MSc Geoinformatics for Urbanised Society at University of Tartu

11/03/2026

One part of our curriculum is a study abroad semester. Our second-year student Benjamin returned from Ruhr University Bochum 🇩🇪 and shares his experience.

🔹How do you look back at your semester in Bochum?
The Erasmus program allowed me to study abroad on exchange and enhanced my life in many ways. It provided me the chance to live in Bochum and expand my network, explore a different student life, and experience other coursework opportunities. Specifically, the course “Artificial Intelligence: Fundamentals and Geographical Applications” was beneficial for my thesis involving deep learning. Overall, I am very satisfied with my time spent abroad and would
encourage anyone who can to take advantage of this great opportunity.

17/12/2025

Fancy a double degree in geo-information science?
With the GEM programme, you have a chance to study in Estonia or Sweden and Belgium or the Netherlands! ;)

🚨 𝘼𝙩𝙩𝙚𝙣𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣 𝙨𝙩𝙪𝙙𝙚𝙣𝙩𝙨! 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗮𝗽𝗽𝗹𝗶𝗰𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗽𝗼𝗿𝘁𝗮𝗹 𝗶𝘀 𝗻𝗼𝘄 𝗼𝗽𝗲𝗻 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗮𝗽𝗽𝗹𝗶𝗰𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀 𝘁𝗼 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗚𝗘𝗠 𝗣𝗿𝗼𝗴𝗿𝗮𝗺𝗺𝗲! 📖

𝙒𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙞𝙨 𝙂𝙀𝙈?
🇪🇺 4 Universities. 4 European countries. A double MSc degree to achieve in just two years travelling across Europe...

GEM is a prestigious, integrated, international study programme, jointly delivered by an international consortium of four higher education institutions.
Each partner brings expertise in different aspects of human-environment interaction challenges with applied geospatial science:

🇳🇱 🌱 Natural Resources Management at Faculty of Geo-Information Science and Earth Observation (ITC) of the University of Twente, the Netherlands

🇸🇪 🌲 Ecosystems and the Environment at Lund University, Sweden

🇧🇪 🌾 Agriculture and Land Use Planning at Université catholique de Louvain, Belgium

🇪🇪 🏙️ Socio-Ecological Systems and Urban Planning at the University of Tartu, Estonia

𝘼𝙥𝙥𝙡𝙮 𝙣𝙤𝙬
📆 Our application portal is now open, and the deadline to apply is 15 January 2026 at 23.59 hours CET.

🔗 Visit the application portal via https://www.gem-msc.eu/apply-to-gem/

🔗 Any questions? You can also visit our FAQ page for more information about GEM via https://www.gem-msc.eu/about-gem-msc/faq/ or send an email to: [email protected]

05/11/2025

Are you interested in studying at the University of Tartu? Join our virtual info sessions ;)

A new application period is fast approaching. If you are thinking about studying at the University of Tartu, join our Discover UniTartu virtual info sessions on 19–20 November 2025.

📅 Schedule:
🗓️ 19 November – Discover UniTartu: International Degree Studies
🕙 Sessions at 10:00 and 18:00 (EET)

🗓️ 20 November – Discover UniTartu: Life as a Student in Estonia
🕙 Sessions at 10:00 and 18:00 (EET)

Each session is held twice to make it easier for participants from different time zones to join.

✨ In these sessions, you’ll:
• Learn about our international bachelor’s and master’s programmes
• Hear from current international students about life in Estonia
• Get practical tips on admissions, studies, and living in Estonia
• Ask your questions live during the Q&A

Links in comments⬇️

17/10/2025

The Department of Geography has been a partner in the Erasmus Mundus joint GEM Joint Master Programme "Geo-information Science and Earth Observation for Environmental Management and Modelling" 🌍📊 (https://www.gem-msc.eu/), supported by funding from the European Union. The programme is led by the University of Twente in the Netherlands, with additional partners including Lund University in Sweden and the Université catholique de Louvain in Belgium. The programme coordinators in the Department of Geography are Prof. Evelyn Uuemaa and Madli-Johanna Maidla.

We are pleased to announce that the joint programme has received EU funding for the next four years 👏✨. This ensures scholarships for 70 students over the four-year period, with about half starting their studies in our department and then moving to either the University of Twente or the Université catholique de Louvain for their second year 🎓✈️. The programme offers students the opportunity to study the use of geoinformatics, remote sensing, and artificial intelligence in solving environmental issues and urban planning 🌿🏙️

Additionally, we announce that applications for the programme are now open: https://utwente.dreamapply.com/ 📅📝 The scholarship covers tuition fees plus 1400 EUR for living expenses 💶
This is a fantastic opportunity for anyone looking to deeply study geoinformatics and remote sensing in an international environment! 🌐

The map below shows the countries of origin of students from previous years. The map was created by Prof. Menno-Jan Kraak 🗺️.

