Overview 2021
Location
This course may not be available to international students. Please see the list of distance courses (i.e. online and taken outside Australia) that are offered to international students
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For years prior to 2015, please view the Course and Unit Handbook Archive
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Professionals who can combine an understanding of our environment, both past and present, with the need to manage sustainable development of urban and natural areas. Graduates of this degree will be able to monitor and understand changes to environments over time, including forests, rivers, marshes or wetlands, and then work with planners to both protect what remains, and aim to reverse negative changes in collaboration with sustainable growth.
This specialist degree combines the University of Tasmania’s key strengths in both environmental management and spatial sciences, for which we’re ranked in the Top 100* globally. The use of spatial data, knowledge and information is central to approaching environmental management challenges at scale over coming decades.
Your learning experience makes you career ready by blending practical experiences across environmental management and spatial sciences through well-balanced fieldwork in Tasmania’s living laboratory, and class room teaching with the use of leading-edge industry standard field and computing equipment such as our drone lab.
"Is this the degree for me?"
The course attracts people who love to work in both indoor and outdoor environment in solving the environmental management problems. It is highly suitable for both those who wish to develop new spatial sciences skills as well as those who are looking to refresh or up-skill to continue growing to the next stages in their career.
*Ranked in Top 100 in Remote Sensing in the ARWU Subject Rankings 2019
Course objectives
This course provides in-depth knowledge and skills in creating data driven, collaborative solutions to complex environmental problems. The spatial knowledge and skills you develop will help you to become a global citizen who can adapt and enhance the cultural, Indigenous, natural and physical values in landscapes.
Our approach in building up spatially enabled and skilled graduates involves a unique combination of skills, knowledge and experience to understand environmental processes across both space and time, aka: spatial sciences. We develop your knowledge base from environmental science, policy, social science and other relevant disciplines.
Our graduates have both an understanding and empathy for environmental management and the skills to collect, analyse and visualise data so they can make productive planning contributions across scales, both time and size.
Practical experience
To prepare you for the collaborative nature of your future career, this course provides several opportunities to interact with professionals from council, state government, industry or not-for-profit organisations, all who contribute practical expertise and advice to your learning experience.
Engagement with industry
Local experts are invited as both guest lecturers and on field-trips across multiple units to demonstrate the state-of-the-art industry practices in the field of environmental management and spatial sciences that Tasmania is known for. Through these engagements, you will have opportunities to tackle the real-world problems and solve them, such as extracting geo-information from spatial data to inform decision makers in solving the pressing local problems that have global relevance, like urban mobility and bush-fire risk management.
Unmatched field and site experiences
Field experience is also applied throughout your studies. You will have opportunities to immerse yourself in Tasmania’s living laboratory as you conduct spatial oriented environmental field work both with our world class teaching staff, and industry partners. You will produce live data that is then brought into the laboratories for analysis and contributes to ongoing monitoring of some of Tasmania’s most pristine areas.
Through guest lecturers and site visits you will see first-hand examples of locations and industries that use environmental management and spatial science knowledge to inform their operations. These are all easily accessible in Tasmania, often being no more than an hour from campus.
Tasmania is literally a living laboratory
The University of Tasmania has with six diverse ecosystems all within 30 minutes of the Sandy Bay campus, and the world’s second largest temperate rainforest only an hour away. We’re the gateway to Antarctica and, as the birthplace of the green movement, celebrate our biodiversity and environmental sustainability.
Many of your classes will be conducted outside in this natural environment, and your proximity to a wide range of pristine, diverse environments, and the researchers who travel from around the world to work in them, give you unparalleled practical field experience while you study. Plus, it makes Tasmania an amazing place to live!
Work placement
Throughout your studies you will have the opportunity to work with Tasmanian agencies and analyse local environmental data sets, contributing to ongoing environmental management programs, providing genuine project experience, and creating networking opportunities that can lead to local opportunities for employment in Tasmania.
Your learning experiences also includes a range of case studies and industry engagement sessions with a range of Tasmanian businesses and government departments who are active in the environmental management and spatial sciences field, and who contextualise your classroom theory through real life examples.
The information and spatial knowledge developed with local exposure and authentic learning in mind develops adaptable skills and knowledge that will help you find work elsewhere in Australia and overseas.
Career outcomes
Our graduates are in high demand across all areas of the environmental management sector where there is a need of delivering spatial analysis and data visualisation of environmental processes to support decision making in conserving and managing natural, rural and urban environments.
Careers can be found in government at all levels, private consultancy, and community organisations, both in well-developed countries and cities as well as developing areas that are looking to integrate this knowledge to make good development decisions.
Through rich Tasmanian case study examples on environmental management, you will develop an applied understanding on landscape diversity and associated environmental processes. These understandings will help you to translate the knowledge and skills from this course in different locations, taking what you learn with us to your home location, or anywhere else around the world. For example, Tasmanian bushfire planning and management is very well established, from bushfire planning considerations in housing development, to active management of live fires to minimise damage and protect both people and property, and vital/endangered protected areas. Fires are happening with increasing frequency around the world, so our world-leading experience becomes your globally relevant learning environment.
Students coming into this degree may be looking to step into the environmental management and spatial sciences sector, or be looking to take on foundational knowledge and improve the next steps in their career. Regardless of your background, the skills and knowledge delivered by this degree also provide a solid foundation for progressing to environmental management positions where you control projects and multi-disciplinary teams.
Students completing the thesis pathway of this course can also apply to undertake a PhD in Geomatic Engineering, Geography and Spatial Sciences, and other related fields.
Course structure
Entry requirements
Fees & scholarships
Domestic students
Domestic students enrolled in certain postgraduate coursework programs may not be eligible for student payments through Youth Allowance and Austudy. Visit the Department of Social Services website to find out more about eligibility for Centrelink support and the list of eligible courses
Scholarships
Scholarships for domestic students
Each year, the University offers more than 900 awards to students from all walks of life, including those who have achieved high academic results; those from low socio-economic backgrounds; students with sporting ability; students undertaking overseas study; and students with a disability.
For information on all scholarships available at the University of Tasmania, please visit the scholarships website.
Applications for most awards commencing in Semester 1 open at the beginning of August and close strictly on 31 October in the year prior to study.
Scholarships for international students
There is a huge range of scholarships, bursaries and fee discounts available for international students studying at the University of Tasmania. For more information on these, visit International Scholarships.
How can we help?
Do you have any questions about choosing a course or applying? Get in touch.
- Domestic
- 13 8827 (13 UTAS)
- International
- +61 3 6226 6200
- Course.Info@utas.edu.au
- Online
- Online enquiries