Master of Science in Geographic Information Science with Concentration in GIS for Development and Environment (STEM)

at Clark University USA

Written and verbal communication. Print, digital, and social media strategies. Marketing and public relations campaigns. Crisis communications. Forge your career in global and digital marketing and media relations by mastering all the core competencies necessary for success as a communication professional. Our M.S. in Communication prepares you to navigate the intricacies of marketing strategy and become a visionary leader in an integrated and highly cluttered media world.

The fact is, contemporary marketing campaigns have grown extraordinarily complex. They must integrate facets that speak to a vast range of demographics and personal consumer preferences. As a communication professional, you must be adept in every form of outreach—websites, social media platforms, email, news feeds, blogs, and more. And you must find a way to make your communications stand out among the deluge of messages bombarding consumers in a hypercompetitive marketplace.

With a graduate degree in communication, you will increase your ability to manage corporate communications, learn to create viral social media, perfect the art of public speaking, develop powerful communication platforms, lead influential public relations campaigns, and devise winning marketing strategies. You also will learn to conduct market research, analyze results, and leverage that knowledge to craft powerful multimedia communications.

Clark’s master’s degree in GIS combines rigorous academics with widely varied, highly applied learning opportunities. Our two-year program offers ample opportunities to take what you learn in the classroom and put it to work in the wider world through creative engagements with communities, nonprofits, government, and the private sector. By working hands-on with partners, you gain valuable experience applying theories and implementing your creative solutions to complex problems.

In addition, we offer four concentrations within the GIS degree that enable you to focus your studies: GIS for Development and Environment, Conservation Applications, Global and Community Health Applications, and Remote Sensing. Each requires the completion of a set of concentration-specific courses, and each provides a valuable set of skills — and credentials — that will serve you well throughout your career.

Information technology (IT) is at the core of all essential aspects of a 21st century organization, from its public face to its financial records. Business leaders know that the versatility and efficiency of their IT systems could make or break their organizations. If you are a skilled IT manager, your talents are in ever-increasing demand.

The Clark University’s M.S. in Information Technology (MSIT) program will prepare you to excel as an IT leader. You will learn strategic uses of IT as well as pivotal aspects of cybersecurity and data management. You’ll also master tools like Tableau and Splunk that allow you to analyze complex datasets. When you graduate, you will be prepared to take on an elevated level of responsibility in your current position or advance into new roles within the IT realm.

The required coursework includes two foundation courses that provide students with fundamental knowledge of accounting and business analytics, four accounting and three data analytics core courses to enhance students’ understanding of contemporary accounting issues as well as develop strong analytics skills, and three accounting analytics core courses to utilize the accounting knowledge and analytical skills to identify accounting problems, analyze the big data, and provide innovative and practical solutions.

You’ll use critical thinking skills to gather, evaluate, and interpret information, and enhance your leadership and management skills as you learn how to collaborate with diverse stakeholders within organizations.

At Clark University, we’ve created an exceptional launchpad for advancing your career in accounting. Our M.S. in Accounting graduates consistently post first-time pass rates on the CPA exam that are among the highest in Massachusetts. You’ll also gain an edge in the professional marketplace by mastering the skills and critical thinking necessary to developing innovative solutions to complex financial challenges in the evolving global economy.

Our curriculum includes a required introduction to literary studies, as well as elective special-topics seminars in a range of geographical contexts and time periods. Working closely with your adviser, you will identify an area of focus for your thesis research and complete a project that builds on your unique scholarly interests.

Most students earn their degree in three or four semesters. Students must be in residence for at least one year (two years are required for recipients of a teaching assistantship award).

In addition, students must:

• Attend the Departmental Colloquia, a noncredit course in which faculty and students present work in progress, share thesis updates, and hear guest speakers. Successfully complete an oral defense of their thesis before two or more faculty readers.

Our students engage capacities and skills that have import within and beyond the study of literature. Such skills entail:

• Analyzing both written texts and broader cultural narratives that shape the political and social world. Crafting insightful and illuminating arguments. Conducting independent and in-depth research with a range of archival sources.

Business leaders today must embrace a new type of leadership where ethics, corporate responsibility, sustainability, and social innovation are essential for success. So the Clark MBA does more than deliver core competencies in accounting, management, marketing, finance, and analytics. We prepare students to who can meet the demand for socially-conscious business practices.

