Mar 28, 2024  
2015-2016 Graduate Catalog 
    
2015-2016 Graduate Catalog [ARCHIVED CATALOG]


Spatial Information Science and Engineering



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The graduate program in Spatial Information Science and Engineering focuses on advancing knowledge about spatial information particularly with respect to concepts  needed in next-generation information systems.  Emphasis is placed on developing  novel concepts and methods in the broad field of geographic information science  for: storing, accessing, analyzing, and managing spatial data, and modeling, extracting, integrating, visualizing, and communicating geospatial  information.

Students build on a solid foundation in computer science, mathematics, physics, geography, cognitive science, artificial intelligence, and related fields to study  spatio-temporal phenomena and design intelligent spatial information systems.  In addition to these concepts, the design of spatial information technologies requires a comprehensive understanding of the social, legal, economic, and institutional  issues affecting such systems, a commitment to human users and ethical uses of  such systems, dedication to the ethics of broad access to information, and commitment  to quality of information.

The research interests of our faculty are currently predominantly in the area of Ubiquitous Spatial Computing, including spatial database systems, spatio-temporal reasoning, geospatial ontologies, data stream management, and location privacy, and we anticipate that graduate research would be closely related to these topics.

Degrees offered include the Master of Science in Spatial Information Science and Engineering, the Ph.D. in Spatial Information Science and Engineering, and the Graduate Certificate in Geographic Information Systems.

Objectives of these programs include:

an interdisciplinary study of the nature and function of spatial information  systems, and the technical study of the design and evaluation of methods and processes to capture, represent and analyze spatial information.

Graduate courses cover formal representations of spatial phenomena, database systems, geographic information systems, and information policy. Research  topics may be selected from any of the principal areas ranging from geographic  information science, spatial and spatio-temporal reasoning, spatial database systems, to legal and managerial aspects of spatial information systems.  Many research topics require an interdisciplinary approach and, therefore, courses taught in other departments complement the program offered.

Master of Science in Spatial Information Science and Engineering  

The School of Computing and Information Science offers both a thesis and project option in the Master of Science in Spatial Information Science and Engineering. All work for a master’s degree must be completed within six years. The timing starts with the first semester of registration after admission to the Master of Science in Spatial Information Science and Engineering.

The thesis option is the scientific track, typically requiring a strong engineering, computer science, or mathematics undergraduate background.  Prospective master’s  students with other disciplinary backgrounds are expected to make up the requisite  math and engineering courses that would allow them to succeed in an engineering graduate curriculum. The thesis option includes a substantial piece of individual research as a basis for a master’s thesis.

The project option is aimed at students who wish to focus primarily on course work rather than research at the master’s level. The formal coursework is complemented by a one-semester project in which the student must demonstrate that he or she can apply the acquired knowledge for implementing a particular solution.

 

Degree Requirements

Master (Project Option)

Minimum of 30 graduate course credits (i.e., 400 level or above

  • At least 12 graduate course credits at 500 level or above
  • At least 18 graduate course credits in SIE
  • No more than 6 credits of independent study courses (598, 698, or equivalent  independent study courses in other graduate programs)
  • SIE 589 Graduate Project
  • SIE 507 Information System Programming
  • INT 601 Responsible Conduct of Research
  • At least 3 graduate faculty on the advisory committee
  • At least 2 must be SIE tenured or tenure-track faculty
  • Breadth Requirement: at least one 3-credit graduate course from 4 out of the 5 groupings:
    • Formal Representations of Spatial Phenomena
    • Spatial Cognition and Computing
    • Database Systems
    • Geographic Information Systems
    • Information Policy

 

Master (Thesis Option)

Minimum of 30 graduate course credits (i.e., 400 level or above)

  • At least 24 graduate course credits
  • At least 6 thesis credits - SIE 699
  • At least 12 graduate course credits at 500 level or above
  • At least 18 graduate course credits in SIE
  • No more than 6 credits of independent study courses (598, 698 or equivalent  independent study courses in other graduate programs)
  • SIE 501 Introduction to Graduate Research
  • SIE 502 Research Methods
  • SIE 503 Principles of Experimental Design
  • SIE 507 Information System Programming
  • INT 601 Responsible Conduct of Research
  • SIE 693 Graduate Seminar
  • Breadth Requirement - at least one 3-credit graduate course from 3 out of the 5  groupings:
    • Formal Representations of Spatial Phenomena
    • Spatial Cognition and Computing
    • Database Systems
    • Geographic Information Systems 
    • Information Policy
  • At least 3 graduate faculty on the advisory committee
  • At least 2 must be SIE tenured or tenure-track faculty
  • Master’s Thesis Defense 

A maximum of six credit hours of graduate course work taken prior to enrollment  in the master’s program, whether at this university or another, may be counted  towards the master’s degree. If the course did not count towards a completed undergraduate  degree and if the student’s graduate advisory committee formally approves acceptance  of the courses on the student’s Program of Study, then the credit hours may be  transferred toward the master’s degree.

In order to meet the residency requirement, at least 50 percent of the course  work applied toward the degree must be taken through The University of Maine.

Doctor of Philosophy in Spatial Information Science and Engineering  

The Ph.D. degree is the highest of academic degrees. The Ph.D. in Spatial Information  Science and Engineering is awarded to those demonstrating outstanding achievement  in Spatial Information Science and Engineering scholarship and primarily for demonstrated  ability for independent research in the field. The preparation and defense of  a thesis embodying the results of an original investigation in a specialized area  of Spatial Information Science and Engineering are essential features of the program.

