the interaction between human societies and their environments, characterize the regions and localities that result, and analyze the spatial distributions and processes of particular natural and human phenomena. Being equally a natural science and a social science equipped with geographical information science techniques, geography integrates the physical and human environments. Thus, geographers have long applied integrated multidisciplinary approaches to solve real-world problems at all spatial scales from local to global.

Undoubtely there exists a growing demand for competent professionals in the broad field of geo-sciences. As a graduate from the interuniversity master programme geography, you may be recruited by surveying companies, mapping agencies, service and utility providers and public entities. You will also be placed high on the recruitment list of international and national administrations dealing with urban and rural land use planning, disaster management, environmental conservation and management. Careers can also be persued in research and education, whereby this Master programme is most often complemented by a relevant PhD programme.

More information?

www.mastersinleuven.be
we.vub.ac.be

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