Build confidence and your resume

Through classroom and experiential learning, you will learn by doing, and benefit from a broad range of perspectives and acquire leadership qualities that are in demand. And you will translate your academic insights into real-world practice through student projects and internships that build confidence as well as your resume.

Get credit for your work experience

We value your professional work experience. If you have spent three or more years in a managerial position, you may be eligible for a course waiver, allowing you to earn your Clark MBA faster.

MBA Concentrations

• Accounting
• Expanded Accounting (offers specified courses that prepare you for the CPA exam)
• Finance (STEM Program)
• Management
• Information Management and Business Analytics (STEM Program)
• Marketing
• Social Change and Sustainability

Clark’s master’s degree in GIS combines rigorous academics with widely varied, highly applied learning opportunities. Our two-year program offers ample opportunities to take what you learn in the classroom and put it to work in the wider world through creative engagements with communities, nonprofits, government, and the private sector. By working hands-on with partners, you gain valuable experience applying theories and implementing your creative solutions to complex problems.

In addition, we offer four concentrations within the GIS degree that enable you to focus your studies: GIS for Development and Environment, Conservation Applications, Global and Community Health Applications, and Remote Sensing. Each requires the completion of a set of concentration-specific courses, and each provides a valuable set of skills — and credentials — that will serve you well throughout your career.

Conservation Applications - Concentration
Conservation GIS is concerned with the application of Geographic Information Systems and related geospatial technologies to the needs of Conservation Biology, Landscape Ecology, Wildlife Management and Conservation Planning. The MSGIS in Conservation Applications builds upon the history of close partnerships between Clark University and Clark Labs with organizations such as Conservation International, The Nature Conservancy, the Wildlife Conservation Society and the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation. Through these relationships, for example, Clark Labs has developed a distinctive set of geospatial software tools for Conservation such as the Land Change Modeler, the Habitat and Biodiversity Modeler, the Climate Change Adaptation Modeler, the Ecosystem Services Modeler and the Earth Trends Modeler. Clark is also in the process of becoming the home of the New England chapter of the Society for Conservation GIS.

The objectives of the Master of Science in Conservation Applications are to gain spatial analysis skills required in ecological and conservation applications including: vector and raster spatial data analysis, analysis of image time series, remote sensing applied to environmental monitoring, GIS programming skills, spatial conservation planning, spatial modeling of species distributions, and effective map communication.

Clark’s master’s degree in GIS combines rigorous academics with widely varied, highly applied learning opportunities. Our two-year program offers ample opportunities to take what you learn in the classroom and put it to work in the wider world through creative engagements with communities, nonprofits, government, and the private sector. By working hands-on with partners, you gain valuable experience applying theories and implementing your creative solutions to complex problems.

In addition, we offer four concentrations within the GIS degree that enable you to focus your studies: GIS for Development and Environment, Conservation Applications, Global and Community Health Applications, and Remote Sensing. Each requires the completion of a set of concentration-specific courses, and each provides a valuable set of skills — and credentials — that will serve you well throughout your career.

GIS for Development and Environment - Concentration
The concentration in Geographic Information Science for Development and Environment is intended for students interested in applications of geospatial technologies to address the challenge of sustainable development. The issues are many, ranging from natural resource development while protecting biodiversity, smart development and planning of infrastructure to social issues such as disaster management, humanitarian assistance, water and sanitation, poverty and hunger alleviation, climate change impacts, conflicts, and migration.

The GISDE concentration builds upon the broad strengths of the Department of International Development, Community and Environment (IDCE), the Graduate School of Geography and Clark Labs. Accordingly, this concentration allows considerable flexibility in tailoring an individual program, crafted with the assistance of a faculty advisor.

Gain knowledge in every step from project inception to completion, including project definition, cost and risk estimation, schedule planning and monitoring, budget management, negotiation and conflict resolution, leadership, presentation, and evaluation. Our master’s in project management curriculum provides standalone skills-based training to a working professional audience across multiple industries.

Our focus is to help you understand the concepts, tools, and tasks of a project manager, while ensuring you gain the practical leadership skills needed to excel on the job. Our instructors have specific topical expertise and provide an optimized learning process and practical application of the technical and soft skills learned. With easy access to an additional portfolio of potential electives, providing expertise in cybersecurity, and IT architectures and analytics, students can construct an educational experience that is uniquely focused on their own career aspirations, including pursuing a concentration in Lean Management.