01/07/2025

In the University of Tartu Department of Geography we also have one joint programme: GEM Joint Master Programme 🌍

In this programme, students study one year in our university and the second year in UCLouvain or Univesrity of Twente. During the summer, they will participate in joint summer event with different activities and workshops.

This year the event took students to Faculty ITC of the University of Twente in June. Read more of what students did and what are their thoughts after the event: https://www.utwente.nl/en/news/2025/6/453639/gem-joint-event-2025?code=0acc7d65 -with-industry-leaders

Geograafia osakond

Imagine a week where your passion for geospatial science meets real-world impact, surrounded by peers, experts, and cutting-edge ideas? That's what the GEM Joint Event 2025 delivered for students at the Faculty ITC of the University of Twente.

11/06/2025

🥳We have three new Master's Degree owners!🥳

Two years of hard work, exchange studies abroad, internship, countless courses, group work, computer lab sessions and presentations later, the thesis has been defended and the degree is earned.

The thesis and defence discussions were interesting:
🏘 Kirils Gončarovs "Patterns of inequalities in housing energy efficiency and links with population risk factors in Tallinn, Riga and Vilnius"
☀️ Moritz Mühlbauer "Mapping Surface Urban Heat Islands and the influence of urbanization and heatwaves on urban climate through Local Climate Zones in Tallinn – 2014 and 2022"
🗺 Wenyi Fang "Comparing raster visualization techniques for environmental indices: univariate and bivariate mapping in Estonia"

🎉 Congratulations on your well-deserved success! 🎉
This is just the beginning of a bright future. May your master's degree open doors to new adventures, knowledge, and success!

TÜ Ökoloogia ja maateaduste instituut
Geograafia osakond

12/03/2025

The new spring semester has already started, but let's have a last look into the autumn semester.
What kind of maps did students make? 🗺️

We have a saying in Estonia “Ei saa me läbi Lätita“ that roughly translates to „We can’t make do without Latvia“. Therefore, we present to you the digital elevation model and comparison of 2017 and 2023 near infrared images (NIR) of Riga created by our master’s program student Una Adamoviča. Both of these maps were created in the Spatial Data Studio course.

In 3D analysis and visualization class our student Azrina Farania prepared a 3D visualization based on a topographic map that can be seen in the third image. ⛰️ In the fourth image you can see her visualization of Tartu city center with buildings and vegetation. 🌳🏢

In our course Spatial Data Studio, Dina Rakhimzhanova created a map showing susceptibility to snow avalanches in East Kazakhstan by using Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP). ❄️

The last map is about the demography of Africa created by Anderson Guaman during the Demography and Urban Social Geography course. 🌍

Amazing work by all our students! 🎉 Want to learn more about our programs and student projects? Get in touch! ➡️

11/03/2025

🎉Last week our students had an opportunity to participate in Maarjavälja Career Day 🎉

👀 Right now our first-year students are looking for companies where to do an internship. This career day offered several possibilities to talk with different companies from the fields of GIS and remote sensing to planning consultation.

Students were also able to join a workshop "How to stand out attending a job interview?"

07/02/2025

✨Study abroad experience✨
Our second-year student Wenyi spent last semester in the University of Helsinki.

🌍How do you look back at you semester in Helsinki?
Wenyi: "I am truly grateful for the existence of the Erasmus program, which encourages students to study abroad on exchange. It has given me the opportunity to experience the culture and education of another country while also gaining insight into some of the cutting-edge research conducted in various labs at the University of Helsinki. Additionally, the Geography Department frequently organizes events for Erasmus students, providing great opportunities to connect with new friends and build an international network."

Thank you, Wenyi, for sharing your thoughts!

15/11/2024

Last week our first year students of the Geoinformatics for Urbanised Society curriculum visited the Tartu Observatory in Tõravere 🔭

The excursion involved a tour in the visitor centre and the surrounding area. The students were shown what and how the scientists in the observatory are researching (from remote sensing to space technology). 🌌🌒

🌍The excursion was part of the course Spatial Data Studio where students get the knowledge of spatial data acquisition, management and analysis. 📊

Big thanks to Tõnis Rüütel, Visitor Centre Development Manager, for showing us around and giving an insight of observatory's work.