All work for a doctoral degree must be completed within eight years. The timing  starts with the first semester of registration after admission to the Ph.D. in  Spatial Information Science and Engineering. Students must be admitted to candidacy  within four years of registration for the first work presented for satisfaction  of degree requirements; the dissertation must be completed within four years of  admission to candidacy.

The program for the Ph.D. degree in Spatial Information Science and Engineering  carries a minimum residency requirement of two academic years and a minimum of  42 credit hours in formal course work beyond the bachelor’s degree. Students are  expected to hold a Masters degree, typically in engineering, computer science,  mathematics, or geography with a strong technical and analytical background.

A qualifying examination is taken after the student has completed the course  requirements and developed a thesis proposal. The examination will be designed  to test the student’s area of expertise by evaluating the student’s knowledge  related to his or her thesis topic through oral and/or written examination. No  foreign language requirement is included in the program. A full oral defense of  the dissertation is required upon completion of the student’s work.

Degree Requirements  

  • Minimum of 42 graduate course credits (i.e., 400 level or above)
  • Minimum of 12 thesis credits (SIE 699)
  • Minor of 9 graduate course credits as detailed below
  • Up to 24 transfer credits of graduate course work
  • No more than 9 credits of independent study courses (598, 698 or equivalent  independent study courses in other graduate programs)
  • SIE 501 Introduction to Graduate Research
  • SIE 502 Research Methods
  • SIE 503 Principles of Experimental Design
  • SIE 507 Information System Programming
  • INT 601 Responsible Conduct of Research
  • SIE 693 Graduate Seminar
  • Breadth Requirements: at least one 3-credit graduate course from 4 out of the 5  groupings:
    • Formal Representations of Spatial Phenomena
    • Spatial Cognition and Computing
    • Database Systems
    • Geographic Information Systems
    • Information Policy
  • At least 5 graduate faculty on the advisory committee
  • At least 3 must be SIE tenured or tenure-track faculty
  • Dissertation Proposal Defense
  • Dissertation

A maximum of 24 credit hours of graduate course work taken prior to enrollment  in the master’s program, whether at this university or another, may be counted  towards the master’s degree. If the course did not count towards a completed undergraduate  degree and if the student’s graduate advisory committee formally approves acceptance  of the course on the student’s Program of Study, then the credit hours may be  transferred toward the doctoral degree.

All students must complete a minor program consisting of at least nine credit  hours of course work taken outside of Spatial Information Science and Engineering.

Only courses at the 400 level or above and listed in the Graduate Catalog (or  equivalent courses transferred from another university) can be counted toward  the minor requirement. Independent study courses do not qualify for a minor. This  minor must consist of courses relevant to the student’s thesis and must have a  common core that typically comes from a single department. The minor program must  be approved by the advisory committee.

The minimum residency requirement for Ph.D. programs is met by registering for  courses or thesis research at The University of Maine for four semesters beyond  the baccalaureate degree. Students entering doctoral programs with a master’s  degree from The University of Maine must register for at least two semesters  of course work or thesis research.

Admission Requirements

Admission to the University of Maine Spatial Information Science and Engineering is competitive. In its admission process, the graduate faculty considers the potential of applicants to complete the program successfully and achieve positions of leadership in the private or public sectors. Those with a GRE score of 146 verbal, 148 quantitative for masters and 151 verbal, 150 quantitative for PhD (1000/1100 under the old scoring system), analytical of 4.0 and an undergraduate grade point average of 3.0 or above at the time of application are typically considered competitive by the admissions committee.
At a minimum an applicant must have a four-year U.S. bachelor’s degree from an accredited college or university, or a four-year international equivalent. Within their curriculum, all applicants should have completed a university course in Algebra as a minimum math prerequisite for admission. Previous programming courses or experience are recommended but not required. The review committee considers both the curriculum completed and the institution attended in its assessment.
All students apply through the Graduate School and the entire application packet including transcripts, test scores and letters of recommendation must be received before a formal acceptance will be issued typically. To be considered for Fall admission, completed applications must be received 8 weeks prior to the beginning of the term.

 

Financial Assistance  

In addition to University fellowships and scholarships listed elsewhere in this Catalog, the School of Computing and Information Science offers graduate research assistantships to qualified students on externally funded research projects.

We encourage all applicants to submit, in addition to the complete application package, a video of approximately 10 minutes, in which they describe their research interests, their background and experience in doing independent  research, and their future goals. This movie can be a digital video submitted  as a URL to a QuickTime file (do not e-mail the entire digital movie) or mailed on a CD (same format) together with your application. This instruction is particularly important for prospective graduate students who seek funding through graduate research assistantships.

 

Graduate Faculty

M. Kate Beard-Tisdale, Ph.D. (Wisconsin, 1988), Professor. Geographic information systems, spatial analysis, digital libraries. 

Max J. Egenhofer, Ph.D. (Maine, 1989), Professor. Geographic database systems, spatial reasoning,  GIS user interface design, research methodologies.

Nicholas Giudice, Ph.D. (Minnesota, 2004), Assistant Professor. Neurocognitive engineering, multimodal spatial learning, human computer interaction.

Reinhard Moratz, Ph.D. (Universitat Bielefeld, 1992), Associate Professor. Spatial knowledge representation in cognitive systems, qualitative spatio-temporal representation, human-robot interfaces, integration of spatial perception and description.

Silvia Nittel, Ph.D. (Zurich, Switzerland,  1994), Associate Professor. Spatial database management  systems, mobile object systems, heterogeneous information systems, high performance  architectures.

Harlan J. Onsrud, J.D. (Wisconsin, 1982), Professor. Computer and information systems law, cadastral  systems, boundary law, and environmental law.


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